# New guy with questions



## NNelson (Sep 7, 2011)

I am new to this site and new to hay. I have been on the farm for around 10 years now and am thinking of getting into the hay business next spring. I will be cutting upwards of 100 acres and I need to know if the equipment I currently have and the equipment that I will be buying will be efficient for this amount of land. I have a ford 2000(32hp) and plan to cut with a 7 foot sickle bar and bale square bales. Any comments and questions about anything else are welcome. Thanks.


----------



## dubltrubl (Jul 19, 2010)

I think you'll find, that you wished you had larger, more powerful equipment given the amount of acreage your looking at. I'm a one man band mostly, although I do get help sometimes. I do less than half of that acreage, and wish I had better more modern stuff. I square, and round, have two tractors a bit larger than yours, and even use an accumulator for the squares, and it's all I can do in a week to get about 25 acres put up and stored properly. No doubt I'm able to put up the rounds the quickest since I don't store them in the barn. If I was doing just squares, it would take me even longer. I bite off about 800-900 squares in a cutting and the rest rounds. Looks like you'll have pretty much a full time summer job with your set-up. I'm by no means an expert, but I think most would agree, that it can be done with your set-up, but it's gonna be tough. Also, consider the implications if you have a breakdown of some sort, and trust me, it happens. Not only will you work even harder, but you may lose some money if rain damages your crop. To my feeble mind, it seems it won't take too many events of that nature to justify the expense of better, more efficient equipment to aid in your harvest. Just a few things to consider. I do wish you luck though!! It's a wonderful thing making beautiful hay and seeing the fruits of your labor. I love it!
Steve


----------



## Nitram (Apr 2, 2011)

I absolutely agree with Steve you have the land to justify at least a tractor of 50 to 75 hp ( ford 5000 or better) loader/grapple a haybine with conditioner a v rake and a baler/accumulator. If you are putting up alfalfa depending on your area you need to get it dried and put up asap before it rains. No matter where you are or what you are cutting if you don't have the tools and knowledge what should be satisfying endeavour will quickly become a nightmare. If you have the money by the bigger tractor and keep the 2000 for the rake. Ps duall remotes on your tractor of you get a hydra swing haybine. good luck and all the best to you


----------



## barnrope (Mar 22, 2010)

Do you mean 100 acres or land with multiple cuttings in the haying season, or 100 acres total over the course of multiple cuttings? This will make a big difference in the advice you recieve.


----------



## Iowa hay guy (Jul 29, 2010)

neighbor of mine used to put up 120 acres one time of hay with 2 706 tractors a 9 ft jd sickle bar and a jd 660 rake then baled it with a vermeer c baler
now he hires me to do it and sits and watches the hay go up and he just piles them
its a lot of work even with that setup i would think


----------



## hay hauler (Feb 6, 2010)

Bigger equipment is needed.... Or you will want out the first year.


----------



## mlappin (Jun 25, 2009)

ATM Barnrope has asked the most important question. Are you going to plant all 100 acres then make 4 cuttings a year on that for a total of 400 acres, or only planting for example 25 acres and making 4 cuttings for a total of 100 acres.

I'd highly recommend only planting a portion of it now then you will be able to see exactly the labor involved.

We got some decent rain here, so it's likely I'll be doing some fourth cutting, like dubltrubl I'm for the most part a one man show, depending on how much fourth I make I'll have run over 700 acres this year total, closer to 800 actually. I own two White 2-110's at 110+ hp each, a Oliver 1855 (90hp) a Oliver 1600 (70hp) and a JD401 loader for loading trucks in the field and a JD 400 backhoe for stacking in the barns. For equipment I have a 13' discbine, a 6 basket tedder, a 25' foot v rake and a BR740A round baler. Mostly use one truck with a trailer behind it to haul home and get 22 bales a load. If I have a lot of bales to haul home and the hired man is free we have a second truck we can pull the contractor sides off and install the tail piece on and can get a second truck running.

You don't state if you work in town or not but I'm guessing so, from experience the only good shift to work in town and have anytime to make any hay is third shift and that's only if you don't need any sleep. 1st shift puts you at work when you should be mowing or tedding and most likely raking, most of the time a person has to leave for a second shift job just about the time the hay is dry enough to rake or bale. I'm full time on the farm and even then sometimes with weather or other time constraints a person still feels like finding a nice solid brick or block wall and beating ones head against it for awhile.


----------



## Teslan (Aug 20, 2011)

In my opinion even if you are cutting just 25 acres 4 times a year to get your 100 acres I think you need a better way to cut the hay. A 7 foot sickle mower wouldn't handle our hay here. Maybe it does wherever you are. A self propelled sickle swather with a conditioner can't handle our 1st or 2nd cutting grass hay without lots of pain and suffering for that matter.


----------



## TheFastMan (Sep 3, 2011)

I'm pretty much a one man show, also, and my biggest problem is finding people willing to help me move small square bales. Not everyone can run the tractor and baler (I don't trust many people to do it either) and not everyone can stack very well or throw bales up high, so that complicates things. Just something else to consider. 25 acres 4 times or 100 acres 1 time is still a lot of small squares any way you slice it. I do less than 50 acres, work part time and I am out in the fields practically all summer it feels like. Also, if you decide to buy bigger equipment, don't buy the cheapest stuff you can find. Spend money on good equipment and make sure you see it run before you buy it if possible. My brother and I have been on the sour end of "good deals" before and that is very very frustrating.


----------



## kyfred (Dec 23, 2009)

You can do it, but you will learn to cuss and after the first field you will wish you could do things faster. It can be done though. Good Luck


----------



## kyfred (Dec 23, 2009)

You didn't mention where you were located. That would be helpful so members would have helpful advice for that area that you are located.(climate and different conditions are in different parts of the country)


----------



## mlappin (Jun 25, 2009)

kyfred said:


> You didn't mention where you were located. That would be helpful so members would have helpful advice for that area that you are located.(climate and different conditions are in different parts of the country)


Most definitely, haying in the arid south west is vastly differant than haying in northern indiana, the east coast, or new england.


----------



## NNelson (Sep 7, 2011)

Thanks for all of the help and replies. In my situation, getting away from my current job on the farm will be no big issue if I am required out in the field with this hay operation all of the time. Second, I am talking about cutting 100 acres each time I cut, however I do not have to cut all this hay. 22 acres is mine and down the road is the rest on my grandpas and uncles land, so I will probably start by just cutting mine and seeing how that go's before I decide to cut the rest. As far as having help, my dad and my two brothers will be with me every second of this so I am very fortunate of that. Thanks for the you can do it attitude ky fred (not saying any other replies where negative) I will be cutting in hardin and breckinridge county kentucky. I dont know everything but I do know alot about cussin, Ive been cutting greens on the farm here in jefferson county for the past 10 years now and weve had our share of troubles. Thanks again to everybody, really appreciate all the help.


----------



## kyfred (Dec 23, 2009)

Some nice farms there in Harden and Breckinridge Countys. It will be a lot easier with the help you mentioned. You are south west of us here about 120 mi.
Welcome to Haytalk


----------

