best baler for farmers

joe man utd

hi,
im just wondering what is the best baler for a small bit of contracting, we have a standard class 46 baler for the past 11 years and it has been a reliable machine. i am looking to get a chopper baler with netwrap and wide pickup. was thinking of a welger 220 or a jd 575 or 578, i will be pulling it with a jd 6310 and doing roughly 1500 bales a year. any ideas???

BalingMad

Ever think of a Krone? Good farmers baler. V low horse power requirement.

hedgecutting eddie

joe man utd wrote: »

hi,
im just wondering what is the best baler for a small bit of contracting, we have a standard class 46 baler for the past 11 years and it has been a reliable machine. i am looking to get a chopper baler with netwrap and wide pickup. was thinking of a welger 220 or a jd 575 or 578, i will be pulling it with a jd 6310 and doing roughly 1500 bales a year. any ideas???

welger welger welger , ive a 578 makes gud bales but you cudnt let anyone up on it to drive , welger is so user friendly

joe man utd

BalingMad wrote: »

Ever think of a Krone? Good farmers baler. V low horse power requirement.

ya i know a fella that has one and he reckons that the netting system in them is troublesome enough and i see he is always blocked with them.:D

BalingMad

joe man utd wrote: »

BalingMad wrote: »

Ever think of a Krone? Good farmers baler. V low horse power requirement.

ya i know a fella that has one and he reckons that the netting system in them is troublesome enough and i see he is always blocked with them.:D

Now as you mention it ya that true, heard a few people giving out about it before

6480

joe man utd wrote: »

ya i know a fella that has one and he reckons that the netting system in them is troublesome enough and i see he is always blocked with them.:D

true and not true i have spent years working krone balers , they are very simple and strong to any other baler on the market and make a bale as good as the next baler ,they are a simple baler to drive , the net just needs to be set right for the baler to take it in

porter shark

mchale all the way. they're years making the best wrappers in the world, now they make the best balers too.

reilig

porter shark wrote: »

mchale all the way. they're years making the best wrappers in the world, now they make the best balers too.

For a farmer making ~1000 bales per year, Mchale is way out of the price bracket

vanderbadger

reilig wrote: »

For a farmer making ~1000 bales per year, Mchale is way out of the price bracket

would it not be cheaper for a man making 1000 bales to make repayment over 4 or 5 years on baler and wrapper than paying contractor, assuming he already has good enough tractors ?

Tipp Man

vanderbadger wrote: »

would it not be cheaper for a man making 1000 bales to make repayment over 4 or 5 years on baler and wrapper than paying contractor, assuming he already has good enough tractors ?

If he has the time then definately. We'll be heading down this route in the next year or 2 i'd say

reilig

vanderbadger wrote: »

would it not be cheaper for a man making 1000 bales to make repayment over 4 or 5 years on baler and wrapper than paying contractor, assuming he already has good enough tractors ?

I honestly don't know. I have not done the figures. Looking in Today's journal ag McHale 550's, the second hand ones range from €24000 + Vat for a 06 model to €28,000 + VAT for a 2010.

You would be a long time recouping that investment if you were only making 1000 bales per year with it. Add in maintenance, service and repair and don't forget diesel and you have a very expensive machine.

What are contractors charging for just making a bale this year?

My brother in law is charging me €3.50 (This is cost for him), but I presume that you could pay up to €5 per bale???

Take the cheapest McHale 550 at €24000 + VAT or €29,000.
You would have to make 5800 bales to recoup the cost of it. Include in the cost of diesel, service, repair and maintenance and you probably have to be closer to 7000 bales to recoup the cost of the baler alone. That's 7 years at 1000 bales per year before you break even on the baler alone.

I'm interested in the talk of buying a baler, but when I look at the realities of it, a farmer buying a baler to make 1000 or 1500 bales per year doesn't need to invest close to €30k when a €10 to €15k baler will serve his needs just as good.

Pedantic I am, but I know people who make less than 200 bales per year and they have state of the art kit for doing it.

vanderbadger

reilig wrote: »

I honestly don't know. I have not done the figures. Looking in Today's journal ag McHale 550's, the second hand ones range from €24000 + Vat for a 06 model to €28,000 + VAT for a 2010.

You would be a long time recouping that investment if you were only making 1000 bales per year with it. Add in maintenance, service and repair and don't forget diesel and you have a very expensive machine.

What are contractors charging for just making a bale this year?

My brother in law is charging me €3.50 (This is cost for him), but I presume that you could pay up to €5 per bale???

Take the cheapest McHale 550 at €24000 + VAT or €29,000.
You would have to make 5800 bales to recoup the cost of it. Include in the cost of diesel, service, repair and maintenance and you probably have to be closer to 7000 bales to recoup the cost of the baler alone. That's 7 years at 1000 bales per year before you break even on the baler alone.

I'm interested in the talk of buying a baler, but when I look at the realities of it, a farmer buying a baler to make 1000 or 1500 bales per year doesn't need to invest close to €30k when a €10 to €15k baler will serve his needs just as good.

Pedantic I am, but I know people who make less than 200 bales per year and they have state of the art kit for doing it.

they sound a bit expensive, i think good balers for farmers can be got cheaper than that but I take your point, in your own case when you are getting your bales made for that price your not doing too bad. I still reckon a farmer making that vol of bales and paying a contractor maybe 10 euro to bale and wrap, maybe even more than that it might be worth looking into.

Tipp Man

vanderbadger wrote: »

they sound a bit expensive, i think good balers for farmers can be got cheaper than that but I take your point, in your own case when you are getting your bales made for that price your not doing too bad. I still reckon a farmer making that vol of bales and paying a contractor maybe 10 euro to bale and wrap, maybe even more than that it might be worth looking into.

I'm with Vander on this 1 i have to say

1000 bales at €10 a bale is 10k per annum. or 50k over 5 years

I think 30k should get you set up with a good baler and wrapper. Our neighbour got an excellent McHale for 20.5k, not sure on age but it looks very tidy

Reilig your point about costs such as diesel and repairs is very valid though - plus the net has to be bought

reilig

Tipp Man wrote: »

I'm with Vander on this 1 i have to say

1000 bales at €10 a bale is 10k per annum. or 50k over 5 years

I think 30k should get you set up with a good baler and wrapper. Our neighbour got an excellent McHale for 20.5k, not sure on age but it looks very tidy

Reilig your point about costs such as diesel and repairs is very valid though - plus the net has to be bought

Its a balancing act, isn't it?

I doubt that there are too many farmers out there making 1000 bales who don't have a set up of their own?

Don't forget labour in all of it too. As farmers, we rarely count that. If you are worth €15 an hour in an off farm job, how much per hour are you worth on the farm?

vanderbadger

reilig wrote: »

Its a balancing act, isn't it?

I doubt that there are too many farmers out there making 1000 bales who don't have a set up of their own?

Don't forget labour in all of it too. As farmers, we rarely count that. If you are worth €15 an hour in an off farm job, how much per hour are you worth on the farm?

yep, one thing i never figured on was how much time it takes to do your own, especially when you are working, baling isnt too bad, i get the brother to take a few days off and he wraps but then you have to take off the gear and go bringing th feckers in, when you are a small operator your loader tractor is wrapping or baling or whatever so you need to finish one job before you can tackle the other, still neighbours come in handy and its good to have your own way of working and you can go at it it when it suits you

maidhc

I have made 1000-1200 bales a year since 1996 using a Welger RP12s. Upgrading this year to a JD575 for a chopper and widepick up and I won't know myself.

I had a pair of welgers, although only ever used one at a time, the second was laid up until completely rebuilt and sold earlier this year. The one I have used since 2002 cost €1200, and never broke down. It needed a bit of maintenance, but largely only bearings and a few pickup bushings, and all done off season. Not bad for a 23 year old machine

It wasn't the fastest set-up, but would clear 25 bales an hour with zero cost. We would generally sell enough silage every year to cover outlay.

The same baler is for sale now for €3000 ONO if anyone is interested, and I see no reason why it won't do another 10 years work once it gets 2 new rollers and a few bearings which I will be fitting.

Wrapper is a KV 7510 bought in 1996, and does exactly the same thing as new one and is just as fast.

For 1000 bales a year you only need the most basic gear, the Deere 575 is a cheap baler IMO now, and has nice things like greasable bearings.

redzerologhlen

The contractor I work for has a mchale 550 and it has been bullet proof. 60000 bales on it now and all that ever had to be done with it is a new slip clutch in it, you would want plenty of power in front of it though.

Tipp Man

redzerologhlen wrote: »

The contractor I work for has a mchale 550 and it has been bullet proof. 60000 bales on it now and all that ever had to be done with it is a new slip clutch in it, you would want plenty of power in front of it though.

What kind of ponies are you talking about there Redzer? Would 110 do?

Muckit

reilig wrote: »

That's 7 years at 1000 bales per year before you break even on the baler alone.

Then it's time to go buy another one :rolleyes:

Contractor all the way. Let him have the headaches, the diesel and parts bills.

I wouldn't like to be hopping down off a tractor and baler only to have to hop up on another yoke to go bringing them all in!!

Muckit

Tipp Man wrote: »

I'm with Vander on this 1 i have to say

1000 bales at €10 a bale is 10k per annum. or 50k over 5 years

I think 30k should get you set up with a good baler and wrapper. Our neighbour got an excellent McHale for 20.5k, not sure on age but it looks very tidy

Reilig your point about costs such as diesel and repairs is very valid though - plus the net has to be bought

Reilig is right. This is where lads fall down. You can't forget about maintenance and diesel costs, you just can't. Buying the machines is the easiest part. Keeping them going as the clouds darken overhead is another thing entirely.

Tipp Man

Muckit wrote: »

Reilig is right. This is where lads fall down. You can't forget about maintenance and diesel costs, you just can't. Buying the machines is the easiest part. Keeping them going as the clouds darken overhead is another thing entirely.

If your spending 20k+ on a baler it will be in good nick - modern balers have huge lifetime capacity so if your only adding a thousand bales a year it will last a long time before any serious repairs

Diesel I accept - but contracting charges will only go higher as fuel gets higher

vanderbadger

i suppose ther are alot of arguments for and against, if you have a good baler and you are only doing your own stuff you shouldnt really have any great maint bill, just keep her greased and the chains oiled and buy the nett, you shouldnt be going thru bearings or rollers etc when you are only doing relatively small numbers..alot to be said too for just letting a lad in to bale it and out again with him after..i think ultimately the lads that bale there own have a hankering for machinery anyway and and like to be doing that kinda work themselves

redzerologhlen

Tipp Man wrote: »

What kind of ponies are you talking about there Redzer? Would 110 do?

To be comfortable I would say you would want 120+ for it, you would probably manage with 110 but you would be a long way off what the machine is capable of doing. He has it on a 6830 baling 30fts which I know would require more power but it struggles with them and I know a farmer with his own gear who asked him advice on a new baler and he advised against the mchale because of the horses required to drive it, it has to be taken into account because not everyone has that kind of power. You would work a krone with 100 no prob and I have seen them being worked with less. Saying that though as a machine the McHale is as good as you will get.

DMAXMAN

YOU COULD TRY A GALLIGNANI. SIMPLE BALER. EASY TO WORK ON. NO DEALER IN THE COUNTRY AT THE MOMENT BUT PARTS CAN BE GOT DIRECTLY FROM FACTORY. BIGGEST WEAKNESS IS THEIR PICKUPS SO CHECK THAT OUT VERY WELL IF BUYING SECONDHAND

poor farmer

reilig wrote: »

I honestly don't know. I have not done the figures. Looking in Today's journal ag McHale 550's, the second hand ones range from €24000 + Vat for a 06 model to €28,000 + VAT for a 2010.

You would be a long time recouping that investment if you were only making 1000 bales per year with it. Add in maintenance, service and repair and don't forget diesel and you have a very expensive machine.

What are contractors charging for just making a bale this year?

My brother in law is charging me €3.50 (This is cost for him), but I presume that you could pay up to €5 per bale???

Take the cheapest McHale 550 at €24000 + VAT or €29,000.
You would have to make 5800 bales to recoup the cost of it. Include in the cost of diesel, service, repair and maintenance and you probably have to be closer to 7000 bales to recoup the cost of the baler alone. That's 7 years at 1000 bales per year before you break even on the baler alone.

I'm interested in the talk of buying a baler, but when I look at the realities of it, a farmer buying a baler to make 1000 or 1500 bales per year doesn't need to invest close to €30k when a €10 to €15k baler will serve his needs just as good.

Pedantic I am, but I know people who make less than 200 bales per year and they have state of the art kit for doing it.

I have to agree with most of reilig's comments.I have been making 1000+ bales on our own farm every year with reasonable kit.I dont really see much saving.baling silage is power hungry and hard on diesel . The only time i feel i am making a saving is when baling hay or straw.

grazeaway

if your doing that many bales (1000 a year) would it be better to make pit silage? no netting or expensive plastic? the whole lot costs say €13/bale then thats 13k a year in making silage.

poor farmer

also making pits and would make more if i could .I have a few farms rented/leased with sheds but with no silage pits hence all the bales

haybob

what are deutz fahr balers like lads

reilig

haybob wrote: »

what are deutz fahr balers like lads

The older ones were pi$$ poor (Before 2004). Don't know what the newer ones were like. Had a contractor with one in the early 00's and he only kept it a year. It made the worst bales ever seen and was extremely hard on parts!!

vanderbadger

haybob wrote: »

what are deutz fahr balers like lads

deutz and vicon were the same i think and now i think they are branded kuhn?

BalingMad

haybob wrote: »

what are deutz fahr balers like lads

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PuHV-5rLxyM&feature=related
well going by these new ones they are setting the way forward

ZETOR_IS_BETTER

Jaysus you are pushing that baler mad:pac: