KennK
Silver Member
Due to the need to move 3'x3'x8' large square hay bales (750-850 lbs each) I recently purchased a Titan Hay Spear Frame with three 32" Bale Spears for use on my John Deere 3320 tractor with a 300CX front end loader.
This frame can be found at this link: Hay Spear Frame w/ Bale Spears & Stabilizers fits John Deere
I had called them to swap out the default longer CONUS 2 spears with shorter (CONUS 2) 32 inch spears to handle the 3'x3'x8' hay bales.
The combination worked flawlessly to handle the bales (we purchased 20 bales in total - four at first to test, and then 16 more later that afternoon). The hay guy even sat on the side of one bale, told me to lift it, and bounced a bit to demonstrate how well the tractor was handling them. The tractor was able to remove bales stacked two-high from a 16 foot flatbed gooseneck trailer, and I was able to stack them three high in our barn with amazing precision. Sometimes I had to wiggle the frame up and down a bit to get the spears to fully penetrate the bales before lifting, but the hay guy said they were VERY dense bales. The most difficult thing for me was getting the spear height and angle just right to back them out of the third level bales without pulling them backward. I'm sure time and experience is needed.
I preparation for this I had filled the John Deere ballast box with Portland cement. The day before I caulked the seams with 100% silicone caulk. It took 5.5 bags of the 94 lb Portland cement purchased from Menards - filling the ballast bucket just shy of the rolled over top metal. I don't think even the other half bag would have fit. I mixed each bag in a large mixing tub (also purchased from Menards) and then shoveled it into the ballast box. I ended up using about four gallons of water per bag - adding water gradually until the mix was manageable, but not at all thin - the instructions call for 5 gallons/bag.
The hay guy did the unloading of his trailer with my tractor with amazing speed (I didn't want to risk damaging his trailer). He uses a Bobcat with a four-spear attachment to load/unload at his properties. He suggested that I fill the wheels for additional weight/stability. That will be a to-do next spring before it is time for the next load of hay.
This frame can be found at this link: Hay Spear Frame w/ Bale Spears & Stabilizers fits John Deere
I had called them to swap out the default longer CONUS 2 spears with shorter (CONUS 2) 32 inch spears to handle the 3'x3'x8' hay bales.
The combination worked flawlessly to handle the bales (we purchased 20 bales in total - four at first to test, and then 16 more later that afternoon). The hay guy even sat on the side of one bale, told me to lift it, and bounced a bit to demonstrate how well the tractor was handling them. The tractor was able to remove bales stacked two-high from a 16 foot flatbed gooseneck trailer, and I was able to stack them three high in our barn with amazing precision. Sometimes I had to wiggle the frame up and down a bit to get the spears to fully penetrate the bales before lifting, but the hay guy said they were VERY dense bales. The most difficult thing for me was getting the spear height and angle just right to back them out of the third level bales without pulling them backward. I'm sure time and experience is needed.
I preparation for this I had filled the John Deere ballast box with Portland cement. The day before I caulked the seams with 100% silicone caulk. It took 5.5 bags of the 94 lb Portland cement purchased from Menards - filling the ballast bucket just shy of the rolled over top metal. I don't think even the other half bag would have fit. I mixed each bag in a large mixing tub (also purchased from Menards) and then shoveled it into the ballast box. I ended up using about four gallons of water per bag - adding water gradually until the mix was manageable, but not at all thin - the instructions call for 5 gallons/bag.
The hay guy did the unloading of his trailer with my tractor with amazing speed (I didn't want to risk damaging his trailer). He uses a Bobcat with a four-spear attachment to load/unload at his properties. He suggested that I fill the wheels for additional weight/stability. That will be a to-do next spring before it is time for the next load of hay.
