Rtfm!!!!!

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Heard a faint pop, and the wheels of modern agriculture came to a screeching halt.Climbed slowly off the tractor (it's how I gotta do it these days), and took a look at the baler.  Walked around it, and........................Well, that's not goodOld girl broke a floor chain, and it got hung up in the drive gear.Now it's decision time (this happened on Sunday), after a longish nap.  Parts are available FIVE DAYS SHIPPING TIME AWAY.  And there's hay in the field.I bought a newish baler over in Arkansas about 1 week ago, but it's days away too.  Have to build a set of ramps for the trailer to go get it.  And there's hay in the field.So.................................Time for a new baler says me  Heck, why not have 3 balers?Saw the lady about her ad on the puter.  We made the deal ($4700), and came home Monday evening to Today I go get the baler, it's about 35mi from here.  Pretty good little trip.I get there, and proceed to hook up.  REMEMBER THOSE SAFETY CHAINS, IT'LL EARN YOU A NICE CITATION IF'N YOU DON'T  For this application I chose the model 712 Drawbar Accessory, only available on the Uranis 301 Quick Change Tite-Hitch (patents pending)Oh yeah...........the new baler  Yes those are fowl of some kind.  I believe mostly chickens, with a smattering of Turkey's.This dooood was giving me the evil eye whilst I hooked up.Got outta there unmolested by the turkey, and hit the highway going NorthReminds me.........Thanksgiving is coming up"Any day above ground is a good day"http://www.farmersamm.com/
Reply:So, now we're on the road.....doing a stately 30mph (It's a baler with sorta old tires, and they get to bouncing at high speed)I got cars lined up as far as the eye can see, but I'm proceeding unperturbed smoking many cigarettes.  35mi is a long way to go at 30mph, about a full pack's worth I'd guessGot to the homeplace, and proceeded to REALLY look this thing overAll sorts of gear type thingies, belt thingies, hydraulic thingies, AND SOME ELECTRONIC STUFF  What in God's name you need electronic crap for on a baler is beyond me  Gonna take a stinkin doctorate to run this stupid thing stupid stupid stupid stupidAnyhow, here she is in all her gloryDid I mention...........I've never run a belt baler, never owned one, and didn't want this one.  Gonna be a steep learning curve I fearLast edited by farmersamm; 10-28-2014 at 04:20 PM."Any day above ground is a good day"http://www.farmersamm.com/
Reply:Good luck with it, Sam! Maybe you can sell it next spring before the first cutting.Shoulda grabbed that turkey... you know, the economy and all. GravelThe difference between theory and practice is that in theory there is no difference.
Reply:What does RTFM mean? Ya'll confuse me  Getting better Gravel, the ya'lls are just flyin outa me lately Last edited by weldermike; 10-28-2014 at 04:32 PM.I hate being bi-polar it's awsomeMy Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys
Reply:What about some pics of the 64 Dodge in the background?
Reply:Nice baler Samm.We've got a 664, and the Case one the same thing....A little newer....Check inside for wear grooves in stuff. How many bales has been run thru that?The belts will cut thru 1/2" by 6" flat bar in side.You have to weld the grooves up or if they cut all the way thru, that baler will fall apart.... Check the runners on the back to. I would tear that stupid pto shaft, bearing mount, and shield off....put a straight shaft on. And make sure your slip clutch ain't rusted up!!You'll break a shaft in your gear box!!
Reply:A roller goes right in that hole.About 8" in diameter, with roller bearings on each end. check behind that for a groove....This here was a 1/4" deep....
Reply:And yeah, you gotta cut that bearing mount plate off too....Put a piece of half pipe off to the side...
Reply:Flap disc it smooth....
Reply:Originally Posted by weldermikeWhat does RTFM mean? Ya'll confuse me  Getting better Gravel, the ya'lls are just flyin outa me lately
Reply:Originally Posted by GravelRead The eFfin ManualYou may be pronouncing it right, but you aren't spelling it right! You all = y'all Stolen form the internet: While "y'all" is actually a contraction for "you all," it is most commonly used in place of the plural form of "you." "All y'all" or "all of y'all," on the other hand, is generally used in place of "you all."    For example...    When speaking to two or three people: "Are y'all going to the movies?"    When speaking to several people: "Are all y'all going to the movies?"Things are further complicated when using the possessive form of the word.    For example...    Is this y'all's car?"    or    "Is this all y'all's favorite color?"Note, though, that there is some debate on the spelling of the possessive form of y'all. Some will spell it "y'all's" while others will spell it "y'alls." As there does not seem to be an official answer, it is a matter of personal preference.No matter how long you live here, you can be certain that you will leave with "y'all" firmly embedded in your vocabulary. And everywhere you go, it will be a dead giveaway that you once made your home in the South.
Reply:I thought it was: Right This eFin MinuteMikeConstans Fides et IntegritasLincoln Weldanpower 150 ACAirco Aircomatic MIGet CAV II w/ spoolgunMillermatic 30a wirefeeder
Reply:"Gonna take a stinkin doctorate to run this stupid thing"   I think you will be surprised how quick you will learn the ropes.If you didn't get a manual though, you will want to get one.
Reply:Originally Posted by weldermikeDam man Texas is difficult, I didn't realize I was gonna be in a fcked up spelling bee. I'm gonna role with the howdy fckers in the beginning and go from there. This is gonna be harder than I thought, but if my friend Rocco blended in I'm sure I can get by fine.
Reply:I am still using the original belts on my JD 335, and it has no electronics (that work) to worry about. For about 10 years, it had a really annoying alarm that would sound to let you know that the bale was half finished. You had to speed up to finish the rest of the bale to turn off the damn alarm. The greatest accident was when a tree branch snagged the alarm cable and sucked it into a bale. It was gone in a spit second. The bale that saved my sanity was never fed to the cows. Instead, it retired in a hedgerow and has long decayed away. I like belt balers better than the fixed chambers for my use - they make a much denser bale and there aren't so many to pick out of the field. We run our bales through a bale chopper for a TMR since the tight bales are sometimes hard for the cows to pick apart.Lincoln Precision Tig 185Lincoln Power Mig 256Hypertherm PM 45Everlast 140STSmith O/A
Reply:You get all the fun jobs.......zap!I am not completely insane..Some parts are missing Professional Driver on a closed course....Do not attempt.Just because I'm a  dumbass don't mean that you can be too.So DON'T try any of this **** l do at home.
Reply:Replace lacing pins as preventative maintenance. Easier than doing the lacing if you need to do laces the John Deere mato laces are the best.Millermatic 252millermatic 175miller 300 Thunderboltlincoln ranger 250smith torcheslots of bfh'sIf it dont fit get a bigger hammer
Reply:Well, I read the operators manual last nightSeems that the stupid thing won't wrap twine without the stupid computer box.  AND MY BALING TRACTOR HAS A BAD REGULATOR THAT IS ALWAYS GROUNDED.  So I generally just keep the key on while idling to charge the battery.  I never operate the tractor with the key on (charger circuit activated), or the alternator belt will slip so bad due to the full grounded regulator calling for full charge all the time, that it will actually burn up the belt.  Alternators turn into essentially a "reverse" electric motor when the field is grounded, and add a lot of drag to the pulley.Suppose I'll have to get a new regulatorI don't like the fact that the wrapping system is timed, not pulley driven.  It depends entirely on bale rotational speed to make uniform wraps with a given spacing.  My old Auto Wrap system just works in sync with the baler drivetrain, no need to run the PTO at full speed.  I suppose I'll get used to it, and just program the Bale Command to do more wraps (slower twine needle speed) to compensate for the lower PTO speed I prefer.THE MANUAL SAYS THAT THIS THING HAS A HARD TIME WITH HAYGRAZER  It's the stuff I bale most..................................................  ...............................................AK, aka John, thanks for the heads up about the wear patterns on the edges of the belt idlers (pipe thingies the belt slide over).  I'll check those after I get this crap baled.Supposedly this thing had some new bearings installed on the lowermost roller.  I see where the bearing flanges were re-installed in a different position than original.  You can see where the paint pattern is different, the primer is exposed.  I don't like this.  It tells me that the shaft/roller might not be running level from side to side.  The bearing is also cocked in the flange.  Not good.All of this would really matter if I was going to keep the baler after this use, but for now I'm leaning strongly towards taking it straight to auction in the Spring as per my original plan.I may like it so much I'll keep it, dunno.  Have to see how much ground speed it's capable of baling at.  I'd sure like a fast baler.  The chain balers will run fast, but tend to make a loose bale if run too fast.  With the hydraulic bale tensioner I'm thinking this thing should run pretty fast.  My old chain baler uses a coil spring to compress the bale, and it's not near as strong as I think the hydraulic tension will be.  Gotta see how it runs.According to the manual, the feeding is about the same as any baler.  Just pack the shoulders of the bale, and stay out of the middle of the bale.  Pretty standard, although most folks don't seem to be able to do it right (the moron factor).I think the extra wide pickup will be nice, especially for the Haygrazer.  I have to flip it at least a couple of times to dry it during the 8 day dry period, and raking tends to toss stuff around a bit, and make the winrow uneven as it's turned.  The wide pickup will work well on stray crop material outside the winrow.Anyways kiddo  Thanks for sharing your experience with this machine, it helps a bunch(I can see it now  Running like a scalded ape, trying to watch the stupid monitor, and winding up driving thru the fence)"Any day above ground is a good day"http://www.farmersamm.com/
Reply:Originally Posted by farmshopReplace lacing pins as preventative maintenance. Easier than doing the lacing if you need to do laces the John Deere mato laces are the best.
Reply:Originally Posted by farmersammDunno what lacing pins are, but I'm sure I'll find out  Stinkin new crap
Reply:This baler will also take significantly more hp to run than your old chain type. She'll make your 1850 grunt pretty good if you got any hills to pull.Yeah, I know, but it'll be ok!Lincoln Square wave 255Miller Vintage mig30a spoolgunThermal Dynamics Pacmaster 100xl plasmaSmith mc torchEllis 1600 band saw
Reply:You got that right!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Takes 85hp to run the thingOught to be interesting, to say the least.Meanwhile today gotta re-rake the entire field to turn the winrows cause we had that rain on Beer NiteOff to it....................."Any day above ground is a good day"http://www.farmersamm.com/
Reply:Sam,You are a freaking FARMER, of course you will figure this out. All the farmers and ranchers were masters of ingenuity, I can see from all of your posts that you are just like my Dads Dad. He used to build small wagons for goats and dogs to pull, By hand. These were beautiful, I just wish I had one.RegardsDave
Reply:Wait till they come out with the digital menu driven toilet. "The things that will destroy America are prosperity at any price, peace at any price, safety first instead of duty first, the love of soft living and the get rich quick theory of life." -Theodore Roosevelt
Reply:A 4440 Deere would run that baler nicely... You work your a$$ off, you should reward yourself with a more comfortable tractor.-------------------------Chemetron AC/DC 300 HFSnap-On MM300L Lincoln SP140 Lincoln AC/DC 225g Lincoln SA200 Lincoln SA200 Miller Bobcat 225GVictor torchesH&M and Mathey beveling machinesMcElroy Plastic pipe fusionOne step closer to finishing out.This stuff is thick, and nasty  I don't believe I've heard of anyone having a totally pleasant experience with this stuff.To dry out the damage caused by the rain, the stuff has to be flipped over.  This also eliminates any possibility of mold on the wet hay closest to the ground.  The sun kills the spores.The wheel rake, although not perfect, turns the hay, and moves it to dry ground.  This process is done at about 6-7mph, and will tear you a new azzhole on rough ground.  These things are not meant to fly.  The old girl has a solid unsprung seat with about 3" of padding.Despite being on the ground for about 9 or so days, the stuff still retains a lot of moisture.  Note the green stalks.  Looks like the day it was cut.This is normal, and doesn't affect the bales.  The wet stuff will be absorbed by the dry material in the bale.  I'd imagine the moisture content to be somewhere shy of 20% once baled.  Protein will run about 12-14%.  Nitrate levels will be tested before feeding (all this work, and you can still have excessive nitrate levels if the crop was baled during drought, or over fertilized).  Palatability is equivalent to alfalfa.  Lot of sugar in those stalks.Hook up the "new" baler this morning, wait for the dew to evaporate (somewhere around 11:00AM), and the fun begins"Any day above ground is a good day"http://www.farmersamm.com/
Reply:If you look closely at the last set of pics, you can see that the crop has started to grow again.  Look at the green shoots coming from the cut stubble.  This stuff will grow until frost kills it.  In a good year it will make 2 cuttings, and produce 10 round bales to the acre.Although I hate Sorghum-Sudan (Haygrazer), I'm married to it.  For the work involved, there's a substantial reward.  The tonnage is phenomenal."Any day above ground is a good day"http://www.farmersamm.com/
Reply:We grew that a couple times back on the farm when I was a kid. We never baled it tho, we choped it and put it in the silo. Got huge tons/acre but the feed value is less per ton than corn so it was just used when we couldn't get corn in. The way I understood it is it produces a bit more tons/acre than corn, but is a bit less feed value for about an equal overall value/acre. It does suit dryer climates or later planting tho which is why we used it sometimes. Good luck with your new baler.Yeah, I know, but it'll be ok!Lincoln Square wave 255Miller Vintage mig30a spoolgunThermal Dynamics Pacmaster 100xl plasmaSmith mc torchEllis 1600 band saw
Reply:When I was a kid, we used to chop Sudan onto a flat wagon for the cows when the pasture was looking over grazed.
Reply:NOBODY TOLD ME THE STINKIN PIECE OF SH JUNCTION BOX HAD TO BE GROUNDED!!@!!!!!!!!Piece of crap has been beeping at me for the last stinkin hour  Half the morning servicing all the crap, good part of the afternoon running wires where they won't get ruined, AND THE STUPID THING JUST SITS THERE AND BEEEEEEPSSo now I got it under control.  AT LEAST HERE IN THE YARD.  Yet to make bale one, Hell.......I still gotta get out to the field"Any day above ground is a good day"http://www.farmersamm.com/
Reply:this is bs"Any day above ground is a good day"http://www.farmersamm.com/
Reply:Samm we have the 950. Get the manual, as you have and study it. I found the 950 manual helpful. You'll appreciate the control when you figure it out. We use net wrap instead of twine. I have the exact chain/bar bailer you have. Don't bend the top roller.($1800.). Check your belt lacing often. You can buy a lacing tool and alligator clips cheap(usually) from feebay. Took half a day to untangle one belt that came loose. Still got hay in the field cause the pto went out on the JD 6715. 4 JD Techs couldn't fix it???????????? Hope your lucks better than mine.Arcon Workhorse 300MSPowcon 400SMTPowcon SM400 x 2Powcon SM3001968 SA200 Redface1978 SA250 DieselMiller Super 32P FeederPre 1927 American 14" High Duty LatheK&T Milwaukee 2H Horizontal MillBryan
Reply:Originally Posted by farmersammthis is bs
Reply:It's probably for the best anyway, these tight center bales don't keep 20% hay as well as your old bales so you might be glad for the extra dry time. Sure is frustrating tho isn't it. I feel your pain.Yeah, I know, but it'll be ok!Lincoln Square wave 255Miller Vintage mig30a spoolgunThermal Dynamics Pacmaster 100xl plasmaSmith mc torchEllis 1600 band saw
Reply:Originally Posted by GravelRead The eFfin ManualYou may be pronouncing it right, but you aren't spelling it right! You all = y'all Stolen form the internet: While "y'all" is actually a contraction for "you all," it is most commonly used in place of the plural form of "you." "All y'all" or "all of y'all," on the other hand, is generally used in place of "you all."    For example...    When speaking to two or three people: "Are y'all going to the movies?"    When speaking to several people: "Are all y'all going to the movies?"Things are further complicated when using the possessive form of the word.    For example...    Is this y'all's car?"    or    "Is this all y'all's favorite color?"Note, though, that there is some debate on the spelling of the possessive form of y'all. Some will spell it "y'all's" while others will spell it "y'alls." As there does not seem to be an official answer, it is a matter of personal preference.No matter how long you live here, you can be certain that you will leave with "y'all" firmly embedded in your vocabulary. And everywhere you go, it will be a dead giveaway that you once made your home in the South.
Reply:So now we're getting somewhere.  Actually balingHad a bit of a problem thoughFirst couple of bales, and the monitor goes off...........OkayNothing happens twine wise  It just sits there spinning the baleSo I hit the "extend" button, and the twine needles come down, and start feeding twineWell, after a bit, nothing more is happening.  The bale is just spinning merrily away eating up twine.  THE NEEDLES HAVEN'T MOVED.  I'm wrapping the center of the bale about 3 bazillion timesOnly way I can wrap the bales is manually using  the little switch to move the needles.  GEESH!!!!!!!!!!Shut her down, and walk back to the house to get the manual TO READ IT AGAIN.I had the thing in "manual" mode.  I thought the blinking arrow pointing at "auto" meant it was in "auto" mode, turns out the arrow should be steady....no blinking.I get it right, and head off.  Next bale.........perfectThen I ran out of twineGot it figured out, hit it again in the morning.Gotta say, this thing makes some solid bales.  WOW.  In the process of adjusting it so's it makes a bit softer bales, I'm almost to the point I like, baby steps.  Hard bales are murder on the cows, hard to tear apart.  Seems there was more waste with the harder bales I had to buy during the drought a few years back.The 21st Century has arrived "Any day above ground is a good day"http://www.farmersamm.com/
Reply:So proud of ya' Sambo...Lincoln PrecisionTig 275Miller 251Miller DialArc 250Bridgeport millHossfeld bender & diesLogan shaperJet 14 X 40 latheSouth Bend 9" 'C'Hypertherm 900Ellis 3000 band saw21"Royersford ExcelsiorTwo shops, still too many tools.
Reply:Yeah,On the extend, you've got to retract the needles manually.Go across, and slowly come back.It'll take some time to know how much twine you need vs how fast to retract....You'll like that baler when you get it working....
Reply:Glad to hear you got it running. I try not to feed my round bales as the sole source of forage since they are so hard to tear apart. Often the cows will leave the core in the feeder and not even bother eating it. I love growing sorghum-sudan (around 100 A every year), I just don't ever bale the stuff. I get 20-25 T/A and it always goes into a silo.Lincoln Precision Tig 185Lincoln Power Mig 256Hypertherm PM 45Everlast 140STSmith O/A
Reply:Sam if you put Senators and Congressmen in that contraption would it make them a useful product like the hay?                      Sincerely,                            William McCormick
Reply:Never mind Sam, I just realized how silly that sounds, if it could do that, it could turn poop into gold.                       Sincerely,                            William McCormick
Reply:The 21st Century has arrived Kids these days.....too darn lazy to work.Lincoln Electric:Ranger GXT 250SA-200LN-25Pro MiG 256Pro Mig 180Esab CV 251Invertec 160Victor Torches”
Reply:The last post on this NON welding threadMade 100 bales on the nose, not bad for 20 acres.  Usually I'll plant up to 80 acres, but this year was a weird one.Took a while to adjust the bale density to my liking, but finally settled on a semi tight bale, not as hard as a rock.Gurls seem happy with it  Got 5 feeders out now, and have grass hay in the other 4.  This one attracted the most attention.  They luv this stuff  The ones who couldn't squeeze in are having to make due with the grass hay till the more aggressive ones get their fill.Critters have been dropping weight on the grass hay, and it'll be nice to see them fatten up with the better feed.  What with the past drought, and the wildfire, they've been existing on strictly grass hay for almost 4yrs now.  This will also cut the cube cost.  Don't have to cube with this stuff.  At least for the next 90 days till it runs out.  Be gone by end of January if I feed it full tilt.  Probably mix it with the grass hay like I used to.  (Still seems like a century since I was able to plant this stuff)Some serious issues with the twine tie system.  Seems that the actuator is either binding, or defective.  Had to finish all the bales manually after the system kicked out an error near the end of the tie cycle.  Usual electric/computer crap.  I would have preferred a baler with the Auto Wrap system (fully mechanical), but had to take what was available.  Still deciding whether to keep this thing, or sell it off.Gotta say, it eats hay at a very respectable ground speed (5.5mph) considering the heavy windrows.  And the hydraulic tensioning does a very good job of compressing the crop material at high speed.  I finally settled on around 700psi on the tensioner pressure.  Up around 900psi the bales were too tight.  It didn't bog the tractor down, but my fuel consumption was higher than normal.  Shows that the governor was putting out a lot of fuel to keep up with the demand.Anyways.......apologies for the most un welding thread ever seen"Any day above ground is a good day"http://www.farmersamm.com/
Reply:Originally Posted by William McCormickNever mind Sam, I just realized how silly that sounds, if it could do that, it could turn poop into gold.
Reply:Way to go Sam! Looks like you were doing some bios programming there. Old dogs don't do new tricks they invent them for the younger folk.Sam if I come by your farm, do I milk those critters or eat them? Providing you do not get a good bead on me before I Lay my hands on them?              Sincerely,                        William McCormick
Reply:Are those Fred Flinstone sized Angus Sirloin steaks?               Sincerely,                            William McCormick
Reply:Originally Posted by William McCormickAre those Fred Flinstone sized Angus Sirloin steaks?               Sincerely,                            William McCormick
Reply:Thanks for the educationI didn't see any utters.Great picture and story.                Sincerely,                              William McCormick
Reply:You only get $120 bucks for a slaughter cow? That seems like a lot of work. When you say cow you mean female? I didn't know we were eating cows. I always thought we were eating the bulls. Don't the cows have estrogen in them?                        Sincerely,                            William McCormick
Reply:That's per hundred weight price. In other words $1.20 a lb.  The truth is most of what we eat are steers, bulls are to tough except for hamburger.Millermatic 252XMT 304'sDynasty 280DXHypertherm PowerMax 1250Miller Trailblazer 302 EFIOptima PulserXR feeder and XR Edge gun and more athttp://members.dslextreme.com/users/waynecook/index.htm