One more for the records.

[Farmwithjunk]

I don't have a link to the story, 'cause it's only been printed in a small local Kentucky paper that doesn't even have a website yet. I'm not completely up on the story myself, just second-hand info from a friend who's on the vol. fire dept. that handled the call.

Saturday morning, a 75 year old (Grayson County?) Kentucky man was killed while moving round bales with a loader tractor. It rolled back over the loader and pinned the man between the bale and the seat. Even more sad was the fact that the gentleman was to get married later that day.

It happens guys. No matter how much experience you have. No matter how many thousands of times you've done a particular chore, it only takes ONE TIME for something to go wrong.

Farming is just about the most dangerous profession there is. Even if you aren't a real farmer, you're using the same equipment that makes their job so risky.

 

[keeney]

My little JD 4100/410 loader has a picture of a round bale rolling back onto the operator. I assume this is a warning to not handle round bales with the loader bucket, or perhaps not at all with this smaller machine.

Wouldn't using a bale "spear" be a much safer way to handle round bales?

 

[Destructo_D]

Well, I am not a farmer and never done the work.. just a machinery enthusiast.. But I would sorta think it would be ok to use a FEL ONLY!!! if there was a grapple on the front... therefore the bale would be clamped to the bucket and it would not roll over the bucket onto the operator..

Am I right to assume this?

 

[TillerofdaEarth]

That is a correct assumption Destructo, assuming the grapple is large enough to get a good bite on the bale.

A large hay grapple is the only thing i have ever used to handle large round bales and the big square bales.