My JD#5 got a work out today.

Bob

Not quite so lucky with mine except I only paid $25 for mine.
I lost the out side wear pad today and I got a couple rock gaurds that just wont tighten up. I must have wrenched on them 10 times. Grinder coming out when I get her home. Gona put new ones on that I can keep tight.
I also sprung a good leak at the seal on the gear box. Behind the pitmon bearing.
And I need a different pto shaft. This one sucks.
Even with these diffeculties it still mowed great!
I will have her all fixed up for the next field.
Here is a photo of the field after I finnished mowing.

I do a neighbor's small piece, but he just wants it kept cut an neat looking. He doesn't care about the hay so I do it for the hay which I then sell to my sister. I've never done it just for cash.

Do you also have to drive your rake and baler that same 17 miles to get that job done? You are more dedicated than me - I wouldn't even think of driving my tractors that far without hauling. If you are going to do custom baling, don't forget about a minimum charge. If you charge $1 per bale, but the landowner has not fertilized or limed and the hay is thin, you come out real short. It takes the same amount of your time to haul (or drive!) your equipment, the same amount of passes to cut, ted, and rake, but you end up with few bales. Most folks I know charge for a minimum number of bales/acre, round or square. From what I have read on this forum, the situation varies depending upon your location, but around here, I can get more hay than I have time for just for cutting it and baling it. Landowners just want their fields cut without having to pay for it. I baled 60 - 70 acres last year about 5 miles away at one fellows place - good Tift44 bermuda. But after hauling all my equipment over there and back to do my own hay for 2 or 3 cuttings, plus the landowner wanting to tell me how to do it, I let him keep it this year.