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SEAT TIME - 1st Cut Hay Raked

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Ed S. (IL)

05-22-2016 19:07:49




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I did my first cutting of hay a couple weeks early this year (usually don't start until very late May or early June). I could have cut even earlier, but we kept getting rains every three days or so.

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I ran a couple bales after raking, but it was a bit tough yet, so after a day of rest for me and the tractors, I should get it baled tomorrow.

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This marks the start of my ninth season using my '50 8N (frontmount) since I restored it in 2008. It's still one of the most handy tools I have on the farm.

es

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Tall T

05-24-2016 13:28:23




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 Re: SEAT TIME - 1st Cut Hay Raked in reply to Ed S. (IL), 05-22-2016 19:07:49  
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I was watching some cows standing around a round bale and wondering why they had such baleful expressions on their faces.

Thanks for enlightening us. :D



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pikewi

05-24-2016 12:28:49




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 Re: SEAT TIME - 1st Cut Hay Raked in reply to Ed S. (IL), 05-22-2016 19:07:49  
Around here round bales were outlawed. Cattle weren't getting square meals. HAHA.....HA. Sorry



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Tall T

05-24-2016 11:47:54




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 Re: SEAT TIME - 1st Cut Hay Raked in reply to Ed S. (IL), 05-22-2016 19:07:49  
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FLembo,

I had heard about sour gas but had never experienced it. I had a strange kind of sickness at the time I realized I had to stop burning it. It was a very sickly-sweet smell.

I'd like to see some of your corduroy roads!

Right or wrong, there are a few old tarps under the firewood and up to under the biggest half log at the beginning. the other logs at the start have their edges notched into the earth to keep the biggest log from sliding on slippery tarp -- getting pushed downward by the tractor.

There's a ditch full of rocks crossways under it to hopefully drain off the winter ground water.

In hindsight, the best for me would be to have the rear wheel centered on one length of wood rather than bearing down on where two pieces of wood meet. Lengths of firewood 28-30" would have been best. I pretty much had to use side walls which your roads probably don't need. One side has a cedar log and the other a steel plate with a 5" flange that lays under the outer row of wood to help keep it in place.

I poured the finest gravel and shale in every crack and hole I could see in the wood before just piling the fill on so I'd minimize the sink holes that show up.

That pickled firewood . . . the salt water must have stunted the tree's growth even though it was healthy. I counted close to 100 rings in my chopping blocks from the butt but they were very close together for a tree of that age.
I believe that chopping blocks should be up to one's knees.

I used to cringe when I saw the short, crooked, ratty and rotten chopping blocks my firewood customers were using so I supplied a tall block with every delivery. :)
Cheers,

T

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Ed S. (IL)

05-23-2016 13:00:22




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 Re: SEAT TIME - 1st Cut Hay Raked in reply to Ed S. (IL), 05-22-2016 19:07:49  
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Well, I'm barely past "non-farmer" myself - I provide a lot of entertainment to the 'real' farmers around here! :lol:
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Correct. Finding the kid is the hard part!

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It would be nice, but with my limited production, would never come close to paying for itself. I do good to come close to breaking even as it is! I've actually turned a profit only one year (I reinvest in equipment!).

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LOL! :P
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I'll have to do that. I wish we had saved the hand-sewn cushion my Mom made for Dad's '52 8N!

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es

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Tall T

05-23-2016 10:46:50




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 Re: SEAT TIME - 1st Cut Hay Raked in reply to Ed S. (IL), 05-22-2016 19:07:49  
Ed,

Very interesting stuff about round and square bales . . . to a non-farmer!

So "Drop Baling", just pops them out on the ground right?

When using the Hay Rack, does your baler just feed each one to a kid who stacks them on the rack -- in between text messages?

Do you have or would you like to have one of the balers that eject the bale into the wagon? But then you wouldn't get near as much on the wagon right? Maybe one of those balers is every haying man's dream. (?)

About the hand held devices and the endless email responding to each other . . . when I watch their little thumbs flying in a blurr indicating just how much they do it, I think that it gives a whole new meaning to the old expression of limited ability:

"He was all thumbs."

Ed, keep your eye out for just the right cushion from a thrift shop or your house and just take it to the N seat when you need it. That's what I had to do after I broke my hip.

Terry

_____ _____ _____ _____ __

FLembo,

My corduroy road is over a spring that is too wet to walk on in the winter. I'm down in a valley less than 50' above sea level and also at a dip in the road so I get tons of runoff from up the mountain to the south. Because the property is so wet I get tons of Salmon Berries, Blackberries, Thimble Berries, etc., etc. So, this new access is into a little Alder grove and berry bushes that I used to machete hack trails through. Now I can make tractor roads through the patches. Perfect big wet spot back there for a natural pond as well.

That firewood was giving off sour gas cause so I couldn't burn it. My friends thought the smell was coming from the Pulp Mill across the water. LOL

The tree had been drinking salt water all it's life down by the inlet and lay pickling itself on the ground for years before I cut it up. Got some great dense chopping blocks out of it though. :)

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flembo

05-24-2016 06:34:21




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 Re: SEAT TIME - 1st Cut Hay Raked in reply to Tall T, 05-23-2016 10:46:50  
That's an interesting and funny story about the sour gas I never heard of such a thing, but I don't live near salt water. I have used the corduroy method myself in a few spots but I never tried it with split wood.



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Ed S. (IL)

05-23-2016 09:27:27




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 Re: SEAT TIME - 1st Cut Hay Raked in reply to Ed S. (IL), 05-22-2016 19:07:49  
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I've hired out custom rounds in the past, usually when I got rain on the hay or was simply pressed for time. For me, they are a hassle - I don't have the equipment to make them, a good place to store them nor to transport more than two or three at a time. I don't make nearly the money on them that I do with small squares, as you point out.

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This. While it was a lot easier when my boys rode the rack, they're both married now. :) I can manage it on my own (drop baling), but it of course takes longer and means moving the bales an extra time. But I consider that part of my exercise program anyway!

I have a friend who farms about 2,000 acres and does 10-20x the hay I do each year - he's always scrambling trying to find kids who are A) available, and B) will actually work instead of playing Flappy Bird in-between bales.

es

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Ultradog MN

05-23-2016 09:07:43




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 Re: SEAT TIME - 1st Cut Hay Raked in reply to Ed S. (IL), 05-22-2016 19:07:49  
Nice photos fellas.
Thanks.



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Ken(Ark)

05-23-2016 07:17:28




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 Re: SEAT TIME - 1st Cut Hay Raked in reply to Ed S. (IL), 05-22-2016 19:07:49  
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It is getting harder and harder to find square bales around here ( Southwest Arkansas )
Does it take longer to square bale than using a round baler ? Seems 2,000 square bales @$3 ($6,000) would be better economically for the grower than 130 round bales @$25 ($3250)

It is hard to find high school labor , All of the manual labor that most kids get is using their thumbs on a phone or game controller . The few that are go getters usually have a lot better jobs lined up .

I use a lot of square bales because I can start the season just throwing out a bale or two . They will eat it and go pick at the pasture the rest of the day . If I put out a round bale buffet they just over eat . Half priced hay and twice the volume is a wash . With the square bale I can easily feed them where I want grass to grow or just a good dry spot .

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Ed S. (IL)

05-23-2016 04:21:27




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 Re: SEAT TIME - 1st Cut Hay Raked in reply to Ed S. (IL), 05-22-2016 19:07:49  
Nice Ns, Tall and Benj! One of these days, I need to get a padded seat cover, too - I usually come in sore after more than an hour in the seat!

es



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Benj R

05-23-2016 09:25:34




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 Re: SEAT TIME - 1st Cut Hay Raked in reply to Ed S. (IL), 05-23-2016 04:21:27  
I found a good rest-o-ride seat at a salvage many years ago and put it on the 52. It is definitely better than the original seat.



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Ed S. (IL)

05-23-2016 04:18:27




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 Re: SEAT TIME - 1st Cut Hay Raked in reply to Ed S. (IL), 05-22-2016 19:07:49  
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300 bales go in the hay mow for our cow and her two heifers (one of which will go in the freezer in a couple months) and I sell the rest. A typical year's crop will run around 2,000-2,500 bales.

es



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steve19438

05-23-2016 03:40:43




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 Re: SEAT TIME - 1st Cut Hay Raked in reply to Ed S. (IL), 05-22-2016 19:07:49  
what do you do with the hay?



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Benj R

05-22-2016 21:27:04




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 Re: SEAT TIME - 1st Cut Hay Raked in reply to Ed S. (IL), 05-22-2016 19:07:49  
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Hey Ed thanks for posting the nice 8n pictures,wish I was there helping you with my 8n, I totally agree with you on the usefulness of the 8n. I saved this 52 8n from the wreckers in 94 rebuilt it the same year and she has been going strong ever since.



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Tall T

05-22-2016 20:29:45




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 Re: SEAT TIME - 1st Cut Hay Raked in reply to Ed S. (IL), 05-22-2016 19:07:49  
Ed,

Looks like a satisfying and peaceful day!

Your N looks newer than 8 years old! :)

Got my little project pretty much finished today.

I could use some triangular wood for in between the logs so they don't try to grab my front tires and turn 'em.

Thanks for the pics,

T

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flembo

05-23-2016 06:20:13




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 Re: SEAT TIME - 1st Cut Hay Raked in reply to Tall T, 05-22-2016 20:29:45  
Tall T it looks good, what are you corduroying over.



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Ed S. (IL)

05-22-2016 19:45:06




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 Re: SEAT TIME - 1st Cut Hay Raked in reply to Ed S. (IL), 05-22-2016 19:07:49  
Agree! When I started out haying, I cut, raked and baled with the 8N. That's a lot of implement changes! I now have a Hesston Windrower (Dodge /6 powered!) that does cutting duty, the 8N rakes, and my New Holland Boomer 8N runs the baler (and it's nice having a loader tractor). It's nice knowing I can always fall back on running the sickle bar or NH Hayliner 68 with the 8N if needed.

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es

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John in Mich

05-22-2016 19:22:09




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 Re: SEAT TIME - 1st Cut Hay Raked in reply to Ed S. (IL), 05-22-2016 19:07:49  
I always find it interesting when an 8N can do most everything the new "stuff" with bells and whistles does, and for a LOT less moola.



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Colin King

05-22-2016 19:19:08




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 Re: SEAT TIME - 1st Cut Hay Raked in reply to Ed S. (IL), 05-22-2016 19:07:49  
Nice photos! I saw a hayfield down on Friday evening. That's pretty early for around here,

Colin, MN



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