saw somthing neat at a local welding shop

phillip d · Aug 20, 2009

They are finishing up a project they have been picking at for almost a year now in their spare time for a customer.They made a bale press that takes small squears,compresses them to about half their size than slices them in half and presses them into two vacume sealed liners.Supposed to be some high paying niche market for small sealed hay?

Anonymous-0 · Aug 20, 2009

Won't decay neither so thoretically can be kept for years. The market might be to feed the Camels in the desert,.

just another old geezer · Aug 21, 2009

Are you sure it was for hay??? I once say an article where plastic wraped bales of straw were beeing used in arazona for insulation in house walls.

MN Bob · Aug 21, 2009

Sounds like something that the funny weed folks would love!! LOL

Ron in NS · Aug 21, 2009

They regularly take small squares here and compress them into 1/2 size for shipment by truck to Newfoundland. They can get a lot of weight into an enclosed trailer for the ferry that way. Ferry regulations require that flammable materials (hay)must be inside van trailers. Hay is almost impossible to make in such a damp climate as Newfoundland.
Maybe that hay is to be sent by ship somewhere, hence the need for moisture proofing in a hold.

Mike (WA) · Aug 21, 2009

They've been compressing small squares of Timothy and alfalfa for 30 years or so in the northwest, for export to Japan (where they pay the large dollars for hay). Bale ends up about half size, so they can get twice as much weight on the ship. Doesn't make them much easier for the user to handle- 130 lbs. is 130 lbs., no matter the size of the "package".

Chris in SK · Aug 21, 2009

I’ve seen them recently at the local feed store/ horsey place. Small square hay bales but only about a foot long and weighted about 40lbs. These weren’t wrapped, but banded both ways with that flat plastic parcel banding…..can’t remember the price, but seemed real high to me at the time. I wonder how dense you could make them with a normal baler if you wound the press down tight and shortened to bale length….guess it would be hard on the baler?

Chris

Walterdavies · Aug 21, 2009

We don't fool around with those little bales we take the 1000 lb. bales and squeeze them down to ship. Because of this you see very few round bales anymore.
The other day I got my baler back from a friend who was baling some light hay. I had set the bale tightener down to the bottom. When I started baling I I broke two bales BUMMER went back to see why and found they were about 300 Lbs and the twine just broke from stress.
Walt

Eric SEI · Aug 21, 2009

Back before the Civil War there were hay presses along the Ohio river used to make bales of hay that were then shipped by flat boat to New Orleans. The hay was sold for the horses and the flat boats were then broken down and sold for lumber. There are a few of those presses still sitting in old barns.

Bob Kerr · Aug 22, 2009

I saw one of those old hand balers a few years ago. Wooden box with latches in the side to get the bale out and a plunger with a long handle on top. Bet that made for a long day!

saw somthing neat at a local welding shop

phillip d

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Anonymous-0

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just another old geezer

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MN Bob

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Ron in NS

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Mike (WA)

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Chris in SK

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Walterdavies

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Eric SEI

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Bob Kerr

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