JONES COUNTY, Iowa (KCRG) - John Deere is launching a new tool it says will help farmers repair their own equipment.

Earlier this year, the Federal Trade Commission sued John Deere for what it said was decades of unlawful practice in creating a monopoly on repairs.

TV9 talked to a mechanic who said even with the new tool, most farmers won’t be able to afford fixes on new equipment.

Chad Varner’s a mechanic for CJ Beeps, an independent repair shop. He said about 95% of the equipment he repairs is made by John Deere.

“John Deere, technology-wise is light years ahead of everybody else,” Varner said.

As farming equipment has become computerized, it’s gotten more expensive and harder to fix. Before Deere’s new tool launched, farmers and repair shops couldn’t reprogram software, making it

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