# Small Square Bale Tension Adjustment question



## NightFisher (Oct 10, 2016)

New to making hay here, spent a lot of time bucking bales when I was young but I never saw the baler being adjusted. On my old John Deere (and most other small square balers I've seen) it looks like there are two adjustments that affect the bale tension. There is a plate on the top of the chute and a pair of wings on the sides. When I baled last fall I initially had the tension too tight and ended up with broken knots. After I loosened things up the knotter ran fine but my bales could be a touch tighter and there is a noticeable "ripple" down the sides of the bale. Is there anything about the bale that I should look for to determine if the top adjustment is too tight or loose or if the side adjustments need to change?


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## Maxzillian (Sep 11, 2014)

Personal opinion from years of working on large square balers and seeing what adding restrictors to the chamber does (non-adjustable in that application): Try to get all the bale density you can from the chamber tension; only use the side restrictors if you run out of tension.

The restrictors do a fair job of increasing plunger load which helps compress flakes and get them to "break down" so they stay compressed, but ultimately it's the entire chamber and doors that holds the bale together until it ties. It's hard to see on a small square where plunger load isn't measured, but in cases where a baler is equipped with restrictors in conditions where they aren't necessary the plunger load can be the same as without restrictors, but the bales will be lighter. In other words, you're doing more work for less weight.


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## Josh in WNY (Sep 7, 2010)

Run the tension up until you start to have knotter problems and then back off. I use the main tension rails (top and bottom of the chamber) to control the overall weight of the bales and then use the side doors to get the sides/corners of the bales to have the nice square shape. There is some interplay between them so it's a bit of an art to get them both adjusted to where you want.

As far as the ripple you mentioned, I'm assuming it's on the cut side of the bale (side that's cut by the plunger knife)? The reason I say that is it sounds like the knife needs to be sharpened and possibly the plunger needs to be adjusted to have less clearance to the side of the chamber. If the knife is dull enough or there is too much clearance, the hay will wrap around the edge of the plunger instead of being cut cleanly. The owners manual should have the proper information on how to adjust the plunger clearance. Don't rush it when you do that, take your time and make sure everything is right where it should be (there are multiple adjustments/clearances to check on the plunger).

Another thing you might want to look at are the knotters themselves or even the twine. Make sure that the twine is not simply breaking due to the load and that the knotters are holding on to it correctly (proper holding tension on the twine disc). Also check the tension devise at the twine box to make sure it isn't too tight.

Hope this helps, Josh


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## Wethay (Jul 17, 2015)

When bales start breaking look at the ones just before/ after and see how tight they are, and look at the missed knot. Most baler operator manuals have a trouble shooting chart. Baled several ton with the fact that if I got into a spot of a bit greener hay or pushed through a wad of hay I would loose a bale or two. Real pain with an accumulator behind. Finally decided to try adjusting the knotter, 10 minutes and then no more problems. Why didn't I do that sooner thought I.


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## Tx Jim (Jun 30, 2014)

I determine correct sq bale tension with a set of scales. I strive for 55-60# bales. If my baler won't tie a 60# bale I repair the tying problem but I utilize a wire tie not twine tie baler


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## NightFisher (Oct 10, 2016)

When I had the knotting problems I had the bales WAY to tight and the twine was not holding up to the force needed to pull it through the hay. Josh, thanks for the tip on the ripple, I did not even know those knives were there, if it gets too bad I will look into sharpening/adjusting them.


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## Wethay (Jul 17, 2015)

Getting the knives out and back in isn't a huge ordeal. If they aren't sharp it's worth doing. Better bales, less stress on the baler.


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## Josh in WNY (Sep 7, 2010)

NightFisher said:


> When I had the knotting problems I had the bales WAY to tight and the twine was not holding up to the force needed to pull it through the hay. Josh, thanks for the tip on the ripple, I did not even know those knives were there, if it gets too bad I will look into sharpening/adjusting them.


I have assumed you are using sisal twine, so if you are using plastic, this probably doesn't apply to you. Several years back there was a shortage of sisal twine due to production problems in South America. That caused the quality and consistency in the twine to drop considerably. (Some will also say quality was dropping before this happened.) What you want to look for is any spots in the twine where the thickness changes from thick to thin. This is part of the reason that a lot of guys have switched to running plastic twine. Plastic will also tend to slide between the bales in the chamber a little better.

I prefer to run sisal since it is biodegradable, but the price difference with poly is also making me think long and hard.


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