ford 520 square baler

scopel

New User
i have an old ford 520 square baler that was working good when it missed a tie and the twine fingers didnt return properly and the plunger shattered them.
so now i need some twine fingers, any from other balers that fit?
 
I think from my understanding of what you wrote that you broke the long (about 3 feet?) things that push the twine up through the hay in the bale chamber. These are generally called needles, and twine fingers usually refers to much smaller parts in the knotters. Sometimes needles have been welded, or if you call around to dealers or salvage yards you may be able to find something. I do not know anything about interchangeability since I have never been around Ford balers much.
Zach
 
scopel,

As Zachary said, needles can be welded back together and will work fine. I've had a couple welded over the years. To be exact, I think that they were actually brazed.

If you can't find any new or used needles, you might consult a machine shop to see if they can fix your broken ones. There's little or no actual stress on the needles. They never contact any hay. They don't penetrate anything. They just deliver the twine to the knotters.

Tom in TN
 
I have an old Ford baler (Red i think may be 520) and when i bought it ,it had blue (ford)needles on it. Sorry I don't know what baler they were from, but evidently later model needles will fit. Hope this helps, Blue ones may be easier to find.
 
I assume you're talking about the needles.... They can be brazed or welded with NiRod. I'd probably weld them.
Then find out why the plunger stop didn't work to prevent the pile-up... along with the root cause of ~why~ the needles were there to begin with. That's often a bad needle brake...

Rod
 
sorry , its the needles, but they shattered into 6 to 8 pieces each i gathered what i could but really dont have anything to campare it with, called the old ford/ new holland dealer and nothing , so im looking for what i can get.
thanks
 
Messicks list part #106864 in their system with pricing of $118.28 although they do not list any as being in stock... Generally when the item is priced it is available by order, though not always.

Rod
 
I can't say for sure, but the earlier red 250 ford baler used the same needle as the NH 66. Are there any numbers on the old pieces? Maybe someone could compare. I wrould almost bet they could be matched up to some model of NH baler.
 
Long Manufacturing in NC built the balers for Ford, starting with the original Dearborn models and continuing into the later 530. They also designed the last Ford Squares, i.e. the 532/542 series, but these were reportedly made elsewhere (New Idea)for Ford. The 520 is a redesigned model 150 and was painted blue. Similarly, the 530 was a redesigned 250 and the 540 was a redesigned 350.

I have both a 250 and a 532, and while the needles are not identical, I know a 532/542 needle will mount to and work properly on a 250. Not sure about the reverse. I also know that the 530 and 540 used the same needle design as the 532 and 542, which leads me to believe these needles will also work on the 520. Since the 530, 540, 532 and 542 series were much more popular than the 520, parts machines should be much more readily available.

Check the archives of this Forum. I have seen several references to the same source for used baler parts within the past year.

Hope this helps!
 
I'll try to get some pictures over the weekend. I do not have any spare needles for my 532 so picture will be on the baler. Will try to do a close-up. I do have one spare 250 needle off of my parts baler and will photo that with a tape measure on the part.

I grabbed the knotters and one needle off a 250 being scrapped, and when I got home I discovered the needle was actually one for a 532/542. It's now on my 532 replacing a welded one that rebroke.

Send me your email so I can send to you as an attachment.
 
Fry's Machinery Inc, in PA,lists that they have a Ford 520 in salvage. FORD 520 PA

Fry's Machinery, Inc.
Phone: (570)546-3968
Fax: (570)546-5940 Share On
Added: 9/19/2008 10:22:16 AM
Updated: 6/18/2013 3:24:00
Also list a couple of 530s, a 532 and a 542 so they should have some needles that will fit.
 
i tried frys and found some parts for my nh but no luck on the ford.
but i will try a few more places, still looking for the pictures BobH...

thanks for the information.
 

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