Claas' Jaguar 900 model series self-propelled forage harvesters will get the benefit of a raft of new features for the 2022 model year.

The changes are associated with the feeder unit, corncracker, and the silage additive dosing system, with further new developments also available for the Orbis and pick-up front attachments.

The most significant new development will be the expansion of the options for the front attachment drive. In addition to the all-mechanical drive and the variable drive for the pick-up grass and Orbis maize headers, it is now possible for customers to specify a twin hydraulic drive for particular benefits when working with the standard pick-up.

With this option, the intake auger continues to be driven via the quick-release coupler, but can adjust its speed in accordance with the length of cut. The pick-up reel is provided with an all-new hydraulic drive which allows it to be driven with variable speed adjustment independently of the intake auger.

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The principal objective of this is to allow it to be adjusted automatically to the forager’s ground speed – so a faster forward speed is matched by changes to the pick-up reel speed.

Important advantages associated with this include better raking action at all ground speeds, with extremely low wear as auger and reel are adjusted automatically to the prevailing conditions. Both speeds can also be adjusted manually by the operator.

Studies of large swaths of whole crop silage harvested using the this set-up in California with a Jaguar 990 showed increased throughput levels of up to 13.7% in extreme conditions, compared with an all-mechanical constant drive.

Claas said these advantages come into their own when very high yields are harvested at low ground speeds, or low yields are harvested at very high ground speeds.

There's also a new, wear-resistant coating on the multi-crop Cracker Max corn cracker, which Claas said provided a four-fold increase in service life length. In field testing, this had been able to process 3100 ha of maize, with some units now entering their fourth season.

For those who rely on silage additives, to simplify dosage preparation for the factory-fitted silage additive system, Claas has developed a practical app to help operators find the appropriate dosage and the correct set-up on the basis of the crop, yield, and the information provided by the silage additive manufacturer.

Key data points are entered in the app – expected yield per hectare; area to be harvested; working width; working speed; recommended dosage; and the size of silage additive container – and the operator can implement the recommended settings using the Cebis terminal.

This key data can be adjusted at any point while chopping is underway. The app is available for Android and Apple via Claas Connect.

Using a second, optional dosing pump, additive injection can now be doubled, taking it to quantities of up to 800 l/h. Control of this is again integrated into Cebis.