643 or 693

[jeremy in NE]

What is the main difference between these heads, besides the 693
looks like it has poly snoots with a quick fold up system. Are they
worth paying 3 times the money for. Thanks for any info.

 

[TDS]

My dad and i have owned each one of these heads and we prefered the 643. We like the metal snouts better because if one bends it can be fixed easy and if a poly one breaks then it just has to be replaced. The one thing we liked about the newer one was we could adjust the snapping plates from inside the same instead of having to get all the wrenchs out and breaking some fingers!

 

[PreciseFarms]

The good thing is that if you've had a 40 series Deere head before and happen to have spare parts for the unit then they will fit the 90 series. I disagree about the plastic snouts because they are less sensitive to minor bumbs than metal. We have found ways to repair them when they tear or get doubled up. We've found a pipe on the points can do wonders when they get bent downward and a piece of thick steel on the bottom edge of the snout can keep them going longer. You can even use a torch use it to get the plastic flexible enough to bend it back again. We have even "welded" tears back together. Also, you can adjust the stirrup to raise the point up or down when they get hit so the point stays even with the rest. Usually by the next day you can adjust the stirrup back because the plastic has resumed its original shape. We have lots of drainage ditches and of course limbs at the edge of thickets and of course the surprise obstacles in fields and they seem to survive pretty well. Like I said though they are the same design as the 643 with regard to the units and frame. Dad had bought a 643 for a spare and so that two combines could be run in corn at a time. When his cousines retired and acreage was cut in half he kept the 643 for a year and then bought their 693. The 643 was a very early model but still did a fantastic job. You could run it faster and not have a lot of stringy stalks like you got with the 693. It was a non-oil bath but never seemed to give any trouble, just extra chains to oil every morning. If you don't have many obstacles in your fields then I would say no to the triple price. I don't think the folding snouts would be worth it either. You can flip them up on a 643 relatively easy as well. Also, if you really love the poly snouts but not the extra for the 693 then look into the poly kits for the 643. You may be able to do that cheaper still. Other parts for the head will be the same so that won't be a factor at least. Until the 600 series heads came out last fall Deere hadn't changed its units since the 40 series came out in the early 70s. Hope you have plenty to consider. Sorry I went on so long.

 

[comfortking]

Thanks to JI Case for desigening the 40 series heads and letting Deere have them.