JD 336 Ragged bales

UP Oliver

Member
I have a JD 336 baler and never really noticed much before but this summer the bales were rough looking on the left side as you face the back of the baler.

I looked in the baler case and couldn't see what would trim the left side of a bale of hay. I thought maybe the knife on that side fell off. Then I looked in my manual and I don't see a knife on that side in any of the drawings.

So my question is how does the bale get cut on the left side? It seems like the bales came out of there in better shape in years past.

Thanks for the help in advance.
 
There is a knife on the left hand side of the plunger as you look toward the back. You need to see if it is broken or has fallen off.
 
Any chance you have a diagram that shows this part?

I took a better look and there is a part missing on the left side, but it looks nothing like the knife on the right. It is called the "adjustable plungerhead face" in my manual. I don't see where there is a sharp edge on it though.

Thanks for the help.
 
The system I am on seems to act up doing copy and paste. Go to John Deere Parts then click on "Search for parts" then input your model number.
 
(quoted from post at 15:42:48 09/22/12) Part number E42088.

Looking from the front of baler towards the rear this is the stationery knife on the left E17777(parts key # 19). In the 2nd photo E42088 (parts key #25) is the PH knife.
10914.jpg

10915.jpg
 
In answer to your question, the hay does not get cut on the left, it gets "folded"! It only gets cut on the right side! Ragged on the right would indicate dull knife/shear plate, or knife/shear plate out of adjustment. Ragged on the left side would indicate improper adjustment of feeder fork, or very inconsistent windrows.
JMHO, HTH, Dave
PS: Machine's left and right are the same as yours when you are facing the direction of travel.
 

"on the left side as you face the back of the baler" doesn't tell weather you are facing the back from in front of or behind it. But from your description I'm with Dave that you need to adjust your feeder forks, probably to push it a little further.
 
I already tried adjusting my forks weeks ago. Did not make a difference. I'm missing a piece on the left side of the plunger face.

Thanks for the response.
 
Thanks for the response. This is very helpful. I looked at it again today and I have a gap of 1 to 1.5 inches on the left side of the plunger face. From what I read in my manual, the gap is supposed to be in the range of one sixteenth to three sixteenths. I am missing either #1 or #3 in your diagram labeled EP7919.

In my manual the piece looks more like #3. Is that diagram sort of a general one, covering many balers?

Thanks for the help; and would you have any idea where I can get the parts I need?
 
For clarification purposes when you state LH side are you facing front or rear of the baler??? The parts schematics I posted came directly out of the 336 parts catalog but it applies to several JD sq baler models.

EP7919 isn't a good part number. If you're referring to parts key #3 in the 2nd it is E45679 which keeps hay from getting between PH and bale case. Parts key #1(E49409) in 2nd photo is whats know as a PH extension that's intended to push spongy type hay farther to the rear away from needles to aid in completing the tying cycle. Parts key #3 in 1st photo is a washer.

If part # E45679 is what you need it's available from a JD dealer.
E45679 STRAP, FACE,ADJUSTABLE ADD 36.13 USD
 
Thanks again.

EP7919 was the label on the diagram on the lower left; I was just trying to make sure you knew I was referring to the lower diagram.

Now it all makes sense. When I got on the JD Parts website they have a quantity of 4 for the extensions, and now I see that in my manual. It is listed as optional equipment for very dry hay.

Anyway, my problem is that part number E45679 fell off somewhere at sometime; I have a huge gap on that side instead of something around an eighth of an inch or so that I should have.

Do you know where I can get E45679 nice and cheap?

Thanks again for the help.
 
I don't know what happened but for some reason I only saw the middle of your response the first time I looked.

So for the clarification question, I am talking about the left side of the baler as you stand behind the baler.

Everything on the other side is fine; I have the moving knife on the plungerhead and the stationary knife all where they are supposed to be.

And now I see your response on where to get the part, so thank you for that.

I would sure like to know where that part went to. I'll have to go around and check for loose bolts more often.

Thanks again.
 
(quoted from post at 10:21:39 09/23/12) I looked at it again today and I have a gap of 1 to 1.5 inches on the left side of the plunger face. From what I read in my manual, the gap is supposed to be in the range of one sixteenth to three sixteenths. I am missing either #1 or #3 in your diagram labeled EP7919.

Now that it's been established which end of the baler your referring I will reply to this stated. Yes the part # E45679 will help but I never measured the distance between it and the bale case just so it's close but doesn't scrape. Yes there are supposed to be 4 PH extensions.
 
If you have a ragged cut on the bales, plain and simple, you have dull plunger and stationary knives or improperly adjusted knives.
You should have a clearance of something like 30 thou between the knives where they meet. Op's manual will detail the spec and how to set them.
The only thing on the left side of the plunger is a filler plate and that shouldn't make much difference to bale shape or quality.

Rod
 
For me, I noticed a difference on the left side of the bales as you stand in the back with the bales coming out at you. The side that has the knives comes out of the baler like it should and always has; cut nice and straight. The left side is what looks ragged, more so than in the past.

Upon further inspection I noticed that what you call the filler plate is not there, so I have a gap of somewhere between 1 and 1.5 inches on what I am calling the left side of my baler as you sit in the tractor seat, or stand behind the baler looking at the kicker. My manual says you need a gap of 1.5 to 4.5 mm on that side and obviously I am way over that without the filler plate.

I realize it isn't the most important piece of equipment on the baler but it seems to have made a difference in bale quality from what I saw the baler do in the past.

Anyway, thanks for the post.
 
Thanks again.

I have not noticed the piece until it is missing, of course, but I have a manual and it tells me to have it .06 to .18 inches from the side.

Anyway, thanks again.
 
Get the plate back on, and it'll fix your bales. I've had one rattle off before, and it will make a shaggy left side on the bale. I just looked, and it looks like I have about 1/8" gap on our balers on that side.

David
 
Also, as I recall, you can install that without pulling the plunger or cleaning out the bale case. It'll take two people. One putting the bolts in from above on the back side of the plunger, and one putting the plate in place and tightening the nuts going in under the feeder forks. By the way, you want part number 3 in the diagram. Part 1 is the plunger head extension.

David
 

In response to "where can you get one" if it turns out to be really expensive I would just take some scrap that is thick enough, it is going to have to take some abuse, and drill the holes and put it in. There is no close tolerance to this part.
 
I'd be surprised if it makes much difference...
It should be there all the same so replace it and see what happens. Some of them use bolts that are tapped into the plunger head and some use nuts on the inside... It's not a big deal either way. Deere should have the part for not a whole lot of money.

Rod
 
That makes sense. 1/8" is .125 inches which is right in the middle of the .06 to .18 inches it has in the manual.

Thanks for the post.
 
Just stick a dime between the wiper and the bale chamber. That's about the clearance you need.

Rod
 

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