It simply stayed available.
That distinction mattered.
Corn followed.
The machine continued operating well.
At one point an intermittent sensor reading appeared.
Corey stopped.
Inspected the connector.
Found contamination and a loose lock.
Cleaned it.
Reseated it.
Fault disappeared.
Derek recorded the event.
He was not going to pretend the replacement machine was flawless merely because he wanted the purchase validated.
At another inspection they found wear on a belt sooner than expected.
It was changed proactively.
Routine filters were changed.
Chains adjusted.
Grease points serviced.
The combine needed maintenance because combines needed maintenance.
Reliability was not absence of work.
It was absence of surprise large enough to control the schedule.
Meanwhile, the S790’s case moved upward through the original dealership and manufacturer support structure.
Engineers reviewed logged faults.
Technicians inspected harnesses.
A voltage irregularity and wiring issue became a plausible common contributor to at least some of the apparently unrelated failures, though nobody could honestly prove a single defect explained every event.
That frustrated Derek.
It also taught him something.
Modern machines could fail in ways that blurred traditional categories.
An electrical supply issue might appear as hydraulic behavior.
A communication fault might trigger a mechanical protection response.
A sensor problem could disable a healthy physical component because the controller could no longer confirm safe operation.
The machine did not necessarily have four catastrophic physical failures.
It had four times when Derek could not harvest.
Operationally, that distinction did not save the day.
Technically, it mattered.
Eventually the dealership and manufacturer negotiated a financial resolution with him.
The exact numbers stayed private.
Later versions claimed the Deere went to auction for $287,000 and the dealership absorbed an enormous public loss.
Reality was less theatrical.
The machine was repaired, its warranty history disclosed appropriately to the parties involved, and it re-entered the used-equipment market through ordinary channels. Derek’s trade loss hurt, but manufacturer assistance and negotiated allowances kept it from being as destructive as he had initially feared.
He never learned who owned the S790 afterward.
Corey once asked, “You think that thing still breaks?”
“I hope not.”
“You hope it works?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
Derek stared.
“Because somebody owns it.”
Corey laughed.
“You’re too decent about machines.”
“It didn’t do it on purpose.”
By the end of harvest, the red combine had finished its first Hutchens season without a major field-stopping failure.
Derek sat in the farm office one November night reviewing the log.
Melissa came in carrying two mugs.
“How many unscheduled service events?”
“Depends how picky you are.”
“Very.”
“Connector issue.”
“How long?”
“Twenty minutes.”
“Counts.”
“Preventive belt.”
“Doesn’t count as failure if replaced on inspection.”
“That sounds like selective accounting.”
“It’s maintenance.”
She smiled.
“Any days lost?”
“No.”
“Then?”
Derek looked at the screen.
“I keep waiting.”
“For what?”
“The big breakdown.”
Melissa sat beside him.
“That old combine trained you.”
“To do what?”
“Expect interruption.”
He frowned.
“That sounds dramatic.”
“You wake up every morning assuming the phone will ring.”
Derek looked toward the dark window.
She was right.
Before the failures, a call from Corey before sunrise might mean weather, fuel, a truck problem, an employee question.
By September, Derek saw Corey’s name and thought only one thing.
What broke?
That was the cost no loan worksheet captured cleanly.
Not lost crop.
Not depreciation.
Distrust.
Harold came after harvest.
He walked around the IDEAL slowly.
“How many hours?”
Derek told him.
“Problems?”
“Nothing major.”
“Better?”
“Yes.”
Harold nodded.
He climbed into the cab, sat for several minutes, then came down.
“Screen is stupid.”
Derek laughed.
“Corey agrees.”
“Then why do you like it?”
“Because the machine behind the screen keeps moving.”
His father rubbed one hand along the fender.
“You did right.”
Derek felt unexpectedly relieved.
“I thought you’d hate it.”
“I hate payments.”
“That’s not brand-specific.”
“No.”
Harold looked toward the old 4440.
“Your grandfather wasn’t loyal to paint.”
“You said that before.”
“You didn’t believe me.”
“I do now.”
“He was loyal to what earned its space under the shed.”
The next spring, Kyle called.
“My S780 is throwing intermittent hydraulic codes.”
Derek became cautious immediately.
“Dealer look?”
“Twice.”
“Same problem as mine?”
“I don’t know.”
“Then don’t say it is.”
Kyle laughed.
“I knew you’d do that.”
“What do you want?”
“Ron’s number.”
“I’ll give it to you.”
“So you think I should switch?”
“No.”
“What?”
“Demo machines.”
“Which?”
“All the ones that make sense.”
“You’re telling me to demo Deere too?”
“Yes.”
Kyle went quiet.
“Why?”
“Because my decision belonged to my machine.”
Kyle eventually tested several combines.
He bought an IDEAL months later.
Another neighbor stayed with Deere and had an excellent season.
A third moved to Case IH.
Brookings County did not suddenly become red.
The rumor did.
By planting season, Derek ran into Mark Ellison from the Deere dealership at the co-op.
Mark hesitated before approaching.
“Heard the new combine treated you well.”
“It did.”
“Glad.”
Derek believed him.
Mark shifted his weight.
“We should’ve handled your S790 better.”
“You guys tried.”
“That’s generous.”
“It’s accurate.”
Mark looked surprised.
Derek continued, “I was frustrated. But Travis worked his tail off.”
“He did.”
“My issue was that I needed certainty nobody could give me.”
Mark nodded.
“If you ever come back, we’d work with you.”
“I appreciate that.”
“Think you will?”
“Depends.”
“On?”
“The machine.”
Mark laughed.
“Fair.”
Derek bought parts from the dealership again later.
Changing combine brands had not required declaring war.
Two years after the switch, the IDEAL had accumulated nearly nineteen hundred total hours.
It had not been perfect.
A hydraulic hose failed and cost three hours.
A belt was replaced around fourteen hundred hours after inspection showed wear.