Moving large square bales, with no machinery. Let’s do this.

[Hay Dude]

Haydude, out of curiosity, do you get flaky people like this to sign a contract of some kind, like x amount of bales in x amount of time at x dollars delivered per bale, or just do the deal verbally

No contracts. I get verbal commitments and if they get flaky on me, I sell to someone else. Many horse hay buyers are flaky and will throw a hay supplier overboard to save 50 cents.

? What I,m kinda asking is, how do you know for sure you can at least cover your investment ?

When you say “cover my investment” you mean like make my equipment payments, fuel, insurance, parts & service, right?

I know my field sizes & yields, so I have a rough idea of how much hay I will make before the year even starts.

I have been making hay for a long time and one thing that’s always stayed the same is if you make good hay for a reasonable price, you’ll sell out fast.
I make as much hay as I can, store it best possible ways, ask reasonable prices, then watch it fly out of the barns.
The outdoor stacked hay is mushroom hay, which is always in pretty strong demand.

 

[dodge man]

Go to Lowe’s or Home Depot and sit the parking lot and just watch. Someone will unload something heavy in the parking lot by accident, just copy their method.

 

[Shawn T. W.]

@Shawn T. W. , in post #48, was talking about hauling them stacked "side by side" on a 53' flatbed. You quoted his post and said that 2 of your bales "side by side" were 10 feet "wide". Perhaps we need to coordinate on terminology. When the bales come out of your baler, the part that you see first I would consider to be the "end". That has dimensions, if I understand you correctly, of 4'x4'. The "sides" as well as top and bottom would be 4'x5'. Do I have that right?

My understanding is he is making the bakes from the same size baler the farmer was using that I hauled for, except he stops them short at 5' instead of the longer 8' ones like I hauled ...

So the 4'X4' is looking at the ends as it's coming off the baler.

 

[BlueKnife]

My understanding is he is making the bakes from the same size baler the farmer was using that I hauled for, except he stops them short at 5' instead of the longer 8' ones like I hauled ...

So the 4'X4' is looking at the ends as it's coming off the baler.

Right. That was my impression as well. That's why I was confused about his statement that "side by side" they were 10 feet. Seems like they'd be 10 feet end to end.

 

[Shawn T. W.]

Yes, but if you "stab" them with the spears in the "sides", and the spears are on the back of the truck, he would have 10'+ of hay width going down the road.

The hay is laid in a bale with the ends of the grass blades and stalks at the "sides" that's how the spears are able to penetrate the bales ...

 

[BlueKnife]

Yes, but if you "stab" them with the spears in the "sides", and the spears are on the back of the truck, he would have 10'+ of hay width going down the road.

The hay is laid in a bale with the ends of the grass blades and stalks at the "sides" that's how the spears are able to penetrate the bales ...

Got ya. I didn't realize he was talking about a bale spear on the back of a truck. Thought we were talking about loading them on a flatbed. I'm caught up now. Carry on.