Fixed Chamber Roller Balers for baling straw?

jett

Member
Arable Farmer
Currently looking to buy a S/H baler for use on straw only. Whilst many would prefer a belt baler for this purpose how are people getting on with roller type machines such as McHale/Welger/Kuhn once the straw becomes brittle.

Thoughts and advice appreciated
 

thesilentone

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Cumbria
Currently looking to buy a S/H baler for use on straw only. Whilst many would prefer a belt baler for this purpose how are people getting on with roller type machines such as McHale/Welger/Kuhn once the straw becomes brittle.

Thoughts and advice appreciated

Mother nature decides how well a fixed chamber roller baler works in straw, if it's hot, dry and brittle, it's a struggle. There are a whole host of things you can do that can improve performance, however if your only baling straw, get a belt baler.
 
Mother nature decides how well a fixed chamber roller baler works in straw, if it's hot, dry and brittle, it's a struggle. There are a whole host of things you can do that can improve performance, however if your only baling straw, get a belt baler.
yes go do some thing else till dew
comes on or sun gone and it cools down
bit like balin taxle flo with 550 deere
that will have broken as many and made as many baler men
maybe op only has a few to bale ,
and don’t be freet o big swaths , just run tractor wheel down them with gaybob and spit them
or go find the best 520 welgar you can
 

balerman

Member
Location
N Devon
They will bale straw fine and make a good job of it,but it is power hungry compared to a belt baler on straw.Just make sure you buy one with a full complement of rollers rather than a plate where the net goes in (JD mainly,but there are others including early McHales)
 

fermerboy

Member
Location
Banffshire
We use a Welger RP220 Master, and before that a Claas 46, both simple roller balers.
On paper I should have a belt machine given my straw /silage ratio, but I prefer the simplicity of rollers, and the second hand balers I would be affording scare me if a belt breaks/splits/tears/perishes. Price up a set of belts for a Welger and its ££££
So far bearings have been cheaper to run.
In 30 years of roller balers I think I have only failed to bale straw once with the old Claas, though we are in NE Scotland here and the straw isn't always 100% ripe when cut and therefore completely dead. My father in law has a Claas 250 and his sometimes stops turning the bale if it's dry.

You will make good solid bales with a roller machine but they just need time, none of this flying along at 100 bales/hr business.
We are on good quality dry straw just now that was baled behind 25ft Lexion and they are averaging about 220-230kg, but I took my time baling them as they all had to be pulled home 15miles.
As said the fixed chamber does take horsepower, mine can kill 150hp on a slope.
 
Currently looking to buy a S/H baler for use on straw only. Whilst many would prefer a belt baler for this purpose how are people getting on with roller type machines such as McHale/Welger/Kuhn once the straw becomes brittle.

Thoughts and advice appreciated
For straw belt baler but if it’s fixed and Kuhn make sure you get the t bar with it goes in behind intake and will help make a better bale
If selling by weight definitely belt baler
 

DrDunc

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Dunsyre
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Getting on very good with a roller in straw! Changed from a Krone belt and slat to the Kuhn roller this summer.

Bales of spring barley 1.35m diameter averaged over 270kg (all trailer loads across weighbridge)

Mind, the Kuhn has 18 rollers, no blanking plates, and a very good straw bar insert for above the intake throat. They've really thought about how to make it work in straw. Not as fast as the Krone, and needs much more net, but I can live with it especially as the bales are heavier, and it's far superior baling grass.

Bales from the Kuhn were better than the McHale and welgar demos, and I've nightmares when remembering trying to get bales to turn in a Deere 578 😭

If you're predominantly baling straw, I would recommend belts or belt and slat as already posted though.......I also know of a very good used Krone comprima xc150 that's still for sale at my local Kuhn dealer..... 😉
 

jett

Member
Arable Farmer
Thank you for all your comments. I will take the advice given and look for a good belt baler, probably a Welger 435 or a Kuhn 2160. Most of the McHale belt balers are too dear or have done too many bales for my budget of below £14K.
 

Elpresidente

Member
Location
West Wales
View attachment 1014006
View attachment 1014011

Getting on very good with a roller in straw! Changed from a Krone belt and slat to the Kuhn roller this summer.

Bales of spring barley 1.35m diameter averaged over 270kg (all trailer loads across weighbridge)

Mind, the Kuhn has 18 rollers, no blanking plates, and a very good straw bar insert for above the intake throat. They've really thought about how to make it work in straw. Not as fast as the Krone, and needs much more net, but I can live with it especially as the bales are heavier, and it's far superior baling grass.

Bales from the Kuhn were better than the McHale and welgar demos, and I've nightmares when remembering trying to get bales to turn in a Deere 578 😭

If you're predominantly baling straw, I would recommend belts or belt and slat as already posted though.......I also know of a very good used Krone comprima xc150 that's still for sale at my local Kuhn dealer..... 😉
I only baled 45 bales of straw with my Kuhn last year but I must be missing a trick where is this straw bar insert on the Kuhn? and do you have to remove it to bale silage. I do vaguely remember reading something in the book about it but forgot when it came to baling the one field of straw.
 
I only do about 300 balers of straw with a class 354 and it's been faultless. Heat and sun make balers softer,if you want to ram it in, bale in the evening. Wheat bales about 240 kg,spring barley 270 ish
 

Dman2

Member
Location
Durham, UK
Our neighbour bales 100s of bales a year with a roller baler, Vicon at the moment but welger for years before that
We find them a bit loose in the middle, but suits their system.
Certainly has no problem baling them

Can`t beat a belt baler though
 

thesilentone

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Cumbria
Thank you for all your comments. I will take the advice given and look for a good belt baler, probably a Welger 435 or a Kuhn 2160. Most of the McHale belt balers are too dear or have done too many bales for my budget of below £14K.
A wise decision.

It will not matter if you decide on a fixed or variable chamber belt baler, both will serve you well in straw. However the fixed chamber will require a little more power, as the compression required to make a sound bale only happens when the bale is up to full size. Until then it is acting like a tumble dryer.

A variable chamber ' wraps ' the bale from the start, so by the time the bale is up to the dia you require much of the compression is already taken care of.
 

DrDunc

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Dunsyre
I only baled 45 bales of straw with my Kuhn last year but I must be missing a trick where is this straw bar insert on the Kuhn? and do you have to remove it to bale silage. I do vaguely remember reading something in the book about it but forgot when it came to baling the one field of straw.
No idea if you've missed a trick or not, but I've a lot of respect for the mechanic who recommended it be fitted for straw. Made 640 bales and it and never missed a beat no matter how dry or brittle the straw. It was well shiny by then too! Haven't tried it behind an axial flow yet, but hope not to again be that desperate for straw to bale.

On the Kuhn 3135 the straw bar is stored up top behind where the net is threaded. It gets bolted inside the chamber behind the roller above the intake. I was told in grass that if you've forgotten to remove it, you'll be alerted to its presence by a fair bit of banging!
 

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