New or Rebuilt? How to Calculate the True Cost of Potato Harvesting

In 2026, farms are not replacing harvesting equipment on the principle of “buy new.” They decide after careful calculation: is it cheaper to take a loan or lease for a new machine, or to fully overhaul a harvester that has already served several seasons? The difference is not only the price. It is also the risk of losing harvest days to a breakdown at the peak of the season.

What the choice costs

The market benchmark is the Grimme SE 150-60, a two-row bunker harvester. The official dealer sells it as a trailed machine, with leasing, credit, trade-in and subsidised financing options. Dealers quote the price of a new unit on request. The figure of “from RUB 13.7 million” that still appears in reviews comes from a 2021 publication and no longer reflects the market.

The used market gives a more current reference point. Machines built in 2008–2009 are offered for about RUB 6.7–8.1 million, and 2015–2016 models for RUB 8.9–9.6 million. A 2016 harvester with 743 ha of work behind it is listed at RUB 11.5 million, and a 2005 unit with 1,800 ha at RUB 5 million. The single-row Grimme SE 75-40 sells for about RUB 1.85 million on the used market.

This price gap explains why some farms choose a deep overhaul: replacing shafts, bearings, conveyor belts and rollers. In effect, they assemble a renewed harvester on an old frame.

What a machine of this class can do

The harvester has a working width of 1.5 m, two rows and a 6-tonne bunker. It is driven by the tractor’s PTO through a 540 rpm input gearbox. The manufacturer offers four versions with different separation systems: a finger web for cloddy soils and a brush conveyor for stony soils.

ბაზრის კონტექსტი

There are almost no open statistics on potato harvesters, but the grain combine market shows the overall trend. Before 2022, Western manufacturers held 30–35% of that market. By 2023, their share had fallen to 3%. Combines were not formally included in the sanctions list, so imports continue, though in small volumes. GRIMME itself still operates in Russia through its dealers.

The risk that is not on the price list

The main weakness of a rebuilt imported machine is access to spare parts at the moment they are needed. According to აგროინვესტორი, more than 60% of spare parts for foreign machinery cannot be replaced with domestic equivalents. Farmers are setting up parallel-import channels and refurbishing worn components. Even Russia’s largest machinery makers acknowledge that for some components, such as hydraulics, domestic suppliers cannot yet provide the required range, volume or quality.

This means that a decision to rebuild requires more than a one-off calculation. It needs a parts supply plan for the entire season, prepared in advance.

რატომ არის მნიშვნელოვანი

Potato harvesting has a narrow time window: frost and rain will not wait while a replacement gearbox is found. Borrowing costs are falling slowly. In September 2026, the Bank of Russia kept its key rate at 14%. That is well below the 21% peak of autumn 2024, but still expensive for capital-intensive purchases. Farms should compare the total cost of ownership: the machine’s price, repairs, a stock of spare components, and the cost of a single day of downtime during harvest.

The topic was raised by practitioners in the MAX messenger chat «КАРТОФЕЛЬ И Т.Д. (Potato etc.)», a community of more than 1,100 potato growers and industry specialists. Participants are not named. შემოუერთდით დისკუსიას.