Well, in the past 2 yrs. I have always needed to rely on friends and neighbors to cut & put up my hay. With hay that has been given me free of charge to cut - I'm up to a total of 11 acres. I have some money I could take and buy a used hay rake and bailer but wonder if I should spend it on that or not. (I'm a widow with 2 teenagers)I just hate depending on someone else, I know it is alot of work and very time consuming for them. PLUS - when you don't have your own equipment, they naturally will put their hay in the barn first and then we are left with whatever time & weather there is. Because of that time scale last year - we lost 200 bales. The people have been kind in the past but I can tell that it is getting old fast and don't want to be a pain to them. What should I do????? I know used equipment can be a real pain in the neck and expensive on repairs. HELP!!!

-- Pat (mikulptrc@aol.com), June 07, 2001

Answers

Pat I have run into the same perplexing situation. I would think that it would be a viable way to make the extra money that we all are looking for around the homestead. There are quite a few times that I have had to just cut my fields and let the hay stay on the ground. due to the fact that most of the "Hay Cutters" around here don't have the time or the inclination to work with anything less than 40 acres. And they only want to bale round bales. I think that there is a ready source for sales to the local horse stables that tend to use the square bales more than the round. If you can get the equipment at a reasonable price, go for it. Having this equipment is like having money in the bank...you can make money with it or if you have to you can sell it. Good Luck. Rory

-- Rory S.E. Texas (rory@readynet.net), June 07, 2001.

Pat, I have the same problem and have gotten around it by trading labor for machinery. I use my friends equipment to put up his hay and then again to put up my own. This leaves my friend time to do other work on his farm. If you have two teenagers, they can contribute to the labor pool also. Unfortunately, my teenagers became adults and I am on my ow

-- David (scott@micronet.net), June 07, 2001.

Hi, Pat. First of all, do you need all of those 11 acres? If you don't, a common way for farmers to work around here is to work on halves: you would supply the hay, they would supply the machinery and labour and you would split the bales 50/50. I agree that you shouldn't be asking them to do that work for free anymore. Eleven acres would take me close to two days to finish up, and that's a lot of time. Or, you could go to them this year and pay them for doing your hay as a custom job. Call your nearest Cooperative Extesion office and find out what custom hay work goes for, and pay them based on that. If your neighbor has teenaged kids that run the equipment, they might very well love the idea of being paid for doing it. That way your neighbor is still doing you a favor by letting his kids do the work, and yet you aren't having it done for free anymore.

If you have the money and want the independence of having your own equipment,then you could certainly buy an older baler and conditioner and have the "fun" of doing it yourself. :) If you go for a used baler, don't be afraid of age. They can run forever if someone took care of them. I bought mine new 25 years ago and just this past fall had the plunger bearings and knotter stack replaced. Big chunk of money, but the baler is all set to go until I retire. :) If you get something at auction, make sure it's a brand that a dealer near you will work on. It may be expensive to have them do it, but it cuts down on the frustration factor when the knotter starts missing the tie! Once a baler is in adjustment, though, they don't go out easily so you shouldn't be faced with that kind of bill often.

Good luck!

Jennifer L.

-- Jennifer L. (Northern NYS) (jlance@imcnet.net), June 08, 2001.

Hi, I found some local phone numbers last night in the paper. I'm gonna call and at least get an idea on what the equipment will cost me. As for neighbors helping, the one is a retired beef farmer and has a hard enough time getting all his work done. Besides, the weather lately, doesn't leave enough room for everything to dry before it rains again. The friend I borrow the equipment from, lives about 7 miles away. That alone is time consuming - driving over. As for trading work, that was a good suggestion but that won't work - I don't think anyway (will have to continue thinking on that one)and the half and half idea is what some do around here also but with loosing so many bales last year, that may end up to be a gamble. With one field in pretty bad shape and needing to be reseeded, etc. Sure appreciate all the suggestions. thanks!!

-- Pat (mikulptrc@aol.com), June 08, 2001.

If the equipment isn't any good it will break - everytime you go to make that hay. My experience was that it took my husband 3 times longer to do the hay himself becasue something would always break- and a trip out for a screw is about 3 hours wasted. This year we had a farmer do the hay for us and it is a big difference- he has really good equipment so it was done perfect and quickly. making hay is a lot of work and takes a lot of time. Do you pay the farmers to cut for you? If so then you are not being a pain- and if not maybe you coud pay them so you don't feel like a pain. Good Luck

-- kelly (kellytree@hotmail.com), June 08, 2001.

We bought a used square baler, good used sickle bar mower, used rake, and a used hay wagon for 5500.00 dollars. But, since it is used, the baler and the sickle bar need worked on and piddled with frequently, especially the baler, they are VERY finicky!!! Plus, you will need at least a 40 horsepower tractor to use the baler, and that is for a small one like ours is.

For such a small acreage you would be better off paying someone to put up your hay, you will have to pay more than you are now, now you are probably just giving a share of the hay, so try offering 60 or 75 cents a bale for it to be put up, remember, this is still a bargain compared at the cost of buying equioment and KEEPING it running. My good friend pays 75 cents a bale to have her hay put up, and she knows this is a good bargain compared to her having to do it!

-- Annie Miller in SE OH (annie@1st.net), June 08, 2001.

Pat. I would think buying all that equipment for just eleven acres plus all the maintenance to keep it running wouldn't be worth it. (my opinion only) I think what I would do is buy a little sickle mower from troybuilt and cut, and rake only what I could in a days time and stack it loose in a barn or shed. Watch the forecast and decide if you could spend the next couple of days doing it yourself with the help of 2 teenagers.

-- Russell Hays (rhays@sstelco.com), June 09, 2001.

Let me see if I got this straight. You're already getting 11 acres of hay for free. You realize equipment can be expensive, especially if it busts down. Your neighbors been kind enough to help you out a few times. You don't want to work for it. You don't even want to split it 50/50. You got 2 kids that could work through the year to make up for it but sounds like they don't want to work either. On top of all of this you complain about bales lost to the rain, something everyone else experiences now and then. My oh my I sure am glad I'm not your neighbor. Proper thing to do would be pay someone a fair price to do the work, it'll cost you more in the end to maintain used equipment for small acreage like that. Why don't you get rid of whatever you got going on if you can't keep up with it or at least give people who help you a fair shake.

-- April (atobias@yahoo.com), June 09, 2001.

April - goodness woman - take a deep breath!!! I am NOT afraid of work and neither are my girls. I am trying to figure out which way to go with this. Being the only adult, bringing in the income and having a LITTLE put aside, I don't want to spend it all if there's another way to do this. I never thought about piling it loose in the barn. This is why I am asking the question - to get ideas & other possibilities!! Like my mom always said - if ya ain't got nothing good to say, don't say it at all.

-- Pat (mikulptrc@aol.com), June 09, 2001.

Ifthe hay is for yourself you migt think about stacking it the feild in mows on a stake. Then all you will need is a hay mower, (sickle bar mower) and a side rake. I went to an auction last week and bought 2-Ford 501 rear mount mowers for $25. each. A John Deere side delivery rake went for $60. in good condition, a Massey-10 baler sold for $150. Balers are the biggest problem to keep running right. Pitching hay is a lot of work too.

If anyone is looking for 501 mower parts, I have a lot of them!

-- hendo (redgate@echoweb.net), June 09, 2001.

Well kiss my sisters blacks cat paw, you just don't get it I reckon. I was saying something good. About your kindly neighbors and suggesting you treat em fair if you want to put your responsibilities on others. My daddy rest his soul would say don't look a gift horse in the mouth and don't bite off more than you can chew.

-- April (atobias@yahoo.com), June 09, 2001.

april, did your dad ever wait for you to leave the house and then change the door locks?

-- wm.emerson (hawken@visuallink.com), June 10, 2001.

I was always daddys favorite girl and we didn't have no locks in those days and glory be we didn't have neighbors that wanted everything for nothing.

-- April (atobias@yahoo.com), June 10, 2001.

We have twice the acreage and found that caring for the equipment would be too big a burden. I'm not that good a mechanic, no welder, etc. Oh, and don't forget that if your state has personal property taxes, you may have to pay on farm machinery.

We haven't been able to find anyone to cut the hay for this deal: we keep 100 bales and they get the rest--we have gotten over 1200 bales before. The fellas we know who could already have too many farms they are getting the hay from. This is a tough call. If I had animals I would be looking at any method that lets me do it myself at my own pace.

-- Anne (HealthyTouch101@wildmail.com), June 11, 2001.

I can tell you from watching others do this - and owning the equipment myself on a full scale farm - you will be farther ahead to buy your hay. You won't want to spend much $$ on equipment for 11 acres of hay and you will end up with wore out equipment that will only give you fits keeping it going. Chances are, you won't get your hay put up in any better condition doing this than using neighbor's stuff. Don't mean to be a party pooper, but just have to look at it realisticly. Better yet, work something out with a farmer neighbor to buy hay cheaper in exchange for labor - put those two boys to work for them helping them make hay. It will teach them what real work really is.

Wore out knotters on old hay balers are a nightmare - mechanics are about the only ones that understand how they work it seems and they don't work cheaply! :)

Best of luck to you- Thomas Langan

www.thomas.langan.org

-- Thomas Langan (thomas@langan.org), June 11, 2001.

Well, we got alot of opinions and experience concerning this very subject. The way it seems to be unfolding for us is - my single brother and I purchased together a Farmall M tractor and a side rake. If nothing else, the tractor (with front blade) has already proven to be a good buy - we pull the manure away from the barn, move oversize rocks, etc.. The mower helps us cut standing crop to feed out to the animals as needed. We figured the most important equipment to any farmer is his tractor and with us at least starting with this, we are not taking time away from him to use his own. We have watched local auctions and the price these items have been going for were extremely high and when we found these in the paper, we counted ourselves very fortunate to get them at the price they asked. A friend of mine has also purchased for us a double manifold and hydrolic bar (both working) for $10 at an estate sale.(amazing what friends will run across, if they know what to look for) Pieces will come in one at a time, as we can afford them. In the mean time, a Christian family has offered the use of their baler to us and considers 200 bales nothing compared to what he puts up. He wants nothing for using it and feels he is doing what the Lord would have him do. Thanks to all of you who understand my delema and have contributed to our decision making!

-- Pat (mikulptrc@aol.com), June 11, 2001.

Not being a farmer... I'm wondering if you can actually rent equipment for planting/harvesting?

cheers,

-- Max (Maxel@inwindsor.com), June 11, 2001.

I checked into the idea of renting. Last year it would have been just the same as if I bought it all at top dollar. This year, they only rent round balers and my tractor isn't big enough or equiped to handle it. Besides, I have all the space in the barn, might as well stack it.

-- Pat (mikulptrc@aol.com), June 11, 2001.