Square baler for hobby farm?
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Topic: Square baler for hobby farm?
Posted By: ACman75
Subject: Square baler for hobby farm?
Date Posted: 07 Apr 2017 at 12:31pm
| We've got about 10 acres that we are going to start square bailing. Looking for advice on which baler would be a good choice that can be found easy and not break the bank. Don't have to be Allis. |
Replies:
Posted By: tomstractorsandtoys
Date Posted: 07 Apr 2017 at 12:47pm
| How much do you have to spend? If on a budget a Deere 24t or a NH 269 or 273 were good balers. If you have a little more to spend look at a Deere 336 or the newer NH 311,315 ect. I would buy as good a baler as you can. A nice older baler is a better buy than a newer wore out one. Even as old as the NH 68 or Deere 14t. Stay away from IH balers as the knotters were kind of different. They either work great or not at all and many parts are not to be had. Deere and NH both have great parts availability and sooner or latter you will need parts no matter which color. Allis made a decent baler but the parts availability would concern me. Tom |
Posted By: Creek Jenkins
Date Posted: 07 Apr 2017 at 1:09pm
|
My neighbor and I have about 30-35 acres between us to bale. I bought a Rotobaler (worked when parked) a few years ago but have struggled with getting it to stop tying the bale. It has other issues as well. Last year my neighbor found a really nice NH 275 for $2500. It was in exceptionally nice shape, so we promptly broke it. Turned out to be just a bearing in the sweep arm so not too bad. We baled our second cutting with it last summer and it never missed a beat. Knotters are pretty straightforward to set up. I still haven't forgiven him for destroying my dream of having an Allis square baler but have to grudgingly admit that the 275 works really well. Someone told me the 275 is the same as the 273, but with more teeth in the pickup (Super Sweep?). Evidently not made for baling heavy straw though, we broke the needles on the first bale. Rotobaler to the rescue! cheers, Creek ------------- Have spacesuit, will travel |
Posted By: Gary Burnett
Date Posted: 07 Apr 2017 at 1:31pm
|
I bought an Oliver 62-T at auction last Summer and baled about 200 bales with it and it did a real good job makes a nice tight consistent bale.Gave $200 for it. Pulled it with my D15. |
Posted By: jjwo
Date Posted: 07 Apr 2017 at 4:05pm
| Had a JD 14T, sold it for $600 if I remember right about fifteen years ago. Great baler, springs and restrictor plates were all I ever touched on it! |
Posted By: Ky.Allis
Date Posted: 07 Apr 2017 at 5:05pm
| NH 273 is hard to beat. It was available with or without super sweep pick-up. Stay far away from older IH balers as they were pure junk. and don't even consider MF because of their "odd-ball" knotter. It's about impossible to find anyone who can work on the MF knotter and parts costs more than the baler is worth if you can even get them. I use a AC 444 and it works good and knotters are same as NH but not much else is available for them. |
Posted By: ACman75
Date Posted: 07 Apr 2017 at 5:59pm
| Okay thanks guys this will give me somewhere to start |
Posted By: victoryallis
Date Posted: 07 Apr 2017 at 7:40pm
|
New Holland. ------------- 8030 and 8050MFWD, 7580, 3 6080's, 160, 7060, 175, heirloom D17, Deere 8760 |
Posted By: DougG
Date Posted: 07 Apr 2017 at 7:49pm
| NEW HOLLAND, they are tried and try,, |
Posted By: acd21man
Date Posted: 07 Apr 2017 at 8:16pm
|
i would stay away from a massey. never been around a ih to say yes or no. those jd seem like good balers(i m not a fan of the augers tho but they will work good.. and a 310 NH never had a good rep around here i bought a new bc5050 last year. reason i bought a new one is i got a heck of a deal and im baling alota hay, and it seems like a good older baler 315 311 or something are really high with you know 3,500 or 10,000 bales a year. that adds up over 10 or 20 years so i bought a new one( but im baling 10,000 + a year also.. we had a 311 years ago and it looked almost new but we sold it and then a year or so later we got the 5050. id stick with a NH just my thoughts ------------- 2 wd 45,2 D-17 diesel/gas 3 pt, 220,d21, 4020,2 4430s used daily http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCudh8Xz9_rZHhUC3YNozupw |
Posted By: Darwin W. Kurtz
Date Posted: 07 Apr 2017 at 8:37pm
| I have a nice 276 New Holland twine tie, will take 2500 for it, located Eastern Kansas |
Posted By: Travis2766
Date Posted: 07 Apr 2017 at 10:13pm
|
Ran a 268 New Holland and a John Deere 24t for years, the Deere is by far superior. ------------- 190XT Series III, D17 Series IV, D15 Series II, All Crop 66 and a whole mess of equipment. |
Posted By: Dan73
Date Posted: 07 Apr 2017 at 10:50pm
| Funny I grew up with a JD my uncles couldn't keep that knotting for anything we had several different JD late 80s early 90s. When I started baling hay I got a NH 565 too big for what you have but it as the same knotters as the smaller NH. Anyway i have much better luck with this baler. The knotters just don't hang up on the bill hook the way we always fought with the JD. Maybe my uncles didn't know how to setup knotters I don't know but my uncle bales for me some and he told me he has never seen a baler run as well as this NH does. For me it was all about parts JD parts are expensive and hard to get here. Look for the parts dealer or online first then look at the baler... I think either JD or NH will work ok. I like the bill hook better on the NH don't know how to explain it but the geometry is slight different and seems to work better here. The JD feed might be better with light hay but if you have heavy hay the NH works great. |
Posted By: LaJaMe
Date Posted: 07 Apr 2017 at 10:56pm
| New Holland can't go wrong |
Posted By: VAfarmboy
Date Posted: 07 Apr 2017 at 11:47pm
Nice tight consistent bales are not something Oliver balers are typically known for. You must have gotten a good one. On that old Oliver baler make sure that you do not forget and engage the PTO while the hitch is swung to go through a gate because if you do you won't be doing any more baling until you pull the plunger out and get the severely bent plunger rod straightened. Been there done that! |
Gary Burnett wrote:Posted By: GARY(OH/IN)
Date Posted: 08 Apr 2017 at 3:00am
| Fifty five years ago at age fourteen I bought a NH Super 66 from an equipment jockey for $600 and financed it at a bank (Dad cosigned). The money it made and the good credit it created put me on track to where I am today. |
Posted By: dt1050
Date Posted: 08 Apr 2017 at 5:23am
|
we used a new holland 66 that was converted to use a tractor pto instead of the motor on top the baler. paid 400 for baler and side delivery hay rake the both worked good. about every 20 bales it might miss a knot on the left side, not bad for a baler made when the dinosaurs roamed the earth. we baled about 20 or so acres with it. just be careful how tight ya crank them pieces in the back that adjust how heavy your bales are. I was in a hurry cranked them down and took off through the field, it dropped bale after bale perfect, about 20 or so bales in it wouldn't tie a bale for crap....  jumped off the tractor cursing and swearing only to find it took two of us to heave them bales on the truck....loosened them up a bit and all was good. EDIT: if ya get a baler make sure ya watch walking around it when it's running. the 66 had a 2x6 board that would fly out the side of it, I'd imagine it'll leave a heck of a mark if it smacked ya in the hip!!! ------------- Just cause it's orange don't make it a tractor, there's only one..Allis Chalmers |
Posted By: AllisFreak MN
Date Posted: 08 Apr 2017 at 8:10am
|
New Holland. Good machines and parts are plentiful. ------------- '49 A-C WD, '51 A-C WD, '63 A-C D17 Series III, 1968 A-C One-Seventy, '82 A-C 6060, '75 A-C 7040, A-C #3 sickle mower, 2 A-C 701 wagons, '78 Gleaner M2 |
Posted By: thendrix
Date Posted: 08 Apr 2017 at 8:27am
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I've been running a 273 for about 3 years now and all I've had to do is grease it and add string. Not fast but hard to beat ------------- "Farming is a business that makes a Las Vegas craps table look like a regular paycheck" Ronald Reagan |
Posted By: Dan73
Date Posted: 08 Apr 2017 at 9:25am
| One thing to check on the NH and probably all balers are the same. But you can't have side play on the knotter assembly. Can't say that loud enough. Last fall mine was knotting great and I was making hay to beat the band right up till the knotter frame broke in two. I have all new parts now. The problem was that the shims between the knotters had worn down and the knotter assembly had side play on the shaft it is mounted on. I has never heard of that happening and was trying to figure it out when an old Timmer dropped in and look at it telling me he had had the same problem. |
Posted By: A.C and Ferguson mn
Date Posted: 08 Apr 2017 at 11:27am
| I would go for a deere or NH only cause the parts I have have been around an IH 47 I think it was (P.O.S worn out rigged together ) and a massey 12 I like the 12 a lot parts are a #^*,$ and cost a ton (only good dealer is about 60 miles away vs deere 5 miles away) but it sure gobbles hay nicely for its age and price. Then again just my $0.02 |
Posted By: Pete from IL
Date Posted: 08 Apr 2017 at 12:34pm
| If you can find a New Holland 565 or 570 I think you would be happy. That series came out in the early 90's and were made until about 2010 . More capacity than the older 268 , 273. Don't know what your budget is but around here you can find them for $3000 - 5000 , depending on condition. |
Posted By: chevytaHOE5674
Date Posted: 08 Apr 2017 at 8:40pm
| 7 or 8 years ago I gave 600 bucks for a NH 270. I've baled thousands of bales with nothing more than grease and twine. Only dislike is the short tongue which makes sharp turns impossible. A 271 is the same baler with the long tongue and sectioned PTO shaft. |
Posted By: cottonpatch
Date Posted: 08 Apr 2017 at 9:08pm
The BC5050 is the new version of the 565 which can be run with as little as 35 HP. Not sure there is much difference between the two other than model number. I bought a new 5050 in 2013 for $14k and some change. After the paint wore off breaking it in, it only misses when changing twine balls, if it misses then. Around my neck of the woods, the 565 balers are still bringing good money, that's why I bought new. JD balers have a good reputation, but I don't run green equipment. Orange tractors and NH hay equipment have been mighty good to me, why change? ------------- '52 CA, '61 D10 II, ‘61 D15, '66 D15II, '63 D17D III, ‘69 170, '73 185 Crop Hustler, '79 185, '79 7000, '77 7040 |
Posted By: thendrix
Date Posted: 08 Apr 2017 at 10:11pm
|
I've never experienced it but I've heard a plugged auger on a JD is a SEVERE PIA. Yes a plug is from operator error instead of machine fault but still it happens. ------------- "Farming is a business that makes a Las Vegas craps table look like a regular paycheck" Ronald Reagan |
Posted By: Dan73
Date Posted: 08 Apr 2017 at 10:14pm
A JD in thick hay can plug pretty easy and yes major PIA. Been there cleaned alot of then out ad a kid. There is a sheer bolt in the old augers as well lord help you if you break it or atleast on the one we had in the mid 80s. |
Posted By: AllisFreak MN
Date Posted: 08 Apr 2017 at 10:20pm
|
Let's not forget he's baling 10 acres, not 500. The high capacity balers are probably more than he wants to spend and require more HP. A 68 to 273 or JD 14T or 24T would be just fine and affordable. ------------- '49 A-C WD, '51 A-C WD, '63 A-C D17 Series III, 1968 A-C One-Seventy, '82 A-C 6060, '75 A-C 7040, A-C #3 sickle mower, 2 A-C 701 wagons, '78 Gleaner M2 |
Posted By: Gary Burnett
Date Posted: 09 Apr 2017 at 5:39am
|
Back in the late 60's and early 70's we were baling thousands of bales every year with a John Deere 24T and it was a good running baler,few problems and baled a nice bale.That said if a person bales wet hay or crowds the any baler past its capacity they're going to have problems. |
Posted By: acd21man
Date Posted: 10 Apr 2017 at 8:12am
|
cottonpatch looks like you got the same deal i got on the baler. i bought mine and it was still in a create and i had to put it together. nearly everywhere around here they was 20+ for the baler my cusin bought one for 15 maybe somewhere off from here. mine come all the way from north or south Carolina the balers was going to be shipped outa country but the economy tanked where they was sending them and they was stuck with them me and another man each bought one. wish i had the 5060 but i wouldnt have got the deal like that ------------- 2 wd 45,2 D-17 diesel/gas 3 pt, 220,d21, 4020,2 4430s used daily http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCudh8Xz9_rZHhUC3YNozupw |
Posted By: Jordan(OH)
Date Posted: 12 Apr 2017 at 6:23am
| New Holland without a doubt, an auger isn't meant to move dry hay, stupid design. |
Posted By: GM Guy
Date Posted: 12 Apr 2017 at 11:40pm
|
If you were baling more, I would vote Hesston inline and forget the rest. The amount you are baling: whatever is cheap and in decent shape. I hate NH balers, but the one thing to keep in mind is they made light duty and heavy duty models. A 273, 275 and 277 were the same vintage IIRC, and the 277 is alot more heavy duty than the 273. I think the 273 overran into the 276/278 era as well, and same deal, the big brothers were better units. Our best NHs were a wire tie 277 and a super 68. other than those two we have had zero luck with NH balers. A friend from Idaho that does commercial stacking for a living spits on NHs, tolerates JDs, and is debating about offering a discount if you run a Hesston. He thinks that the Hesston inline is hands down the best baler ever made. ------------- Gleaner: the properly engineered and built combine. If you need parts for your Gleaner, we are parting out A's through L2's, so we may be able to help. |
Posted By: Mikez
Date Posted: 13 Apr 2017 at 7:02am
| Oh gm guy where were you when I was debating what new baler to buy. Was looking at hesston. They aren't that popular around here so I couldn't get anybody's view on it. I bought a nh 5070 |
Posted By: DougS
Date Posted: 13 Apr 2017 at 8:52am
|
The direct chamber feed of the Heston is supposed to make a tighter more consistent bale. The down side I've read about is the twine is on the cut edges of the hay, making handling a bit more difficult. Horse owners complain about this more than anyone. |
Posted By: WF owner
Date Posted: 13 Apr 2017 at 4:14pm
|
I know a guy that has a Massey-Ferguson (Hesston) inline with no thrower (he uses a NH bale wagon). He absolutely flies when baling. He claims he can bale 100 bales every 15 minutes under ideal conditions. I always felt the John Deere made a lot squarer bale than a NH. The Hesston makes a nice square bale. |
Posted By: cottonpatch
Date Posted: 13 Apr 2017 at 7:44pm
I could have gotten the 5060 for not quite $1000 more, but I don't have the acreage to justify it. I think the 5050 will resale better as the tractor requirement is less and ideal for smaller guys. I wanted the 5060, but my dealer felt the 5050 would be all I needed. It's a slick little baler ------------- '52 CA, '61 D10 II, ‘61 D15, '66 D15II, '63 D17D III, ‘69 170, '73 185 Crop Hustler, '79 185, '79 7000, '77 7040 |
Posted By: cottonpatch
Date Posted: 13 Apr 2017 at 7:59pm
|
The Massey Ferguson/Hesston inline is a fine baler without a doubt. I could not get that good of a deal on one as I could the NH, $4k difference between the 1837 versus the BC5050, and they don't have the resale value that NH does in VA. Four thousand dollars bought a lot of fertilizer. ------------- '52 CA, '61 D10 II, ‘61 D15, '66 D15II, '63 D17D III, ‘69 170, '73 185 Crop Hustler, '79 185, '79 7000, '77 7040 |
Posted By: Mikez
Date Posted: 13 Apr 2017 at 8:32pm
|
Yea that's what I was afraid of to. My hay goes to a lot of horse people that handle it. Me and dad were afraid of the cut end on the string side. As for a guy to buy a older baler to just do a few acres. I started out with a old IH 420. It did its job but some parts weren't available. I would go with new hollend becouse parts would be available and you see more of them around for you to choose from |
Posted By: JohnCO
Date Posted: 15 Apr 2017 at 1:21am
|
I've never owned a JD baler but have had a few JD swathers, and IMHO, JD has never built a good piece of haying machinery. My first baler was a used MF #10 I bought in 1972, then a MF 124 which made the #10 look like a toy. The local MF dealer went out of business so I bought a new Hesston 4600, beeline baler, in the 1980's which made the 124 look like a toy. Still have the 4600, bought a couple other 4600's cheap, one was good one more problems. Last month bought a CIH 8545 at an auction, which is the same as the Hesston 4590, which, if my buddy with three of them is right, will make my 4600 look like a toy! The Hesston 4600's bring around $1,700 to $3,000 around here, CIH, Hesston, Challenger and MF dealers all stock (or can get) parts for them. BTW, the only knoter problem I had with the Massey baler was a little curved spring that would last almost exactly 17,000 bales. Only cost a couple bucks and was an easy fix. As long as you don't screw down the bale tension too hard, the 124 will make nice bales. The weak part of the MF balers for me was the pick up just wore out. ------------- "If at first you don't succeed, get a bigger hammer" Allis Express participant |
Posted By: allismanamp
Date Posted: 15 Apr 2017 at 5:12am
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My super 66 new holland with a twin Wisconsin will still bale with the best of them and it's light I pull it with. Wd45 I've owned 2 and my dad ran his for 40 years we put a exhaust valve and new belts in it they run for ever and I would not even think of getting rid of mine it's a collector item now still has its original paint job on it I gave 750 for it but think that was more than fair for its condition ------------- ~AMP~ |