Lull before the maize and potatoes.

[modelman093]

No decent rain in this corner of SE for weeks - ground rock hard.
Pics taken while dog walking on friend's farm this morning + one on same farm 45 years ago when I was a pre-college student with his father on the same land!
Angus

[Scooby]

Interesting pics of yesteryear Angus. Thank you. Looks like the Viking had the same width drum intake as the cutterbar. I wonder if the drum was the same width as well ? And five 726s (or 780s). Could have been either in 1959 I think.

David.

[modelman093]

Interesting pics of yesteryear Angus. Thank you. Looks like the Viking had the same width drum intake as the cutterbar. I wonder if the drum was the same width as well ? And five 726s (or 780s). Could have been either in 1959 I think.

David.

Hi David,
4 x 726 and one 726 Special. Yes, the Viking was almost "straight through". Very fast in a standing crop and fine on the flat but being a three wheeler not so good on banky ground or for that matter if too much lock and speed were applied when reversing! Having said that we had a "golden rule" rule of "no reversing in the combine field" . When there were six combines, assorted grain trailers and more often than not the fitter's truck in the field it lessened the risk of collisions!
It's interesting that my friend's father built what was then a state of the art continuous drier where the larger dried grain bins held 100 tons each. On a good day the fleet shown would manage to fill a "big bin". Compare that with the output of the two Lexions !!!
Angus

[John Gaunt]

Hi Angus, I'm not sure if it was the same model of machine (I'm not a combine expert), but I think Ron Knight had a restored three wheel combine (Viking ?) at Little Casterton a few years ago. Will you be going there this weekend ? If so maybe we could meet up, several of the Cat guys will be there for sure.

[Holger]

Angus, nice machines! Those tracked machines are great!

[Scooby]

Good morning Angus. I didn't know that the Viking was a three wheeler. That must have made life interesting at times.

Are you sure about the 726 Special ? There was a 780 Special but I didn't think that there was a 726 one as well. I thought the line went 21, 726, 780, 780 Special, 788.

David.

[modelman093]

Good morning Angus. I didn't know that the Viking was a three wheeler. That must have made life interesting at times.

Are you sure about the 726 Special ? There was a 780 Special but I didn't think that there was a 726 one as well. I thought the line went 21, 726, 780, 780 Special, 788.
David.

G'day David,
No, but I know a man who will know and can even reel off the registration numbers of them all!
If I remember I will ask him when I play snooker with him next Sunday evening.
The Viking came as both a 3 and 4 wheeler - good article in Old Tractor a few months ago.
Have some other combine pics taken over the years on the same farm and will get them scanned and posted once the weather precludes outdoor activities!
Angus