[AT] Baler bearing repair

[Cecil Bearden]

Well after nearly 12 hours the rollers in the front of my NH648 baler 
are out.  After 3 calls to change the order for the parts, I finally got 
the correct parts ordered.   I have baled about 4000 bales since I 
bought it about 10 years ago.  It has been shedded, not parked outside.  
The bale monitor shows 10427 bales.  I put new belts on it last year, 2 
years ago, I put new chains on it.  This time, the bearings and gears 
are just short of $2300..    I could save about $175 by purchasing the 
bearings from a bearing house if they could match them up.   However, 
with the hassle of all of it, I decided to just get them from the 
dealer.  The dealer's bearings are supposed to be Made in USA...  So 
with the repairs made in the last couple of years, and amortizing the 
$10,000 purchase price over 6 years,  I have spent about 14000 to bale 
4000 bales.   That figures out to a baler cost of $3.50/bale......  It 
would take a long time to pay for a new baler at $15/bale including the 
wear on the tractor.

Just a little party trivia I thought you guys might like to cogitate on....

Cecil in OKla