Hello All,
I've learned a lot from just browsing and searching this forum and HayTalk, but I thought that I'd post a question about my baler search and see what the experts say.
My brother and I have been raising sudan on about 50 acres here in north Texas the last couple of years, and have been having it cut and baled on the halves. Last year, we made about 130 bales on our unfertilized field. We haven't been exactly 100% satisfied with the job done by the fellows we hired to baled the hay. Neither could get there when the hay was ready, and neither made good solid bales.
We've decided that we could probably just find a cheap used baler and bale it ourselves. (We already bought a JD 1209 MoCo). Our 4x5 bales last year sold well and were easy to Haul, so we're leaning toward that size baler.
After a lot of reading and searching, we've found two balers that we're interested in. The first is a Vermeer 504 Super F. The second is a Class Rollant 66. Both are about $2500, and seem to be in pretty good condition. Bearings and belts are good on the Vermeer, and it also has a new gearbox. Sprockets, bearings, and chains are good on the Claas.
Our tractor is a Ford 540 diesel, 52 HP. I was at first leaning a bit toward the Claas because it seems that they are easier to make good bales, and have fewer parts to wear out. But I've read that it needs quite a bit more HP to make good, solid bales. Maybe the Vermeer might work better with my tractor? I know about the difference between the Vermeer belt baler and the Claas fixed-chamber baler, so I'm a little concerned that the Claas might make softer bales. For moving and delivery, firmer bales would probably be better. The Claas has net or twine wrap, so I don't know if net wrap might sell better or be firmer than it might be otherwise. We have a Vermeer dealer in town, but the nearest Claas dealer is about 2 hours away...
So, any thoughts about pros/cons of each baler, and which one we might be happier with?
Thanks for your help.
P.S. I also posted this question on the HayTalk board, so forgive me if you see this twice...
I've learned a lot from just browsing and searching this forum and HayTalk, but I thought that I'd post a question about my baler search and see what the experts say.
My brother and I have been raising sudan on about 50 acres here in north Texas the last couple of years, and have been having it cut and baled on the halves. Last year, we made about 130 bales on our unfertilized field. We haven't been exactly 100% satisfied with the job done by the fellows we hired to baled the hay. Neither could get there when the hay was ready, and neither made good solid bales.
We've decided that we could probably just find a cheap used baler and bale it ourselves. (We already bought a JD 1209 MoCo). Our 4x5 bales last year sold well and were easy to Haul, so we're leaning toward that size baler.
After a lot of reading and searching, we've found two balers that we're interested in. The first is a Vermeer 504 Super F. The second is a Class Rollant 66. Both are about $2500, and seem to be in pretty good condition. Bearings and belts are good on the Vermeer, and it also has a new gearbox. Sprockets, bearings, and chains are good on the Claas.
Our tractor is a Ford 540 diesel, 52 HP. I was at first leaning a bit toward the Claas because it seems that they are easier to make good bales, and have fewer parts to wear out. But I've read that it needs quite a bit more HP to make good, solid bales. Maybe the Vermeer might work better with my tractor? I know about the difference between the Vermeer belt baler and the Claas fixed-chamber baler, so I'm a little concerned that the Claas might make softer bales. For moving and delivery, firmer bales would probably be better. The Claas has net or twine wrap, so I don't know if net wrap might sell better or be firmer than it might be otherwise. We have a Vermeer dealer in town, but the nearest Claas dealer is about 2 hours away...
So, any thoughts about pros/cons of each baler, and which one we might be happier with?
Thanks for your help.
P.S. I also posted this question on the HayTalk board, so forgive me if you see this twice...