Haying small fields with a small tractor

[Tx Jim]

Small Farm Innovations sells small balers for tractors such as yours.

On buying equipment and haying, don't do it (haying) for the money unless you are a commercial operator and are set up for it like TX. Jim for example. You'll never get there.

Come on Mark even being disabled I managed to get 2200 bales rolled this yr before the 100 plus degree weather & no rain sent the Coastal into hibernation. All kidding aside for what equipment & parts costs I'm glad there are no payments due on my hay baling operation. It will be difficult for a beginner custom baler operator to get started with equip & parts as high as they are.
Jim

 

[cat fever]

After reading this post I am convinced not to do my own haying for my three horses even though I have enough land to obtain more hay than I need. But I must comment on CAT FEVER's pictures on this first post on this thread......That second picture gave me EQUIPMENT, OUT BUILDING AND FENCE ENVY in a MAJOR way. :licking: That is some of the nicest fencing I have ever seen.:thumbsup: Your "first bale" post made me smile. Thanks to all who contributed to this most interesting thread and saved me from doing myself in.

Thanks hooter!
My neighbor does those fences for a living. When he moved in he put one up around his place. (I think I thought the same as you about the fencing) After talking it over with my better half and selling our first born we had the money for the fence. Every post is cemented in and it's electric on the bottom middle and top cables. Never had an animal get out or in since we put it up. :thumbsup: It'll even hold a tractor in for a while. Wonder how I know that?

 

[powerscol]

OP Yes you can do it, but it will be a slow operation. Please do a search on my user name and read my posts. I posted my trials and successes in doing what you want to do. I have been doing exactly what you want for 3 years now and this year I actually may make a profit. First look into the schedule F for the tax advantage - you will be surprised. Also check you local land use and see if you will qualify with an agg exemption.

I am baling with a small inline baler Hesston 4550 with a 26.5 pto hp tractor(Bobcat CT 235). If I keep the windrows light I can fly through the field with no issue. a heavy windrow will bog me down, but as I have a hydrostatic drive, I just slow way down. I cut with a 9' IH 1300 sickle mower (you can run a 7' also). There are also some small drum mowers out there. My rake is a Ford 503 side deliver model, but there are several rotarys you can run. Keep looking - it can be done

Bottom line - check what your 3pt can lift to figure out your rake, and what can your tractor safely tow? I am right at the limits on towing, but so far so good.

Yes SFI has some smaller balers, but you get small bales that are not standard size. Massy currently has a round baler that is rated at 30 hp, but if you can tow it you could run it. Get good equipment and upgrade you tractor, or get a second one later. Use you current one to rake or tedd.

Hope this helps.

PS as a start try renting some equipment and see how your tractor does. If you have a good agg company nearby, I am sure they will let you try - that way your only out the rental funds if it does not work.

 

[CDennyRun]

Thanks for all the insight powerscol! Much appreciated. I think my TZ is a little too small even for the Hesston 4550. I have a meager 18 PTO HP. It's great to know that if I end up with a 30HP tractor, that I can hay. I think I should have just bought a bigger tractor to begin with. It's fine for the normal chores around the property, but I really wasn't thinking about haying when I picked it up!

Regards,

Chris

 

[powerscol]

No worries - just keep an eye out for a 35 to 50 PTO hp tractor and your ready to go.

 

[RPW]

Cat Fever pretty much nailed it for me. All total I have about 30 grand in equipment. Tractor 50hp sicklebar mower rake baler not to mention trailer which of course gets used for other things. Then there are the other expenses besides maintenance which there has been considerable and that's fertilizer, seed, herbicide etc. Not to mention dealing with either drenching rain that ruins your crop or no rain for over 45 days and losing most of what remains from your crop. All in all so far it hasn't been profitable but as cat has said it's more about satisfaction at the end of the day. Even in 107 deg tempuratures I feel good when I get home from working in the fields or fixing broken equipment.

Not to be discouraging but IMO if you feel the urge go for it but go with eyes open. Evaluate the fields meaning you'll need soil samples from each field which will probabĺy run you about $10 per sample. Then fertilizer, herbicide (weed killer), possible re-seeding. I've been lucky as my fertilizer requirments have been minimul. I also have my license to apply restricted type herbicides which is about all of them so I can buy wholesale to save money. And then you will need to be dedicated to the task. When it's time to bale getting time off from work if not retired.

All lot to think about and plan for.

To your original question I'd go for a larger tractor as it will open up your oportunities for equipment which you may be able to aquire at a lower cost.

Good luck.

 

[blueriver]

My dad farmed 160 acres with a Farmall H and a Farmall M .... he had 20 acres of hay and the Farmall H was his hay tractor .... 26 HP. He ran a 9' John Deere #5 sickle mower, Side delivery rake and he baled with a JD 14T square baler. The only problem I ever recalled was when he had to keep the PTO going on the baler he would speed clutch and pop the H into nuetral!!

Todays world we believe bigger is better and thats not always the case. That H Farmall purred like a kitty in a milk parlor and the 14T just baled and baled

 

[CDennyRun]

My dad farmed 160 acres with a Farmall H and a Farmall M .... he had 20 acres of hay and the Farmall H was his hay tractor .... 26 HP. He ran a 9' John Deere #5 sickle mower, Side delivery rake and he baled with a JD 14T square baler. The only problem I ever recalled was when he had to keep the PTO going on the baler he would speed clutch and pop the H into nuetral!!

Todays world we believe bigger is better and thats not always the case. That H Farmall purred like a kitty in a milk parlor and the 14T just baled and baled

Right on! Thanks for sharing. I've seen a few 14T's on the market. They're pretty affordable in working condition!

 

[farm boy00]

My dad farmed 160 acres with a Farmall H and a Farmall M .... he had 20 acres of hay and the Farmall H was his hay tractor .... 26 HP. He ran a 9' John Deere #5 sickle mower, Side delivery rake and he baled with a JD 14T square baler. The only problem I ever recalled was when he had to keep the PTO going on the baler he would speed clutch and pop the H into nuetral!!

Todays world we believe bigger is better and thats not always the case. That H Farmall purred like a kitty in a milk parlor and the 14T just baled and baled

My grandpa has a hobby herfeird farm. He owns a H, M widefront, super M plow,and a M loader

Although the loader (Smokey joe) can't get used without using multiple quarts of oil. Hens the name

 

[Mike_in_Missouri]

Right on! Thanks for sharing. I've seen a few 14T's on the market. They're pretty affordable in working condition!

Big difference between that Farmall back then and the 26hp offerings, now, I suspect.

I'm new here and found this post earlier this week when trying to decide whether to buy a tractor. Tough decision. The bottom line was, the tractor's used for more than hay and needs to be safe and rated for the work. Was looking at smaller tractors, initially, but ended up with the tractor in my sig because cost for the smaller machines was close enough to the larger ones (after incentives) that it just made more sense to buy a larger machine that won't be challenged as one thats the bare minimum for the implements I expect to use. I don't have time to wrench, and used machines were close enough to new prices that it just made sense to buy new right now. Could be different a month from now. The cost for "small hay" (smaller tractor and implements) was approaching what financing for a more capable machine would be. Used implements can be found for savings, but the tractor is the bread and butter and needed to be "right". Prices are going up with the first of the month tomorrow...we'll see how long that lasts. Glad I found this forum and look forward to learning more here. Looks like some good discussions here.