# Square Baler Preference (In-Line vs. Offset)



## Robert1617 (Nov 13, 2009)

Can you share your preference(s) for small in-line square balers vs. small off-set square balers?

What brands/models do participants on the forum like?

Any preference for wire tie vs. twine tie?

Thanks


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## Toyes Hill Angus (Dec 21, 2010)

I use a New Holland 311, althought it is a "small" capicity baler, it does 6000 to 10 000 bales per year without missing a tie. The continuous flow feed system of the newer, bigger balers is a must (560/575) for higher usage. The small pickup is not a big downfal of the 311 you just need to drive straight!. I put a bale skii in it last year and have been very surprised by the increased ground speed and through-put. The older balers will only make a consistant bale if the windrow is consistant or you vary travel speed and baler RPM.
I have often thought of upgrading to a center line Hesston/MF but I don't think that I can straddle the windrows that I bale currently with the tractor with out dragging hay every where. I am convinced that the center line design is more efficient, but the full trun arround behind to watch the baler hurts my neck already, and I don't even own one.
The biggest question that you need to have, if you are not well versed in small square balers, would be dealer support. Not all dealers are created equal. Almost ever baler made in the last 20 years is capible of making a good solid and consistant bale if set up properly, so I would tend to go with what you can get serviced by qualified servicemen.


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## mlappin (Jun 25, 2009)

Toyes Hill Angus said:


> , but the full trun arround behind to watch the baler hurts my neck already, and I don't even own one.
> .


Two words....Cab Cam.

Installed one in our tractor when we bought the bigger grain cart this fall. One on the auger pointing down into the truck, anothr on back to watch for cidiots when we are going to make a left turn. Our turn signals on all our tractors work, but everybody ignores them, who would have thought.

After using the Cab Cams on the cart this fall I've made a executive decision that before I make the first round bale next year I WILL have one on the baling tractor with one camera on the back to watch for cidiots and another on the back of the tractor cab pointing right at the pickup on the baler.

I'd have to dig my receipts out but I had right around $450 in the monitor kit (which included one camera) and the second one I installed on the back of the cart.


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## Will 400m (Aug 1, 2011)

I like the off set balers better for a few reasons. First I can run it right to the edge of a field and get more hay than with a center line. Second the offset dosnt plug as fast as a center line, granted they both plug but the offset isnt as often and much easier to unplug. Next well it might be that im just stubern but the offset is just the way its always been done. Here in ct I have been on a lot of farms and not a single inline up here. Just my $.02


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## Gearclash (Nov 25, 2010)

> I have often thought of upgrading to a center line Hesston/MF but I don't think that I can straddle the windrows that I bale currently with the tractor with out dragging hay every where.


A strip of 1/8 inch plastic about 2 ft wide and as long as the lowest points of your tractor will cure that problem, as long as your wheel base is wide enough. We had mucho annoyance with any sizable raked grass windrow going under our 5140 Maxxum until we put a skid under it from stem to stern. Now no matter how tall those doubled grass windrows stand, the skid pushes them down and there is never a ball-up under the tractor.


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## Vol (Jul 5, 2009)

How did you attach each end to your tractor?

Regards, Mike


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## Naylorbros (Nov 29, 2011)

With the inline you keep the tractor over the center of the windrow and go. The only reason to look back is to make sure nothing is wrong with the baler. It is not like a side feeder where you have to watch the pick up to make sure you stay on the row. If your windrows are on 12 foot centers you do not have to move a row of bales when you have messed up your baling pattern. We rarely move end rows not as you do not have the pick up sticking out the side of the tractor.


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## Teslan (Aug 20, 2011)

This subject has been discussed with quite a few details in other threads. But in regards to looking back. With on offset baler I look back the same amount as I did an inline. You get used to where the offset baler is with regard to the windrow and your tractor so you don't have to look back to see that you are on the windrow. I always found myself looking back at the inline way more then I do with our NH as the Hesston inline always had more problems with plugging and such. As for the wire vs. twine question. Can you even buy a wire baler anymore new or even lightly used? I think I've only seen a wire tied bale once in my life. Granted I have never shopped for hay. I was once made fun of from some hay buyers from Texas that said I was backwards with using twine instead of wire. I think at the time, maybe 10 years ago, our NH twine baler was brand new.


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## Wyolife (Dec 3, 2011)

Teslan says "But in regards to looking back. With on offset baler I look back the same amount as I did an inline." He goes on to say " I always found myself looking back at the inline way more then I do with our NH as the Hesston inline always had more problems with plugging and such." Which is it man? My neighbors have used an inline for years and have never mentioned or have I seen plugging being an regular issue. Hmmmm.


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## Teslan (Aug 20, 2011)

Sorry I will clarify. I look back the same amount as to where either is on the windrow. I looked back at the inline more to look for problems. Plugging always happened to me on corners or in the case of windrows under a pivot sprinkler where I wasn't paying attention as much as I should at 3 am and the windrow got to much hay under the little augers. That's where the plugs happened to me. I never really got used to paying attention as close as I should because with the NH that wasn't an issue ever. By the way for those that don't bale hay under a pivot sprinklers the windrows are never straight. They always follow the sprinkler tracks. So they are always curving. The plugging on an inline always happened to me with alfalfa when baling at night. Never grass hay or during the day.


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## NCSteveH (Jun 30, 2009)

As someone that has both I will tell you that I much prefer my inline, it is like a match made in heaven with my Kuhn's accumulator, everything is in a nice straight line even when I have to road it down the pavement a few miles.


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## NEHerdsman (Sep 23, 2009)

Never have yet run an inline, but why is straddling the windrow an issue with an inline if it isn't an issue with a round baler? Just curious...


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## stickney farm (Jan 17, 2011)

here, if you use an inline every turn you make the tractor runs over part of the windrow and presses it into the wet ground defeating your work at drying. with small odd shaped fields in the area that can be a lot of hay. another reason is most customers here are very picky horse owners and they don't like feeling the cut side of the bale when grabbing the strings, especially when the bales are late first cut.


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## Gearclash (Nov 25, 2010)

> How did you attach each end to your tractor


?

I bolted small steel tabs about 1 1/4 x 3 x 1/8 (or so) at the 4 corners; then spaced them about every 3 feet along the length. The tabs have holes in to serve as anchor points for rubber tarp straps that are attached where ever works on the tractor.


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## OhioHay (Jun 4, 2008)

We have run several 100,000 bales through inline balers with 95% being sold to horse owners and have never had a complaint about the cut side being on the string side. I have had new customers comment that the bale looks different and then I explain to them the inline baling process and why the cut side is on the string side. I also explain about the benefits of square nice looking bales and better leaf retention from the inline balers. I don't think the cut side has ever cost me a customer and I would say that the other benefits have probably gained some. Just bought a new MF 1839 and will stay inline until something better comes along.


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## Mike120 (May 4, 2009)

Teslan said:


> I was once made fun of from some hay buyers from Texas that said I was backwards with using twine instead of wire.


There are parts of Texas where they still use wire and think it's the only way to bale. That's all there was when I was a kid, and I learned that with a hammer, pair of pliers, a screwdriver, some permatex, and baling wire.....you could fix anything. Now we have duct tape, but in most cases, I still prefer the wire.......I sure don't bale with the damn stuff though.


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## Josh in WNY (Sep 7, 2010)

As far as inline vs. offset, I've always had offset. There are very few inlines in my area, but they are around. My dad sold a few of the CaseIH versions and said the farmers that bought them really liked them. We do have a MF dealer that is a little over an hour away, but I think that would be fine for me since the NH dealer that is only 20 minutes away has crazy prices and isn't very willing to help you unless you spend BIG amounts of money with them. The JD dealer is pretty good, but their service department doesn't always send you the guy who knows what he's doing. I would like to try an inline or at least see one run in person before I spent my money, but I don't think inline vs. straight would be a deal breaker either way.

As for twine vs. wire... I won't even use plastic twine so wire is completely out of the question, but that's just my experience. I did try plastic twine once and found out my current baler doesn't like it at all. I can still get the weight bales that I want with twine (the non-plastic kind) and I don't have to worry about dropping it in the field for the mower to pickup and mess up a bearing or seal on the next cutting.


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## hay wilson in TX (Jan 28, 2009)

*The Inline does produce a better more uniform bale with less loss of leaves. *

The traditional off set baler corners better and we fun over windrows less with one. As long as we make all our turns to the right.

I bought a tractor with 4 gears in it's Creeper Range just so I could bale a field that produced 3 T/A or more. Otherwise I had to bale a round and then pick up that round so I could bale another round. Kind of interesting, being able to get down and walk around the baler while it is baling, and still be on the windrow.

They tell me 10% of the balers are wire tie, and most of those are in Texas. The major advantage of wire was the rats and mice can not chew through a wire. At one time the wire was stronger than string, but that is not true of the plastic twine. People have no problem with string for round bales and the big squares so it is more a matter of choice. If I were ever to purchase a new baler it would be string, simply because the wire cost more per bale than string. I like being able to open a bale by just untwisting the tie.

Looking back: I look back to watch the bale fall off the bale turner. I can see when the bales are getting too long. Starting to bale just as the humidity at the hay goes through 70% and the hay moisture is in the 18% to 20% range is one thing. But as the hay moisture decreases the bales become longer. Picking up hay with a bale wagon we NEED a uniform length bale, and a bale that will fit on the table. A random bale that is an inch or so too long is no problem but three bales on the second table that are 3" too long will have the a bale wanting to not fit on the load rack. They tell me this can also be a problem with an accumulator. 
I count strokes for each bale, Too few strokes per bale and those wide flakes will end up making the bale too long also. 
As I bale I keep an eye on the windrow looking for slugs, & too keep on the windrow. It helps to anticipate changing gears as the windrow density changes. (Not easy at night!) Count strokes, per bale and for when the bale falls off the bale turner. Plus keep an eye on the on the go moisture tester. I sit sideways on the seat and really look aft more than forward. 
Also plan the order that I will pick up the bales in. Remember any wet slugs so those end up on the top tier of a stack not buried under several tons of hay.

A WHOLE lot more fun than any sport I ever tried.


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## blueriver (Oct 19, 2009)

Mike120 said:


> There are parts of Texas where they still use wire and think it's the only way to bale. That's all there was when I was a kid, and I learned that with a hammer, pair of pliers, a screwdriver, some permatex, and baling wire.....you could fix anything. Now we have duct tape, but in most cases, I still prefer the wire.......I sure don't bale with the damn stuff though.


And Oklahoma ... when I was looking for a square baler all I found was wire. I grew up with twine and I was hesitant ... I like the wire ... cost more but customers almost wet themselves when you tell them "They are wire tied with a JD baler"


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