Bale Wagon Update

Okay, so I went out and took a few more measurements, and here is what I have come up with, but I need to know if they are going to Jive or not!

Right now, if I were to put a 2 foot over hang off the FRONT of the wagon, and then I had 45 inch tongue, I would be able to hook it to the back of my NH 68 Baler, and the bale chute would be flush with the edge of the front of the deck on the trailer.

Question 1, 45 inches seems like a very short tongue to try to be maneuvering around! what do you guys think?

Next is the actual design of the wagon, I tried guessing and measuring as best as I could, and I was going to try to build HayRack's design, but due to the fact that there are no crossed 4x4's, the deck would just barely clear the top of the tires, I mean by about 3/4 of an inch...

I think at this point I am going to go with a design like MoMike's, or Super-H-Mike. I like the idea of the crossed 4x4's for height, and I am not sure I am competent enough to make a super nice, parade looking one like HayRack's.

That is just the plan of the moment, but I need to talk it over with my dad, because even though I put up the money and labor, we are still partners in crime!

Glad to hear you're putting a plan together. Go online and search for hay wagons or kicker wagons and then have a look at the pictures that show up. That should give you a good idea for a starting point. If you have any questions just ask and I'll help to the best of my ability. (Somewhat limited according to some)

We are all limited until we learn!!

So here is what I came up with just by looking at pictures for a lumber list:

2x 4x6 14’ $27.86 $56
7x 4x4 8’ $8.99 $63
14x 2x8 14’ $9.19 $126
2x 2x4 6’ $4.19 $8
4x 2x4 8’ $2.59 $12

Total would be about $300 by the time I bought lag bolts and nails and such.

Only thing I didn't guess to well, was how tall the back board should be? These numbers show it as sticking up above the deck about 5 feet, which I figured was plenty huh?

I go to thinking about it, and $300 really is not bad at all for that much lumber, and I thought that those beams would kill me!!

He told me that they would be about $60 a piece for non-treated, and the $27.86 for treated, which I guess is fine... Will it hurt the steel running gear? Bryce

Sounds like your on the right track Bryce! I agree that tongue is too short. That wagon and baler are going to have to TURN. If your flush when it's straight, it is going to hit when your turn, I usually like to see about a 6 to 8 inch gap between the chute and the front of the rack. sometimes even that isn't enough. I would hook your gear up behind your baler and set it up in a turned position and do some measuring before I set that hitch length. It is always easer to make it shorter that longer again! Does your baler's rear hitch have adjustments and slide in and out??

Yes, it can slide in and out, I think! It is currently all the way in, and is about flush with the back of the actual bale chamber, NOT the end of the chute.

I hadn't even thought about turning.. I still may be in the clear for one set, of chute's, from the sounds of things, I could get away with a 55 or 60 inch tongue, with about 6 inch of clearance between the end of the chute and the front of the deck, like you said.. I will have to hook everything up when I get both halves of my wagon put back together...

Don t make a big overhang on the front, you dont gain much capacity and it just makes it unhandy to turn and maneuver. My backboard is 6 feet. I used 5/4 decking and like it. I also used angle irons to hold the 4x4s to the 4x6s. Just nail down the top layer boards, lot easier than lag bolts and screws snap off when the wagon twists. I put 1/8 steel plates between the running gear and 4x6s , then greased it there a bit. My wagon is 14x7 overall. A 16x8 is a little more room which is nice sometimes too.

Easy to extend the bale shute then you can have a longer tongue as45 is way to short. You can also have a longer distance between shute and rack.

Yep, that is what I am thinking I am going to have to do... I have the right half, I just need to find the left half of the chute.. It is on the NH 66 I have, I guess I could try to make the left one and put them together...

Anyone out there have a left section, or both sections for a New Holland 68 Hayliner?? Bryce

If the bale chute is in halves then it is not ment for ever loading a wagon, those chutes are designed to drop the bale on the ground only and roll it to side out of way for next pass. The chute is 2 sections in length and one made as a half is not made for the total length you need with a wagon.

Bryce, how many bales high are you going to pile on this wagon? If you are only going to pile 4 bales high then there is no need to make the back high enough to hold 6 high. If you are going to pile 5 high then go out to the barn and pile 5 up. Then build the back high enough so it will catch about 4 inches of the 5th. row. 4 inches is plenty for that top row to lean against. We pile ours 6 high so I built the backs high enough to catch 4 inches of the 5th. row. Then the 6th. row we put length ways but only 4 wide. Being length ways they do not need to lean against a back as they will not fall end over end off the back of the wagon even if the back does not extend high enough for them to lean against. Hope this makes sense.

Whenever I put a gear under a hay wagon, the tongue is 4' past the front edge of the wagon. The wagon deck is around 6-10 " away from the bale pan then.

Donovan from Wisconsin

The wagon is not always going to be pulled behind the baler. Make sure the tongue is long enough to clear any tractor or truck that you may hook it to.

After I ripped the side off one trailer I built, I now check to see that the tongue of anything I build is long enough to allow my biggest tractor to jack-knife without hitting anything.

As far as clearance over the tires, I have had to shim a few racks at the bolster to get clearance, either because I got it wrong in the first place, or changed tires, or running gear.

I also have one wagon that needs the extension tongue in the long position when I am baling, to keep the kicker from hitting the wagon on turns.

The bale shute should have a flat section to let the bale clear the compaction chamber of baler. You have half of that with the bale turner. Then another section is bolted to that(so it can fold over first section for transport) and chained to the top of the chamber to hold it at an angle so bale kicks up toward front of wagon. Keeping the back end of the shute just higher than the wagon deck will let it fold up by sliding over deck on left hand turns. The toung should be set to allow about 18 inches of clearance between front of wagon deck and bale shute when straight line traveling. That way it will most always clear on turns and the bale will push backover the end enough you can reach it easily with a bale hook and pull it onto wagon safely. Add a 2x4 across the front lip of deck for a foot block so your foot wont slip off deck when pulling bale.
With the second section in use the wagon wont need any extra deck in front of front wheels, and bales will come to you. I have had them push onto wagon by them selves while busy stacking hay at back of wagon. Hired out to a guy that had a 10 ft wide X 16 ft long deck on 10T gears and liked to get 40 inch bales in under 8 plunger strokes. thought we were at the races. And I was young and stupid back then trying to keep up. Now I'd just take my time. $2/ hour wasnt worth it even back then.

That is kind of what i figured... The deck is going to hang over the front 2 feet, PLUS the 4 foot tongue, PAST the edge, so the total length will probably be about 55 inches or so..

Thats exactly it, I was concerned about making a low profile deck, and then possibly having to change the rims or even the tires one day, and having to "farmer fix" something!!

I think I have just about got it figured out... I am going to set everything up in front of the shop today, and take a few pictures, and a LOT of measurements! Bryce

I'm not all that sure truth be told!

The neighbor boy taught me how to make a really nice, tight stack on a flat bed, so I am use to 5 high, and then a narrow 6th layer, crossed that helps hold them together...

We would intermingle 10 or 12 bales, and then run a row across the top, and then do the next 10 or 12 and then continue the row.. They had been doing it that way for a long time, and the only problem we have ever had, is that we went and stacked 14 high, with a 15th row across the top, and we hit a power line in the farm yard trying to get to the barn.... :

BUT HEY! We beat the rain!

You described the bale chute a lot better than I did.

thanks I just wish I could spell. worst subject in school.