Baler Belts

Help Support CattleToday:

I ran a Vermeer Rebel ( I know there is a big difference in their models) for about an hour one day. I would of just as soon walked around with a ball of string and hand rolled it. I sure appreciated my NH when I got back on it. I know those old balers have made a lot of hay and were high cotton compared to what they had but man they are aggravating to run!!!
 
Just bought aNew Holland after using a 530 JD for years...Now I follow the raker out of the field ..with the 530 i was still in the field baling all afternoon while the raker is eating supper...and use half the fuel with the NH ,stop tie a bale, kick it out .bamm! keep clucking.. I might start to enjoy hay'ing now"...........naw still hate it..
Same here, it's a necessary evil. Newer equipment that actually functions as it should and saves time makes it less stressful, but I still wouldn't call it fun.

Which NH did you get? I've looked at NH balers quite a few times, but they operate under a different principle than the Vermeers do - they look completely different when you raise the side panels. The JD balers are quite similar, and don't scare me as much. I'm thinking of adding a 2nd baler sometime in the future, and would like to have a smaller 5x4 JD or Vermeer that can be ran easily with 85 PTO HP.
 
I ran a Vermeer Rebel ( I know there is a big difference in their models) for about an hour one day. I would of just as soon walked around with a ball of string and hand rolled it. I sure appreciated my NH when I got back on it. I know those old balers have made a lot of hay and were high cotton compared to what they had but man they are aggravating to run!!!
I've never ran a Rebel, but some of the neighbors have them. Most run them with 50-60 HP at the PTO and creep around the field at 3 mph, not my idea of a good time. My old L and the newer M will run as fast as you can sit in the seat, I'm betting those Rebel balers were geared to run at lower speeds so they're easier on the tractor.
 
It's a 2014 RB 450 . A 85 hp tractor would have no problem with it..minimum around 50 ..it only had about 2-3 hundred rolls run through it before..sit in a shed majority of the time .the old man is letting someone else do his hay now .hes got over 300 hundred acres ..and about 20 cows..so he keeps a few bales for himself.. and they take the rest..
 
Just bought aNew Holland after using a 530 JD for years...Now I follow the raker out of the field ..with the 530 i was still in the field baling all afternoon while the raker is eating supper...and use half the fuel with the NH ,stop tie a bale, kick it out .bamm! keep clucking.. I might start to enjoy hay'ing now"...........naw still hate it..
What model NHs make a 5x6 bale?
 
I have a Vermeer dealer about 10 miles from me and he currently has a low hours Signature R baler/net wrap/twine on his lot. The last two time there recently it is like eye candy to see how he would trade for my M baler. I keep my old I baler around just for backup mostly unless I have help to run it. A couple times it came in handy and save a field of hay as a sensor got screwed up on the M and another time a belt broke with rain clouds on the horizon.
 
Last edited:
I have a Vermeer dealer about 10 miles from me and he currently has a low hours Signature R baler/net wrap/twine on his lot. The last two time there recently it is like eye candy to see how he would trade for my M baler. I keep my old I baler around just for backup mostly unless I have help to run it. A couple times it came in handy and save a field of hay as a sensor got screwed up on the M and another time a belt broke with rain clouds on the horizon.
Is your M a 505?
 
Is your M a 505?
Yes as I wish it was narrower, but a couple places I bale the extra width comes in handy for the bale and baler. Also the extra on the pickup helps. The 4' is easier to haul. Those new balers look pretty good and the bales out of them look good.
 
My old 648 would make a nice tight 4x5 bale. I had some problems with it and with hay on the ground I bought a 504R Premium Net. It bales nice, but the 648 has a wider pickup better for turning. I have some hay in with a bunch of trees. Have to wind through between them. Makes some really hard turning. The NH never complained and it had a standard universal joint. the Vermeer takes me and the wife both to connect the PTO With that big dog knot PTO joint. Only difference in the balers is the moisture sensor on the 504. It always says wet.
 
This is also a little off topic, so forgive me, but I see folks mention they bale 250 bales or more, so I'm assuming baling during the day and not baling Alfalfa hay. Out West I bale at night (Alfalfa) so it's cooler and have less leaf loss compared to in the heat of the day and watching the leaves just pile up behind the baler when I dump. Even at speeds of 5mph which is easy on me and machine I can't get 250 bales before I have to shut down(to dry). How is everyone hitting that #. I've used various balers and currently run a big Kubota baler. Regardless of brand I never hit high numbers. Been considering adding a 2nd baler to double production. So what's the secret?? Assuming just baling grass so not as touchy as Alfalfa?? Again just guessing!
 
Baling grass hay we are usually able to start baling at 2-3pm and can bale until 8-10pm (when the days are their longest and away from the trees). That gives you 5-8 hours of baling in a day. Depending on hay density its easy to make 30+ bales per hour.

Last week I bales 147 bales in under 4 hours. Pretty close to 37 bales an hour average. So 5-8 hours would get between 180-300 bales, assuming you have the hay in front of you. 250 isn't easy but in good weather and good hay its not too bad.
 
Baling grass hay we are usually able to start baling at 2-3pm and can bale until 8-10pm (when the days are their longest and away from the trees). That gives you 5-8 hours of baling in a day. Depending on hay density its easy to make 30+ bales per hour.

Last week I bales 147 bales in under 4 hours. Pretty close to 37 bales an hour average. So 5-8 hours would get between 180-300 bales, assuming you have the hay in front of you. 250 isn't easy but in good weather and good hay its not too bad.
Thanks for info. Two days ago I baled for two hours (5am-7am) and got 38 bales. Bales weigh on a average of 1,244 lbs. My number seems very low compared to yours. I did have to stop and move two wheel line in order to get to a few rows, but still that's only 19 bales an hour.
 
Last edited:
I don't know a whole heck of alot about John Deere balers and I bought a 569 with just over 15000 bales and once about every 50 bales the belts will wrap about a roller while dumping the bales. As I close the gate the belts make a God awful squeeling noise since they're being pulled from around the roller.

Is this a result of the belts being stretched? If so is it worth it to cut the belts to length and put on new splices? Or after that many bales should I just get new belts?
Our 569 has done that twice. First time when it only had 300 bales through it. I would check belt lengths and adjust if need be. Peavy Mart has quite a savings on diamond pattern belts. We kept $2200 in our pockets for a set of eight last year. They are the same belts.
 
Is your M a 505?
Here is the one the local dealer has on the R Signature. Maybe a little high IMO being a 2018, unless he would make a deal on trade. I have looked the baler over and looks low bale count as I don't know much about them. I saw an almost new Kubota with all the bells and whistle sale last year at auction for $25,500 plus 10% premium so they don't go cheap.


 
Last edited:
Here is the one the local dealer has on the R Signature. Maybe a little high IMO being a 2018, unless he would make a deal on trade. I have looked the baler over and looks low bale count as I don't know much about them. I saw an almost new Kubota with all the bells and whistle sale last year at auction for $25,500 plus 10% premium so they don't go cheap.
That baler was actually built in 2017, fwiw. Is that net hanging out of the pickup teeth? Don't see any ramps on the back, either. Just concerns me when I see a newer baler like that setting on a dealer's lot, always figure it pissed someone off good and proper, so they traded it in on something different. I could see where you would prefer a 5' wide baler in your area!
 
Last edited:

Latest posts

Top