What bale grab
- Thread starter Jerry
- Start date
Soft hands
Spikes/over the top you need to be square onto the bale to pick it up, lift it off a trailer, or stack the bugger
Soft hands is much faster, especially on a tractor loader. In field you can come at a bale from any and every angle, often just flick them onto their end and grab
I carted and stacked tens of thousand bales with spiked roller type. Ran out of space in the stack yard one year, and borrowed a neighbours soft hands to try. Could not believe how much of an efficiency improvement! Went straight out and bought my own
Spikes/over the top you need to be square onto the bale to pick it up, lift it off a trailer, or stack the bugger
Soft hands is much faster, especially on a tractor loader. In field you can come at a bale from any and every angle, often just flick them onto their end and grab
I carted and stacked tens of thousand bales with spiked roller type. Ran out of space in the stack yard one year, and borrowed a neighbours soft hands to try. Could not believe how much of an efficiency improvement! Went straight out and bought my own
- Location
- Fife
Got McHale soft grab here. I like it a lot.
Yes I have over the top on the merlo. Need to leave a gap between rows when loading onto
A trailer so can get the end of grab down between them to unload.
- Location
- Devon
Having used all 3 extensively, over the top by far the quickest for wrapping and stacking, with the proviso mentioned that they can be a little awkward unloading wrapped bales from a trailer if that's what you're likely to be doing.
Soft hands most versatile (I use it for all sorts), and what I use most now, but bit slower if you're wrapping and stacking your own.
Rollers and spikes will do the job and handy if you want the spike option.
Soft hands most versatile (I use it for all sorts), and what I use most now, but bit slower if you're wrapping and stacking your own.
Rollers and spikes will do the job and handy if you want the spike option.
Plan is Merlo will stay in yard, so mainly loading ready wrapped bales in the field.
- Location
- Devon
I guess if you're keeping the over the top type, 1 of the others to go alongside it adds versatility.
I use the soft hands for all sorts - loading wool, loading dumpy bags of recycling stuff, feeding out bales in winter - far safer way of dropping a bale into a ring feeder without catching heads than a spike. Can pick up part bales - round or square. That's the route I'd go personally.
- Location
- Ceredigion
Bottom one for rounds and square , have the other sorts but no one uses then
Good point about feeding out. Yes tractor will be used for that as well as merlo is poor of concrete in winter.
Have used McHale roller/spike, but with uneven ground and/or low density bales there were too many nicks and sometimes hidden ones on uneven ground.
Then started using an old soft hand, but very long "fingers" with another small bend at the end which has annoyed me for some years.
Requiring one to open them a lot more than bale size to grab a bale which has caused damage when taking them off a trailer that has little to no space between bales.
Bought a new Quicke Unigrip 130 this year for 122x122 round bales which looks like they will spread the pressure over a large area and better designed to fit bale shapes without opening up much more than the bale size.
Hopefully works as well as the design looks.
Then started using an old soft hand, but very long "fingers" with another small bend at the end which has annoyed me for some years.
Requiring one to open them a lot more than bale size to grab a bale which has caused damage when taking them off a trailer that has little to no space between bales.
Bought a new Quicke Unigrip 130 this year for 122x122 round bales which looks like they will spread the pressure over a large area and better designed to fit bale shapes without opening up much more than the bale size.
Hopefully works as well as the design looks.
Attachments
Northeastfarmer
Member
- Location
- Cleveland
The bottom one…sgm
APJ
Member
- Location
- West Midlands(Shropshire borders)
Albutt great all rounder opens to over 6ft.
Boohoo
Member
- Location
- Newtownabbey
The bottom type with rollers every time for me. I'd rather cradle than squeeze a bale and prefer stacking bales on their round. Not sure if anyone still makes them with fixed rollers that don't have spikes underneath, like the pictured Twose, I prefer that type.
We have a McHale soft hands and an A to Z twin spike with rollers. Removed rollers, put on loft. Never use them. Spikes for hay and straw, McHale for film but great for unwrapped too.
never tried the over the top type as they seem to require a level of precision and skill we don’t have!
never tried the over the top type as they seem to require a level of precision and skill we don’t have!
Tarw Coch
Member
- Location
- Bottom of Wats Dyke
I’ve got a McHale and a Pro Dig, far less damaged bales with the Pro Dig and better built
A straight sided soft hands is by far the best all rounder, I have a Cherry one. I handle 4 foot rounds with mine, 80x70, 120x70 & 120&90 silage. The best thing apart from being able to handle any shape is that you can stack bales on top of each other and carry 2-3 at once depending on the size.
Monty
Member
- Location
- Nantwich, Cheshire
We use rollers for chopped silage and soft hands for haylaye. I much prefer the rollers since I can stack an extra layer higher, quicker cyle times and less wear on the loader pivots since the bales aren't being rotated 90 degrees. But then we cart with a keltrans rather than flat trailer.
However I wouln't touch dual purpose rollers since they have extra bits sticking out to snag the bale and they seem to wear out quicker. SGM make very good rollers which are much better built than many.
If you go down the soft hands route, go for one with small diameter tube so it can fit between bales better. Fat tube versions are more awkward to use.
However I wouln't touch dual purpose rollers since they have extra bits sticking out to snag the bale and they seem to wear out quicker. SGM make very good rollers which are much better built than many.
If you go down the soft hands route, go for one with small diameter tube so it can fit between bales better. Fat tube versions are more awkward to use.
- Location
- Peak district
Bought an over the top one last year, very pleased with it. I can take an eight foot hay bale out to the sheep cut the strings, grab half, end ways on and fill two sheep rings. Probably do that also with a soft hands.
Greythundercloudys
Member
I got a yellow one from borne .its is first class.