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Big Bale Shape Indicator
"The way to make a big round bale solid from end to end is to rake a narrow windrow and drive a zig-zag pattern when baling. But there's a problem with this method: How do you know when to zig and when to zag? To solve this, I made a bale shape indicator that tells me when to zig and when to zag to make a perfect bale."
That's how LeRoy Rauch, Pecatonica, Ill., explains the reasoning behind his homemade big round bale shape indicator which he calls the Equalizer.
"The Equalizer is an evener that pushes against the outside of the belts to monitor how equal the ends are," explains Rauch. "A cable attached to the rear-mounted evener moves an indicator finger on the front. By looking at the finger, I can tell when the ends of the bale are equal, or if one end of the bale is bigger than the other.
"With my device mounted on a round baler, anyone who can drive a tractor can bale narrow windrows and make every bale perfectly shaped. A well-shaped round bale weighs much more and it sheds water many times better," points out Rauch.
The Equalizer mounts on the baler with just six bolts. Rauch says there is no extra wear to the belts since the Equalizer simply works like an evener pulley. He installed it on his Vermeer 605F baler but is confident it could be adapted to fit any belt-type big baler.
Rauch who made his Equalizer out of junk steel, figures it would cost "about $30 for the two 2-in. steel rollers, and $20 for four bearings that make up the evener." He figures he invested about $75 to $80 labor for a total cost of about $130.
For more information, contact: FARM SHOW Followup, LeRoy Rauch, 4121 Goeke Road, Pecatonica, Ill. 61063 (ph 815 239-2528).


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1981 - Volume #5, Issue #4