New Holland 66 baler questions

glockky · Apr 10, 2015

First let me say I have a round baler and bigger tractor that we use to bale hay. I am looking to pick up a small square baler to bail 300-500 bales a year to feed the sheep. I found this baler locally for $500 and wanted to know if its worth the money. Owner says it worked great 2 years ago and has been in the barn ever since. I am new to square balers and not wanting to spend a lot of money. I plan to bale with my mahindra 3616 shuttle all on flat ground.

What should I check out before buying?

thanks for the help

mattv1 · Apr 10, 2015

far from a complete list...but

bale chamber rusted to heck or ok?
turn it by hand - do the knotters cycle and tie?
needles good/solid? OK if they've been welded on just so they're not hanging on by a thread
Plunger move well and bearings seem good?

Would be cool if you could 'see' it work before you bought it

Ed of all trades · Apr 11, 2015

We ran one for years, they are good bailers. They do have one thing that is not the best. The side plunger, the one laying on top of the bailer, if it hits a plug that is too big and shears a pin the main plunger comes back and smashes it pretty bad. You can't use a regular board in the plunger it has to be oil impregnated. If you buy it keep an extra board like the old owner has been doing. We used to put up over 6000 bales a year with one and it did well. The price is good too.

rankrank1 · Apr 11, 2015

Condition is everything when buying something that old and it is old (early to mid 1950's). That is a low capacity baler but it certainly would handle the 300-500 bales a year that you want to do. (low capacity is a good thing if planning to use a small low hp tractor).

Only disadvantage to it is the wadboard feed system which works together with the auger to feed the hay. The plunger is on wood glide bearings too and the pick-up width is on the narrow side but still quite useable if you rake accordingly

Even a NH 68 or a super 68 is a step up from this with feeder forks but the plunger is still on wood glide bearings.

Ideally, I would recommend looking for a New Holland 268 through 273 models although I doubt you will find one for $500. A 67 super (but it has to be a super) might be possible for $500. A NH 65 is a neat little baler too which makes a 12x16 bale instead of the 14x18 bale but they sell high sometimes. These will all have roller bearings on the plunger instead of the wood glide bearings. I like the roller bearings better, but they are $31 dollars a piece and there are several on a plunger (like 10 or more). Wood glides can be replaced for nearly free if you make em yourself.

All in all, though I would not be too afraid of of that NH66 and $500 is reasonable if in decent condition although at the high end of what I would personally pay. Wood can last a long time on a small time operation and you can make your own parts for peanuts when needed which helps if you plan to operate on a shoestring budget. I recently bought a super 68 to be my back up baler to my NH 65 in the similar area of price range -albeit it a tad cheaper. Simply could not pass it up for the price point relative to the condition it was in. It was like new from a wear perspective.

glockky · Apr 11, 2015

Thanks for the info looks like I am gonna have to pass on the baler. Its about a 2 hour drive away and I can not come up with a way to trailer it home or I would pick it up.
Guess I will look for something closer. Seems like prices on small square balers here locally are priced a lot higher though.

rankrank1 · Apr 11, 2015

Most people simply tow them home behind a pick up truck verses trying to trailer them.

I have towed both of mine home behind a pick up truck verses trying to trailer them. That said, that baler is old enough that it will likely have bronze bushings on the wheel spindles instead of roller bearings. The good news is it will have zerks on each wheel for the bushings so stop and greasing them often with a grease gun, keep speeds at 35 mph or less (technically you should comply with 27 mph or less if you plan to hang a slow moving sign on it. I believe SMV states 26 or 27 mph max speed otherwise you violating the SMV laws and if your cops are sticklers well), and taking along a couple extra universal implement rims for spares just in case would all be highly recommended.

Otherwise I would not be afraid to tow it one bit except your 2 hour drive there at freeway speeds will be 4 hours plus towing it home at 30 mph on side roads.