What Round baler to buy

[Sam Vastano]

Group,

I have a small farm and I have an old JD 510 round baler but I am looking for one with net wrap. Being in the north ( Western PA) and snow the twine baler just wastes too much hay having to let them sit outside. I do have a neighbor that will wrap them in plastic but the 510 makes such soft bales he has a bear of a time wrapping them. I have a couple used balers that are close to me for sale. New Hollard 650, JD 435. I have no preference on brand I just want a decent quality baler to make my hay. I do approx 50 bales a year and I don't want to spend more than about 12,XXX.00 any recommendations on a brand, model I should watch for?

 

[farmersamm]

If you want the experience I've had with the NH 650.............by all means BUY IT

Take a look at the thread I have going, concerning the repairs to a 650. Unless you have a shop, or a pocketful of money, I'd stay away from the 650.

Makes very nice bales when it's working properly, but it's prone to some very serious problems.

If you're feeding bales, twine is best IMO. I hate net wrap when it freezes to the hay. Twine is easy to get off no matter what the weather is. And twine is less likely to accidentally find its way into your animal's gut. I've even seen idiots feed net wrap bales without removing the net wrap.

 

[Sam Vastano]

YIKES!!!!!!!!!!!!! I will definitely sat away from the NH 650

 

[Tx Jim]

I've noticed lately that used rd hay baler prices have lowered. For $12,000 you could buy a baler mid to late 2000 model. JD rd baler after 510 were much better/easier to operate making much tighter bales. I'd consider selling my '05 JD 467 with netwrap for $12,000.

 

[Sam Vastano]

TX Jim,

Where are you? I might be interested

 

[BarnyardEngineering]

Unless you're going to make silage bales, leaving them unwrapped is best. Wrapping dry hay does more harm than good. Instead of protecting against the weather, you get mold and fungus because there's just enough moisture in the hay to harbor that kind of stuff, but not enough to cause fermentation, which is what kills that kind of stuff.

 

[DanielW]

Can't go too wrong with any of the Deere x35 or later series, or any Vermeer series I or later. Between those two companies, I'd say condition is more important than make. I might even say condition is more important than age. A twine tie Deere 435 isn't terribly different from a twine-tie 467. I'd take a 435 in excellent condition sooner than a worn-out 467. Most equivalent Deere's are a little heftier than their Vermeer counterparts, some of them can eat the hay a little faster, but they can take correspondingly more HP to pull. Vermeers have always been excellent at doing more with less HP. For less than 100 bales a year, it probably doesn't make much of a difference any way you look at it. I've heard good things about the Massey/Challenger balers, but have no direct experience. Deere and Vermeer dominate the field in my area.

Nothing wrong with some of the NH models, but my (albeit limited) with NH round balers is they're not in the same league as Deere or Vermeer. Back in the day New Holland was to be the be-all and end-all of haying equipment, but (*personal opinion*) I don't think their round balers aren't anything special. That doesn't mean they're bad, but they have certainly had the odd model with design flaws.

 

[caterpillar guy]

For the 12,000 you list for 50 bales you could put up a roof to cover them and never spend the money on a different baler.Just a roof would cover them for the rain and some snow. Bales set 2 high would not need much roof for them. A 50 x20 would give you plenty of coverage for them or a 20 x25 would let you set them 4 by 5 rows wide by 2 high or the 15x50 would be 3 wide and 10 rows. Could also use the roof for machinery as it empties out through the winter. Siding could be optional. I would probably side 2 sides and have it at least 12 feet under the eaves.

 

[SHALER]

You done good stating your top # of $12K, not many do that, but it could help if you noted what tractor you have (which I believe is a JD 4020 if memory serves). I think you are in Butler Co? You have 3 options....JD, NH and Vermeer and as has been posted , for $12K you will be able to get a very nice net wrap unit. Your tractor can run about anything assuming it has dual remotes and you did not specify if you were looking for a 4 foot wide or 5 foot wide. Also in your favor is that you practically wont even get the belts warm only doing 50 bales per year so you will pretty much be able to sell it for what you paid. If you are fixated on resell maybe the JD and NH may, I say may be better for resale in your area. You are really lucky you have lots of choices. There is a NH RB450 at the Kiko new years sale for starters!

 

[Sam Vastano]

Caterpillar Guy,

The more I thought of this after I asked the question the more I thought I would be better off just putting up a building. I would not need anything huge and it can sever more than one purpose. The bales I have in the barn are so nice and no waste so I think that is the route I am going to go. My JD 510 works pretty good so probably no need to change.

 

[Tx Jim]

Sam
30 miles South of Ft Worth. If you ever baled hay with an open throat, mega-wide pickup, hyd tension, twine or netwrap newer rd baler other than a JD 510 you would think you had died & went to heaven.
Jim

This post was edited by Tx Jim on 12/19/2023 at 05:30 am.

 

[TomA in CA]

I had a 18'-20', 12' eave carport type building put up for less than $5000. I got it to park a motorhome in but it would hold a lot of hay. I tried to have a retriever load of hay set in but it was not tall enough. One could stack a lot of round balls in there.

 

[Destroked 450]

A building is a much better idea than a net wrap baler, net will protect more of the outside layers but it won t stop lose from ground moisture
Spring hay here setting out uncovered will see 20-30% lose with the majority from ground moisture rot
Storing those 50 bales inside on a stone base will save enough hay from rot to equal 10+ bales

 

[DanielW]

I think a combo of the below suggestions would be what I'd opt for: A roof would be the better immediate investment, but as TxJim mentions, the old closed throat Deere balers (or any closed throat baler) are a bit of a nightmare. Once you go to an open throat you'll never look back. If the 510 has new belts/bearings, it might be worth keeping around for a while, but the best scenario might be to put $8k into a roof in the immediate future, then keep your eyes open for a deal newer baler in the $4k to $6k region. With the roof, net won't be necessary, which opens up your window of what balers might be available in that price range. I bought an open-throat Vermeer 504G a couple of years ago for $900 to use for the few bales a year I do at my father's so I don't have to haul our newer JD baler back and forth between farms. I had to put a new set of belts on last year for $1200 and re-did the bearings while I was in there, but all told I'm still less than $3000 into it, and it's a way, way, way nicer unit to use than any closed-throat baler.