NW Iowa | Iowa 83 - 10/25/2021 11:59
Would you buy the Fd135 or Fd 235, the 235 is $4000 higher, I assume everything else is equal. These are new.
I pondered the exact same thing. I worried about getting a new model vs a old tried-and-true. I called MacDon and talked in great length with a gentleman who was very informative and fielded all my dumb questions very well. This is the last run of series 1 and then the line is converting to strictly series 2. Some of the benefits that the FD2's provide don't kick in until you get 40'+ like the triple reel. Our terrain doesn't require a whole lot of flex anyway. I somewhat dislike the usage of aluminum and steel together in the construction.
The things that sold me on getting the 235 were:
Deeper Belts - Seems like I can get a big stack of soybeans on my drapers and I want to keep pulling the new crop in but the reel keeps fluffing the stack on the belts.
Direct Hydraulic Knife Drive - The new varieties of beans seem to have tougher stems and I smoke that belt frequently on my knife drives.
Easier Wing balance and Float adjustment. I had to work on the wing balance on my 2162 (FD70 with Case decals) and it sucked.
Standard in-cab draper speed controls.
Grease bank for the hard to reach center auger grease fittings.
I think the $4K will remain in the value of the FD235 over the FD135 (strictly my opinion)
MacDon has a direct comparison document on their website to assist:
https://fd2.macdon.com/sites/default/files/2021-10/MD-1000H4%20FD2%2... |
Buying a Mac Don
