Oops, I think I killed my bale spike

[Sodo]

Here's another way to brace it, would look clean and be very strong. Two triangular gussets then box it in. If you put two separate fill-in webs 3/4" apart then you can weld to the pipe-socket and it will be really strong with the pipe/socket is braced at 4 points around. Easily done with 3/16 or 1/4" material.

 

[stuckmotor]

I ordered and recieved a double set of bale spikes. I think it was designed light so it could be shipped through Fed Ex and I believe I got free shipping. The lightness was nice until I forgot to raise the lift and hung it on a stump tearing the frame. The tear looked similar to yours only in a different place. I bought a stick of heavier tubing and rebuilt the frame. So far so good. I seldom go over that stump anymore and try to remember to raise the lift when I do.

 

[Eric Salop]

Sodo, thanks for marking up the pictures, I can see now how those gussets would make it much stronger.

Wagtail, that's another interesting take on how to do it. Is yours sleeved with tubing where it goes through ? If you get time, a picture would be great.

And put some real metal on it for petes sake, that one looks like its made from kids lunch boxes!

Yep, that tubing is definitely going onto the scrap pile, though it looks so thin, it will probably rust away before it gets weighed in.



Thanks Gary, excellent tips. I wouldn't have thought to have put a hole in the doubler plate - or at least not until I had gone and welded it in place

 

[Wagtail]

Wagtail, that's another interesting take on how to do it. Is yours sleeved with tubing where it goes through ? If you get time, a picture would be great.

I thought you might ask Mate, so I've 'run' out to the shed and took a few snaps. On my backstop/frame I can swap between the bale spikes or a set of (bloody heavy) pallet forks by un-pinning the shiny steel poles & then sliding them out enough. However the concept of the sleeve going through the tubing is there. The bale spikes are then bolted on at the back.

It's a very robust set-up as I've handled well over a thousand rounds of hay with it over two haying seasons and around my own property.

 

[weldingisfun]

G'day Eric. If you're going to replace the entire rectangular tube then might I suggest that you make it so that you can drill/bore out holes and mount your spears through the tube. That is how my spears are mounted. It eliminates the potential weak-point of the weld.

This is the way to go. I'm with you Wagtail.

 

[GLyford]

Much more elaborate than I was thinking, I had in mind something like this:



I know how easy it is to get carried away with some of these things and add a lot of extra weight which then takes away from how heavy a bale you can pick up. 10 lbs here, 20 there adds up...

 

[domains]

^^^^ fast best idea right there, will be stronger than stock and easy fix

 

[Eric Salop]

Much more elaborate than I was thinking, I had in mind something like this:

View attachment 489901

I know how easy it is to get carried away with some of these things and add a lot of extra weight which then takes away from how heavy a bale you can pick up. 10 lbs here, 20 there adds up...

GLyford, that looks a great way to do it. Keeping the weight down would also help when it comes to putting the spike on and off as, unlike other implements, it is something that can be easily picked up by hand.

Since sleeping on it for a few days though I have gone and convinced myself that it will be an advantage to set the bale spikes a little wider while I'm at it, so I will put the sleeve right into each corner.



Our widest bales come out about 7'6", or sometimes a little wider. A loose bale can sometimes sag down and collapse, so I'm thinking that spearing them closer to the ends may help. Often the bales are moved two at a time, the bottom one speared and a second sitting on top. For the last week I have been making do with pallet forks to move bales, now it's time to get on with the repair, whenever it decides to stop raining.

In fairness to the loader manufacturer, I should say that the bottom rectangular tubing is not quite as thin a "tin can" as it first looked in the pictures. The walls had streched and thinned down to about 2mm where it had torn out, with the undamaged walls being 4mm thick. With a smaller compact tractor that would probably have been enough.

 

[Sodo]

I have a small, lightweight trailer that I am able to move around by hand. Its been real handy; extremely versatile, for many years. I just did a modification to it to make it even MORE versatile. A selectably tongue length. The mod works GREAT.

Which added 30 lbs to the tongue weight. What's 30 lbs? Its still movable, at my present physical condition, but just not as far and requires smoother ground etc. But I've moved it plenty of times, even partially loaded. Often it's faster to unhook, turn around and reattach than to horse it around with the truck - certainly in the dark. Theres a distinct advantage to lightweight and paying attention to NOT adding unnecessary weight because burly eqpt can cost you in other ways. And its every time you use it. Whenever you decline to use it cuz you don't want to lift it, thats a cost too, its called "loss of use".

Having a welder, I'm often inclined to go lightweight for its benefits because I always know I can either brace it if it needs more or fix it if it "needed more" I understand lots of folks can't work like that. Welding less than 4mm is near the lower limit of stick welding so many folks, if not real confident, prefer thicker materials to make sure they don't burn holes.

In any case, moving that socket to the corner sounds like a great plan. Plus you'll get to grind off those ugly welds. Gotta wonder why they didn't put it in the corner. Agreed maybe it was tipping a small tractor.

 

[txndncowboy]

I think I would still put an angled brace in the corner. If you are like me you go way passed the limit of your equipment. So brace the heck out of it the first time. I have a saying. Do it right not twice.