Snapper Head;1951662Bale Stacking - I have never done the task myself. I have watched it being done said:
My dealer warned me against it but I too understood the physics (did my undergraduate work in Physics/Math) and knew what I was doing. I was really good at it. I could stack two bales atop one another like soup cans on a shelf, vertically not horizontally and get 6 bales on my wife driven utility trailer for transport to the hay barn and then stack them horizontally three rows high and then a little oops and one tumbled back toward me and was just barely stopped by the "back stop) on the pallet forks (you get these on REAL pallet forks but not bolt on accessories to a bucket.) The bale bent the back stop back and nearly made it over it which would have put it at least on the engine cover but likely through the windshield of the cab in my lap, a potential source of serious injury or death.
I went right out and bought the real thing, a Kubota brand quick attach bale spear made to fit my loader.
Ken, We sure agree on how too little of a tractor could be scary working hay in the barn on level ground. I think my Kubota Grand L4610HSTC is the smallest Kubota that can stack 1000 lb round bales 3 rows high and it JUST BARELY has sufficient reach to do it. It does it well and safely but if each of the bales were say 8-10 inches larger in diameter I couldn't do it without fussing with ramps to elevate the front wheels.
Just barely having sufficient reach is not a safety issue BUT... counter weight is! I have to have counter weight on the back of the tractor to safely lift, transport, or stack 1000 lb round bales. Kubota authorizes the use of 3 sets of their cast iron bolt-on wheel weights on my model tractor but prohibits liquid in the tires. Without the wheel weights you pick up the rear wheels not the bale on the spike and with them you are marginal and have to be very cautious and ready to drop the bale down at any time to keep the tractor upright. To be comfortable and give yourself the stability to traverse uneven terrain, turn at reasonable speeds instead of super slow, and make the combination work like it should you need something on the 3PH like a box blade or something else heavy.
If you can load the rear tires you might not need anything on the 3PH but I would "sneak up" on it, determining experimentally but very carefully how stable you are carrying a bale on the spike with nothing on the 3PH.
I'm not sure what current model Kubota most closely resembles the Grand L4610 but I would not recommend anything much smaller or lighter. It would be OK to have fewer HP but not smaller size or weight. I would definitely stay above 30 HP and nothing wrong with 50 if the tractor doesn't grow too much as I think close-in maneuvering is very important.
My 39 HP lets me brush hog trees up to 4-5 inches in diameter max using a brush hog rated for up to 80 HP. There are times I wish the tractor were smaller and times I wish it had more HP so I guess it is probably pretty close to the right size for me.
I have ordered a bale spike for the 3PH so I can carry two at a time using the one on the rear as a counter weight for the one up front. This will be3 VERY convenient this fall/winter as it will cut my trips in half across the pastures carting hay.
Pat
, and as soon as I pull the trigger, I'll post up some pics.