"Poor Man's" Wrapper Rolls Bale On The Ground

The high cost of commercial bale wrappers prompted a Pennsylvania inventor to build this simple, low-cost bale wrapper. He says it gets the job done for a fraction of the cost of commercial table-type wrappers.

The patent pending "Roll 'n Wrap" mounts on either the tractor's 3-pt. hitch or a skid loader and wraps and stacks bales in one automatic operation. Instead of a roller table to rotate the bale while it's wrapped, the operator simply pushes the bale along the ground while a rotating arm swings around the bale with a roll of plastic. A pair of angled rollers keep the bale centered between the two bale-wrap arms.

Once the bale is wrapped, the clamp arm cuts off the end of the plastic and holds it for the next bale. The unit is powered by the tractor's hydraulics.

"It eliminates the step of loading the bale onto the machine and is a practical and affordable wrapper for the average farmer," says inventor Jeffrey Sadler. "The operator never has to get off the tractor. A roller just above the ground pushes the bale along. It'll handle 5 by 4-ft., 4 by 4-ft., or 4 by 3-ft. bales. It takes only about one minute to wrap a bale.

"The machine weighs only 500 lbs. Other bale wrappers need a 100 hp tractor because the table sets several feet in back and is also used to load the bale, which adds a tremendous amount of weight. With this machine, you're not lifting the bale, so a 50 hp tractor is adequate. It also has fewer moving parts,which reduces maintenance costs. And it allows you to use a smaller tractor."

Sadler says the operator determines the number of wraps by adjusting his ground speed to the rotational speed of the rotating arm. The speed of the arm is also adjusted by turning a knob.

An adapter plate is available to mount the unit on a skid loader. "We've also tried using the unit on a tractor loader, but found it works better on a skid loader because you can see what's happening right in front of you," notes Sadler.