Caustic Burno
Well-known member
I have one single newer round baler and have yet to have a breakdown that puts me out of commission in the last probably 22,000 bales. I can also bale nearly twice as much hay in a single day with my current baler/ tractor combo than i was with just 2 generations older of baler and an old tractor.
We have short weather windows and short summers (frost in June and August this year, snow in May and September) . Often only 3 hours of baling time a day. If I can't get close to 200 bales done out of multiple small odd shaped fields in that time with one single operator then I would still be trying to make hay with snow on the ground.
It's not about how much fuel an operation sips in a day. It's about how much fuel per ton of hay produced....
This is just like all the cattle producers that look at just the salebarn check.Only mad I can't find someone to bale my hay that cheaply. Cant fault the buyer one bit. Like I said if I could buy or have hay baled as cheap as some of you guys I would park everything I own other than a loader, net the same income, and take up another summer hobby.
I feel like some of those producers will be in for a shock when upgrading/replacing equipment becomes necessary and they realize their dollar doesn't go even half as far as it did just a few years ago.
I was charging $20-30 for custom baling as far back as 10 years ago. And it profitable to the point I paid off all my equipment back then. But now 10 years later seeing guys charge those same prices is a head scratcher when all input costs have trippled.
Take away for me is: as a buyer be happy and buy all the $20-30 hay and custom baling you can. As a producer don't sell yourself short and make sure to include all your costs and always be saving enough for your next replacment or major repair.
Majority have no clue what it cost to keep a bovine yearly much less per day.
Year end is getting close and I guarantee mine are going to be close to two bucks a day.
It's the three F's feed, fuel, and fertilizer have gone through the roof!