My current baler (welger 435) is due to be replaced after this harvest and I have just started looking at replacements, after being at the highland show I have narrowed it down to two, the new NH roll belt 150 or the mchale belt baler, I won't be having another welger but I won't bore you all with why ! What are people's views on the mchale's none around here so never seen one working, have heard there's been some issues with the netter on them ? I bale roughly 12000 bales a year mainly straw but with a small amount of hay and silage, what would be the best to get ?
Which round baler ?
- Thread starter Moonface
- Start date
tealdog038
Member
- Location
- New Zealand
Dont get the NH 150 they are weak 180 is much stronger. We bale the same amount and had a dog 150, first failure at 3000bales and only got worse afta that. We looked around and mchale v660 wouldve been a goer but NH came to the party and changed us to a RB180 done first season problem free.
tealdog038
Member
- Location
- New Zealand
Oh yea sorry i was just referring to bale size lol, here the BR7070 does a 180cm bale and the 7060 a 150cm. The 7070 is a better baler as the tension arm is mounted in the main frame and not the door like the 7060. A few of them have broken the door rams off and even the whole door in some cases! I would think the rollbelt is drop floor as everything else on the market is. Are the rollbelts on display over there?
tealdog038
Member
- Location
- New Zealand
For how long theyre taking to finish them they better be good!
Chae1
Member
- Location
- Aberdeenshire
The better is fine now! They have sorted it out with latest mods.
Mchale v660 chamber is 1.23m wide
ILovebaling
Member
- Location
- Co Durham
Hi, sorry but this may be a long reply to your question.
We currently run both a Welger 435 and a Mchale V640 having moved on to these from the varying numbered NH 7060/740s.
The reason we went away from the NHs is that they were pretty much destroyed, especially in the pick up reel department after around 15000 bales, probably less in reality, they were ok after the 1st year but became nightmares into the second season. Most issues were with the tinebars I would and could go into more on this. This is the reason we went off NH balers.
So we decided to change models and were going to buy 2 V640 Mchales as they were much cheaper than the Welger 435s but in the end decided to go for 1 of each to fully see ourselves which is the best baler.
Mchale V640
First impressions of this baler were very good, seemed to make a good bale, better worked well at beginning of season. Problems we have found though were that we didn't think the bales were as tight as the Welgers but probably very similar the the NH. Had many many problems with netting bit it is of my opinion that this problem was caused mostly by mud being able to get onto the roll of net when travelling or when spinning tyres in wet holes (a common theme in 2012) and could easily by remedied by lengthening the cover above the nett and netting system. Straw bales did not like coming out of the back of the baler when travelling down hill as the springs in the kicker were too solid, this was remedied by removing 1 spring but makes the kicker a little pointless in all honesty. Pick up reel seem very good and a good solid built machine. 1 final point on the Mchale though is that I didn't think it baled short grass or OSR (especially if the OSR had got wet and laid a while) as well as the NH or Welger, had to travel much slower and be very vigilant or ended up with a very blocked pick up reel!
Welger 435.
Great baler, very solid bales (do not kick or punch and be ready to take a run up to get bale spike in)! Great in my opinion I. Short grass or straw etc compared to both a NH or Mchale. But..... Major issue with the pick up reel! Now have no camtrack and this caused a major problem! Twice in the space or 2 weeks the pick up reel got so jammed up with grass that the baler would no longer bale and this was on the 1st occasion after only 20 bales that day. Took on both occasions 2 people around 4 hours to get all the grass out which involved taking off every winguard, cutting, pulling and even chiseling grass from around the tines and tine bars. Was a nightmare. We think it was caused because now the tines are just going round and not collapsing in the camtrack like most other balers do. I will though add that this only occurred in long stringy haylage type grass but still caused us major problems. Mchale baled this stuff just fine and therefore meant we had to be very choosy of which baler we took where, not good. Welger have not done anything to help us out or put our minds at ease on this issue! Other than this great baler great bales....
NH 7060
Good all round baler, no major baling issues, decent bales, missing a drop down floor to remove blockages is 1 draw back. Just they were made out of biscuits as previously stated.
Apologies for the long winded response.
We currently run both a Welger 435 and a Mchale V640 having moved on to these from the varying numbered NH 7060/740s.
The reason we went away from the NHs is that they were pretty much destroyed, especially in the pick up reel department after around 15000 bales, probably less in reality, they were ok after the 1st year but became nightmares into the second season. Most issues were with the tinebars I would and could go into more on this. This is the reason we went off NH balers.
So we decided to change models and were going to buy 2 V640 Mchales as they were much cheaper than the Welger 435s but in the end decided to go for 1 of each to fully see ourselves which is the best baler.
Mchale V640
First impressions of this baler were very good, seemed to make a good bale, better worked well at beginning of season. Problems we have found though were that we didn't think the bales were as tight as the Welgers but probably very similar the the NH. Had many many problems with netting bit it is of my opinion that this problem was caused mostly by mud being able to get onto the roll of net when travelling or when spinning tyres in wet holes (a common theme in 2012) and could easily by remedied by lengthening the cover above the nett and netting system. Straw bales did not like coming out of the back of the baler when travelling down hill as the springs in the kicker were too solid, this was remedied by removing 1 spring but makes the kicker a little pointless in all honesty. Pick up reel seem very good and a good solid built machine. 1 final point on the Mchale though is that I didn't think it baled short grass or OSR (especially if the OSR had got wet and laid a while) as well as the NH or Welger, had to travel much slower and be very vigilant or ended up with a very blocked pick up reel!
Welger 435.
Great baler, very solid bales (do not kick or punch and be ready to take a run up to get bale spike in)! Great in my opinion I. Short grass or straw etc compared to both a NH or Mchale. But..... Major issue with the pick up reel! Now have no camtrack and this caused a major problem! Twice in the space or 2 weeks the pick up reel got so jammed up with grass that the baler would no longer bale and this was on the 1st occasion after only 20 bales that day. Took on both occasions 2 people around 4 hours to get all the grass out which involved taking off every winguard, cutting, pulling and even chiseling grass from around the tines and tine bars. Was a nightmare. We think it was caused because now the tines are just going round and not collapsing in the camtrack like most other balers do. I will though add that this only occurred in long stringy haylage type grass but still caused us major problems. Mchale baled this stuff just fine and therefore meant we had to be very choosy of which baler we took where, not good. Welger have not done anything to help us out or put our minds at ease on this issue! Other than this great baler great bales....
NH 7060
Good all round baler, no major baling issues, decent bales, missing a drop down floor to remove blockages is 1 draw back. Just they were made out of biscuits as previously stated.
Apologies for the long winded response.
According to our area rep for Welger,they have now sorted the pickup problem,still remains to be seen IMO
ILovebaling
Member
- Location
- Co Durham
Well I hope they have bit we've heard nothing from Mchale or our dealer. Last we heard from Welger was at LAMMA in January and the were "working on the issue but it is only the odd baler here and there" took our number and said they be in touch, 5 months later still waiting to here from them.
@ILovebaling
Please don't apologise for your long response. Honest experience and feedback are what helps to make this forum so useful.
Please don't apologise for your long response. Honest experience and feedback are what helps to make this forum so useful.
ILovebaling
Member
- Location
- Co Durham
And to add onto the Mchale. This season we are having problems with the belts, Mchale have made a couple of alterations and cut off the belt guides on the top roller, everything seemed fine and the bales do seen more solid but after about 200 bales the belts have started moving about 6 inches to the left and the left hand side belt is actually twisting quite badly and when the bale is complete it sometimes stalls a 220hp tractor and the belts smoke, it's not pleasant. So far they have said its the rows, it's not and I say this because the bale comes out a good shape and solid both ends and by the law of averages your not going to go down an uneven row on the same side of the baler evertime. Can be fine for 20,30,50 bales then will just randomly start doing it again for the next 20. Can be fine 1 bale in the row then not the next.
benferg
Member
- Location
- North Canterbury, NZ
how old is the McHale?
ILovebaling
Member
- Location
- Co Durham
Brand spanking new last year. 2012.
Someone else I knows bought a Mchale and had the same problem but his dealers sorted it. Need to find out what they've done!
Someone else I knows bought a Mchale and had the same problem but his dealers sorted it. Need to find out what they've done!
benferg
Member
- Location
- North Canterbury, NZ
is it just a 640 problem, or do the 660's have it too?
ILovebaling
Member
- Location
- Co Durham
Well our 640 is doing it but like I say it was fine last year and it baled some horrible rows last year and didn't do it so its whatever they altered.
The other guy that had the problem but his dealer sorted out is I'm pretty sure a 660.
A 640 is basically a 660 just the 640 doesn't have a crop cutter. I think anyway.
The other guy that had the problem but his dealer sorted out is I'm pretty sure a 660.
A 640 is basically a 660 just the 640 doesn't have a crop cutter. I think anyway.