In Feb 2019 I had to purchase all of my own hay making equipment as my steady "hay man" passed away due to cancer. Having $15K budget for everything (already had the tractor) I attended a local auction and visited two local dealers. I managed to get everything I needed including a $5,700 NH648 baler. When you buy used equipment you can expect to have repairs to make and deferred maintenance to perform before you begin making hay. My baler was a perfect example. Not knowing much about these things I hired a respected, local mechanic who went through it, replaced some hydraulic hoses, two tires, a chain etc. and said it was "ready to go". Well, not really. Lesson #1, balers should be stored indoors as any rust will cause sticking components, in my case the twine arms, and the darn thing wouldn't work right. Long story short, I made a number of additional repairs, learned how to diagnose and fix it myself and by the 2020 hay season it was working really well. Over the winter I did some more repairs, two more chains, hydraulic hose, bale counter, idler wheels, ujoint, jaw clutch adjustments.... you get the idea. Looking forward to a trouble free season. It's almost a given you'll have some work to do on your $5K baler before it will work reliably for you. Learn how to repair it, keep it well lubricated and out of the weather and clean after every use. A back pack leaf blower works really well. Good luck.
