Combines Things Massey never put in production

[Deerebines]

Very interesting indeed! Now, what's the chances you can come up with some pictures and documentation showing some mechanical drawings and suchIJ I'd love to see what massey shoved under the table to be forgotten about. Wonder why they trashcanned the idea if it could have been so successfulIJ Was Massey already in financial trouble thenIJ

 

[SilverTurnedGreen]

I farm just 1 hour north of the former Massey plant in Brantford, and my neighbor had a Massey prototype TX903 rotary combine running on his farm in 1981. It looked a little like the current Deere STS, but more like the White rotary of which Massey eventually bought. I remember the engineers talking about the 70 inch beast, and the only reason Massey didn't pursue production of the "770" was on account of the impending introduction of their rotary combine, which they felt would have superior capacity and performance over the conventionals. Massey also designed a hybrid cylinder_rotary combine (like a Deere CTS),although it never made it to the prototype stage. Unlike White, Massey didn't have a dedicated research plant, so many of their ideas were constructed by 3rd party machine shops and assembled either in the production facility in Brantford or a secluded shop. It was difficult for Massey to conceal their ideas, and the engineers where constantly "defecting" from one company to the other, taking there ideas with them! It's no secret that White and Massey didn't make good neighbours!

 

[robbie]

if only, i wonder what M_F would have been like today , if they had introduced a rotary back then

 

[hv_user]

The story I heard was Massey made most of the white 9720. That does not sound like its the case. There are some of those running not far from here , they have alot of capacity.

 

[hv_user]

The 750 I spoke of is 50 miles away,the rest is in my head. My biggest complaint with Massey Ferguson over the years is some of the things they decided to do or not. There money troubles started in about 1979 and had something to do with it.

 

[SilverTurnedGreen]

Massey built NOTHING on the 9700_9720 combine; - this machine was purely a White design, built by White. The 9720 was basically a 9700 with all the update kits and a different decal package. The truth is, White was quickly running out of money when they introduced the 9720 and smaller 9520 combine, which is similar to the new Massey 8780 rotary. Much of Massey's early rotary technology hinged on patents which were owned by White, and I think the defecting engineers were to blame for this. In the end, both companies lost and Brantford lost over 4,000 direct and indirect jobs from the Massey and White plants closing. It was rumoured that the prototype TX903 combine actually survived the cutters-torch, although I highly doubt that it did. It was quite a machine to see working, though!

 

[dakota]

I always love to read those things. So many nice ideas have been scraped, ran out of money or ended up in drawers. Did you know that the lexion concave is hydraulicly adjusted and opens before a big lump would break anythingIJ After that it sets itself back to where it was. The birotor is in a green drawer right now.

 

[hv_user]

I had heard that but was'nt sure.Are there many of the Claas Massey combines out thereIJ I thought it was interesting when the Massey Claas deal ended , the next day almost the Cat deal made news.

 

[Combine_Wizard]

I'm hearing more interesting tales from the annals of Massey's history. I'm curious to know if there is any truth to the rumor I've heard off and on for some 27 years that M-F had a hovercraft or air-cushioned combine. I know, it sounds like something more out of Star Wars than a real farm scene, but as I was told, it was an attempt to have a mud_water insensitive drive for rice harvesting. I was told the system did not work for lack of control of air flow. It either tamped down the crop before and to the uncut side or blew up the passed straw, making visibility a problem. Is this a real tale or just another urban [or rather, rural] mythIJ

 

[Combine_Wizard]

You are right about Massey not having built anything of the White rotary. I had suspected a lot of defecting on both sides, though. Both were in serious financial upheaval at the time and I guess personnel were just looking for the proverbial greener grass. I remember the area Massey dealers all telling me THEY originally had the rotary, but sold it out as a failure. Only 3 or 4 years later, when Massey [then MCC] bought the combine, the dealers said NOTHING. Had they forgot their big talk or just didn't like eating crow or bothIJ