We have a 1360, steel-on-steel. The driveline holds up very well, with the following caveats:

1. The overrunning slip clutch in the driveline: make sure this is adjusted properly. Too loose on the pressure plate adjustment and it will burn up when you get into a heavy crop. Too tight and you will rip the belts in the header up when it needs to slip.

2. There is a sealed bearing in the idler pulley for the main drive belt. You have to remove the top shield on the left side (as you stand behind the header, looking forward) of the header to access the main drive belt and the idler. This stupid, stupid "sealed" bearing can and will seize up on you. When it does, a $10 sealed bearing destroys a $120 drive belt. I recommend you check this bearing at the start of every season and try to get some sort of lube in there. Make sure after you are done cutting you blow any shatter out from under this shield. I keep a new idler pulley (with the sealed bearing in the middle of it) on hand to change out, should I notice that there is any drag on that idler. Last time I checked, the cost was about $28 for the idler.

Insert my standard rant on sealed bearings here.

3. Do not scrimp on the gearlube in the driveline gearboxes. These won't get as hot on your 12' wide cutterbed as on the 15' cutterbed, but they do get warm - real warm - on a hot summer day, trapped under those shields, with no airflow to cool them off.

The only other issue is that the pull-behind mower/conditioners are harder to clean out than the self-propelled jobs. This is due to the belts, gearboxes, etc that transfer the power from the driveline to the cutterbed.

I believe the 40->45 (as well as 60->65) transition happened in 2002. One of the best features on the "xxx5" machines was the addition of an oil level indication for the cutterbed. On the 1340/1360, the only way to know how much lube you have in the cutterbed is to drain it completely and re-fill it with the proper amount of lube.

Thanks for the replies!  One more question:  Are you running the drawbar hookup or the 2 point hitch?  I have a 2 point hitch on my grain drill and I really like it, but I'm not sure how it works with a PTO.  Thanks!

A buddy of mine is on his 3rd or 4th 1340-45. He bought a drawbar mount one and hated it, traded it after one season for the 2-pt mount. He told me that the drawbar mount constantly hooked the windrow. If you are interested in a like-new drawbar mount, email me and I can tell you where it is.

I think it could be made to work, might have to hang a piece of belting below the drawbar like you have to do with a baler. Could be as simple as putting the bolts in with the nuts on top, and having the tractor drawbar set right.

I absolutely agree. I would not have one of these without the 2 point hitch and the gearbox on it so that I can take a tight, tight turn and not wind up the shaft.

Change the lube in that front gearbox on the hitch, tho. There's all that horsepower running through that gearbox and if you put your hand on it after you've been cutting for an hour, you'll see just how warm it is. It is truly a place where, after break-in, I would not run anything but the best lube I can find to put in there.

The 1345 replaced the 1340 in 2002. We have sold lots of this series and everyone is very happy with the units and have had numerous repeat buyers of the same model. They have been horrible parts business! But that's good for the customer. Basically the main things we sell are knives and the attaching hardware. As far as Conditioner Rolls are Number 1 seller is Rubber on Steel, then Steel on Steel. These are the same type roller you find in the Self Propelled Units used by commercial hay producers. The Hitch Type we sell is the Drawbar Swivel Hitch - our customer just love it. It gives you the double gearbox design of the 2Pt Hitch and excellent turning angle and simple driveline to the tractor - no heavy CV joint required making hook-ups easier. The other benefit is you can attach to tractor or it can be pulled by a truck. Out customers are taking a piece of 2" square tube and building a hitch to mount in truck receiver hitch and into the drawbar swivel hitch to transport machines if tractor is needed for another operation. The disadvantage our customer's have with the 2pt is you must use a tractor to move it.