Combines Questions about the Harvest in 05

Sure, come on out, the wheat looks good here in Kansas! But before you leave home be sure to go to your local insurance agent and get at least a million dollars liability insurance on your trucks and combines just in case you burn some farmers wheat field down or worse yet in case one of your trucks blows a tire or something and crashes into a van full of kids going to a little league ball game and kills two or three of them and maims the rest. If that would happen Im not sure a million would be enough. And if you will have any hired help you will need some Workmans Comp also. And by the way dont tell your local State Farm or Farm Bureau agent what you plan to do because he wont even sell you insurance for custom harvesting. Youll need to get it from one of the high priced commercial companies back East that dont even know what a Kansas wheat field looks like. If you go down to Oklahoma be sure to take along a lot of playing cards or something to pass the time when it starts raining and you cant cut for a week or two. Also have a lot of cash on hand because your hired help will expect to get paid while your just sitting there watching it rain. With the price of combine diesel fuel at about two bucks a gallon and truck diesel at about two forty a gallon, I seriously doubt that three 16s will be enough to cover your expenses

Yep, the wheat looks pretty good right now. I'm sure you could always find some work in Sumner county. (I live next county east) A 48 year old custom cutter from Oxford died suddenly a week ago Sunday, so you ought to pick up some of his customers. Seems like the big cutters always bail out when it rains and move on farther north so they can keep the machines running.

I hope we can get 16 16 16. We definately are going to need it given fuel and replacement machine costs.

Yes Unit 2 I respect a man who can tell it like it is. We carry 10 million liability and hope it is enough. I would like to get three 16's this year what with the price of fuel but do you think farmers will pay that priceIJ We are taking some equipment to Frederick next week will check things out then crop wise and price wise.

Just got the insurance bill yesterday $20,000 for 2 combines, 2 semis, and service truck,and all the other goodies!

for all reasons statet below i would hesitate to do this .seems like anymore we have to keep running until the snow flies just to make ends meet. you need to have a big checkbook to custom cut.

I think you guys need 3 16s, but mister farmer is in the same boat that your in. I know a lot of cutters quit this year, and alot of farmers are buying older low hour machines. We all need a good year.

New crop wheat price in western Kansas is $2.80. lots of luck in trying to get 3 16's.

The number one problem is the price of our grain. I won't deny 3 16's is what it takes to make a go of it but that crop you will be cutting is not going to make the farmer any more money than it did last year and quite a bit less than 10 years ago when it was cut for 10 or 11. It is a tough circle I wish somebody could come up with a answer.

I have allways cut my own grain what does 16 16 16 meanIJ