Re: Square Bailer for Hay?
You are looking for a NH 68 to 271 baler or a JD 14T or 24T baler. All other brands _might_ work, might 'knot'.
Balers are _all_ about the knotters. NH & JD got it right, others got it hit or miss (on older equipment).
Baler of this vintage goes for $500-1000 in _good_ working condition. That will be the hard part for you to guess - it's all art & mirrors - hard to see if they work unless you actually bale 100+ bales. Remember, it's all about the knotters, and you can't really tell by just looking....
Square balers need 15-20 hp for themselves, and 10 hp or so to pull the tractor & baler around. You have more fun if you have 35 hp+. Live pto is really important too.
Many compact tractors are _not_ rated to pull a baler, and warrenty will not cover repairs for 2 reasons:
The baler runs off a flywheel as Darrel (sp?) mentioned. The flywheel can store as much as 50 hp, even tho it only takes 17 hp to keep it spinning. The baler itself goes from using 1 hp to using the whole 50 hp, back to 1 hp..... The lighter drivetrains of compact tractors cannont take this strain.
Also, a square baler with about 3 bales of hay in it weigh a _lot_, and you can have the tail wagging the dog. Can really be tough to safely control.
Just things to think about. For more info on old balers, the archives at
www.ytmag.com will have a lot of stuff for you. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif
--->Paul