Abstract: The shiftably supported, rotatable feed rolls on a forage harvester or other material processing machine are operably coupled to a control lever on the hydraulic pump regulating the feed roll drive motor such that the angular velocity of the rolls is increased in response to shifting movement of the rolls away from one another, thereby enabling the rolls to readily rid themselves of a larger-than-normal slug of material should the same be encountered during harvesting. An additional control lever of a second hydraulic pump regulating another drive motor for the standing crop cutter and gathering elements of the harvester is operably coupled to the first control lever by a lost motion connection that permits the control levers to be shifted simultaneously for in unison manual operation of the motors, yet the first lever may be actuated independently by the feed rolls to control the first drive motor in response to relative shifting movement between the rolls.

Abstract: The shiftably supported, rotatable feed rolls on a forage harvester or other material processing machine are operably coupled to a control lever on the hydraulic pump regulating the feed roll drive motor such that the angular velocity of the rolls is increased in response to shifting movement of the rolls away from one another, thereby enabling the rolls to readily rid themselves of a larger-than-normal slug of material should the same be encountered during harvesting. An additional control lever of a second hydraulic pump regulating another drive motor for the standing crop cutter and gathering elements of the harvester is operably coupled to the first control lever by a lost motion connection that permits the control levers to be shifted simultaneously for in unison manual operation of the motors, yet the first lever may be actuated independently by the feed rolls to control the first drive motor in response to relative shifting movement between the rolls.

Abstract: The windrow pickup header of a forage harvester is supported at least in part by gauging means that senses rises and falls in the terrain in front of the header to swing the latter up and down to accommodate such unevenness in the terrain. Long, generally fore-and-aft extending arms on opposite sides of the header have caster wheels at the forwardmost, free ends thereof and have inturned sections at their opposite ends which are fixed to the header adjacent the top of the latter and spaced substantially above the swinging axis of the header so that any rearwardly directed force applied to the caster wheels is transmitted through the arms to the top of the header to swing the same upwardly to overcome the force, rather than causing the header to buckle downwardly under as a result of the force application.