CLAAS immediately addressed the first of those needs – service – by contracting with a different dealership: Ag Revolution. However, that was not intended to be the long-term solution. 

After careful examination, CLAAS has decided to take a more hands-on approach by investing in its own retail operation, with a new facility slated for western Kentucky. An aggressive timeline calls for a service team and parts facility to be in place before the 2023 fall harvest, while permanent full-service facilities are constructed. Ag Revolution will continue to provide service during the transition as well.

“We have locations identified for our new operation, as well as a temporary facility to meet the immediate demands of our valued customers,” explained Eric Raby, CLAAS Senior Vice President – Americas. “We will be ready to offer sales, service and parts in the area for the wheat harvest in late Spring.”

“Ultimately, our new retail operations will serve those customers once covered by Boyd CAT, however, our new operations will include not just combines, but the entire CLAAS product portfolio” said Raby. “Having grown up on a farm myself in western Kentucky, I am especially excited to see the complete CLAAS brand finally be represented in a manner customers deserve and have come to expect.”

“The LEXION has built a reputation for delivering a mix of efficiency, precision, and convenience,” says Greg Frenzel, CLAAS Combine Product Manager. “These new updates give growers even more tools to achieve the best results while harvesting and make the most out of each hour in the field.”
 

A New and Improved Cab

“The same new cab first offered in the TRION 740 combine is now featured in the 2023 LEXION 8000 series,” says Frenzel. “It provides greater visibility and added headroom and legroom for the operator.”
The cab’s exterior features a brighter lighting package, maintenance steps for easier cleaning, and improved mirrors. Inside, a fully adjustable, pivoting operator seat and extra wide trainer seat improve operator comfort. Additional touches include a new steering wheel, foot pegs, dual-zone HVAC controls, a high-quality sound system, more integrated storage, and thinner A-pillars for added visibility.

New 510 Bu Grain Tank

The LEXION 8000 series features a new 510-bushel grain tank that is shorter and wider than other CLAAS models. A one-piece folding design reduces the complexity and hydraulic demand of prior 510-bushel tanks. Also, a built-in walk-through door makes cleaning and maintenance very easy.

New Pivoting Spout

The high-capacity auger features a new pivoting spout tip to help control distribution in the auger cart. The spout is controlled by a finger trigger located on the CMOTION handle inside the cab.

Increased Horsepower for Improved Performance

Each of the three 8000 series machines receive a significant bump in power over 2022 models:

Slow-Feed Feature

Sometimes a “lighter touch” is best when managing crop slugs or accumulations in the header. Now you can slowly engage the feederhouse from the cab to protect drivelines and belts from high stress loads.

DYNAMIC STEERING

Make those turns at the ends of the rows easier with the new DYNAMIC STEERING feature. Once engaged, the steering wheel requires slightly more than one full rotation (instead of five rotations) for the tightest turning radius possible.

50’ CONVIO 1530 Flex Draper

Take advantage of the latest LEXION 8000 series performance enhancements with an even wider head. The CONVIO line has expanded to include a 50’ version, perfect for small grains and soybeans.

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This flagship line of combines sets new standards for efficiency and productivity. CLAAS LEXION combines are fitted with a machine automation system that makes autonomous and automatic real-time, in-field adjustments with more precision and speed than a seasoned operator, ensuring the machine runs at its highest efficiency.

This award, presented by the German American Chambers of Commerce (GACCs), honors excellence in the German-American business community annually in innovation, services, economic development, and community engagement. For the second year in a row, “The Coolest German Thing Made in the USA” Award winner was decided via online voting, where nearly 5,000 votes were cast. The awards were presented to the winners at the 2022 German American Business Awards on October 14, 2022 at the Chicago History Museum.

Founded in 1913, CLAAS still puts people over profits and works to honor the land and ecosystems they work in.

“We are excited and honored to have the LEXION 8000-7000 Series combine – our most advanced and highest capacity line of harvesters – be recognized by the GACCs,” said Matthias Ristow, President and Managing Director Business Administration, CLAAS Omaha, Inc. “We are extremely proud and appreciative of our fantastic workforce here in Omaha who builds this highly innovative machine on a daily basis. Twenty-five years ago, CLAAS built its North American combine assembly plant in Nebraska because they knew the farmers in North America required a combine with the capacity that only CLAAS would be able to provide.”

According to Representative of German Industry + Trade (RGIT), German companies in the US employ nearly 860,000 people, making them the fourth largest foreign employer in the US and second largest in manufacturing specifically. Germany is also the third largest foreign direct investor in the US, with $564 billion in investment. “German subsidiaries in the US play a vital role in the US economy as they constantly innovate, invest in their regions and local community, support their customers, and develop unique products, services, and solutions for their customers and partners. I look forward to recognizing these excellent contributions to German-American business at the German American Business Awards,” says Matthias Amberg, Chairman of the German American Chamber of Commerce® of the Midwest (GACC Midwest).

“Celebrating with our network in-person at the Chicago History Museum is the highlight of our year,” says Mark Tomkins, President & CEO, GACC Midwest. “I am extremely proud of our members’ hard work over the past year, which has contributed to big wins both for individual companies and the transatlantic business community as a whole.”

“Each of these machines are designed to provide maximum performance, easy maintenance, and the reliability you expect from CLAAS,” says Product Manager Matt Jaynes. “By listening to the needs of our customers and bringing our brightest thinking into research and development, CLAAS is providing customers with a truly innovative portfolio of tools in the baler and hay market.”

The product updates include:

• The VARIANT 500 series round baler will initially include six models in both ROTO CUT and ROTO FEED formats. Each of these models have received improvements that provide growers with reliable, easy to maintain machines with optimized baling density and improved net wrapping.
• The CLAAS QUADRANT square baler is used around the world and is well known for its high stability, reliability and low operating costs. The QUADRANT 5300 series has been given comprehensive technical upgrades, such as a hydraulic drive pick up and an optimized bale chamber. In addition, the QUADRANT has now received the designation to be part of the EVOLUTION series.
• The DISCO 9300 TREND mower is designed to be a powerful, high-output mower without a conditioner, delivering the highest cutting quality and maximum operational efficiency. The large working width of 29 ft 2 in or 29 ft 10 in, the low power requirement of only 150 PTO hp, and the simple operation without a monitor make mowing very easy and efficient.

For more information on each product, see below or visit the company website at www.claas.com.

VARIANT 500 Series Round Baler:

The VARIANT 500 series includes six models featuring both ROTO FEED and ROTO CUT formats. Each model provides growers high reliability, easy maintenance, optimized baling density and improved net wrapping.

More knives for VARIANT 565 RC and 585 RC

The product range includes the VARIANT 565 RC and 585 ROTO CUT (RC) with heavy duty components such as reinforced drive chains, a strong cutting rotor with 8 mm double-tine stars and special knife protection for professional farms with high utilization and primary use of silage. In contrast to the two other VARIANT RC models VARIANT 560 RC and VARIANT 580 RC with the tried-and-tested 14-knife cutting mechanism, these two balers are now equipped with a 17-knife cutting mechanism with a theoretical cutting length of 2.3”. The standard PRO rotor drop floor can be lowered hydraulically to clear blockages at the push of a button from the tractor cab, while the knives are automatically depressurized. To prevent blockages in advance, the PRO rotor drop floor compensates for uneven swaths by being able to lower itself by up to 1.2” and automatically return to its original position. An acoustic signal warns the driver before the rotor is blocked, so there is enough time to reduce the driving speed.

Optimized SMART DENSITY Pressure Control System with Soft Core

A key focus for CLAAS engineers has been the new baling pressure control. This includes a new hydraulic control block with two independent lines for both belt tensioning arms. This means that the position of the tensioning arms and thus the baling pressure can be measured and set independently. In the outer portion of the bale a higher density leads to better protection from the weather. The new density management system also allows you to control the density of the of the bale core. This is a nice feature for those who want to produce soft-core bales, for example when baling hay. The dimensions and baling pressure of the soft core can easily be adjusted for all operating conditions. The newly developed control software optimizes the baling process, so that perfectly formed bales leave the chamber, even under difficult operating conditions or in uneven windrows.

Standard Binding with Edge Covering 

Looking at the new tying system, the first thing that catches the eye is the ideal position of the net roll, which is 10” lower than in the previous generation and enables easy and safe roll changes. The net roll always remains clean since it’s sitting on a roller so that dirt or crop residue directly fall out. A rubber roller underneath the roll of net wrap enables an adjustable stretch depending on the net wrap used. Thanks to the new net brake, which is independent of the roll diameter, an improved feed plate and the new knife release guarantee a reliable and trouble-free completion of the tying process under all operating conditions.

The tried-and-tested comfort net wrap for the fully automatic binding process has been carried over from the previous series in the VARIANT 500. The same applies to the extra-wide COVERED XW net wrap, which is 51” wide to cover the edge of the bale. Thanks to the comfort wrapping, the high belt rotation speed of up to 10 ft/s and the rapid ejection process downtimes are minimized.

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QUADRANT EVOLUTION Series Square Baler

The CLAAS QUADRANT square baler is used around the world and is well known for its high stability, reliability and low operating costs. The QUADRANT 5300 series has been given comprehensive technical upgrades along with the new designation of EVOLUTION.

20 Years of FINE CUT Technology

In 2002, exactly 20 years ago, CLAAS introduced FINE CUT technology to the QUADRANT series. With 51 knives instead of the usual 25 on the ROTO CUT, an unrivaled cutting length of just 2 cm was achieved. The result was a higher bale density and easier bale breakup when used for bedding. With its shorter chop length, FINE CUT silage stimulates the rumen action and minimizes feed residue in feeding stations. FINE CUT straw is also significantly more absorbent than conventionally chopped straw.

New Pick-Up with Two Cam Tracks

The highlight of the QUADRANT EVOLUTION is the heavy duty (HD) pick-up with two cam tracks for maximum torsional resistance and exceptional strength. The pick-up runs particularly smoothly thanks to highly resilient components borrowed from the CLAAS JAGUAR pick-up. These also enable reduced noise levels and minimal wear costs.

The pick-up includes five rows of tines and 18 double tines per row, which ensure high throughput and excellent raking quality. The fifth row of tines allows the pick-up to rotate more slowly, while the speed of the PFS roller has been increased. The feed roller has also been given extra paddles which can be removed when harvesting long-stalked crops. The spring mounted PFS feed roller compensates for uneven swaths. All these innovations enhance raking performance and throughput while ensuring gentle, loss-free crop pick-up.

Hydraulic Drive for Pickup and PFS Roller Crop Press

For optimal crop pick-up, the QUADRANT 5300 balers have a hydraulic drive for the pickup and POWER FEEDING SYSTEM (PFS). The separate protection of the pick-up and PFS additionally boosts performance. The speeds of the pick-up, the PFS and the rotor are matched to each other. The advantage for QUADRANT customers: Evenly compacted, rock-hard bales with hard edges no matter what kind of swath.

Optimized bale chamber with additional HD components

The bale chamber has also undergone performance-enhancing modifications. The optimized top bale chamber plate ensures rock-hard bales right to the edges. Continuous straight bale chamber side plates compact the bales more evenly. 
Factory-fitted side knives and deflectors reduce material build-up in the ram guide area when baling straw, corn or sugarcane – further increasing operational safety and reducing the cleaning effort. The closed bale chamber design guarantees particularly square bales, right through to the edges.

Additional Hardox HD components such as HD bearings for the ram guide, with up to four times the service life, further reduce wear in the bale chamber and the knotter area. These extremely robust and durable components combined with the massive pick-up with double cam track minimize wear. In an internal test involving 40,000 bales per machine under extreme conditions, the new design combined with the more wear-resistant components was found to reduce wear by up to 40 percent.

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DISCO 9300 TREND Mower

The DISCO 9300 is designed to be a powerful, high output mower without a conditioner, delivering the highest cutting quality and maximum operational efficiency. The large working width of 29 ft 2 in or 29 ft 10 in, and the low power requirement of only 150 PTO hp along with the simple operation without a monitor make mowing very easy and efficient.

MAX CUT with Color-Coded Blades

The robust, permanently lubricated MAX CUT cutter bar with its bolted, torsion-resistant design has been proven in the market since 2014. It is maintenance-free and the special wave shape enables the large satellite wheels to be placed well to the front, engaging at two points.

On the DISCO 9300, each cutter bar has eight contra-rotating mower discs. Uniform disc spacing ensures an even cutting pattern. The wave-shaped one-piece base plate is made of a 5 mm thick steel profile and creates a dirt-removing tunnel effect in connection with the skids. The specially hardened intermediate pieces are shaped differently for converging and diverging mower discs in order to enable both an effective cut as a counter blade and a maximum overlap and thus an optimal crop flow without streaking. The MAX CUT mower bar is equipped with the quick knife change system. Red marking on the left-turning blades makes the tool-free quick knife change even easier.

Exemplary Accessibility and Easy Maintenance

Due to the protective curtains that fold out wide, there is excellent access to the cutter bar for all maintenance needs. The caps and mower blades of the counter-clockwise rotating mower discs on the new DISCO mowers are painted red. As a result, replacement blades can be immediately assigned to the appropriate mower discs. The practical blade box is divided into three compartments for red and black replacement blades as well as used blades.

High-quality washers made of brass or plastic and stainless steel screws on the protective curtains and holders prevent the turning and attachment points from rusting and thus guarantee a long product life and excellent value retention. All greasing points are clearly and permanently marked with the appropriate intervals.

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About CLAAS of America Inc.:

CLAAS of America Inc. offers a wide variety of technologically innovative tractor, combine, forage harvester, baler and hay tool products to provide growers optimum performance in the field. These premium equipment lines are designed by a dedicated engineering staff located at numerous factories worldwide and focused on the production and design of harvesting equipment. The design, performance and reliability of this equipment have made CLAAS an international market leader. For more information, visit www.claas.com.