SP Bale Wrapper Needs No Tractor

SP Bale Wrapper Needs No Tractor HAY & FORAGE HARVESTING Bale Handling (5) 20-6-40 "Our new self-propelled, self-loading bale wrapper frees up a tractor and works much faster than conventional pull-type or stationary bale wrappers. It lets one person wrap at least a bale per minute," says Tom Freis, Newton, Wis., who displayed the new rig at the recent World Dairy Expo in Madison, Wis. Freis is a farmer-dealer who sells a variety of round bale handling equipment. The machine itself is built in the U.S. by Corry-Armstrong. The company modified a stationary Corry bale wrapper by adding a big drive wheel and steering arm on front, an axle and 10-in. flotation wheels on back, and a bale lift arm on one side. Power is provided by a front-mounted 5 hp Briggs & Stratton gas engine direct-coupled to a two-stage hydraulic pump. An orbit motor chain-drives the front wheel and another one rotates the unit's turn table. The lift arm and table dump are operated by hydraulic cylinders. The operator walks in front using control levers mounted on the steering arm. One lever is used to raise or lower the lift arm, one to rotate the turn table, one to dump the bale, and one to power the drive wheel for-ward or backward. "It's the fastest bale wrapping system on the market because it's so easy to maneuver compared to a tractor-pulled unit. One per-son can haul bales in from the field and wrap them and still keep up with the baler," says Freis. "It works so simple that anyone can operate it. The idea arose after using a pull-type self-loading wrapper that couldn't keep up with the baler. I was still wrapping bales into the night, hours after the baler had quit for the day. I added a second wrapper but I still couldn't keep up. Then I tried using a stationary wrapper. It kept up with the baler but required an extra tractor and operator to wrap the bales. "I use a wagon to carry about 12 bales at a time either to the end of the field or to my yard. After I have about 60 bales lined up in a row I wrap them. I generally finish wrapping only about 20 minutes after the baler has quit for the day. After I'm done I can pull the wrapper behind my pickup at highway speeds to the next field. The front of the rig raises hydraulically to get the drive wheel off the ground." The lift arm is adjustable for bale width and diameter. A standard lift arm lock out valve eliminates the possibility of inadvertently raising the arm when the table isn't in the proper position. The unit is available with a 5, 8, or 9 hp engine. A standard unit equipped with a 5 hp Briggs & Stratton engine sells for $12,800. Freis also sells Welger silage balers that chop hay before baling it, as well as Highline bale processors and movers and Balemaster loader-mounted bale grabbers. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Tom Freis, Meadowlawn Acres, 13118 Union Rd., Newton, Wis. 53063 (ph 414 693-8305).

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