Deere Unveils Next-Gen Combine Front-End Equipment, Expanded Automation, Productivity Enhancements

To help farmers capture as much crop as possible during harvest, John Deere has released new combine headers, including a three-piece hinge draper reel system and an 18-row corn head with 30-inch spacing.  

“Our goal is to ensure John Deere combines are as productive as possible, and that all starts with the header,” said Bergen Nelson, go-to-market manager for harvest equipment. “These headers are built to consistently feed the combine, keeping harvest productive and efficient. We know that how the crop is taken off the field is as important as how the field is left behind, and all that starts with the front end.” 

Hinged Draper 

For model year 2026, Deere introduced a new three-piece cam reel with dense pack fingers. The reel is engineered for high-performance harvesting, particularly in challenging crops such as pulses and edibles, which have a shorter stature and lower podding. Its design helps recover down and lodged crops, minimizing grain loss and increasing productivity. The dense pack fingers have 32% more tines compared with previous flip-over reels, providing an efficient material sweep from the knife to maximize grain capture. With an ability to maintain a consistent reel-to-knife relationship, the three-piece reel helps enhance feeding capacity. 

Corn Head 

The new CF18 30 is an 18-row, 30-inch-spaced folding corn head — the industry’s first folding corn head with this row size and spacing. The header is designed for growers to match the frame width of 36-row planters to eliminate having to harvest a wide or narrow “guess” row. The CF18 30 can decrease the number of passes by 11% per quarter section, compared with the CF16 30. The CF18 30 is compatible with StalkMaster and is engineered for use with the Deere X9 combine series. 

 Harvest Automation Updates 

Updates to the combine’s automation system are designed to give operators new harvesting-related functionality. 

“These new updates are designed with farmer input to help unlock the full potential of the John Deere combine,” Nelson said. “These updates are designed to help farmers during harvest — from beginning to end. From improving the grain-unloading experience to solutions that help increase the combine working time, these updates are designed to help farmers work in those often-tight harvest windows.” 

Predictive Ground Speed Automation — a part of the ultimate technology package — was introduced with the model year 2025 combines and incorporates predictive inputs measuring crop variability ahead of the combine for controlling ground speed. Two factory-mounted stereo cameras look ahead and measure crop height and stay in front of the cutter bar. Satellite views work with the John Deere Operations Center to generate predictive yield maps based on midseason biomass results. Together, these systems create a smoother harvesting experience, which allows less skilled operators to maintain grain quality. 

Customer feedback provided direction for these ground speed updates: 

• Operators would disengage the Predictive Ground Speed Automation feature when entering different field terrains such as waterways, ditches or terraces. To help better manage these various terrains and maintain the proper speed, an update will incorporate these unique field attributes to adjust the combine’s ground speed through these sensitive areas. 
• Another update is weed detection sensing. In addition to sensing crop height and mass, cab-mounted cameras used for predictive ground speed automation will now sense individual weed patches that are mixed in with the crop by detecting weed-like characteristics of plant shape and height. Depending on the weed density and operator-defined sensitivity, the combine will reduce ground speed as it harvests through these areas to reduce slugging and helping prevent reel or rotor wrapping. 
• Predictive ground speed automation supports wheat, barley, canola, soybean, corn, peas, edible beans, and lentils. 
• New functionality in the John Deere Operations Center will now automatically send harvest automation files through a work planner that includes crop type data from planting so satellite views of predictive ground speed automation can be utilized. This functionality helps ensure all eligible combines have the essential harvest automation files so productivity can be realized. 

Harvest Settings Automation automatically sets concave clearance, fan speed, rotor speed, sieve clearance and chaffer clearance, all based on the combine model, crop type, and geolocation. 

Updates include: 

• Harvest Settings Automation will now include an out-of-crop settings adjustment that engages when the combine is passing through areas already harvested. In these areas, the system will apply defined offset values to the combine cleaning shoe settings, helping reduce grain loss, and maintain a cleaner tank sample in sparse areas of the field.  
• Harvest Settings Automation supports wheat, barley, canola, soybean, corn, and rice crops. 

Productivity Enhancements 

In addition to updates in automation, the model year 2026 release also includes improvements designed to enhance productivity with less operator intervention. These updates particularly benefit less experienced operators. 

• An update to AutoTrac Turn Automation automatically raises and lowers the combine head as the machine crosses specific field triggers, including coverage, exterior boundary, and interior impassible boundary. This update provides hands-free turning, benefiting farmers in several ways, including making it easier on operators who are harvesting at night as crop dust creates poor visibility. The new raise/lower automation helps reduce the likelihood of missing a crop or starting a new pass in the wrong place. This feature also benefits less skilled operators, helping maintain efficiency.  
• Unloading into a grain cart — which occurs about 10 times per hour — can split the attention of the combine operator between unloading and continuing to harvest the crop. A new auto-unload camera and supporting hardware and software are now available to help consistently fill grain carts and reduce in-field spills. The camera is mounted to the auger and senses the grain fill level inside the cart to automate in-line nudge commands on the tractor to evenly fill the cart. This feature also is available as a precision upgrade for older-model combines. 

Gaining More Insights 

Harvest updates available through the John Deere Operations Center give operators at-a-glance views of their farm on their mobile device to help make in-field decisions to manage harvest activity. 

• Grain harvest weight sharing gives operators a view of the live weight of the grain in combines and grain carts that are a part of the farm’s organization. This solution helps grain carts be placed in the correct place, reducing idle time. 
• Grain Sensing with HarvestLab 3000 is now available for all model year 2025 and newer X9, S7, and T6 combines. Through the Operations Center, Grain Sensing instantaneously collects and records the percentages of crop moisture, protein, starch, and oil content of wheat, barley, canola, corn, soybeans, oats, and rye crops. The new hardware reduces potential crop plugging, especially in high moisture conditions, and provides better documentation. 

Machine Updates 

In addition to updates in automation, Deere introduced improvements to its combines. All changes are based on customer input.

• A new instructor seat will be included in all model year 2026 combines. The seat is designed to provide comfort for all riders by providing a larger seat bottom that works similar to a stadium seat. When not in use, the seat automatically flips up and the seat back can be manually folded down, serving as a shelf for the operator. 
• Today’s farm operations require mobile devices — some that are used to complete harvest or other activities occurring across other parts of the business. These devices require sufficient battery charge and users have come to expect that charge to be completed quickly. A dual USB-C charging module is included in new combine models and provides faster charging when both ports are in use. 

To help ensure reliable capture of the needed field and machine data, John Deere also offers JDLink Boost, a satellite connectivity solution to ensure seamless work in fields with little to no cellular coverage. This is a field-installed kit with customized harnesses that allows machines to transmit data in real time to and from the Operations Center across machines, helping support the advanced automation and technologies, and providing information for farmers to better manage their fleets. This feature also better supports remote display access, reducing the time it can take to diagnose a machine issue. 

For more information, contact your local John Deere dealer or visit deere.com.