Claas 375 rc baler any good?
- Thread starter Shebb90
- Start date
Elpresidente
Member
- Location
- West Wales
I had a 374 for 4 years was a good baler the flex/drop floor works well just got to keep around the sensors clean or buzzer goes off to say floor isn’t fully up when it actually is. Netter is pretty reliable I stuck to using Juta net from Wynnstay. I’ve switched to a Kuhn FB3130 now and first impressions are good.
Do you know what the difference between 374 and the 375 is?
dunkie
Member
- Location
- West Lothian
Think the 5 has the drop down top 3 rollers.
To make a tighter bale I believe?
Claas couldn't get bales that were as heavy as the competition. They invented the drop down roller concept, which absolutely nobody else copied.
They eat bearings, and can be a sod to replace. Claas also decided to fit taper lock drive cogs, which are fine to remove when new, but can require an awful lot of OXY acetylene and vicious language now they're a decade and more old.
Check the for the usual worn drive teeth, knackered chains, bashed rollers, bent shafts, and pry bar test the rollers to look for bearings with play.
If the baler has been barn stored, well maintained, and kindly driven, then it's worth investigating. If it's been sat outside getting washed from the sky, made more than 20 thousand, or just generally not wrapped in cotton wool, go look for another brand in my opinion.
They eat bearings, and can be a sod to replace. Claas also decided to fit taper lock drive cogs, which are fine to remove when new, but can require an awful lot of OXY acetylene and vicious language now they're a decade and more old.
Check the for the usual worn drive teeth, knackered chains, bashed rollers, bent shafts, and pry bar test the rollers to look for bearings with play.
If the baler has been barn stored, well maintained, and kindly driven, then it's worth investigating. If it's been sat outside getting washed from the sky, made more than 20 thousand, or just generally not wrapped in cotton wool, go look for another brand in my opinion.
One I no of is a 2012 model with 9000 bales barn stored and well looked after farmer used. What would you look at?
Yes, definitely look at the claas with that bale count
McHale 550s were far stronger built and most had auto greasers so bearings last well. Bale counts on most will be high now though and they'll need a good looking for wear.
Deere 644 make an excellent bale in all but very dry straw. They're basically the very good 578 machine, but with the intake comb repositioned to allow a drop floor to be fitted. Watch for missing fingers on the comb though. They were just tack welded and when missing the knives won't cut, just block.
Last edited:
Yes to what
Aye sorry, finished the post now!
dunkie
Member
- Location
- West Lothian
The ultimate Claas rollant is a 354 , all rollers are heavier and have internal support, auto grease, it's the same base unit Claas put in their combi unit, will pack more in a bale than a McHale demo we had baling along side it, they cost more.
Pistonbroke
Member
I have a 354 which I think is a 374 without drop floor,so hasn't got the three moving rollers. Had the top roller,where the door pivots,fail and the replacement was upgraded with longer shafts so I would guess it was from tje 374/375. Never had a problem ( yet 
) but there's time! Manual grease banks on ours but some have auto as an option. Clean the bars that the net runs over with wire wool until shiny before you start the season and netter works 100%
) but there's time! Manual grease banks on ours but some have auto as an option. Clean the bars that the net runs over with wire wool until shiny before you start the season and netter works 100%Pistonbroke
Member
You mean 454 I think
What would you call high bale count on a 550?
Chains will need replaced after 30 to 35k silage bales. Sprockets should be ok for double that.
Bearings in bottom rollers of chamber, and possibly door bottom will need watched after 30k
Common fault is a copper washer in the valve block hardens and leaks, causing lower density bales. You can boil it to and re-anneal, or replace for about 23½p.
Pickup reel bearings wear quite quickly, but they're cheap and fairly easy to change.
If you factor in chains and a few bearings in the price at 30k bales, the rest of the 550 is good for another 30k. Trouble will be finding one.
The 9k class would be what I look at first before trying to find a McHale, especially at this time of year
oil barron
Member
- Location
- Aberdeenshire
It can’t be copied. It’s patented. I think the concept works pretty good, it was just the execution with the quality of the bearings etc that let them down. But that is more 250 / 255. I don’t know about the build quality after that.