# Conditioner rolls: Rubber v. steel



## JD3430 (Jan 1, 2012)

Hay guys,

Whats the pros/cons of each?
I know first hand rubber rolls wear out.
Seems like steel is the way to go for longevity.


----------



## Iowa hay guy (Jul 29, 2010)

i went from rubber to steel and the only drawback i see is that you dont get the crimping action in thin hay because you cant run the rolls together like on a rubber roll machine cuz they bang and clang drives a guy nuts


----------



## downtownjr (Apr 8, 2008)

Rubber lasts a long time if stored inside. I have never used steel, so I can comment on it first hand. But I have one NH 479 that has rubber and is 30 years old. I have a NH 488 that I picked up super cheap at an auction and plan to rebuild this spring. It was stored outside a lot and the sun finally did the rubber in. I am going to pickup some aftermarket rollers. Just have to find the time to rebuild it.


----------



## gradyjohn (Jul 17, 2012)

I have had all kinds. Both are good. I have JD with steel. It has interlocking v's so you get the crimping action. There are previous post on rollers you might want to take a look.


----------



## Bob M (Feb 11, 2012)

I have 2 NH H 7450's one with rubber and one with steel. Not sure yet if one is better than the other. I traded a rubber roll machine this summer on the steel roll machine after using a steel rolled crimper as a 2nd pass behind rubber rolled machine. I did see some postive results with running the crimper as a 2nd pass. Not sure that the steel roll discbine is any better than the rubber yet. Bob


----------



## Iowa hay guy (Jul 29, 2010)

if you harvest a lot of legumes then steel is probably ok if you harvest more grass than anything then you may want rubber rolls so you can condition the blades of grass which the steel wont do at all but the steel will also eat anything from trees to critters i havnt plugged it yet 
i can get pictures if you want and i also have a link to a couple videos if you would like to see it


----------



## Vol (Jul 5, 2009)

Pics and links would be very good Iowa Hay Guy.

Regards, Mike


----------



## Iowa hay guy (Jul 29, 2010)

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=1166086129455&set=pb.1746961410.-2207520000.1358554069&type=3&theater
here is the rolls 
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=2261624477229&set=vb.1746961410&type=3&theater
here is the video of the mower at work it may not work because its on my facebook i may have to copy them to a different website somehow


----------



## JD3430 (Jan 1, 2012)

Course there's flail conditioners, too. 
NH seems to like them for grass hay


----------



## Iowa hay guy (Jul 29, 2010)

i would only use a flail if you dont mow any legumes at all nor do you plan to ..... ever
they just dont go well together you might as well use a lawnmower or a brushcutter


----------

