Sharpening round baler knives

[DrDunc]

OK, so grinders with a flap wheel will ruin the temper, shorten the life of the blade, and can't sharpen to a consistent angle reducing the actual sharpness achievable.

But something like a goweil sharpener is ludicrously expensive for a farmer to buy themselves, just for their own baler.

And I paid less for my first baler than the cost of an Irish agriknives sharpener





So are there any farmer cost effective ways of sharpening the blades?

 

[tweedale terrier]

Dkr at biggar sharpened our welger blades with a machine like the one above. Think it cost a couple of quid a blade !

 

[davidroberts30]

Fedex them to me and I'll get them like new for you

 

[Drillman]

On my land no matter what you do if it's raked up there will be some lumps of chalk and flint in the swath. It will take the edge off new blades in a few hours so flap disc it is.

 

[Greenbeast]

flap disk won't ruin the temper if you're careful. if you can still touch the blade the temper is fine

alternatively, but with similar care, you could use a belt linisher, i built my own for various 'smithing type jobs and have both flat platen and slack belt portions that i have sharpened flat bevels and convex bevels

 

[james ds]

OK, so grinders with a flap wheel will ruin the temper, shorten the life of the blade, and can't sharpen to a consistent angle reducing the actual sharpness achievable.

But something like a goweil sharpener is ludicrously expensive for a farmer to buy themselves, just for their own baler.
View attachment 422080

And I paid less for my first baler than the cost of an Irish agriknives sharpener





So are there any farmer cost effective ways of sharpening the blades?

You have a few options , a hand file and plenty of time and patients , or send them to somebody like David Roberts who will sharpen them correctly , or buy the Agriknives machine and start a sharpening service , then you will have your own done free and have money in your pocket , or I can sell you a secondhand Goweill at the right money in perfect condition.

 

[DrDunc]

Well after having time wasted, then being ignored by someone who was initially offering a second hand goweil, I have a cunning plan.

Just like sharpening a knife, once the edge is ground to the correct angle, keeping it sharp only requires honing.

If there is damage, I'll risk the local dealer (DKR, they fecked a set of my blades a few years ago) and use their machine to regrind the blades.

I'm going to use an orbital sander at slow rotating speed with fine grit paper to hone the edge. It'll be an experiment this winter, starting with 240 grit (to see if that's still too course and causes excessive heat) and working up to see how sharp an old blade can be made, and how long it takes.

A flap disc will ruin a blade because it is too aggressive, removing too much material too quickly. Most flap discs are 40 or 60 grit. Great for removing material, but they create a lot of heat, and it's difficult to keep the edge at the correct angle.

Thank you for all the suggestions.

 

[Greenbeast]

how does the goweil work then?
It looks like the angle is set with the design of the machine and you can make quick, accurate passes with some kind of abrasive disk?
honingis not really removing much if any material, more like straightening a rolled/blunt edge. Works untik such time as too much wear has taken place you need to take material off to maintain the bevel

 

[Greenbeast]

how much is one?

 

[james ds]

flap disk won't ruin the temper if you're careful. if you can still touch the blade the temper is fine

alternatively, but with similar care, you could use a belt linisher, i built my own for various 'smithing type jobs and have both flat platen and slack belt portions that i have sharpened flat bevels and convex bevels

Just a few results from contractors who have switched from using flap discs and other dry machines to the Agriknives machine , in forage wagons the average lifespan of knives has increased from 1000 acres up to 5000 acres per set , in balers , men have recorded their fuel use and while baling with Mchale fusions pulled with 200 hp tractors they have reduced their fuel from getting 2 bales / litre of fuel now up to 3 bales per litre , a massive saving , this is over a full season , they found that their output went up / hr as they could go a gear higher with the grass flowing in better , they also found the chains lasting longer and the pto shafts lasting longer.
Another man working a fendt 828 on a pottinger jumbo claims to have reduced his fuel by 10 lt / hr since he got the Agriknives machine , just a few money saving facts from customers.

 

[DrDunc]

Just a few results from contractors who have switched from using flap discs and other dry machines to the Agriknives machine , in forage wagons the average lifespan of knives has increased from 1000 acres up to 5000 acres per set , in balers , men have recorded their fuel use and while baling with Mchale fusions pulled with 200 hp tractors they have reduced their fuel from getting 2 bales / litre of fuel now up to 3 bales per litre , a massive saving , this is over a full season , they found that their output went up / hr as they could go a gear higher with the grass flowing in better , they also found the chains lasting longer and the pto shafts lasting longer.
Another man working a fendt 828 on a pottinger jumbo claims to have reduced his fuel by 10 lt / hr since he got the Agriknives machine , just a few money saving facts from customers.

Shame the man selling these golden goose sharpening machines is such a bugger to deal with.

Ever tried getting a deal on a trade in machine off him?

 

[Drillman]

Shame the man selling these golden goose sharpening machines is such a bugger to deal with.

Ever tried getting a deal on a trade in machine off him?

Hmm ever tried getting a price off him at all.......

And yes I did ask a while back but got no response.

 

[james ds]

Shame the man selling these golden goose sharpening machines is such a bugger to deal with.

Ever tried getting a deal on a trade in machine off him?

Shame the man selling these golden goose sharpening machines is such a bugger to deal with.

Ever tried getting a deal on a trade in machine off him?

You offered me less than I needed for the machine so you didn't get the deal , if you had offered me what I asked for the Goweill you would have had it. Very simple , I'm not going to lose money just for you. I have more goweills coming in this season at the same money if you want one .

 

[james ds]

Hmm ever tried getting a price off him at all.......

And yes I did ask a while back but got no response.

The new model now cost is £1950 . As a contractor running 4 balers said " it's the only machine I ever bought that paid for itself in 10 days. "

 

[manhill]

Beware of itinerant blade/drill sharpeners with French accents.

 

[joe soapy]

Not tried on big stuff, but the multi tool/ vibrating sander works a treat on smaller stuff.

Or look at the guys on youtube sharpening scythes and swords with a hammer

 

[james ds]

What did you get.

 

[Drillman]

View attachment 626724
The new model now cost is £1950 . As a contractor running 4 balers said " it's the only machine I ever bought that paid for itself in 10 days. "

Too late am sorted now.

 

[joe soapy]

 

[james ds]

Too late am sorted now.

Angle grinder.