International Mccormick 50T baler questions

Hello-

I came across a Mccormick 50T baler a few weeks ago, and am thinking of buying it price is pretty cheap. Before anyone badmouths this baler ( I am well aware of the reputation of early IH balers), I am not buying it to produce hay or make a living off of it. Mainly want it for a collectors piece. I make around 4000 bales a year with Mccormick 46 balers and Farmall 450, also own a mccormick 45 baler too. Thought this would be neat to add to the collection. Anyway, it has the continental engine on it, but is missing the carburetor. Questions I have are:

1. How hard will it be to find a carb for the continental engine?

2. The baler is about 120 miles from me, so is towing an option? just don't want the baler stress cracking from bouncing down the road, ( baler has the rigid hitch, not carriage with dolly tire)?

3. The twine knotters seem to be a different style than the later mccormick knotters, how well did these tie compared to the mccormick design like on the 45, 46, 47 balers?

4. Any idea how many of these machines are probably left out there yet? seems there were only around 8000 twine models built.


Thanks in advance for any replies. Just want to save an old IH baler from the scrap man. Seen videos of this baler, looks neat. Any comments welcome. thanks!


-Jesse
 
(quoted from post at 13:00:02 08/26/16) Hello-

I came across a Mccormick 50T baler a few weeks ago, and am thinking of buying it price is pretty cheap. Before anyone badmouths this baler ( I am well aware of the reputation of early IH balers), I am not buying it to produce hay or make a living off of it. Mainly want it for a collectors piece. I make around 4000 bales a year with Mccormick 46 balers and Farmall 450, also own a mccormick 45 baler too. Thought this would be neat to add to the collection. Anyway, it has the continental engine on it, but is missing the carburetor. Questions I have are:

1-Jesse

My buddy and I bought a 50w that had been converted to twine. It was well done and the engine ran good. Looked like a cub. the knotters were the type that moved down when tieing and the most bales it ever made in a row without missing was 20. It sat in the shed for a few years til we sold it for a little above scrap price including the engine.
 
I have a 55W(pto powered)Still works,but now retired.But could be pressed back into service at any time. Not many 50s
survive.Just buy it for 'yard art' if for nothing else.I know where a 50T is at Paionia,Co,but it not for sale.You should haul
it,the wheel bearings are not bearings.They are bronze bushings.
 

Can't help you with other IH questions, but for towing you need a baler that has wheel bearings, not bushings(ask me how I know). Wheels should be taken off and
hub and bearings cleaned and repacked with good grease. Tires, if old and cracked, should be replaced. Don't know what tires that baler uses, but hopefully you
can get some used truck tires. I think that baler is heavy so get adequate tires. Also, pump up the tires to an adequate pressure. My guess would be 40-45
pounds, but find weight of baler and get some advice from tire guy. Finally, drive slowly and use a tow vehicle with enough brake capacity to stop the rig. Every
baler I have seen has adequate weight on the tongue so that shouldn't be a problem. The 120 miles wont be a problem unless there are steep hills which challenge
the towing and braking capacity of the tow vehicle.

KEH
 
Seen one working the other day it was running of an electric motor
with the generator on a 450 I've heard of that set up but never seen
one. Your baler would make a great collector there something about
the way they were built or should I say over built. But be careful
I think that's the one a cousin went to pull the twine out of he
still has his hand after 5 hours of surgery.
 

I am toying with the idea of towing it home. My tow vehicle is big enough, 2002 Chevy 2500HD 8.1L engine with 6 speed stick 4x4. My truck should be able to handle the baler fine. The wheel hubs do have grease zerks on them, so I could stop every so often and keep pumping full of grease. Also, I have spare tires on the correct rims I could bring too. Awhile back, I did tow an old Mccormick 75-P hay chopper home about 60 miles, I think that had the bushings too, just stopped to grease once or twice, towed well, about 40mph. If I have to hire someone to haul it for me, it may be 2-$300. Plus, the book says the 50T baler is 9ft 2 inches wide for overall width. Depending on the wheel base width, not sure I could easily get this onto a trailer or truck.

As others have said, there can't be too many of these 50T's left out there, that's why I want to save it. Every time the price of scrap goes up, more old pieces of history are gone forever. Most would think I am crazy for wanting this machine, I think it is neat, as I did not grow up when these were being used, as I am only 37 years old. Thanks!

Thanks for the comments so far!
 
Have heard the electric version didn't work out too well. Not really practical, although you ended up with a generator on the tractor which could be used for other purposes. Also lead to believe production was very limited, probably few remain.
 
My Dad and Uncle bought the first one in 1948 in northern Kentucky,and for the first 2 yrs baled hay for everyone around.They borrowed a neighbors H or M to pull it for a while,then started using their 8n.It had the Continental engine,and 'usually' it started on about a 1/4 revolution of the drive pulley.The first set of knotters did not tie well,so they were replaced after about 2 yrs.It would miss an occasional bale tie,but someone usually followed behind the baler with a pitch fork and watched.(Just the way they/we did it!)It was not the fastest baler,but I don't remember it it ever breaking down,other than a leaky radiator,and the magneto failed once.I rebuilt the engine in 1987or88.When it was sold at auction in 1989,it had baled over 100,000 bales. It is a very heavy made baler,and I can still hear it run in my mind.Mark
 
If the Continental engine is same one they used on some other IH implements, it should be a Y-69. My brother had
a model 52 combine with one on it. Crank start; very tall stacks to get above the dust.
 


Boy am I dumb! Should have looked at the engine more closely. It has the CUB power unit, not the continental Y69.

SO, now I should ask the question, how are the CUB power units on these balers, and is a carburetor easy to find for this engine since it is missing the carb? Thanks!
 
You should try to get it bought, as there are very few left. I do not know when was the last time that I saw one at a show or anywhere else. It would be a good " Fit " with your '45' baler, look nice setting beside each other at a show.
My dads farm was rite across the road from one of "McCormicks" EXP. farms outside of Chicago. We had new exp. machines at our place too, to ' get time ' on the new models. Both the 50 T & 50 W , plus the 45 were at our place. One time they baled straw out of a new straw stack, lots of fun ? I do remember the 50 T would put out bales that were close to eight feet long. Also they had knotter trouble quite often. The engeneers that were with the machines were very frustrated at times. Over a period of time they would get things to working the way they were supposed to. It was an interesting and fun thing to watch them as I was a very young kid then. Now I am real old Geezer. clint
 

We sell tractor parts! We have the parts you need to repair your tractor - the right parts. Our low prices and years of research make us your best choice when you need parts. Shop Online Today.

Back
Top