Wow! After watching your vid Zach it really brings home how reliant we've become on GPS technology. If access to that tech is ever interrupted for any period of time (Solar Flares, CME's, etc.) that could become a real disruptor to a farmers economy. Thankfully you're still of the generation that can "still drive a stick" so to speak. Future generations of farmers who may not know anything besides high tech might be disadvantaged.
Nah if you know what you’re doing losing GPS on these are not that big of a deal. Biggest headache would be planting but if you’re smart and still order planters with row markers then the GPS going down won’t hurt at all. Plowing & ripping and everything can be ran with no GPS as well. We’re reliant on it making things cheaper but it has definitely not taken the skill away from us
You don’t need a signal from space. There is plenty of technologie to use signals from earth. With a couple of antenna’s strategically placed you can be even more accurate than with gps. If gps would go out without any warning that would be bad. If there is a gradual decrease in gps reliability tech will get chance with it.
As someone who spent 25 years designing automated control systems I can certainly agree. For a while the "old" operators can handle a control system failure. It's like riding a bicycle. But after a few years the experience fades. Then there are the new operators that never had to run a system manually. They can be totally lost. Just as most kids today don't know how to "drive a stick", few know how to adjust the dwell on an engine ignition or adjust valves. Automation is a great thing in that it can take a person with little knowledge and make them a relatively great operator. It usually makes a tremendous boost in efficiency and productivity. But it eliminates the need to learn at the school of hard knocks. In the future a lot of people will not know how to steer with a "manual" steering wheel, let alone adjust a planter just as most of us today don't know how to plow with a horse.
Helper C is stuck in mud Helper D found the dam Helper E kept on driving with a grinding finial drive Helper F turned to hard an jackknifed the PTO shaft Helper G tuned to wide and got tangled in the fence.
I’ve worked with automation as an electrician and electronics technician for forty years. I have several questions for all farm machinery manufacturers. 1. Are your service techs going to be trained well enough to get the equipment up and running quickly? 2. Are the dealers going to have enough parts in stock to cover the exact same problem, at three or four different farms, at the same time. 3. There is a lot of electronics involved in every piece of equipment. Are farmers allowed to work on THEIR equipment or are they required to call out a serviceman for every problem? Time will tell if this will work out or if there will be a huge increase in the price of used equipment.
At 67 years of age and having grown up in Northern Indiana... in the heart of farm counrty and Amish Country... (Mom used to be Amish), and I have helped my Amish family do farm work... Where our farming equipment is today is absolutely amazing... What's not being addressed is the cost... efectively... in my opinion, this system would out of the price range of most small farms... Additionally... this farming is in fields that are just about perfect... no rocks to deal with... no broken tiles or wet spots... no trash in the field that would cause issues... no fox holes, or ground hogs.. or wild hogs... It's a great idea... but in watching your vidieo's.. respectfully... things break... and need to be fixed... How many times in any one of your video's do yo contact support... because of issues... Absolutely amazing at where farming has gone, and I love it... But I'm thinking it's a little bit ahead of it's time..
the magic might be in a planned farm-scape at scale - so a foundation platform like bronze age Hittite cities (4 Sections?) that controls for topography and hydrology. :)
The expenses are a concern, to be sure, but another number we're wrapping our minds around are how few people are actually willing to do this work at all. I grew up on a ranch/farm, only 110 acres but we irrigated (canvas dams, dirt ditches. A metal headgate was an innovation in the area when we got to Utah in 1972.) The folks did okay, selling 100 head of cattle and the place when I went into full time employment out of state. I learned a lot, but I don't miss building fences in July. Back then, John Deere was making inroads and seeing a tractor with a cab was an object of envy. Today, it's just so many levels difference being why I watch this channel. It's almost science fiction to me.
Autonomous is great until it isn't. Break a hydraulic hose, break a digging spade, the roller separates from the tractor, hit a rock, a fuse blows and the system goes kaput..... human intervention is required.
@@Dirtanddieselphotography Okay, but at what cost? Stuff is already too expensive and adds more unnecessary complexity for the simple "convenience" of having the tractor back up itself?
This just in! Autonomous tractor stopped when row sensor was covered in mud. Farmer was called and had to spend the rest of the day riding in the cab because the same problem happened every 5 minutes. Finally got fed up with the automation and turned it off so he could finish planting the field himself. Farmer sued by implement maker because he turned off their automation.
Zack, contact the Welker boys. They installed the "spot sensing weed" technology as an after market kit onto their home built sprayer on one of the Big Buds. Nick did a video on it. Said it saved him 75-80% (?) on chemicals.
That “See and Spray” technology is fascinating but the phrase “36 cameras and sensors” keeps running through my head! The movement and “shock” is going to be substantial the further out the boom you go. I’ll be following this with interest! Come on down south for cotton harvest and learn all about it! You can still find some old style pickers/accumulators dumping into “bole carts” which dump into “module builders” in use. I’d say the newer “baler style” pickers has been the biggest change in cotton harvesting since the picker was invented. No more bole carts (and the equipment/personnel to run them), no more module builders, and easier transport to the gin. Huge changes in cotton farming! We don’t see many strippers here in the Deep South but they are quite common in TX, OK, etc. this is “picker” country. Cotton is a fascinating crop, from start to finish! Oh yeah, it’s really expensive to get into, the prices on new JD pickers start at about 1.2 million bucks!
Super cool to see Zach embracing change, rather than denying it! I’m not saying it’s going to be perfect for a while or ever, but at least he’s willing to show it and maybe try it in the future!
I was a commercial and industrial videographer (retired). 30 years ago we were doing work with Carnegie Mellon University (in Pittsburgh PA) robotics department. They were working on autonomous equipment at that time. One section of our project was on farming equipment doing tillage and harvesting etc. Interesting to see it come to fruition already. Thankyou!
Another 600 laid off in moline, davenport and Dubuque yesterday, 500 in Waterloo in past few months, guess the deere factories are going autonomous too?
Or many farmers can’t afford to buy a new tractor. I work for a big outfit and between the breakdowns and the cost, it’s worth keeping the old tractor running. Especially if it’s paid for.
Anyone that says farmers are just dumb good ole boys and sh*t kickers, REALLY needs to watch this. I dare the average person to fully understand and be able to apply 10% of what you talked about. It was so awesome!
A few farmers are no doubt redneck bubbas, but farmers like Zach are college educated and smart enough to do the job A-Z, but smart enough to bring in the SMEs for the agriculture, technology, commodity markets and financial/legal aspects of the biz
I just stared my job with Deere as a Ag. Tech and I’ve got to say working on these equipment with the dealership programming really helps speed up diagnostics. Love the videos and I’ve learned so much and I believe you helped me get into Ag work
I just love all the negative people. You gave us a nice tour of new technology. All changes start somewhere they in no way said they have all the bugs worked out. Just think of the way things have changed in your lifetime good or bad it is a change. Thank you for sharing with us.
There will be a place/farm for everything shown, just not on most farms. Cost, profit, repair, time and I would say, faith in the technology to perform to even pay-up for it to start with. I could see myself watching these things for quite a number of years while it works and waiting for the next shoe to drop. Thank you, Millennial Farmer, for bringing this to us to see. It was very fascinating to watch.
Mr. Millennial Farmer, I grew up in Holdingford Mn and picked a LOT of rocks growing up... I sure wish there were rollers/autonomous rock pickers back then!
That's automaton a lot of farmers could get behind. An autonomous rock picker that just wandered around the field picking up rocks like a giant roomba until it was full
Thought this new camera was great! Very clear and great quality. Also, appreciate you taking the time to show the latest in ag tech. Sure it has bugs to work out but it will be interesting to see how it evolves and hopefully helps farming to be sustainable. Always enjoy your videos. Looking forward to seeing more about the new grain dryer and how you like the mixed flow vs. your screen dryer (not sure if I’m saying that right).
West Texas harvests cotton November to January, so plenty of time to get down there. San Angelo just (couple years ago) turned cotton fields into solar farms, so there's that issue.
What he didn’t tell you about the cotton picker; the spindles are turning and wrap the fiber around the spindle to remove it from the plant. The doffer is running three times the speed of the spindle in the other direction so it unwraps the cotton off the spindle and the air from the fan blows it in the basket. All of the stalk and trash move out the back of the head and stay in the field. It’s amazing that all those spinning parts stay together. Oh; and the drums are synced with the groundspeed so they move in and out of the stalk without pushing on the stalk.
@@microcyber and have there own pitfalls. So much money for equipment that depends on a company for ongoing support. Deere was / is against the right to repair movement. I tells me they have there own intressed before there customers in my opinion. If deere decides a pice of equipment will not longer be supported you are done in my opinion. Like what Microsoft does with windows 10. Stop the support and force everyone to use win 11. A big pice of equipment for a lot of money with AI in it will only run clean and reliable if the AI will be supportet by the company (my assumption). If Deere decides to stop the support for whatever reason it could lead to potential problems how long you could use a equipment and can impact i.e. future selling price for this equipment. Im not thrilled by this development.
Autonomous is here but don’t take away the cabs. How many times have you seen a sunny day, soil that looks dry and a tractor or combine is buried up to its axles? Keep the cabs so a human can intervene when necessary.
that is wonderful- This will help the farmer so much better. Have it work for you , not take over. And Farmers are not dumb- you guys are pretty smart. Always working on something new.
So, recalling the failed sensor interruptions Zach encountered while planting, will one sensor input stop the activity and provide the owner an opportunity to enhance his troubleshooting skills? Time is $$$ in planting season.
Yeah, time is money, which is why it'd be awesome to be able to send out a tractor any time of the day and just let it run 24/7. With Zach's farm it may not be optimal, since the fields are relatively small and road travel probably won't be possible / allowed for quite some time, but still. Being able to start a planter and then go do something else for a couple of hours is a massive win. Manpower (aka time) is by far the biggest issue in virtually anything, including farming. This will free up a LOT of that manpower. Feel free to believe whatever you want, just realize that by saying "it'll never work", you're joining a group who used to say that planes would never work, tractors would never replace horses, etc.. All those people were dead wrong, and you will be too. It's not a matter of if, only when.
We work a fair amount of rental ground that is small fields, tree islands in the middle of the field, etc. The steel boom on a sprayer can be fixed in our shop, even when pretzeled (ask me how I know…). I think the carbon boom would be a throwaway in that case. Probably fine for the Midwest, but not so much in our area.
It certainly says a lot for your acting abilities when even a dumb machine can recognise you as a potential human. Zach sure picked the right actor to play his part for these videos 😉
Matt Griggs in western Tennessee has cotton as one of his crops and I find him to be very knowledgeable. Would be pretty cool to see you visit his farm during cotton season.
Nick, you’re my age. I suspect your father grew up during the 1930’s like mine. Dad used to tell me about his father and grandfather using horses to farm. Even when he was a teen, his father and Dad’s brother (my uncle) used a two horse team. Supposedly they got their first tractor about 1939 or 40 (metal cleat wheels). I left the farm in 1973 when my parents sold and relocated to Virginia. I am still astounded by the advancement in farming in just the last 50 years, let alone the past 100. One of the reason I love this channel Zach is on top of such new technology.
Autonomous irrigation ( with a Rain 360? ) just went online in a field at Border View Farms (YT) on the OH/MI border...and so far no (admission of) late night/early mornin' calls sayin' that there's a Darth Vaderish lookin' machine crossing a highway draggin' a broken hose...goin' back and forth tryna' make the asphalt wet?...lol...
Automation is good to reduce labor for extremely repetitive tasks. But with that comes the inability fir the farmer to work on his own equipment. Rest assured John Deere will hoard the technology and require their techs to be the only ones to fix issues. That's going to eat up any cost savings from the reduced labor.
I work at a deere dealer west of San Antonio. We start to pick cotton towards the end of Aug and depending on the rain we get We have finished in January before. We have 6 or 7 CP770s running around our area.
VERY interesting video, Zach . . I agree with you - there will be autonomous equipment REAL SOON - to me, it seems it would be a lot easier to make it work for farmers, than for drivers on highways.There is so much more going on around a car on a road, compared to being in a field. Like you said, there is already "auto-steer" and other systems using GPS technology that work real well.
I got to see more of the John Deere stuff from @jennaezarik (as a tech youtuber) and I'm really interested to see how quickly the autonomous equipment is adopted. I think one of the key things still missing is how to detect when your implement breaks or something gets jammed up.
At 2:35 the guy admitted that it's already here. If you can order it, that item is here. Good luck farmers I wish you the best and stay safe out there. It's still a machine.
its hard to watch deere knowing that they resist the right to repair movement, you dependencyi of a company to repair something with eqipment worth more then a view bug is like trusting a druguser he stays clean
@@tasker6669 Seeing a suburban commenter jutting their jaw out over "right to repair" is like watching a reddit commie screeching about the means of production. Karl would be so proud of you, comrade.
@@asmrhead1560 come on, to insult me you have to come up with a little bit more then "karl would be proud" or something more creative Or do you mean "suburban commenter" as insult? Is your attempt of insulting me really the only thing you can write on a comment ???? If you have nothing constructive to say then shut your mouth and dont bother intelligent people to read your comment.
Re: cotton picker. It is a picker because the spindles, which are serrated, spin and grab(pick) the cotton fibers off the boll and leave the plant behind. Back in the day when I was around them, the field was often picked more then once as more of the bolls matured. My guess is these days with improved genetics that may not be the case as much any more. There are cotton stripper machines which act more like a combine in that they process the entire plant.
WOW That is some amazing farm tech!! What bugs me, as with every thing else, the more tech it gets, the more parts that can (and will) fail. And the more complicated the troubleshooting . It is easy to troubleshoot a hammer, or a rock. Not so with a combine of today. Just to say. I realize, the output is the goal, but at what cost?? Great video Zack. I think the camera was real good. I enjoyed it all. Your questions taught me a LOT. Thanks for taking us all along on this trip. WE are collectively , no longer dumb. LOL But, now we know that we don't know, a lot more.
Perfect for the 3000 acre farm with huge, plain and square fields without the smaller imperfection owned by a millionare farmer! Lets see how it performs in hills, lets see it stop and fix small issues, lets see how it judges climate and terrain by sight and experience, lets see what happens if the tire on the planter or grain cart is gets punctured and does not have a pressure sensor... Autonomous tractors are literally a cashgrab, just for rich farmers who want toys, plenty of young people looking for work and experience out there, no normal farmer could ever afford this tech outside huge landowners
This dust thing is something that they will have to correct. The fuel and def that is being wasted is a real concern to any farm operation. Timewise, it's a smaller issue because it's not tying up labor but still something that needs to be addressed. It adds hours to the equipment that depreciates it's value on the back end.
Oklahoma in November in the cold there's some farmers here who do cotton and the reason the back axle is so narrow is so it can turn sharper so if you don't skip 4 rows between each pass then you can turn sharp enough to make that tight of a turn
@MillennialFarmer Imagine how fun it will be to show up at a field that your first AI tractor tilled for you. I'm sure you will be so proud of it for pulling up that giant rock and dragging it around the whole field-that is until it buries itself in the mud that any human would have avoided. These self-driving tractors are really pointless. You have to get out and check everything over and fix things constantly.
The new camera, for me looks fine, picks up the sound ok. If you like it and it lets you capture the moment easier. Use it. Just keep farming. It is always nice to see the process, whether good or bad. Thanks for sharing this with us.
@@MillennialFarmerguess it depends on how much that gained efficiency costs. In most industrial applications, automation benefits larger operations. But in this case it’s a lot different than when a person installs bolts as opposed to a robot installing bolts. The wrench is $20 and the robot is $200,000. In the case of the farmer he is paying huge money for equipment and land already. Adding automation will adds only a small percentage capital cost increase.
in my experience with john deere electronics that episode where the tractor stopped every 10 feet for no reason makes the most sense of the whole video.. within about 200 acres of seeing that you would rip all the crap off of the tractor and throw it as far as possible lmao
Over here in the Gila Valley of Arizona, almost everyone here grows cotton. Its pretty cool to see them harvest it, and the bales from them are massive. I think they start harvest around august or september.
I think there is gonna be a problem coming to Deere in particular. they push expensive equipment to guys that roll it every year and all that late model equipment is piling up in the lots. The small and medium guys can’t justify the expense but the big keep turning it over. I don’t doubt tractors can drive but can it monitor the job or equipment if your big enough to let them drive and just fix maybe it will work I see it being bigger in South America and extremely large tracts
@@MillennialFarmer Old vehicles are better. Easier to work on and cheaper parts. I have a 20 year old truck that I keep fixing. Yeah the new fancy equipment is nice but look where auto dealers are at......extremely high prices and a ton of inventory sitting because the price is not worth the quality. I know a lady who bought a new vehicle and when the sticker shock hit her on the repair she sold it and got an older vehicle.
@@MillennialFarmer It will be known as "Juan Deere" soon enough. What are your thoughts on Deere moving more production to Mexico. Deere pays cheaper labor but the prices of the tractors don't drop!?
@@MillennialFarmerbecause society is groomed to need the latest and greatest stuff…..even when that stuff is said to be more efficient a lot of times it really isn’t with all the electronic bs that constantly fails. Don’t get me wrong some stuff is better and is nice but I feel we rely wayyy to much on tech. I have 30 year old trucks that are just as efficient and practical as todays.
Id say the narrow rear end is for weight purpose, like you said there's a lot of steel moving on the back of that machine. But as the title says we're dumb farmers 😅
If you want to understand cotton picking watch Daniel on Triple R Farms... They farm corn, soybeans and cotton in AL... Another awesome farm channel... BTW, maintenance on those pickers each morning is an absolute pain in the ass!!!
Talking in circles was invented and perfected by politicians. When you can give a speech for an hour, and never really say anything, but make your listeners nod in approval, you will get elected!
I'm no where close to being a farmer, but I love everything about this channel. I learn a ton! I'd even work for you if I was close to where you are. Your humor is like my humor so it makes me laugh. I like the new camera, it appears to be clearer. Until next video.... Toodles.
And three or four decades ago an autonomous railroad was setup and running trains from a coal mine to a power plant with no one onboard(after a couple of years of a native hired to "push the big red stop" button/blow the horn...until that too got automated) down Arizona way! (Wiki Black Mesa & Lake Powell RR)
Nah Auto bots don't eat Bison jerkies!. All this Auto stuff is ok till Shite hits the fan and it's all gone poopey! Bot's say's runs all fine and dandy but had an error so whole field is toast and needs to be redone. Three weeks later when it's finished stopping and starting every time a Bird/Rabbit/Deer/Rubbish blowing around you not got much growing.
DONT GET RID OF JIM!!!!! LMAO I can seriously see the excitement in your face and hesr it in your voice. He told you in about a month it's avaliable and those gears started turning like crazy!!!😂😂😂😂😂
Camera did good in the overcast day. Interesting. My question is when the tractor 🚜 gets stuck. Will it put on it's hazards and unlock the doors. If you are riding along? The automated 🚖 taxi just pulls over and won't let you out. Lol. Actually what would happen if it went to a wet spot, or meets a tile flag. Same with the tile flag missing. What about rocks? Cool stuff though and that sprayer will save you and the environment. The welkers have a system like that.
Coming soon on the Millennial Farmer CZcams channel - we had to fire the autonomous tractor.
🤣🤣
😂
😂😂
😂😂😂😂😂
nah💀
First time it gets stuck Jim is going to look at you and say " still not as good as me".
Wow! After watching your vid Zach it really brings home how reliant we've become on GPS technology. If access to that tech is ever interrupted for any period of time (Solar Flares, CME's, etc.) that could become a real disruptor to
a farmers economy. Thankfully you're still of the generation that can "still drive a stick" so to speak. Future generations of farmers who may not know anything besides high tech might be disadvantaged.
Nah if you know what you’re doing losing GPS on these are not that big of a deal. Biggest headache would be planting but if you’re smart and still order planters with row markers then the GPS going down won’t hurt at all.
Plowing & ripping and everything can be ran with no GPS as well.
We’re reliant on it making things cheaper but it has definitely not taken the skill away from us
You don’t need a signal from space. There is plenty of technologie to use signals from earth. With a couple of antenna’s strategically placed you can be even more accurate than with gps. If gps would go out without any warning that would be bad. If there is a gradual decrease in gps reliability tech will get chance with it.
As someone who spent 25 years designing automated control systems I can certainly agree. For a while the "old" operators can handle a control system failure. It's like riding a bicycle. But after a few years the experience fades. Then there are the new operators that never had to run a system manually. They can be totally lost. Just as most kids today don't know how to "drive a stick", few know how to adjust the dwell on an engine ignition or adjust valves. Automation is a great thing in that it can take a person with little knowledge and make them a relatively great operator. It usually makes a tremendous boost in efficiency and productivity. But it eliminates the need to learn at the school of hard knocks. In the future a lot of people will not know how to steer with a "manual" steering wheel, let alone adjust a planter just as most of us today don't know how to plow with a horse.
Helper B is blocked by an object.
Hahahaha was thinking the same thing
Helper C is stuck in mud
Helper D found the dam
Helper E kept on driving with a grinding finial drive
Helper F turned to hard an jackknifed the PTO shaft
Helper G tuned to wide and got tangled in the fence.
Farming simulator 2025🤣🤣💥
I’ve worked with automation as an electrician and electronics technician for forty years. I have several questions for all farm machinery manufacturers.
1. Are your service techs going to be trained well enough to get the equipment up and running quickly?
2. Are the dealers going to have enough parts in stock to cover the exact same problem, at three or four different farms, at the same time.
3. There is a lot of electronics involved in every piece of equipment. Are farmers allowed to work on THEIR equipment or
are they required to call out a serviceman for every problem?
Time will tell if this will work out or if there will be a huge increase in the price of used equipment.
At 67 years of age and having grown up in Northern Indiana... in the heart of farm counrty and Amish Country... (Mom used to be Amish), and I have helped my Amish family do farm work... Where our farming equipment is today is absolutely amazing...
What's not being addressed is the cost... efectively... in my opinion, this system would out of the price range of most small farms...
Additionally... this farming is in fields that are just about perfect... no rocks to deal with... no broken tiles or wet spots... no trash in the field that would cause issues... no fox holes, or ground hogs.. or wild hogs...
It's a great idea... but in watching your vidieo's.. respectfully... things break... and need to be fixed... How many times in any one of your video's do yo contact support... because of issues...
Absolutely amazing at where farming has gone, and I love it... But I'm thinking it's a little bit ahead of it's time..
the magic might be in a planned farm-scape at scale - so a foundation platform like bronze age Hittite cities (4 Sections?) that controls for topography and hydrology. :)
The expenses are a concern, to be sure, but another number we're wrapping our minds around are how few people are actually willing to do this work at all. I grew up on a ranch/farm, only 110 acres but we irrigated (canvas dams, dirt ditches. A metal headgate was an innovation in the area when we got to Utah in 1972.) The folks did okay, selling 100 head of cattle and the place when I went into full time employment out of state. I learned a lot, but I don't miss building fences in July. Back then, John Deere was making inroads and seeing a tractor with a cab was an object of envy. Today, it's just so many levels difference being why I watch this channel. It's almost science fiction to me.
Strikes me there must be a million fault codes just waiting to pop up and annoy everyone.
Ain’t no way irl has better ai helpers than farm sim
It literally senses dust and stops because of it. That’s somehow worse than farm sim.
yet
Lol farming simulator Ai is horrible 🤣
@@marinecorpsniperit is in its early stages bud
Just as dumb as farming simulator helpers but in real life lol
Autonomous is great until it isn't. Break a hydraulic hose, break a digging spade, the roller separates from the tractor, hit a rock, a fuse blows and the system goes kaput..... human intervention is required.
I guarantee they’ll make technology that detects any issues with the machine before it gets worse. The innovation just doesn’t stop
@@Dirtanddieselphotography Okay, but at what cost? Stuff is already too expensive and adds more unnecessary complexity for the simple "convenience" of having the tractor back up itself?
This just in! Autonomous tractor stopped when row sensor was covered in mud. Farmer was called and had to spend the rest of the day riding in the cab because the same problem happened every 5 minutes. Finally got fed up with the automation and turned it off so he could finish planting the field himself. Farmer sued by implement maker because he turned off their automation.
@@sferg9582 as long as increased repair cost is lower compared to operator wages it makes sense to do
Dust is an obstacle now? Lmao
Zack, contact the Welker boys. They installed the "spot sensing weed" technology as an after market kit onto their home built sprayer on one of the Big Buds. Nick did a video on it. Said it saved him 75-80% (?) on chemicals.
That “See and Spray” technology is fascinating but the phrase “36 cameras and sensors” keeps running through my head! The movement and “shock” is going to be substantial the further out the boom you go. I’ll be following this with interest! Come on down south for cotton harvest and learn all about it! You can still find some old style pickers/accumulators dumping into “bole carts” which dump into “module builders” in use. I’d say the newer “baler style” pickers has been the biggest change in cotton harvesting since the picker was invented. No more bole carts (and the equipment/personnel to run them), no more module builders, and easier transport to the gin. Huge changes in cotton farming! We don’t see many strippers here in the Deep South but they are quite common in TX, OK, etc. this is “picker” country. Cotton is a fascinating crop, from start to finish! Oh yeah, it’s really expensive to get into, the prices on new JD pickers start at about 1.2 million bucks!
Super cool to see Zach embracing change, rather than denying it!
I’m not saying it’s going to be perfect for a while or ever, but at least he’s willing to show it and maybe try it in the future!
I was a commercial and industrial videographer (retired). 30 years ago we were doing work with Carnegie Mellon University (in Pittsburgh PA) robotics department. They were working on autonomous equipment at that time. One section of our project was on farming equipment doing tillage and harvesting etc. Interesting to see it come to fruition already. Thankyou!
Another 600 laid off in moline, davenport and Dubuque yesterday, 500 in Waterloo in past few months, guess the deere factories are going autonomous too?
It's terrible that they're sending the manufacturing to Mexico.
Deere is moving more to Mexico.......they will be known as Juan Deere!
Or many farmers can’t afford to buy a new tractor. I work for a big outfit and between the breakdowns and the cost, it’s worth keeping the old tractor running. Especially if it’s paid for.
Blame the union.. constantly trying to strike.. Over paid workers who constantly under preformed.. just like the teamsters in the ports..
They're moving manufacturing to Mexico.
Anyone that says farmers are just dumb good ole boys and sh*t kickers, REALLY needs to watch this. I dare the average person to fully understand and be able to apply 10% of what you talked about. It was so awesome!
A few farmers are no doubt redneck bubbas, but farmers like Zach are college educated and smart enough to do the job A-Z, but smart enough to bring in the SMEs for the agriculture, technology, commodity markets and financial/legal aspects of the biz
I just stared my job with Deere as a Ag. Tech and I’ve got to say working on these equipment with the dealership programming really helps speed up diagnostics. Love the videos and I’ve learned so much and I believe you helped me get into Ag work
Nice Saturday morning vid drop. Thanks Zach.
I just love all the negative people. You gave us a nice tour of new technology. All changes start somewhere they in no way said they have all the bugs worked out. Just think of the way things have changed in your lifetime good or bad it is a change. Thank you for sharing with us.
Appreciate it!!
Can you imagine what some of the Naysayers said back in the day when they went from Horses to Tractors? 😮
There will be a place/farm for everything shown, just not on most farms. Cost, profit, repair, time and I would say, faith in the technology to perform to even pay-up for it to start with. I could see myself watching these things for quite a number of years while it works and waiting for the next shoe to drop. Thank you, Millennial Farmer, for bringing this to us to see. It was very fascinating to watch.
Looking forward to seeing some new farm tours! some of my favorite content!!
Triple R farms in Alabama does cotton, corn and beans. Pretty good channel.
One of the best CZcams channels.
Helper B has been blocked by an object.
😂😂😂😂😂
Helper C has left the course and stopped. 😂
😅😅😅😅😅
Object reference not set to an instance
@@Chiellus11 List index out of bounds
Mr. Millennial Farmer, I grew up in Holdingford Mn and picked a LOT of rocks growing up... I sure wish there were rollers/autonomous rock pickers back then!
That's automaton a lot of farmers could get behind. An autonomous rock picker that just wandered around the field picking up rocks like a giant roomba until it was full
Thought this new camera was great! Very clear and great quality. Also, appreciate you taking the time to show the latest in ag tech. Sure it has bugs to work out but it will be interesting to see how it evolves and hopefully helps farming to be sustainable. Always enjoy your videos. Looking forward to seeing more about the new grain dryer and how you like the mixed flow vs. your screen dryer (not sure if I’m saying that right).
You're saying it right. Thank you!
A tractor that’s scared of its own dust, that’s the future.
Buuttt...it's in skool...learnin'/cipherin'.....
I had a similar setup in the60's yep the farm owners grand father would sit in he pickup truck and watch me.
My uncle did the same with me, but he took a nap!
West Texas harvests cotton November to January, so plenty of time to get down there. San Angelo just (couple years ago) turned cotton fields into solar farms, so there's that issue.
What he didn’t tell you about the cotton picker; the spindles are turning and wrap the fiber around the spindle to remove it from the plant. The doffer is running three times the speed of the spindle in the other direction so it unwraps the cotton off the spindle and the air from the fan blows it in the basket. All of the stalk and trash move out the back of the head and stay in the field. It’s amazing that all those spinning parts stay together. Oh; and the drums are synced with the groundspeed so they move in and out of the stalk without pushing on the stalk.
Wow, it's amazing to see how much technology has advanced in farming! Definitely changes the way we think about agriculture...🚜🌾
Farming is no longer what it used to be. With these advanced technologies, farmers are more like tech-savvy engineers!
@@microcyber and have there own pitfalls. So much money for equipment that depends on a company for ongoing support. Deere was / is against the right to repair movement. I tells me they have there own intressed before there customers in my opinion. If deere decides a pice of equipment will not longer be supported you are done in my opinion. Like what Microsoft does with windows 10. Stop the support and force everyone to use win 11.
A big pice of equipment for a lot of money with AI in it will only run clean and reliable if the AI will be supportet by the company (my assumption). If Deere decides to stop the support for whatever reason it could lead to potential problems how long you could use a equipment and can impact i.e. future selling price for this equipment.
Im not thrilled by this development.
Autonomous is here but don’t take away the cabs. How many times have you seen a sunny day, soil that looks dry and a tractor or combine is buried up to its axles? Keep the cabs so a human can intervene when necessary.
Thanks Zack for keeping us in the loop ( from Canada )
that is wonderful- This will help the farmer so much better. Have it work for you , not take over. And Farmers are not dumb- you guys are pretty smart. Always working on something new.
Will that autonomous rig come to a stop if a German sheperd runs up, wanting into the cab for ride-a-long?
So, recalling the failed sensor interruptions Zach encountered while planting, will one sensor input stop the activity and provide the owner an opportunity to enhance his troubleshooting skills? Time is $$$ in planting season.
And with all of this high tech, you are going to need an awful lot more $$$ too! Nice & shiny and utterly stupid!
Yeah, time is money, which is why it'd be awesome to be able to send out a tractor any time of the day and just let it run 24/7. With Zach's farm it may not be optimal, since the fields are relatively small and road travel probably won't be possible / allowed for quite some time, but still. Being able to start a planter and then go do something else for a couple of hours is a massive win. Manpower (aka time) is by far the biggest issue in virtually anything, including farming. This will free up a LOT of that manpower. Feel free to believe whatever you want, just realize that by saying "it'll never work", you're joining a group who used to say that planes would never work, tractors would never replace horses, etc.. All those people were dead wrong, and you will be too. It's not a matter of if, only when.
We work a fair amount of rental ground that is small fields, tree islands in the middle of the field, etc. The steel boom on a sprayer can be fixed in our shop, even when pretzeled (ask me how I know…). I think the carbon boom would be a throwaway in that case. Probably fine for the Midwest, but not so much in our area.
Time for new equipment!! Blade time helping the county😁 keep up the great work and fun learning
You need a constant flow of filtered air at each camera to protect them from dust.
It certainly says a lot for your acting abilities when even a dumb machine can recognise you as a potential human. Zach sure picked the right actor to play his part for these videos 😉
Welkers have a see & spray system on a converted Big Bud. It has blue lights on it, really easy to see at night. He said they’re seeing a big savings.
Matt Griggs in western Tennessee has cotton as one of his crops and I find him to be very knowledgeable. Would be pretty cool to see you visit his farm during cotton season.
I’m 73. Lifelong farmer. Seen incredible changes in agriculture. Autonomous farming in some locations will definitely happen!
Nick, you’re my age. I suspect your father grew up during the 1930’s like mine. Dad used to tell me about his father and grandfather using horses to farm. Even when he was a teen, his father and Dad’s brother (my uncle) used a two horse team. Supposedly they got their first tractor about 1939 or 40 (metal cleat wheels). I left the farm in 1973 when my parents sold and relocated to Virginia. I am still astounded by the advancement in farming in just the last 50 years, let alone the past 100. One of the reason I love this channel Zach is on top of such new technology.
@@diamondjim7560 Very similar story here. All my family from the Shenandoah Valley. Grew up on a dairy farm but I’m a crop farmer
Autonomous irrigation ( with a Rain 360? ) just went online in a field at Border View Farms (YT) on the OH/MI border...and so far no (admission of) late night/early mornin' calls sayin' that there's a Darth Vaderish lookin' machine crossing a highway draggin' a broken hose...goin' back and forth tryna' make the asphalt wet?...lol...
Lol. Your wise beyond your years. As some would say
It's going from replacing the less skilled labor to now replacing the advanced skilled labor with better automated labor.
Robots don't pay taxes & they don't buy products, so really, where is the gain?
@ronw59 exactly and who end up with all the money at the end ? And even then who is going to pay for everyone to sit on the couch
@@chriss7930 Shhh, those questions aren't allowed! We are not supposed to look behind the curtain.
Automation is good to reduce labor for extremely repetitive tasks.
But with that comes the inability fir the farmer to work on his own equipment. Rest assured John Deere will hoard the technology and require their techs to be the only ones to fix issues.
That's going to eat up any cost savings from the reduced labor.
@@donh6416 As they do already. Yes you can bet they will.
I work at a deere dealer west of San Antonio. We start to pick cotton towards the end of Aug and depending on the rain we get We have finished in January before. We have 6 or 7 CP770s running around our area.
VERY interesting video, Zach . . I agree with you - there will be autonomous equipment REAL SOON - to me, it seems it would be a lot easier to make it work for farmers, than for drivers on highways.There is so much more going on around a car on a road, compared to being in a field. Like you said, there is already "auto-steer" and other systems using GPS technology that work real well.
Available doesn’t mean affordable. Let me know when it can fix or repair the breakdowns.
Those autonomous weeders that use AI and lasers to only zap weeds are pretty cool too.
carbon robotics
Wow, That was a very interesting and fascinating video Zach. Good job!!! How things are changing so fast with technology amazes me.
Thank you for your sacrifice to take the time to show us what goes on in Zach's world. I have run a road grader, but it was all me, no auto controls.
Soon there will be no farmers, just technicians. Millennial Farmer will be Millennial Mechanic
I heard years ago,a farmer could do his field work while sitting in a lawn chair under a shade tree having a beer. Thinking that day is coming
yes, so is automation for whatever job you and I do. I am a programmer, and you can gain fame and money if you find a way to automate one more job!
Kids will monitor equipment as if it's a game.
Until it goes haywire...
Gentleman Farmer around da corner?
Except it won't be a farmer, it will be someone working for the trillionaire who bought the farms pushing a resume button for 200 machines.
Thank you for a over 30min video with only few ads! 👍
I got to see more of the John Deere stuff from @jennaezarik (as a tech youtuber) and I'm really interested to see how quickly the autonomous equipment is adopted. I think one of the key things still missing is how to detect when your implement breaks or something gets jammed up.
At 2:35 the guy admitted that it's already here. If you can order it, that item is here. Good luck farmers I wish you the best and stay safe out there. It's still a machine.
its hard to watch deere knowing that they resist the right to repair movement, you dependencyi of a company to repair something with eqipment worth more then a view bug is like trusting a druguser he stays clean
if you want it
@@tasker6669 Seeing a suburban commenter jutting their jaw out over "right to repair" is like watching a reddit commie screeching about the means of production. Karl would be so proud of you, comrade.
@@asmrhead1560 come on, to insult me you have to come up with a little bit more then "karl would be proud" or something more creative
Or do you mean "suburban commenter" as insult?
Is your attempt of insulting me really the only thing you can write on a comment ????
If you have nothing constructive to say then shut your mouth and dont bother intelligent people to read your comment.
seat sensors disconnected then?
kinda cool in a way, you could set your tractor like a alarm clock to do it's thing and maybe........just maybe farmers could sleep in for a change
Re: cotton picker. It is a picker because the spindles, which are serrated, spin and grab(pick) the cotton fibers off the boll and leave the plant behind. Back in the day when I was around them, the field was often picked more then once as more of the bolls matured. My guess is these days with improved genetics that may not be the case as much any more. There are cotton stripper machines which act more like a combine in that they process the entire plant.
WOW That is some amazing farm tech!! What bugs me, as with every thing else, the more tech it gets, the more parts that can (and will) fail. And the more complicated the troubleshooting . It is easy to troubleshoot a hammer, or a rock. Not so with a combine of today. Just to say. I realize, the output is the goal, but at what cost?? Great video Zack. I think the camera was real good. I enjoyed it all. Your questions taught me a LOT. Thanks for taking us all along on this trip. WE are collectively , no longer dumb. LOL But, now we know that we don't know, a lot more.
Perfect for the 3000 acre farm with huge, plain and square fields without the smaller imperfection owned by a millionare farmer!
Lets see how it performs in hills, lets see it stop and fix small issues, lets see how it judges climate and terrain by sight and experience, lets see what happens if the tire on the planter or grain cart is gets punctured and does not have a pressure sensor...
Autonomous tractors are literally a cashgrab, just for rich farmers who want toys, plenty of young people looking for work and experience out there, no normal farmer could ever afford this tech outside huge landowners
Definitely better camera for sure!!.....who knew Zach could grow facial hair.....Always thought he was stuck in peach fuz stage!! 😂😂
The biggest downside early on will be taking an already $500k+ machine and doubling or tripling the price tag.
Amazing technology! Very cool to see this stuff Zach! Thanks!
It's obviously too windy to plow. Have a Bush Lite and call it a day
I didn’t see a plow anywhere in the video
This dust thing is something that they will have to correct. The fuel and def that is being wasted is a real concern to any farm operation. Timewise, it's a smaller issue because it's not tying up labor but still something that needs to be addressed. It adds hours to the equipment that depreciates it's value on the back end.
The dust issue has already been addressed!
@@MillennialFarmer Good to hear! Thanks.
I'd love watching ur channel all the time learning alot from ur channel. I'm a over the road truck Driver now.
Oklahoma in November in the cold there's some farmers here who do cotton and the reason the back axle is so narrow is so it can turn sharper so if you don't skip 4 rows between each pass then you can turn sharp enough to make that tight of a turn
I'll always respect the farmer first, regardless of the technology.
Welcome to Jim's retirement party.
Oof
We can't let Jim retire...
@@MillennialFarmer ever!
@MillennialFarmer Imagine how fun it will be to show up at a field that your first AI tractor tilled for you. I'm sure you will be so proud of it for pulling up that giant rock and dragging it around the whole field-that is until it buries itself in the mud that any human would have avoided. These self-driving tractors are really pointless. You have to get out and check everything over and fix things constantly.
Someone needs to teach onyx how to get stuck 😂
The new camera, for me looks fine, picks up the sound ok. If you like it and it lets you capture the moment easier. Use it. Just keep farming. It is always nice to see the process, whether good or bad. Thanks for sharing this with us.
The sound and video quality was great. Better than before. 😊
It all sounds good until something breaks.
Big farmers will just be out there babysitting tractors like toddlers.
RIP to all the small farmers who got bought out of the business..
Or, might this help the smaller operations who can benefit more from gained efficiency?
@@MillennialFarmer That's still quite a few unemployed people no matter how it's spun
@@MillennialFarmerguess it depends on how much that gained efficiency costs.
In most industrial applications, automation benefits larger operations. But in this case it’s a lot different than when a person installs bolts as opposed to a robot installing bolts. The wrench is $20 and the robot is $200,000. In the case of the farmer he is paying huge money for equipment and land already. Adding automation will adds only a small percentage capital cost increase.
@@MillennialFarmer no. You mean the efficiency of stopping every 5 yards because dust?😅
@@myklaaron7879that was adjusted and fixed before the end of the day
in my experience with john deere electronics that episode where the tractor stopped every 10 feet for no reason makes the most sense of the whole video.. within about 200 acres of seeing that you would rip all the crap off of the tractor and throw it as far as possible lmao
Over here in the Gila Valley of Arizona, almost everyone here grows cotton. Its pretty cool to see them harvest it, and the bales from them are massive. I think they start harvest around august or september.
You should make more podcast episodes on off the husk.
It's not for the medium the small farmers hate to see the sticker price on that
Honestly, it wasn't NEARLY as high as I was expecting. The AI cameras can be added to many tractors 2020 and newer already
@@MillennialFarmerI won’t own a 2020 or newer tractor for 20 more years. (800 acre Iowa operation)
And mid size farmers are often the ones who are short on help or can't justify hiring.
I think there is gonna be a problem coming to Deere in particular. they push expensive equipment to guys that roll it every year and all that late model equipment is piling up in the lots. The small and medium guys can’t justify the expense but the big keep turning it over. I don’t doubt tractors can drive but can it monitor the job or equipment if your big enough to let them drive and just fix maybe it will work I see it being bigger in South America and extremely large tracts
Once this gets honed and the costs go down, it will be large corporations that buy off small and medium farmers and take over.
We don't need an autonomous tractor package. We need a snap of the finger package. Great video. All the best 🇬🇧.
You should come down to Missouri in the fall for cotton harvest. Cotton is one of the most beautiful farm plants. I live in the bootheel of Missouri.
I watched the Fendt grain cart and tractor video and was really impressed.
No more blaming Jim for getting stuck
Great video. That cotton harvester looks intriguing.
Loved the doggie imiation sign off .❤😊 Very fun and interesting video. So glad you did the trip. Thanks. Like your normal home camera best.
Like modern vehicles, more things to break and more expensive to fix.
ZAKKERLY. and it's often 'puter stuff no mere mortal can fix
Also way more efficient. If old vehicles are better, why are there so few on the road?
@@MillennialFarmer Old vehicles are better. Easier to work on and cheaper parts. I have a 20 year old truck that I keep fixing. Yeah the new fancy equipment is nice but look where auto dealers are at......extremely high prices and a ton of inventory sitting because the price is not worth the quality. I know a lady who bought a new vehicle and when the sticker shock hit her on the repair she sold it and got an older vehicle.
@@MillennialFarmer It will be known as "Juan Deere" soon enough. What are your thoughts on Deere moving more production to Mexico. Deere pays cheaper labor but the prices of the tractors don't drop!?
@@MillennialFarmerbecause society is groomed to need the latest and greatest stuff…..even when that stuff is said to be more efficient a lot of times it really isn’t with all the electronic bs that constantly fails. Don’t get me wrong some stuff is better and is nice but I feel we rely wayyy to much on tech. I have 30 year old trucks that are just as efficient and practical as todays.
Id say the narrow rear end is for weight purpose, like you said there's a lot of steel moving on the back of that machine. But as the title says we're dumb farmers 😅
Combines hold 30,000+ lbs of corn and have the back wheels at 120"spacing.
If you want to understand cotton picking watch Daniel on Triple R Farms... They farm corn, soybeans and cotton in AL... Another awesome farm channel... BTW, maintenance on those pickers each morning is an absolute pain in the ass!!!
Great to watch.
This is kool, you'll be able to watch your tractor from your phone, gps view going along, cameras in cab on field equipment like each planter row, WOW
Onyx would be pretty happy if you brought that road grader home...
So would I!!😂
Talking in circles was invented and perfected by politicians. When you can give a speech for an hour, and never really say anything, but make your listeners nod in approval, you will get elected!
Very cool, thanks for sharing! Camera tech looked good!
I'm no where close to being a farmer, but I love everything about this channel. I learn a ton! I'd even work for you if I was close to where you are. Your humor is like my humor so it makes me laugh. I like the new camera, it appears to be clearer.
Until next video.... Toodles.
We have 86 robot mining trucks all komatsu 930e here in australia so it is coming to farming you'll love it
And three or four decades ago an autonomous railroad was setup and running trains from a coal mine to a power plant with no one onboard(after a couple of years of a native hired to "push the big red stop" button/blow the horn...until that too got automated) down Arizona way! (Wiki Black Mesa & Lake Powell RR)
And 86 people aren’t working and putting food on the table. And the fat man gets fatter
Nah Auto bots don't eat Bison jerkies!. All this Auto stuff is ok till Shite hits the fan and it's all gone poopey! Bot's say's runs all fine and dandy but had an error so whole field is toast and needs to be redone.
Three weeks later when it's finished stopping and starting every time a Bird/Rabbit/Deer/Rubbish blowing around you not got much growing.
very good video. one of your best videos, wind was not a problem. you're getting better
Love this stuff, thanks man!
Now skynet controls our food, we're doomed
So when do we get autonomous virtual millennial Farmer You tube presenters?
Surprise surprise, for the past six months you've been watching AI millennial farmer and I have to say, personality is an improvement 😂
DONT GET RID OF JIM!!!!! LMAO I can seriously see the excitement in your face and hesr it in your voice. He told you in about a month it's avaliable and those gears started turning like crazy!!!😂😂😂😂😂
@TripleRFarms would be a really good place to visit for cotton harvest. Love that channel! He has very in-depth content on JD cotton pickers.
Your senior years will look much different than your Dad's. Maybe monitoring the tractor while at the race track (Between the Rows).
Camera did good in the overcast day. Interesting.
My question is when the tractor 🚜 gets stuck. Will it put on it's hazards and unlock the doors. If you are riding along? The automated 🚖 taxi just pulls over and won't let you out. Lol.
Actually what would happen if it went to a wet spot, or meets a tile flag. Same with the tile flag missing.
What about rocks?
Cool stuff though and that sprayer will save you and the environment. The welkers have a system like that.