CAM-TRACK DESIGN OFFERS THE BEST VERSATILITY

Versatility has been one of the key criteria when designing the R-Series Balers. Due to a narrow weather window and increasing amounts of difficult crops, such as heavy silage, growers do not want to risk losing any more time during the season.

Cam-track technology provides an efficient solution for such needs. The traditional stripper design provides reduced space between the pickup tines and rotor feeder, while the tine motion helps to avoids pinching.

The cam-less technology requires long strippers, creating a dead zone between the tines and rotor. Additionally, fixed tines can easily pinch crops in sticky conditions, causing plugs that need to be manually removed.

Looking at potential component wear, the cam-track pickup features a low turning speed and big bearings on both side of the tine bars. Also, the cam lever is made of forged steel. These features guarantee a long component life and low maintenance.

PREMIUM PICKUP PUSHES HARVESTING CAPACITY A STEP FORWARD

R-Series Balers are designed for the most demanding operators. The pickup features only premium components and concepts such as:

• 2.2-m (7.2-ft) wide pickup, with a 1.92-m (6.3-ft) tine-to-tine distance - this important width provides comfort and speed capacity when harvesting the largest swaths.
• Five tine bars - the fifth bar allows the tines to rake two more times per second versus the John Deere standard four-tine pickup.
• O-shaped tubular tine bars with central spider reinforcement - tines bars are assembled with ball bearings on the central spider, and central spiders highly limit tine bars bending in the very heavy crops.
• 6-mm (0.23-in.) diameter galvanized tines with high strength to harvest the toughest crops.
• Tines are designed to fold to replace potential shear bolt or cam clutch overload safety. 6.0-mm (0.23-in.) diameter tine push pickup maximum intake capacity up to 18 kW (24.1 hp), a value often not reached by machines using cam or shear bolt protected pickup.
• Stainless-steel strippers (exclusive feature) that give highly durable rust protection, perfect gliding capacity no matter the material, and is much more resistant to acid damage caused by additive uses (propionic acid).

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THE R-SERIES BENEFITS FROM THE PROVEN HC ROTOR CONCEPT FEATURING AN IN-LINE DESIGN

By using the HC Premium rotor – a device implemented on John Deere round balers since 2012 – the R-Series feeding system offers:

• Limited distance from the pickup to the rotor tines to reduce plugging, especially in brittle straw or short silage
• Reduced number of bearings and distributed loads along the rotor to increase reliability
• Large 48-cm (18.9-in.) diameter converging augers facilitating crops transfer

The overall result is optimized crop flow that avoids all dead area where crops stay for a long time.

This smooth and regular crop flow guarantees high feeding capacity, especially in short crops such as brittle straw or sticky silage.

ROTOFLOW HC PREMIUM IS THE PERFECT SOLUTION FOR NON-CUTTING USES

R-Series Round Balers can be delivered with a RotoFlow HC premium non-cutting solution.

All other John Deere round balers are equipped with a rotor feeder:

• Close to 50-cm (19.7-in.) diameter rotor for high inertia and feeding capacity
• Hardox® wear plate material (similar to the R-Series) provides long lifespan and high resistance to foreign objects (Hardox wear plate tines provide 80 percent or more resistance versus traditional S700 grade steel)
• Three tines per turn for smooth crop flow
• Tines fully enclose the tube (instead of spikes on the G-Series RotoFlow HC), giving higher tine resistance and longer lifetime

The RotoFlow HC Premium design has been used for five years on John Deere variable-chamber balers and has demonstrated unsurpassed capacity (John Deere 900 Series official productivity world record) and very high versatility.

MAXICUT™ HC 13 PREMIUM ROTOR OFFERS STANDARD CUTTING LENGTH WITH HIGH PRODUCTIVITY AND VERSATILITY

As an alternative to the RotoFlow HC Premium, R-Series Balers can be delivered with the MaxiCut HC 13 Premium rotor.

As with the non-cutting system, the rotor features:

• Close to 50-cm (19.7-in.) diameter rotor for high inertia and feeding capacity.
• Hardox wear plate material (similar to R-Series) that provides long lifespan and high resistance to foreign objects (Hardox wear plate tines provide 80 percent or more resistance versus traditional S700 grade steel)
• Three tines per turn (instead of two on the G-Series RotoFlow HC)
• Tines fully enclosing the tube (instead of spikes on the G-Series RotoFlow HC), giving higher tine resistance and longer component lifetime

The precutter function offers:

• 0/13 knives engagement from the display. No need to leave the cab to manage knives.
• 80-mm (3.1-in.) knife spacing when all knives are engaged, a standard cutting length giving a good compromise between crops quality and power consumption.
• Heavy-duty knives thanks to the double hardening and tempering treatment. Crops are perfectly cut for long, requiring less fuel consumption and sharpening operations.
• Individually spring-loaded knives to avoid component damages when grabbing foreign objects. Compared to a shear bolt or full-set hydraulic system, this technology limits efforts on the knives and provides non-stop safety.

MAXICUT HC 25 PREMIUM PROVIDES HIGH-QUALITY FINE CHOPPED CROPS

For enhanced forage quality or for special application (poultry bedding, fruits, and vegetables application), MaxiCut HC 25 Premium can be assembled on R-Series Balers.

As with the RotoFlow HC Premium or MaxiCut HC 13 Premium, this fine chop precutter features:

• Close to 50-cm (19.7-in.) diameter rotor for high inertia and feeding capacity
• Hardox wear plate material (similar to the R-Series) that provides long lifespan and high resistance to foreign objects (Hardox wear plate tines provide 80 percent or more resistance versus traditional S700 grade steel)
• Three tines per turn (instead of two on the G-Series RotoFlow HC)
• Tines fully enclosing the tube (instead of spikes on the G-Series RotoFlow HC), giving higher tine resistance and longer component lifetime

The fine-chop precutter function offers additional features such as:

• 0/12/13/25 knife engagement from the display. No need to leave the cab to manage knives. When used alone, the 12 or 13 knives set provides a regular 80-mm (3.1-in.) knife spacing and limited power consumption. When teamed together, knife spacing is reduced to 40 mm (1.6 in.).
• Heavy-duty knives due to the double-hardening and tempering treatment. Crops are perfectly cut for long, requiring less fuel consumption and sharpening operations. When cutting at regular 80-mm (31-in.) length, the two independent knife sets extend time between each sharpening process by using the first knife set one day and the second one on the next day (time between each sharpening process given can vary depending on crop type and number of bales).
• Individually spring-loaded knives to avoid component damage when grabbing foreign objects. Compared to a shear bolt or full-set hydraulic system, this technology limits efforts on the knives and provides a real non-stop safety.

The knife slot fillers set is delivered as standard with all machines featuring the precutter. When using the MaxiCut HC Premium pickup without knives, dust and harvest matter can fill knife slots. This keeps the knives from returning to the cutting position, and plugs must be manually removed to free the knives.

The knife slot fillers take the place of knives when not cutting crops. Drop-floor holes are then filled, allowing quick and easy knife re- engagement. When cutting, the knife slot fillers are stored and locked in a convenient bracket located on the right-side of the baler

Hardox is a trademark of SSAB Technology AB.

DROP FLOOR WITH PARALLEL KINEMATIC PROVIDES CONSTANT FREE SPACE TO REMOVE PLUGS

R-Series Balers are delivered standard with a drop-floor unplugging system. In case of a clog, the drop floor is managed from the display simultaneously or independently from the knives. When lowering the floor, the parallel kinematic gives 40-mm (1.6-in.) extra free space under the rotor and converging augers.

By providing a constant free space, the John Deere drop floor avoids bottlenecks existing on balers by using a movable floor with front or rear hinge. No need to have a huge opening (that sometimes causes crop loss); only a few free centimeters (inches) are enough to remove the plug.

The worst plugs generally happen when turning with the baler. The bunch of crops is blocked under the converging augers and the clog must be manually removed.

The unique John Deere full-width drop floor protects the full pickup and rotor width. Even when plugged at the converging auger level, the clog can be easily removed by the operator from the cab.

PROVEN HIGH DENSITY AND BALE WEIGHT

The V451R can produce bales up to 1.6-m (5.2-ft) diameter with a 1.21-m (4-ft) bale chamber width. The MaxD – Maximum Density – bale chamber has been designed to deliver very heavy, dense, and perfectly shaped bales, officially proven by DLG.

OFFSET DENSITY ARM PROVIDES TENSION TO THE BELTS

The V451R density is provided by an offset tension arm that applies hydraulic tension to the belts and not directly to the bale. This heavy-duty component is not involved in belt length compensation, so 100 percent of hydraulic power is involved in belt tensioning.

Density is easily set from the monitor and can be adjusted from 0 to 100 percent of hydraulic pressure. A virtual gauge located on the main working page continuously follows the density increase without looking back to the baler.

Density can also be adjusted manually from the hydraulic valve in case of major failure.

WIDE ENDLESS BELTS PROVIDE DENSITY AND REDUCE CROP LOSS

The V451R Round Baler features two wide 573-mm (22.56-in.) belts, meaning that only three free spaces are observed (one between the two belts plus one on each belt side). Using two belts optimizes bale coverage by approximately 4 percent. The result is significant crop loss limitation and more efficient baling process.

In order to handle huge stress transmitted by the density arm, the belts have no lacers.

An advanced belt tracking system, including wide front pulleys and several guides located throughout the chamber, ensures accurate belt positioning, even when working in slopes or when overloading one pickup side. All edges of parts potentially in contact with the belts are chamfered to avoid belt side damage. A take-up arm manages belt tension compensation during the unloading process to avoid potential belt tracking issues.

Belts are driven by two large-diameter rubber rolls with a large contact surface that avoid belt slippage in very wet conditions. Springs linked to the density arm are located on both chamber sides and give enough tension to the belts from bale starting.

To limit crops from sticking, belts feature a smooth pattern. Paddles on the belts’ driving rolls, cleaning augers into the density arm, and other scrapers located in several places through the belts’ paths continuously clean the belts and remove crop accumulation around the bale chamber.

BALE CHAMBER ROLLS MAKE EASY BALE STARTING IN ALL CONDITIONS

MaxD bale chamber features three powered rolls to improve versatility and bale quality:

• The three powered rolls facilitate bale starting, especially in wet conditions such as silage. Forage is immediately turning into the chamber and there is no slipping risk even with the heaviest bales.
• Rolls are positioned to give the bale a perfectly round shape, regardless of the bale diameter, and the core is ideally centered.
• As belts push crops against rigid steel rolls, high pressure is easily applied and provides high-density bales.

HEAVY-DUTY COMPONENTS TEAM HIGH DENSITY AND DURABILITY

Heavy bales, high density, high baling speed, and high tractor power directly impacts baler durability. The R-Series Round Balers include several heavy-duty components in the bale chamber to meet long lifetime expectations:

• The front part of the bale chamber (front side sheets) – the most stressed area – is made with Hardox® steel plates to limit impact of aggressive crop friction (Hardox wear plate tines provide 80 percent or more resistance versus traditional S700 grade steel).
• Lower Fast Release System (FRS) roll handling a large part of bale weight features extra thickness (plus 40 percent versus standard rolls) for extended durability.
• Tailgate frame is specially reinforced around the lock to handle huge tension.
• Top belts driving roll receive a special heat tempering.

STANDARD SOFTCORE SYSTEM PROVIDES PERFECT CROP QUALITY

The V451R and V461R both benefit from a standard advanced softcore system management:

• Bale core density (different from the overall bale density) can be adjusted from 0 to 100 percent of maximum density capacity from the monitor.
• Bale core diameter can be set from the monitor.
• Softcore system can be activated/deactivated from the display.

Accurate softcore settings allow:

• Production of better-quality forage when harvesting crops with residual moisture.
• To easily unroll core of bales.

Hardox is a trademark of SSAB Technology AB.

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