I have an old MF 10 Baler, thing works like a champ(did). Last year the Left hand Knife on the knotter broke. (Side closest to bale chamber)We replcaed the Knife but now it will not knot. The knife does not cut the twine, from visual inspection the roller on the bottom of the knife assyembaly is not riding on the Cam. My manual says to bend the pin that holds the knife so that it rides on it. When I did that last season I ended up breaking the pin and had to replace it. I have the new on in but still can not get it to ride on the cam. Does anyone have any tips on how to adjust it? No matter how much I bend it does not come in to alignment. I need to know the trick of the trade. Is it possable that something else bent?Knife adjustment on MF 10 baler
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I have an old MF 10 Baler, thing works like a champ(did). Last year the Left hand Knife on the knotter broke. (Side closest to bale chamber)We replcaed the Knife but now it will not knot. The knife does not cut the twine, from visual inspection the roller on the bottom of the knife assyembaly is not riding on the Cam. My manual says to bend the pin that holds the knife so that it rides on it. When I did that last season I ended up breaking the pin and had to replace it. I have the new on in but still can not get it to ride on the cam. Does anyone have any tips on how to adjust it? No matter how much I bend it does not come in to alignment. I need to know the trick of the trade. Is it possable that something else bent?
Welcome !
Well, since the knife arm was good when you took it apart, then it should not need any bending or forming to put it back together. Replacing the twine knife should have needed nothing more than some rivets drilled or chopped and some new bolts and a knife blade put back on. There are, however, some shims or spacers on the wiper arm assembly (which holds the twine knife) which may be missing or in the wrong place. That's the only reason the wiper arm ball would miss the knotter drive intermediate gear. That's the wheel with a few gear teeth on it that drives the billhooks, etc. Other than that, we're gonna need a few pictures if possible. One good thing going for you is having one perfectly good knotter. Your goal should be to make the position and actions of the "bad" one duplicate those of the "good" one.
You might want to read the manual again more closely. The manual should be telling you to bend the "wiper arm" if and only if the wiper does not contact the billhook foot. The knot is actually scraped off the billhook. The wiper arm does not cut the twine. the twine knife does. Terminology is a big factor, here. Billhook, wiper arm, twine knife and intermediate gear parts all have distinct functions and timing.
Well, since the knife arm was good when you took it apart, then it should not need any bending or forming to put it back together. Replacing the twine knife should have needed nothing more than some rivets drilled or chopped and some new bolts and a knife blade put back on. There are, however, some shims or spacers on the wiper arm assembly (which holds the twine knife) which may be missing or in the wrong place. That's the only reason the wiper arm ball would miss the knotter drive intermediate gear. That's the wheel with a few gear teeth on it that drives the billhooks, etc. Other than that, we're gonna need a few pictures if possible. One good thing going for you is having one perfectly good knotter. Your goal should be to make the position and actions of the "bad" one duplicate those of the "good" one.
You might want to read the manual again more closely. The manual should be telling you to bend the "wiper arm" if and only if the wiper does not contact the billhook foot. The knot is actually scraped off the billhook. The wiper arm does not cut the twine. the twine knife does. Terminology is a big factor, here. Billhook, wiper arm, twine knife and intermediate gear parts all have distinct functions and timing.
ZZ here is a .pdf with a discription and pics. couldn't get it to load the pics right in post. The main issue is that on the left swiper arm is settint to far away from the intermediate gear. The twine knife rests on the side before the roller contacts the intermediate gear. So when the knotter triggers the twine knife does not travel the required 3/8 to 1/2 inch past the end of the bill hook. On the working one the roller contacts the intermediate gear and there is about setting the proper spacing. Please take a look and let me know what you think. It has me stumped.
Is the wiper arm stud bent or inserted in the wrong position? The "bad" one looks bent to me. Obviously the need for 2 washers being used as spacer shims is a tell-tale.
How about pulling off the "good" wiper arm and comparing them side by side. I'll bet they are identical. In fact, you could swap them if possible. Mark them with paint stick first. Then the stud, or stud casting difference will show up the problem. Looks like some casting welding has gone on here, too. Has the "bad" stud collar lost some weldment and the stud has shifted position? A side by side shot of the 2 wiper arm stub shafts will tell the tale...
How about pulling off the "good" wiper arm and comparing them side by side. I'll bet they are identical. In fact, you could swap them if possible. Mark them with paint stick first. Then the stud, or stud casting difference will show up the problem. Looks like some casting welding has gone on here, too. Has the "bad" stud collar lost some weldment and the stud has shifted position? A side by side shot of the 2 wiper arm stub shafts will tell the tale...
Yes the wiper arm stud is bent. We had the knife break last season, when we replaced the knife we had this issue. The manual says that if the twine knife does not pass the bill hook end by 3/8 to 1/2 inch to adjust it, Adjustment is to bend the wiper arm stud. When bending last year I broke the stud and a chip came off the stud collar. Welded back on, I put new stud in this year and still the roller was not sitting in the intermediate gear properly. So I have bent that one. Causing the need for the spacers. I don't know if the other wiper arm will come off easilly or not. I will give that a try. Just wanted to make sure there were not any adjustments I was missing, The whole mechanisim is pretty amazing. And unfourtunatly percision is very important. If the Wiper arm is bent what would be the best way to bend it back? I have not worked with cast iron that much, without breaking it anyway. Should I heat it?
I've never known cast iron to bend that much and not fracture. That would indicate to me that its actually a steel part or malleable iron. That would mean its bendable. Yes I would heat it cherry and press it in a vice to bend it around a mandrel. Any chance of reinserting the stud into the collar at an improved angle? Even if you could get a "new"/different collar[of of ebay or some scrapyard you would be back on-the-air. MAybe even weld up the stud hole and have it re-drilled.
Well I decided to pull the working wiper arm and compare the two. And sure enough the one I have been having problems with is bent. about 10 degrees on both sides of the stud. Called the local dealership who couldn't help, They are mainly lawn equipment now. But they put me in touch with some one who had a used one in stock. It should be on the UPS truck now. Now just need the weather to break a little. Thanks for your help, and I have learned why you never loan the balers out.