Haying
- Thread starter Egon
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AKfish
Super Member
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- Oct 1, 2004
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- JD 5115M; JD 110 TLB; JD 4720; Ford 9N; JD X300R
I should say so... remember those hay stackers, well. When I was growin' up in South Dakota the only other hay options were the little round bale Allis Chalmers balers or the small square bales -- IH, Deere and Massey Ferguson, etc.
Most farmers and ranchers in the western half of the state used the FarmHand stackers to build large haystacks as it was much faster to put up large volumes of hay vs the small bales.
The large haystacks could be moved to the edge of the field or closer to cattle wintering areas for later feeding. With the large haystacks you didn't need to worry about storage sheds and spoilage that would occur if you left the little bales out in the field too long.
The early models had wooden tines that were tipped on the ends with a steel cap. Later models had steel tines.
With today's fuel costs --- it might be more energy efficient to revert back to that older hay technology... Although, there was an awful lot of waste with the loose hay on the ground and the cattle and horses would trample as much or more than they would eat.
AKfish
Most farmers and ranchers in the western half of the state used the FarmHand stackers to build large haystacks as it was much faster to put up large volumes of hay vs the small bales.
The large haystacks could be moved to the edge of the field or closer to cattle wintering areas for later feeding. With the large haystacks you didn't need to worry about storage sheds and spoilage that would occur if you left the little bales out in the field too long.
The early models had wooden tines that were tipped on the ends with a steel cap. Later models had steel tines.
With today's fuel costs --- it might be more energy efficient to revert back to that older hay technology... Although, there was an awful lot of waste with the loose hay on the ground and the cattle and horses would trample as much or more than they would eat.
AKfish
OP
Egon
Epic Contributor
One could also build smaller stacks and then use a stack mover to haul them to the feedlot location. Then movable gates were used to allow the cattle only so much access to the hay. Not much was lost that way.
I never could figure out the labour logic of the small round or square bales.
I'm thinking that a farmhand would be a perfect solution for those with only a few acres of hay to put up.
For those not familiar it was not normal to mount the Farmhand on a tricycle tractor.
I never could figure out the labour logic of the small round or square bales.
I'm thinking that a farmhand would be a perfect solution for those with only a few acres of hay to put up.
For those not familiar it was not normal to mount the Farmhand on a tricycle tractor.
chadincolo
Silver Member
Still have two of them we use. Although we use them for round bales, I still know lots of people who put up stacks using them and F25's, some mounted on reversed trucks. I just found a hydraulic push off hay buck I'm trying to get before it gets cut up...still have 2 or 3 bucks without the push off.
In our climate (read, no moisture at all compared to some of you) stacked hay (either by Farmhand or with a loafer) works great, we had some stacks that still had decent hay 15 years after being made...
In our climate (read, no moisture at all compared to some of you) stacked hay (either by Farmhand or with a loafer) works great, we had some stacks that still had decent hay 15 years after being made...
Briana03
Elite Member
I moved your thread to the new Haying forum!