A Better Bottom Sieve

[DrWazzock]

The bottom sieve on my old JD 1085 has never been that special and now it’s nearly worn out I was wondering if there are better aftermarket replacements.
The problem with the old sieve is that by the time you have opened it up to cope with a reasonable flow it is no longer rows of holes but just a series of horizontal slots full width like a plain Louvre which lets everything through. It’s as if the fingers aren’t long enough.
I had thought of round hole sieves instead, tried them in OSR but found the original sieve better.
Now in beans same old problem. Close the sieve, too many returns. Open the sieve a tiny bit and pods can through the gaps. It looks like they need longer fingers to my non expert mind. Just wondered what others thought.

 

[robbie]

Are the sieves different in a 10 series to an 11 as we've never had any problem with them at all!!!! Have you got plenty of wind on we run ours nearly flat out.

 

[DrWazzock]

Are the sieves different in a 10 series to an 11 as we've never had any problem with them at all!!!! Have you got plenty of wind on we run ours nearly flat out.

Wind full blast. Beans.
You can fiddle around with the sieves all day but they go from holding you back to letting rubbish through in one click of the handles.
Reading the settings in the manual is goes in about top sieve 19 mm bottom sieve 15 mm but do that here and you get a tank full of rubbish.
Maybe my windboard angles are wrong or I just grow sh!t crops!

 

[robbie]

Might be worth checking wind board. Just because you think the wind is full blast does it mean it is?is the belt stretched or pulley worn?????

We haven't changed our sieves all season we set them for winter barley dad went into some spring barley and said it's doing a good job, I'll leave well alone then into wheat and it was the same again. No losses, good performance and good sample so why mess about.

 

[DrWazzock]

In a “normal” year I leave the bottom sieve at 10 mm, reasonable sample, doesn’t slow me down.
The problems start in difficult to thresh crops where we get tips in the sample. The sieves seem completely useless at keeping them out without having to go like a snail. Top sieve genenerally about 12.5 mm and never really move it.
It makes me wonder what the point of the sieve actually is. If it’s the drum and the wind that does all the work why not just bung a square of weld mesh in?

 

[DrWazzock]

@davidroberts30
Followed your advice to close the top sieve slightly. It’s made a big improvement in beans without putting any over the returns. Very few pods in the sample now.
I think it was the other sieve thread in which you suggested this. Bottom sieve was overloaded with trash. Unthreshed pods can still return via the extensions which are wider.
Thanks

 

[Flat 10]

In beans leave the returns open? Normally just crap coming out.

 

[DrWazzock]

In beans leave the returns open? Normally just crap coming out.

Well I remove the tray extensions completely from the shaker shoe on our JD. All they do is catch weed seed and green smashed up crap. There is still a chance for a big unthreshed pod to fall through the top sieve extension and be caught by the returns though, which makes me feel better.
Working well now. Nice sample.

 

[yellowbelly]

Well I remove the tray extensions completely from the shaker shoe on our JD. All they do is catch weed seed and green smashed up crap. There is still a chance for a big unthreshed pod to fall through the top sieve extension and be caught by the returns though, which makes me feel better.
Working well now. Nice sample.

You looked to be jogging along nicely last night as I was on my way home from market ....

.....obviously, I couldn't see the sample

 

[Badshot]

Unthrashed pods in beans!
I've never experienced that yet.
Poxy things are normally shattering open just by looking at them.

 

[Matthew Britton]

In beans leave the returns open? Normally just crap coming out.

That was what I was taught.

 

[DrWazzock]

No glyphosate, dry spring, staged patchy germination, rain then drought, regrowth on the sand. Some stalks green as with one or two green pods, 90% been dead and fit for a month. It’s a challenge to get a nice sample. But got there now. 17%

 

[Timbo]

Unthrashed pods in beans!
I've never experienced that yet.
Poxy things are normally shattering open just by looking at them.

Lost a fair few beans onto the ground this year even going at it at 12km/hr and the reel in the sky!

 

[DrWazzock]

The spring beans are very tall but go in with reel high and fast forward.
I am tending to combine slightly damper nowadays as it’s going to central storage. Drying charge more than covered by less shatter losses, volunteers etc. We also found the same with OSR. 11% was ideal with a conventional bed. 9% you could it disappearing in front of you.

 

[Badshot]

I did for the first time open the returns flaps and drop what was going to returns instead of the weed seeds going into the tank.
Made a massive difference, and very few beans made it to the returns anyway.

Was quite surprised at what was going round the returns, nearly all weed seeds.
Be some nice rows of weeds next year though I expect.

 

[d williams]

Wind full blast. Beans.
You can fiddle around with the sieves all day but they go from holding you back to letting rubbish through in one click of the handles.
Reading the settings in the manual is goes in about top sieve 19 mm bottom sieve 15 mm but do that here and you get a tank full of rubbish.
Maybe my windboard angles are wrong or I just grow sh!t crops!

Over thrashing??

 

[DrWazzock]

Over thrashing??

Well it’s slow as the drum will go at 500 rpm and concave nearly full open.
The problem I had was small pods in the sample, under ripe, green or rubbery with maybe just one bean in them. But closing the top sieve slightly has kept them out of the sample.

 

[yellowbelly]

No wonder you're having trouble - you've got the feckin combine upside down.