# Round baler comparison by make



## jturbo10 (Feb 28, 2011)

I sell small square Bermuda bales to mostly horse customers. I use mostly John Deere equipment except I have a three year old New Holland square baler that I bought new cheaper than I could a John Deere used 348 square baler. I have customers who have horses and cattle asking for some round bales as they prefer the quality of my hay. I make more money on squares but the addition of a round baler would give me more options on sales, convenience, ability to bale hay that has been rained on or degraded to less than horse hay quality. I'm retired except for my hay sideline so being able to bale rounds and leave them in the field until I got back from pleasure trips would be a big plus.

I have been looking at John Deere 467s, 468s, and a few 469s but the one's I like are all in the $22-30K range as I don't want junk or ones with over 10-12K bales run through them. A local Kubota dealer has a 2013 New Holland BC-7060 or maybe it 's a 7070 with only 2800 bales, mega wide pickup, twine and edge wrap for about 20K. Said it was a recent trade-in but I don't have the details. I like the idea of newer model, less bales, etc for a baler at the lower spectrum of my price range. We have a New Holland dealer within 30 miles with a good baler tech and two John Deere dealership at same distance but I don't know anything about their techs.

I have been very pleased with my New Holland small square baler but everyone I know in my area buys only John Deere's and gives them great reviews. Anyone have experience with New Holland Round Balers? I won't be doing a lot of round bales compared to my squares , probably less than 400 per year. Would appreciate any reviews or recommendations including helpful options like belt dividers, feeding flares, etc. This baler will be exclusively baling Bermuda hay so no silage, corn stalks, straw, hay grazer, etc. Thanks


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## Beav (Feb 14, 2016)

I have NH 7060 over the edge net I like it and I have had no problems with the baler. Most of my customer prefer net wrap and 4x5 bales. I have never used any JD hay equipment so I can't say good or bad other then green and yellow costs more new or used and service in this area is not geared to hay equipment good luck


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## somedevildawg (Jun 20, 2011)

Had a br 7060 and it was a good baler, twine only so that was a drawback, but they will eat the hay....no problems to speak of.....


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## Uphayman (Oct 31, 2014)

Along with our big square, we also bale with a NH 7070. Picked it up used with only 600 bales on it. Very good machine.


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## jturbo10 (Feb 28, 2011)

Thanks for the great inputs. Will go next week and try to see what options this baler has and what their bottomline price is. I have one more cutting this fall and would like to roll some round bales to sell. I need to find out why the previous owner traded the baler in with only 2800 bales on a 3 yr old baler and get his phone number to chat. Have a nice weekend and enjoy this fine fall weather. It is 61 degrees tonight at 1130 pm.


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## OhioHay (Jun 4, 2008)

Have had good luck with new holland balers. Had a 640 that we put 18,000 bales through and only changed cam bearings, belts, and one roller bearing. Now have a br 7060 that we have put 13,000 bales on with zero problems. Mostly dry hay, but some corn stalks and silage bales.


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## Tx Jim (Jun 30, 2014)

JD rd balers are a long way from worn out at 20,000 bales. In '07 I traded a JD 467(twine only) with 30,000 bales on it that was still making good bales to get a 467 with netwrap which now has nearly 23,000 bales on it. I'm not afraid to pull in a field and bale several 100 bales. I've baled well over 150,000 bales with JD balers and the model 467 with the mega-wide pickup with rotors is by far the best one I've owned. IMHO used JD rd balers demand good money for a reason because they're GOOD and easy to operate. JD rd balers have no sledge rollers & gears that need replaced such as NH rd balers. I personally don't like the "star configuration on the bale sides" that my neighbor makes when he bales with his NH rd baler. .

One JD model not to buy is a 466 with mega-wide pickup as it has a poorly designed feeder fork crankshaft!!!!!!!!!!!!!

There was a used nice looking JD 468 silage special on DFW CL for $15,500 but the ad failed to state bale count. My neighbor bought a used 467 with netwrap with 12000 bales on it for $11,000


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## 8350HiTech (Jul 26, 2013)

For only 400 bales (unless you want to make them all in two hours) per year, $20k would buy you a baler to meet your needs twice over. Any baler you're looking at will accomplish what you're wanting to do.


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## 8350HiTech (Jul 26, 2013)

Tx Jim said:


> JD rd balers are a long way from worn out at 20,000 bales. In '07 I traded a JD 467(twine only) with 30,000 bales on it that was still making good bales to get a 467 with netwrap which now has nearly 23,000 bales on it. I'm not afraid to pull in a field and bale several 100 bales. I've baled well over 150,000 bales with JD balers and the model 467 with the mega-wide pickup with rotors is by far the best one I've owned. IMHO used JD rd balers demand good money for a reason because they're GOOD and easy to operate. JD rd balers have no sledge rollers & gears that need replaced such as NH rd balers. I personally don't like the "star configuration on the bale sides" that my neighbor makes when he bales with his NH rd baler. .
> 
> One JD model not to buy is a 466 with mega-wide pickup as it has a poorly designed feeder fork crankshaft!!!!!!!!!!!!!
> 
> There was a used nice looking JD 468 silage special on DFW CL for $15,500 but the ad failed to state bale count. My neighbor bought a used 467 with netwrap with 12000 bales on it for $11,000


Your neighbor isn't forming his core properly.


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## Tx Jim (Jun 30, 2014)

8350HiTech said:


> Your neighbor isn't forming his core properly.


How does one properly form a core to not have star configuration if windrow is as wide as baler throat? I'm thinking my neighbor doesn't have much pressure applied to belts or has soft core option(if available) turned on.


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## Gearclash (Nov 25, 2010)

Tx Jim said:


> How does one properly form a core to not have star configuration if windrow is as wide as baler throat? I'm thinking my neighbor doesn't have much pressure applied to belts or has soft core option(if available) turned on.


What model NH is it? I never see any kind of a star pattern in my bales.

_______

In my opinion any of the recent model lines of round balers will do well in hay. 7/8/9 series Deeres, SM/N series Vermeer, (I'd stay away from the M), BR700A/BR7000/RB New Holland. Massey/Heston is also worth a look. I won't run anything other than NH, but I bale mostly crop residue. If you are working with hay that can have leaf shatter then maybe put NH lower on the list. They have the most aggressive chamber of all the American built balers and I think they will cause the worst shatter.


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## Tx Jim (Jun 30, 2014)

Gearclash

I agree about any of the newer balers are good. I don't know the model but I'll see if I can find out. I think neighbor bought it new last year BUT in my older years "time fly's by".I will try to post some photo's of the bales I was referring to.


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## mike10 (May 29, 2011)

Technically, the NH balers are a soft core baler but in reality you will not notice the star pattern or the soft core. Some operators like to have a soft core and on the new balers you can adjust the baler to do that. If you are seeing hay pouching out the side of the bale, then he is not filling the ends of the bale.


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## Tx Jim (Jun 30, 2014)

Technically JD rd hay balers have the option of soft core which can be turned on/off simply by touching a key on the monitor. ll other things equal I think there is no way a soft core bale can weight as much as a firm core bale. Here's some photo's of bales produced by my neighbors NH baler.


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## mike10 (May 29, 2011)

The adjustable core pressure is an option on some balers. It is clear this baler either has that option or he is running very low density pressure. It may not be my or your cup of tea, but believe it or not, not everyone agrees with us 100% of the time.

The selling point of a low density core is easier bale handling, easier to spread the material back out in a pen, easier for the animals to pull hay from the bale. Some people find this advantageous. It is just another option to meet the needs of more producers. Like all options you can use it or not, it gives you flexibility.

If any of you get the New Holland News magazine, the fall 2016 issue has an article on bale core and shell density where the pros and cons of programmed bale density are discussed.


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## mike10 (May 29, 2011)

There is something about those photos that bothers me. Even with the variable pressure option, I would not think the star would be that large. You may see a star in a NH bale in some types of hay, but it is only about 20 to 30" in diameter. The hay tumbles in the open core area during core formation. After that the belts have full contact with the bale and even with very low density pressure the hay would not be tumbling once the belts have full contact. The only way for the hay to tumble is if the belts were not contacting the hay.

There may be two possible explanations. One it is not a NH baler but a fixed chamber baler. The other possibility is if it is an import. I think NH has fixed chambered balers in Europe. NH has also recently partnered with an Italian company to supply some balers for the European market.


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## Tx Jim (Jun 30, 2014)

I'll guarantee you the baler that made those bales that bother you & I is a New Holland. I will find out the model # and post it.


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## mike10 (May 29, 2011)

I have not dealt with any cab controlled variable density balers, it just seems strange they would have a star shape core that size, but perhaps they do. It just seems to me if the hay was that loose in the bale the belts would be tracking all over the place. The pressure on the core can be set from 100 to 2000 psi, where the outer layer can be set from 900 to 2000 psi. The baler can be programmed to make a core the size of the bale. At the low end of the core density range would certtainly make loose bales.

Regardless, if you put the pressure to the bale the baler will make as tight a bale as any out there. And you will not see the star.


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## carcajou (Jan 28, 2011)

After looking at those pics i would guess there is no pressure being applied at all. Those bales look as loose near the outside as the center.


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## rjmoses (Apr 4, 2010)

I've never seen a NH baler turn out bales like that.

First thing I'd check on that baler is the bale density setting while baling--it might be unsteady.

The other thing I'm guessing might be going on is that the operator is running too fast, too soon. I start my bale at about 300 RPM and build up to 500-520 RPM over about 75-100 feet in order to give the bale time to get started.

Ralph


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## Tx Jim (Jun 30, 2014)

I know of one customer that this baler owner bales for that loads the bales with a sub compact tractor with a frt end loader so bales can't weight much over I'll guess 500-600 #s


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## swmnhay (Jun 13, 2008)

Tx Jim said:


> I know of one customer that this baler owner bales for that loads the bales with a sub compact tractor with a frt end loader so bales can't weight much over I'll guess 500-600 #s


Well I'd say the he is makeing the bales light as possible to sell more bales,or charge for more bales doing custom.Or he just don't know how to set the baler,or something is broke.

It surely isn't the normal for a NH baler which will make one of the nicest most dense bales of any baler if set up correctly.


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## Tx Jim (Jun 30, 2014)

Most of the time I start my bales at 450 pto rpm's and continue baling at that rpm. I only start core at lower rpm if having problems starting core such as I experience a few weeks back trying to bale unconditioned Coastal with a lot of Johnson grass that got too dry because of a popup rain shower.


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## SCtrailrider (May 1, 2016)

My NH 648 doesn't make rolls that look like that, mine are tight all the way through... and mine has a adjustment for the core also....


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## rjmoses (Apr 4, 2010)

A couple more thoughts:

He could have a poor raking job in that his windrows vary big time in size. (Probably not, but you never know.)

He could be running too high ground speed at the start of the bale---like he winds it up to 450 RPM in his baling gear and drops the clutch. Bang --- core gets started funny.

But, because of the bale weight, I'll stand by my earlier thought of bale density setting. He might have it cranked down way too loose so that he can make big, light weight bales.

Ralph


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## Tx Jim (Jun 30, 2014)

rjmoses said:


> A couple more thoughts:
> 
> He could have a poor raking job in that his windrows vary big time in size. (Probably not, but you never know.)
> 
> ...


Ralph

I've witnessed my neighbor raking/baling. He utilizes a 10 wheel rake and bales at about 5-6 mph. He has about 500 of those "puff bales" for sale. I think those "light weight bales" will cut into his custom business as he's only been in custom baling a couple of yrs.

Jim


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## mike10 (May 29, 2011)

It just goes to show, it does not matter how great the baler is, it still comes down to the operator.


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## YODA (Oct 24, 2013)

I'm curious. No on has mentioned the MF line of round balers. I had looked into the MF (Hesston) 1734 for my compact tractor before finding my 4550 square unit. Just wondering?

Keith


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