Buying Advice Should I invest in haying equipment?

[Ortimber]

I do hay for a hobby and make a little money while doing it. Does it pencil out when just looking at the numbers? Not a chance. However, depreciation is worth something and it’s a good way to keep my fields cleaned up. Over the years we’ve been able to upgrade our equipment and now have nice stuff that’s all paid for. This should last me for a long time.

 

[Carl_NH]

I have a neighbor age 78 who puts up 4 or 5 thousand small square bales with a JD 24T with a kicker, a real oldie but goody. You also have to have some mechanical ability. Rule #1 of farm equipment is that if you use i, it's going to break.

Our first baler was an Oliver dropping bales in the field ran by a 20HP JD420, did 1500 bales a year for a few years picking each one stacking on a 59 international pickup, to feed the cattle, then got wagons and I was on the wagon and stacking end, then mid sixties got a used 24T with a kicker and wagons and a new JD 1020 tractor and did 3-4000 bales with two people in a season. Hard work but it was for feeding the livestock not selling.

And you are 100% correct - if you break it you fix it and I did that from about 10 yrs old, the knotters were a PIA, but was good learning.

 

[kenmac]

I would say no. Do not invest that much money in haying equipment. You will never make a return on your investment before you end up having to do repairs, or up grade your equipment.

Around here, hay sells between $30.00-$35.00 per 4x5 round bale.There's no money to be made at those prices.

There is an older guy up the road from me that has his hay fields sprayed for weeds, and fertilized by the local co-op
I asked him one day how much he gets for his hay. He said ''same as everybody else. about $35.00 per roll''.

I asked ''Joe, why do you do it, you are retired'' ? His answer'' I sell it to make money''
I say, ''ok Joe, you have $$$ for your cutter, you have $$$ for your rake, you have $$$ for your baler, you have $$$ for your materials for the baler, You have $$$ for your tractor, you have $$$$ for your fuel, you have $$$ for the co-op to spray
Joe, you have close to $50 K ? invested and you haven't even added up when equipment breaks down ''

I asked, Joe, show me where you make any money ? He looked at me puzzled, and said ''I guess you might say I do it just for something to do''
We laughed as I said, ''Joe, I can find something to do that isn't going to cost me that much money and a heck of a lot of time

 

[buckeyefarmer]

If you like making hay, I'd go for it.

 

[nards444]

Most people are around here have it done, theres a reason for it. If you want to invest money into something like this and find doing work fun and not make money then go for it.

 

[EddieWalker]

While there is more money in square bales, there is also more time involved in selling it, moving it from the field to the barn, and then dealing with loading it when people buy it. Having a dry place to store it will also be mandatory, so there is another big expense that will take a very long time to break even. No way would I buy square bales that where not kept in a dry place, but I have no issues buying round bales that have been out in the open for a couple of months.

 

[aczlan]

Most people are around here have it done, theres a reason for it. If you want to invest money into something like this and find doing work fun and not make money then go for it.

We do it because we have critters that need hay, we have the ground to be able to do hay and it's hard to get someone else in to make good hay as when it's dry everyone wants their hay cut.

Aaron Z

 

[rScotty]

Haying or not may be a local decision & might depend on what you eventually plan to do with the land. For example, around here haying is tied to water rights. In the Western US, haying means ditch irrigation and water rights - and those rights only continue for as long as you use them. Western water rights are a use it or lose it thing, and water rights are worth way more than haying equipment.

Now that may not be true about water rights where you are, but my point is that crops of any kind are so becoming so tied into laws and regulations that you may want to check locally to see if you are overlooking something.
rScotty

 

[bazman82]

We do it because we have critters that need hay, we have the ground to be able to do hay and it's hard to get someone else in to make good hay as when it's dry everyone wants their hay cut.

Aaron Z

I second this. Same reason we make our own as well.

I can read a manual and turn a wrench so hopefully I'll be able to repair most problems with my equipment that is older than me...

 

[Tennsawdust]

We have some investment property that can be hayed (around 10 Acres on one plot and around 40 on another). In this area, hay service costs around $20 per round bale, but hay sells for around $35, which does not make it worth much. I have two small tractors (30 hp Kubota, and 46 hp Branson) and a couple of trailors, so we could even deliver. I am semi-retired and like operating the equipment, so I am thinking I might buy a mower, rake and round baler and do it myself. The service guys are always too busy to mess with a tiny guy like me, and most of them would not want to hay some of the areas I would like hayed because they have trees and can be a little tight. I would not mind, since if I do not get the hay, I am going to have to mow anyway.

With all that in mind, what will it cost me to get the equipment? Does it make sense? I am 71, in good health, but probably only have a few more years to be able to handle this kind of work. I think it would be very satisfying, but cannot afford to be stupid with my retirement money...

Any and all opinions will be greatly appreciated.

Tom

I would say it all depends on what you can pick up some used equipment for. If you go with a cycle bar mower you can probably get the mower and an older rake for less than $1,000. The baler will cost you some money. If you can get the equipment cheap enough then it makes sense to have control of your own destiny.