# Kuhns vs Steffans Accumulator



## tbill0511 (Mar 26, 2013)

Hey guys, I'm thinking of making the jump to an accumulator next year. Which one would you suggest? I'm gonna go with a 10 flat bale w/ a tie. Can I get some pros and cons please? Price is also a factor. Thanks


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## Vol (Jul 5, 2009)

The Kuhns accumulator is very simplistic in design and trouble free. No hydraulics or electronics to deal with....the Kuhns works off gravity. And the price is friendly. I have had no problems with mine in 3 haying seasons. Very low maintenance....just washing and greasing. And the dealer support is great.

Regards, Mike


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## slowzuki (Mar 8, 2011)

The only problem I've heard with the kuhns is when baling down steep hills. A fellow I know has had trouble with this, I've been to parts of his farm that are really steep, not likely a problem for most folks.


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## wildcat (Oct 20, 2012)

I've had a Steffen for around 10 years with absolutely no problems. Would highly recommend!


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## IH 1586 (Oct 16, 2014)

Purchased a Kuhns 1036F Accumulator this year. Most of the issues we had with it were operator and some fine tuning for the tie row bale. If I were to do it over I would not get the one with tie row.


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## Vol (Jul 5, 2009)

IH 1586 said:


> Purchased a Kuhns 1036F Accumulator this year. Most of the issues we had with it were operator and some fine tuning for the tie row bale. If I were to do it over I would not get the one with tie row.


There is a bit of a learning curve using the grapple and stacking securely and this is where I am assuming you had problems?

You say that you would not buy a tie bale again.....I would not buy one without a tie bale unless I bought the tie grabber. If you don't mind me asking, what about the tie bale has given you problems?

Regards, Mike


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## IH 1586 (Oct 16, 2014)

The tie bale does not always slide into place correctly leaving you with groups of 9 instead of 10. We painted it with graphite. That helped a little then we adjusted the side panels seems to have solved most of the issues. Now we find the bales slide to fast and turn back up accumulator. Just have to wait for the paint to wear. Stacking does take some getting used to. Most of my hay is sold out of the field so we just group stacks of 50 - 100 for the customers to pick up.


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## Vol (Jul 5, 2009)

IH 1586 said:


> Now we find the bales slide to fast and turn back up accumulator.


Not certain I follow you there(turn back up accumulator)....maybe clarify somewhat?

Regards, Mike


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## slowzuki (Mar 8, 2011)

I'm guessing he means they turn more than 90 degrees?



Vol said:


> Not certain I follow you there(turn back up accumulator)....maybe clarify somewhat?
> 
> Regards, Mike


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## Vol (Jul 5, 2009)

slowzuki said:


> I'm guessing he means they turn more than 90 degrees?


Not possible.

Regards, Mike


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## IH 1586 (Oct 16, 2014)

It is. Bale 6 comes down and the arm turns bale, but instead of being parallel with the gate it continues to turn up into the second row. Only happens on one side. When it dumps you get 4-5 bales all going the same way with no tie bale. I think as the paint wears, the bales will slow down a bit. Watched it do it a couple of times. Just to much momentum and they keep going. Bale length and weight also affects it. Just some fine tuning to do to it. I would estimate 90% - 95% perfect bundles


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## Vol (Jul 5, 2009)

IH 1586 said:


> It is.


That's a new one for me.....how short are the bales that do that. I am puzzled how the bales can turn back up the chute when the gate arm is sticking out at that point in the loading process....unless the bale was exceptionally short. I have baled thousands upon thousands of bales with my Kuhns and that has not happened the first time....nor is there a mention of that problem in the troubleshooting section of my instructions. Did you contact Kuhns with this problem? I would be interested to hear what they recommend.

Regards, Mike


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## jd-tom (Jun 15, 2010)

I have had a tie bale "turn back" up into the next slot a few times. It was pretty much a speed thing - the first bale came down so fast that when the arm at the bottom turned it into position for the tie row, it still had enough momentum to make a U-turn and end up in the next slot over. Just was too slippery - needed to wait for some of the Slip-Plate to wear off that I had applied earlier to keep straw bales moving. I applied the Slip-Plate because I had the opposite problem in straw - sometimes the first bale wouldn't come down fast enough to get turned around the corner.


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## Vol (Jul 5, 2009)

Maybe I have more drag on mine due to being a bit more humid than you fellas that have had this occur. The entire outside run on both sides and the bottom gate is covered in slip plate as I had so much drag when new that the bales just would not slide down properly. Live and learn.

How have you been jd-tom?

Regards, Mike


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## IH 1586 (Oct 16, 2014)

jd-tom said:


> I have had a tie bale "turn back" up into the next slot a few times. It was pretty much a speed thing - the first bale came down so fast that when the arm at the bottom turned it into position for the tie row, it still had enough momentum to make a U-turn and end up in the next slot over. Just was too slippery - needed to wait for some of the Slip-Plate to wear off that I had applied earlier to keep straw bales moving. I applied the Slip-Plate because I had the opposite problem in straw - sometimes the first bale wouldn't come down fast enough to get turned around the corner.


How long have you had your accumulator and did you have any other issues with it. Just got mine this year and been very happy with it.


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## German Farmer (Apr 14, 2014)

We run a Steffen's. Hands down best investment on the farm. I would compare it to moving from flat barn to pit parlor for milking cows. Does great job in hay. Only negative on straw is on big hill the bales can move out of order so stop to adjust placement. We had looked at Holscher and Farmhand which neighbors run. Because Steffen eject upon ground drive, you always get tight groupings and very few moving parts. ALMOST stupid proof once you get your open/center hydraulic valve system figured out.


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## KFhunter (Apr 18, 2014)

I called Kuhn's factory and they suggested I get a steffens system.

It was a matter of being on the north west coast, nothing available over here.


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## R Ball (Feb 26, 2013)

I have a kuhns 10 bale flat. Used it now for seasons. Absolutely the best and most cost effective piece of equipment we have. 0 problems and very little grease. We did cover the table in slip plate before using. My buddy does all the grapple work and we do not have the tie. We haul hay back to the barn 
3 miles at a slow speed not tied , no problem. We even set hay off the wagons and into the barn loft with it. It also loads all of our customers out of the bottom.
It has nearly doubled our revenue since we now only round bale grass that's been flooded. We have baled and loaded out 1500 square bales in a day.


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## Vol (Jul 5, 2009)

KFhunter said:


> I called Kuhn's factory and they suggested I get a steffens system.
> 
> It was a matter of being on the north west coast, nothing available over here.


Kenny Kuhns and family are good folks....with a great product.

Regards, Mike


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## southwind (Mar 25, 2012)

Sorry to chime in late on this. This past spring I made a complete changeover Traded my Steffen 1050 and 2- 5510 grabbers for the Kuhns MFG. 1534F and a 615F and KN 615F grabber.

The Steffen 1050 is bale length sensitive and I was running 15 bales at about 33-38''. I rode on it to kick some of the bales to compress the longer ones before they were pushed across the table.

That required 2 guys for a 1 man operation. Looking back, I should have dropped back to loading 10 bales at 44-48'' bales. Running hydraulics was a small concern with my JD 2755.

The Steffen 5510 grabbers were excellent. Built like a tank with super visibility. I used a Case 580L with bucket removed and a Gehl CTL60. Both 5510's had extended reach and rotators.

The Kuhns MFG. 1534 accumulator had some bale slide issues that I worked out with help from Kenny and James. Excellent support from them. James came here twice. Super.

Mostly being new to it and very minor adjustments on the swing arm springs. My biggest issue is with visibility with the Grabbers . I can't see the grab hooks on the 615f with the skid steer mount.

It is blocking my view unloading the wagons. Just have to get used to it.

I also bought a NH T6-140 to handle the KN615F tie grabber. Big learning curve overall. The one thing I will address is to be able to open the loading chute on the 1534F. When you have a broken

bale it is hard to clear out. Loose hay everywhere. Baler issues with only 1 string. Will design a 'trap door' on the up chute for easy access.


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## Vol (Jul 5, 2009)

southwind said:


> The one thing I will address is to be able to open the loading chute on the 1534F. When you have a broken
> 
> bale it is hard to clear out. Loose hay everywhere. Baler issues with only 1 string. Will design a 'trap door' on the up chute for easy access.


If I have a bale that did not tie on one side I will re-tie with a piece of twine while it is in the chute(I will push a bale or two off the top and over onto the sled to relieve some pressure) or if I don't catch it in time until it starts over the top onto the sled, I just pitch the loose hay on the sled onto a windrow beside the accumulator....but I seldom have a bale tie problem as so far my baler is very reliable on tying.

Regards, Mike


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## IH 1586 (Oct 16, 2014)

Vol said:


> If I have a bale that did not tie on one side I will re-tie with a piece of twine while it is in the chute(I will push a bale or two off the top and over onto the sled to relieve some pressure) or if I don't catch it in time until it starts over the top onto the sled, I just pitch the loose hay on the sled onto a windrow beside the accumulator....but I seldom have a bale tie problem as so far my baler is very reliable on tying.
> 
> Regards, Mike


It's great when you can catch them in the chute. Don't pay attention and you get a big mess. My worst was probably10 or so bales. Think things are going good and turn around and find a big mess.


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## Vol (Jul 5, 2009)

IH 1586 said:


> It's great when you can catch them in the chute. Don't pay attention and you get a big mess. My worst was probably10 or so bales. Think things are going good and turn around and find a big mess.


Yep, if you start relaxing to some tunes and drift off to never-never land, you can get in a mess if your baler has problems.

Two things that help me with that situation is a racing mirror attached to the ceiling where I can glance up at the chute and my JD tractor seat will rotate up to 90 degrees which makes it nicer about not craining my neck so much.....I usually rotate it about 40-45 degrees and it seems to work good for me.

Regards, Mike


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## NDVA HAYMAN (Nov 24, 2009)

I also have a Kuhns 15 bale edge accumulator. We run a tie-grabber and never have to tie any wagons when hauling in the field or over the road. I stack my bales 5 layers high which was a problem unloading. before the tie grabber, it was hard to tell if you grabbed all the bales off the top. I bought a Steffen bale handler that floats and my problem was solved. If you get a busted bale in the chute, I carry a piece of 3/4" pipe that is lashed onto the frame with a hook welded on 1 side and a point at a 45 degree on the other side that I use to push bales over onto the table or use to pull loose hay down. Once I got rid of the chains on the bale chute and went to the wide bands, most of my turning problems and mis-alignment problems with the bales entering the chute went away. I also have installed a camera at the rear of my baler to watch for any mistied or broken bale( which hardly ever happens) which eliminates me having to look back so much. These are a few things that I have done to make life easier on me "The baler boss" LOL


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## Vol (Jul 5, 2009)

I suppose I should have also mentioned I run a inline baler so it is easier for me to catch a mis-tie with a glance than it is for a side pull baler. A Kuhns accumulator was a match made in heaven for inlines....and I sometimes forget that.

I honestly can say that I had only one mis-tie the entire past baling season and that my fault because I did not cinch the splice knot tight enough between two spools of twine.....they will usually pass thru the eye of the needle with no problem and seldom does the splice hit the knotter.

Regards, Mike


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## southwind (Mar 25, 2012)

I did'nt want to get long winded, but it was baler /operator errors on the singled tied bales. I think my tie knot let go between twine spools and being complacent when you think 'wow everything is working great'. Then you look and see the mess. I also have a camera pointed at the baler chute exit. My helper usually is running this while I am picking up the bale packs. Also I picked up a used BC5070 Hayliner to replace my 311. A lot going on.


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## Chuck (Dec 14, 2014)

I have a Cardinal 36 bale accumulator. It's works great! No problems at all. They also make a grapple with 20 inch side shift.


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## Vol (Jul 5, 2009)

Chuck said:


> I have a Cardinal 36 bale accumulator. It's works great! No problems at all. They also make a grapple with 20 inch side shift.


Some pics of your equipment and in operation would be nice if you have them. 

Regards, Mike


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## Chuck (Dec 14, 2014)

Hi mike
If you google syst m cardinal ,, you will see all of there equipment on there web site. There's a video on you tube that a farmer put on,,, he doesn't have his Hydrlics adjusted right on the accumulator,, that's why he backs up and pushes the bundle tighter . I can't say enough about cardinals equipment,, it works great. You can drop the bundles at the same location at each windrow , that way your not driving all over the field to pick them up. I can pick up 1000 bales in 90 minutes easily ! I used to have a steffen,, it worked good, but the bundles were all over the field. I have two cardinal grabbers ,, I have never seen a better one ! 
If you send me your email address , I will forward some pictures to you


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## Vol (Jul 5, 2009)

Chuck said:


> If you send me your email address , I will forward some pictures to you


Done.....thanks Chuck.

Regards, Mike


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## Vol (Jul 5, 2009)

Here it is:

http://www.systmcardinal.com/index_en.html











Regards, Mike


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## SVFHAY (Dec 5, 2008)

That thing is pretty cool. The ability to choose where your groups drop would be handy, especially in a light crop.


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## ih4me (Jan 15, 2014)

I have bought a new kuhns and used for 1 season and love it. If you have a reliable baler you can put anyone who can drive on the baler. Then I stack hay and get it in the barn. I have in laws that are retired and love to drive tractor and a pickup around the field so I am able to load with a skid loader and keep them in the a/c. I really recommend starting to pick up while the baler is running so like the guy said earlier, you don't get caught in rain with 100's of bales on the ground in a pop up shower. Only bad thing is if you baler misses knots and send bad bales to the accumulator you have to get off and clean it off before you go on, but that's no fault of the kuhns. If you can swing it I definitely recommend it.


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## jd-tom (Jun 15, 2010)

Vol said:


> I suppose I should have also mentioned I run a inline baler so it is easier for me to catch a mis-tie with a glance than it is for a side pull baler. A Kuhns accumulator was a match made in heaven for inlines....and I sometimes forget that.


Yep - the Kuhns accumulator is the main reason I now run an inline baler in front of it. When I bought my accumulator I had a JD 338 baler at the time and it worked fine behind it. But after the first season with the accumulator, I got to thinking how it would be so much nicer to drop the 10-packs centered behind the baler rather than offset to one side. So I priced out a Hesston/MF inline and was very surprised to learn that the price of a new one was less than what I had paid for the JD one several years previous. So I purchased one straight out and kept the JD baler for another year in case I didn't like it. The JD baler went down the road the following winter. Now I just traded again for a new MF 1840 baler (traded in an 1839). From what I have read here and on NAT, this new one should have greater capacity than my previous one. Already looking forward to hay season 2015!


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