Balancing Mulchers and Rotating Elements in Combines and Harvesters
Introduction: The Importance of Balancing
Imbalance in rotating equipment can occur not only due to wear and tear but also as a result of maintenance activities such as blade replacement, bearing changes, and welding work. Therefore, the need for balancing the rotors of mulchers and agricultural machinery is only a matter of time.
The Consequences of Imbalance
Vibrations resulting from imbalance not only lead to the rapid failure of bearings and adjacent components but also have a negative impact on the operator’s health. Hence, it’s crucial to monitor the condition of rotating equipment and perform timely balancing.
Types of Equipment We Balance
Our specialists perform balancing work on various rotating elements of combines, including:
- Rotors
- Grinder shafts
- Threshing drums
- Augers – transport, discharge, and harvester
- Beaters
- Self-propelled, suspended, rotary, and disc mulchers for logging equipment
- Equipment for roadside area cleaning
Pre-Balancing Preparations
Important! All repair/maintenance work on the rotor (checking for wear and, if necessary, replacing blades, tooth holders, bearings, shafts, as well as welding work) should be completed before the balancing stage. Otherwise, the work will disrupt the balance achieved during the rotor balancing process.
On-Site Balancing without Dismantling
Work is performed on-site without dismantling the equipment. This allows for quick, highly accurate balancing without unnecessary interference in the machine’s structure.
Tools and Methodology
For measuring vibration levels and performing the balancing, we use a portable balancing and vibration analyzer, Balanset-1A.
Adhering to Standards
During the balancing process, we aim to achieve the lowest residual imbalance and adhere to the balancing accuracy as per ISO 21940-11 (formerly ISO 1940-1) for the respective class of equipment. The permissible value can be checked with our residual unbalance calculator.
Conclusion
Balancing is not just a maintenance task but a critical operation that affects the longevity and efficiency of your machinery. With the right tools and expertise, this process can be conducted quickly and effectively, ensuring the long-term reliability of your rotating equipment.
Nikolai Shelkovenko
Nikolai Shelkovenko is a vibration analysis engineer and the founder and CEO of Vibromera. For more than 15 years he has balanced rotating equipment in the field rather than on a test bench: mulchers, industrial fans, crushers, centrifuges, shafts and spindles. That work is what the Balanset instruments grew out of — they were designed as a tool a specialist can carry to the machine and use alone, on site, not as laboratory equipment. Vibromera was founded in 2017 and has been based in Porto, Portugal, since 2023. Development, assembly and support of the Balanset line all happen here. The flagship instrument is the Balanset-1A, a portable analyser for single- and two-plane balancing and for vibration diagnostics. Nikolai is personally involved in customer support, in working through difficult balancing cases and in the development of the software. He works with customers worldwide, in any language.
