KALANNIE farming brothers Alan and Vic Dodd have two extra tools in the tool box for this harvest integrated into their new Case IH 8240 header.

One is a new Cropscan protein analyser and the other is a Seed Terminator which was transferred from their previous 7240 model, traded into Boekeman Machinery Dalwallinu for the 8240.

The Cropscan includes a remote sampling head, mounted on the clean grain elevator within the header.

The grain flows into the sample chamber where light passes through the sample and is collected by a fibre optic cable on the opposite side.

The fibre optic cable transmits the light back to the Near Infrared (NIR) spectrometer generating the spectrum of the grain representing the amount of light that is absorbed at each frequency.

Protein, moisture, oil and carbohydrates absorb NIR light at specific frequencies and the amount of light absorbed is proportional to the concentration.

The whole system can be managed and monitored using the in-cab touch-screen which controls the flap motors, the motion sensors and computes the percentage of protein, moisture and oil using the NIR spectrum generated in the NIR spectrometer.

The analyser also provides header bin and field bin averages and the ability to manage silo averages.

The system also provides real-time grain quality maps that can be displayed in-cab or remotely.

From here data can be imported into desktop software to create variable rate maps.

"The Cropscan is going to help us with our yield and protein maps for variable rate applications," Vic Dodd said.

"We're hoping the information we get will help us get the most out of our paddocks in terms of yield and protein with less inputs.

"It gives you instant readouts of protein and you can allocate loads to different bins with everything being recorded as you go.

"So you've got all that information in front of you when you want to shandy a load, for example.

"It's going to be a handy management tool when you're faced with a lot of decisions in pressure situations to get the crop off."

The Dodds have had their Seed Termintor for three years but wanted more horsepower which is why they opted for the 8240.

"The horsepower requirements takes about a class away (eg, 8 to 7) from a header and its important to have that extra power in big crops," Mr Dodd said.

"The switch we made from a 7 to an 8 makes the Terminator gold.

"We've still got a lot of low-lying ryegrass so we're cutting low and taking in more material which is why you need the extra horsepower but it's a numbers game and you've got to keep the hammer on the numbers."

The Seed Terminator has performed well for the Dodds, replacing a set of mills in the first year after harvesting 3500 hectares.

"But we've still got the 2019 replacement set in there, which has been upgraded to a harder material."

According to the company, the new multi-stage hammer mill technology is now trade-marked as Aero-IMPACT 3.

The company claims a 98 per cent kill regardless of moisture level or mill speeds between 2500 and 3000rpm.

"The mill set will totally devitalise volunteers at 1500rpm whereas other mills have to operate at 3000rpm to achieve the same result," said WA company representative Brett Asphar.

"The Seed Terminator can spread the chaff at a fraction of the full-cut width, improving potassium value in the soil."

The Seed Terminator incorporates a mechanical drive system that is driven by the header engine, with minimal moving parts, incorporating only shafts, belts and a gearbox.

When transferring the Seed Terminator from the 7240 to the 8240, the Dodds opted for a new CNH-drive with triple lip belts to replace the double drive to improve grip to avoid any belt slippage in tough conditions.

"It's working really well and we're hoping with our other strategies we can keep a handle on ryegrass numbers," Mr Dodd said.

"We don't have a lot of ryegrass but as we can't get the low-lying plants that will create a problem down the track."

According to Mr Asphar, the refinements made to the system are showing less power draw and longer-wearing mill components.

The Seed Terminator can be installed in six makes of combine harvesters - Case IH, CLAAS, John Deere, Massey Ferguson and New Holland - representing 24 different models.