Re: Handling small square bales

Posted by modirt on January 06, 2019 at 08:26:42 from (199.187.163.74):

In Reply to: Handling small square bales posted by modirt on January 06, 2019 at 07:18:08:

I will do about 2,000 bales this year, with potential to double or triple that if things get out of hand. There is about 30 acres that joins me on 3 sides that is being cut for hay and none of the 3 owners are too happy about it, as they get virtually nothing for it. The guys doing the cutting are are cutting it for it (owners are all city folks living in the country.....so know very little about anything). One guy at least spreads fertilizer. The other hasn't done so in 3 years that I know of. What they got off it last year was less than 1/2 of mine and low quality to boot.

All 4 of the customers who bought from me this year were women. All but one married, but the ladies were the one's who kept the horses and are the one's taking care of them and doing the feeding. Widow down the road is in her 70's. 50# bales is all they can handle.

None of them seem to flexible enough to show up to pick it up themselves out of the field, so to maintain quality, I've got to put it in a barn myself and they will have to pay extra for that. Have rented an old idle pole barn across the road that can likely handle 10,000 bales, plus store my hay equipment in it the rest of the year.

So for now, I could probably buy a fleet of farm wagons, stack on them in the field and then pull them to the barn and park em stacked. Sell off the wagons or deliver close by hay off the wagons if the buyers can arrange to have help stack it when I get there.

And in this market, there is a premium to be earned for premium hay. To me, that means making hay when the sun shines......not on the clock. I'm self employed and can do the cutting, raking and baling myself, and if that is on Sunday, Monday or Tuesday, that's when I'll do it. Depending on help that have daytime jobs is not my solution.

As for that Hay Monster, I'm not alone in this. There are others around these parts that do small runs and are looking for help putting it up. A crew of 3 could make a lot of money with that thing. It the hauls are local, it can do 150 bales an hour and at 20 cents a bale, that is $30 per hour cash money in their pocket. I think I can find help at that rate.

Where I am alone is my concern about quality. I've seen guys bale hay at least a month and sometimes 2 months after it should have been. Worthless in my opinion, but they do it, and want it hauled. A crew of 3 kids could work all summer and do pretty well at it.

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