[AT] Big round baler?

[Bill Bruer]

For several years, I rented Krone round balers from our local farmers' 
Co-Op.  These were the 160 and 260 models which make 5' high X 4' wide 
bales.  They will make a very tight roll of 1000-1200 lbs of orchard grass. 
These balers seem to require less weaving across the windrow to make a good 
looking square-shouldered bale - I was able to look like I knew what I was 
doing very quickly.

The Krone is a closed chamber baler that uses a continuous bar and chain.  I 
think you can vary the bale size somewhat, but I always made full-size 
rolls.  They have a smaller model if you want 4 X 4 rolls.  The balers are 
supposed to have about 1/3 fewer moving parts than other brands and require 
less h.p. to run.  They seemed to hold up well as rental units.  I liked the 
double twine tie system.  Simply yank on a rope to start the tie and it cuts 
the twine at the right time.

I sell most of my hay to horse people, as I believe you do, and this is a 
good size - 2 bales sit well side-by-side on a 96" wide trailer and a lot of 
stables only have smaller tractors to handle the bales with.

I only quit renting because the Co-Op got out of the rental business.  They 
still sell Krones and that is what I would buy if I were in the market.

Bill Bruer
Murfreesboro, TN
bill_bru at bellsouth.net


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Indiana Robinson" <robinson at svs.net>
To: <at at lists.antique-tractor.com>; <100AcreFarming at yahoogroups.com>; 
<FrugalRuralLiving at yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Wednesday, June 29, 2005 10:12 PM
Subject: [AT] Big round baler?


Son Scott and I are looking at big round balers and like with many other 
things the more
we look the less we are sure of.   :-)   Does anyone have particular 
preferences in big
balers? Some we have been warned away from then the next person we talk to 
will say that
they had one of those and loved it... We looked at about 10 of them Sunday 
and one that
was reasonable and in good shape was an IHC 241. Is anyone familiar with 
those?
I might mention that we will likely be baling less than 50 acres a year with 
one (the
rest will be small square bales). Also repairs don't scare us much. By the 
same token we
don't want to start out with a basket case or a real trouble maker.
We have noticed that some have wide belts at the sides. What is the purpose 
of that? We
also looked at some that had a twist in two of the belts???
Thoughts appreciated.   :-)

-- 
"farmer", Esquire
At Hewick Midwest
      Wealth beyond belief, just no money...

Paternal Robinson's here by way of Norway (Clan Gunn), Scottish Highlands,
Cleasby Yorkshire England, Virginia, Kentucky then Indiana. In America 100
years
before the revolution.


Francis Robinson
Central Indiana USA
robinson at svs.net

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