Going ons here in NWI

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North West Indiana
Been busy around, 11-2 besides voting had to load the six yearlings for their one way ride. Had the wild heifer actually jump out of the trailer and clear me over my head while I was standing upright. Ended up seeing a nice bruise on my right forearm today, she clipped my hat as she went over me. All in all, about 45 minutes and they were on the trailer. Wildest bunch of calves I have ever raised. Due to the bull I rented. Going to try to eliminate that with this next bunch by feeding them as weanlings in a barn so they get more one on one contact with me. Water pump is leaking very bad on the Oliver (only loader tractor on my farm) and I move a round bale a week right now so it isn't convenient for it to be down. I hope I don't have to take off all of the tins and radiator. Looking like the weather will cooperate for the early part of this coming week so that is when I will start tearing it down. In anticipation of waiting on parts (Olivers aren't real common anymore) I bought a tumblebug. For those of you not acquainted with this unique piece of equipment here is a video of one in action.

http://www.ccmachinery.com/public_html/images/Bulldog Bug 014.mov

The tumblebug in the picture of course is new (price not in my checkbook) and new they cost over $1,400.00! I saw this one in the local machinery sale yard, called the guy, he said it will need some work and tires, $150.00. I bought it. Drug it to the school shop (literally as the brakes are frozen) thankfully the tires were already shot and the roads were wet with snow. Will have the boys drag it in Tuesday, we will do a lesson on pulling wheels, breaking hubs loose from frozen brakes, redoing brakes as well as packing bearings. Hope to have it running before the tractor is. Either way, it gives me options. If I get my team of horses broke, can even haul hay easily with them using this. As you can see from the video, the brakes are essential to the rig working properly. Did some sluething thanks to Southwood, will have to get pictures of that deal and post at a later date. Just a tease to keep you checking back though!!!!
 
Thanks Jonathan. Man thats a neat trailer. Always wondered how the guys collected those rolls. How does it come off again? You just unhook the trailer and tip it out?

Good deal on the trailer you picked up. Boys will learn a lot. I made my son pack our little luggage trailers bearings with grease just to make him understand how to get his hands dirty and that these things need doing. Will do it again in the late spring.
 
Watch the whole video Rob. I found it especially for you knowing how you like the inner workings of equipment. Notice the guy can load and unload without leaving the seat of the truck. Now this isn't a fast way to move hay, but is quite effective without the use of hydraulics and actually can be pulled down the road. See a lot of trucks with the sides broken and bent out at the top from guys loading round bales and hauling one home for a few horses or critters. The pressure gets stronger with each bounce. Actually for moving hay home, I use my 24' flat gooseneck trailer, my hay guy loads me in the field and I unload myself at home with the Oliver. This gives me the opportunity to use my pickup or the team once broke to drive a cart in the event the loader tractor won't start. Actually thinking it will be better anyway after the ground is frozen as the bales I bought range in weight from 1400-1800 pounds each. Bouncing across ruts and frozen fields is hard on the loader and tractor with that much hanging off of the front of it.
 
My fault Rob, sorry. To unload, I am going to put a latch on the tongue (don't know if there was one originally) so the spear doesn't go around the bale as it folds up. Set the brakes on the tires, back up and without the spear falling, the bale will roll off of the carrier. For road transport a person would want at least one ratchet strap over the bale holding it on.
Yep, that heavy, can get them lighter, but then I have to handle more weekly. Sorry about the confusion.
 
I do have a loose hay loader for loading wagons. That is another one of those, "one of these days projects". It is in working order and all there and always shedded, just takes a top notch farm team because when turning corners if they see that tall monster behind the wagon and it is moving and throwing hay, even good teams have been know to run away.
 
Jonathan how long would a bale like that last for how many heads of cattle or cows?

If you had to buy one like that what would it set you back.

Just strikes me now that with all the gas involved producing hay is a costly excercise. Then the wrapping man i been looking at you tube videos and :eek: how much does that add?

I am thinking is cattle grade corn cheaper:dunno:

Man i think there is a farmer in me wanting to bust out. Think they would take a 52 year old at agri school. I mean Steve gone off to do Electrics heck why can i not go learn farming. The economics become a serious issue from what i see. Is diesel cheaper in the states than normal gas? Do farmers get cheaper umm subsidized gas at all?

Anyone making propane or natural gas farming equipment like the forlifts i have seen? Very interesting once one starts to think about the whole chain.
 
Jonathan how long would a bale like that last for how many heads of cattle or cows?

I make my cows "clean up the hay" so I get an extra day and with my six cows and their calves and the bull right now I get about 8 days to a bale. Once the temp drops, they get warmth from eating and their stomach/bowels working so they eat more and I get around five days. Once I wean the calves and get them in a seperate pen, it extends a couple more days but then have another bale in another pasture.

If you had to buy one like that what would it set you back.

With current hay prices, 140-200 dollars a ton, I bought these for 40 dollars each. My hay guy is local, he realizes he has to haul at least 90 miles to get to a hay sale, has to pay commission and takes the risk of an auction. Kind of a bird in the hand situation. I even got luckier as I was available to haul when he was done baling and wanted to get them off of the field so he loaded my trailer and his and didn't charge me a hauling fee. His real profit margin is in small square bales to hobby/horse farms. So many times the hay gets round baled if it got some rain on it, got a little mature, or he needed to "catch up" so dropped a lot of acres and baled to get the next growth started. I am providing him an opportunity to locally liquidate that lesser quality hay. This I don't feed to my horses as they are more fragile internally and the molds besides causing colic can really mess up their respitory system. Thus the difference in price from horse hay to cow hay.

Just strikes me now that with all the gas involved producing hay is a costly excercise. Then the wrapping man i been looking at you tube videos and :eek: how much does that add?

Extremely expensive, look at the cost of a good baler, powerful enough tractor, haybine, hay rake/tedder and the tractor. Also looking at least three trips in the field generally four trips, 1-mowing, 2-raking, 3-baling, 4-moving bales from the field. I am not buying wrapped bales as his baler is a twine machine. But that does add to the cost but also protects that outside layer. Many people say, it is only deteriorated 2-4 inches in. I am not an engineer/mathmatician, but the outside circumference of a round bale ruined 2-4 inches around is a large proportion of that bale of hay! My dad only bought small square bales and only bought by the bale. He is a highly intelligent man, but could never convince him to buy hay by the weight.

I am thinking is cattle grade corn cheaper:dunno:

Nope, last ton of feed went from $3.30 a bushel to $5.50 a bushel.

Man i think there is a farmer in me wanting to bust out. Think they would take a 52 year old at agri school. I mean Steve gone off to do Electrics heck why can i not go learn farming. The economics become a serious issue from what i see. Is diesel cheaper in the states than normal gas? Do farmers get cheaper umm subsidized gas at all?

Ag schools across the country will gladly take your money and explain how to farm/raise livestock out of a book in an air conditioned/heated classroom. The real education is hiring on with a local farmer as a hired hand, then the real economics will come into play. Diesel gives more work per gallon, gas tractors for me are easier to work on and start in my unheated machine shed regardless the temp.. Diesel fuel for farm use is not taxed for excise (roads) so is dyed another color. Department of Transportation officers are known to go to farm auctions, sale barns and other gathering places and using a litmus paper, swab the fuel neck of farmers diesel pickups. Anyone found using the non taxed fuel are fined heavily.

Anyone making propane or natural gas farming equipment like the forlifts i have seen? Very interesting once one starts to think about the whole chain.

Propane tractors are harder to work on, harder to fuel, do get better mileage, they were more popular in the 50-60's when tractor manufacturers were still trying to decide what was going to be most popular, diesel, propane, or gas. Good questions. Neighboring farm is for sale, 31 acres, house and 50x80 pole barn. House has attached two car garage. Some woods, tillable acres, deer, rabbit, turkey and the occassional goose and duck on it. Could run my cows on your corn stubble after harvest. Hmmmmm, then I would be your North Neighbor!!!!! :thumb::thumb:
 
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That tumblebug is very cool. Some good ol' boy stayed up late nights figuring that one out. :thumb:

We had a few acres of alfalfa for a few years when I was growing up, and my dad would mow it, then get a local guy to come bale it for us. We'd use Dad's old (fairly new at the time) '62 Ford F100 to haul the bales to the horse barn. I was too small to buck the bales into the truck, so I drove while my dad walked along side and did all the work.

For the most part, our few acres provided all the hay we needed, although we also fed grain and sometimes alfalfa pellets. I know what you mean about moldy hay and horses, though. One of our mares got a bad respiratory infection from moldy hay. The vet finally figured out it was from mold after the penicillin we were giving her kept making things worse. :doh:
 
I think it must be part of growing up and making hay. Lou Ann got real sick one summer, just home from the hospital, I had hay down so went ahead and baled it and let it fall on the ground. Our '92 Chevy pickup was an automatic so I let the girls steer it as they sat on their knees on the seat as the older daughter was in kindergarten and the younger one wasn't even in school yet. They drove near the bales and I loaded. Didn't make big/tall loads, went to the barn often and they checked on mom while I unloaded and stacked in the barn. It was rough on me, but good times, the girls really stepped up and we remember it often. :thumb:
 
I used to help my brother in law put up hay when I was in high school. His truck was a 4 speed with a granny gear. My nephew was 7 or 8 and would drive the truck around the field. He would do the same as Jonathan's daughter and be on his knees driving. If he had to stop he would slide off the seat to mash the break and clutch. My BIL would get in the bed and stack while I walked and loaded. I'd also hire out to other farmers in the area. That's one way I made spending money in the summer. Those daylight to dark days would kill me now.
 
Hay time are the best times.

Rob some math for you. (New) 100 hp tractor $60,000 with loader , Round baler $40,000, you would still need hay rack, mowing machine, trailer of some sorts to bring it in, a place top store the bales. Oh another tractor or something to unload with at store site.

Usually put out 3, 1800 lb round bale every 3 days here at the house, 26 head plus caves. 3 at lower farm every 3 days, 24 head plus calves. 1 at Father in laws every 3 days, 6 head. Like Jonathan we try and make they clean them up. The donkey can eat 3 bales in the winter by himself.
 
Wow :eek::eek::eek: Jonathan and Steve thanks a ton for the info.

So taking he easiest one to deal with Steve

If we take the 6 head of cattle getting fed 1 bale every 3 days at an average cost of $170 a ton of hay and a ton being 2000 lbs and the bale being approx 1800 lbs then according to my math its around $8.50 per head per day.:eek::eek:

Winter and i guess half of spring at least that says what 120 days at least of feeding at this rate. $1020

Surley not. Gotta have something wrong here some one with some math eduction please check this.:huh:

140-200 = 170 average

1800lbs bale = 90% of a ton = 170 * .9 = $153/bale

1 bale = 3* 6 head + 18 head days

153/ 18 = $8.50:eek::eek::eek::eek:

So lets say we stretch it out, even at half this cost the things are eating you out of house and home. And thats just the feed. Then you still have to add labor to moving the feed and fuel to collecting it from where ever you store it on your property to the barn/field they fed in. Man there food for thought there.:eek::(:)

Ok farmers tell me where i am going wrong. Load em up and take em away turn em into steak.:rofl::rofl: They cost more than my son to feed.

Oh and Jonathan at this rate i can understand the issue of the outer 2 inches being worth a lot because from what i just researched the bailers pack the density of the hay tighter at the outer edges so the loss would be even greater.

Funny thing is last night when i was watching some farmer machinery you tube videos i saw a guy loading bales and saw the mould.

Now mould was never something we had to contend with much in SA. Dry climate and brick building no vapor barriers etc and our houses did not even have insulation in the roof never mind the walls.:rofl: Actually really crazy with what i have learnt since coming here.

Anyhow back to the mould i have of course since learnt all about it since the account i know has an issue of living in his house because of mould and he is highly affected by the tiniest of spores.

So working in a barn in winter or whenever for that matter, made me wonder about humans and livestock being affected by mould.

I guess you never have horses near cattle then.

You know this chat makes one realize just how far away from reality we in the cities have become.

Some of what i learnt about the Chinese cultural revolution back in the 70's does make some sense. I think kids could do with all getting some exposure to working on a farm in their school life. As much as they get taken to a play or a concert to appreciate music and arts they should be exposed to appreciate the food providers. No wonder the huge corporate farms full of beancounters and i dont mean soy beans.:rofl::rofl:

So Jonathan i guess the ethanol production has a very direct impact on corn for cattle. Is it the same grade or type?

Do you guys Steve/ Jonathan keep track of these things. What i am getting at is do you log when you fed and how much in some sort of database. Seems to me keeping track of some of the key metrics is vital if its going to be profitable as oppsed to just accepting the consequences.

Oh man i gotta get down to experience farming life. Got way too many questions and thoughts. Hey last one do you guys have a weather station. Any connectivity between them eating and weather temps.

I suppose the guys that have it best are the Amish. Horsepower, on second thoughts i am not that sure when i think of vets and what Vaughn just said about horsefeed being different.:eek:

Thanks guys for the insight.
 
Rob, you are doing way too much math for farming. I am no expert at farming, not by a long shot, but I will say this. It is not something you do to get rich, it is just something to do. Yes there are many a BIG farmers getting rich. On are small scale it just doesn't happen that way. Yes we can turn a little profit, but there is no way to measure happiness.

I just seen a thing on the news. Beef prices to rise. Grain costs more so farmers will be getting more for their beef stock. No not us, we sale to the stock yards, they pay the same, they make the bigger dollars.

farming is like furniture making. The little guy who only does a few pieces gets a small payment. The guy who does the high quanitys gets the bigger prices.

One thing about farming, I will never stare to death. Will always have a roof over my head and something to eat. Unless I can't pay my taxes, but we won't go down that road.

You got me started now. Let me ask you this. Which is a better farmer. New house, new tractors, cows and crops look like crap, barn falling over but he has new vehicles. Or good looking crops and cows, sturdy but old barn, house needs some work but OK, vehicles run but need a little work also. Tractors are old but serviceable. Spends all his time in the shop working on old stuff so he doesn't have to go neck deep in debt?
 
Around here they are called Doodlebugs.
I saw one in a front yard for sale for years but didn't know what it was. Once I learned, I rushed over to buy it. Of course, it had just sold.
I bought my round bales by having them loaded into my pickup bed and a small trailer. I once calculated I pushed well over 3,000 bales off that truck.
You got a good buy.
 
That's interesting to me too!

I served my time riding on the wagon behind the baler or working in the mow. Seems like back in the early 1960's that job paid 2 cents a bale or $1 an hour. Some times we got to pick the pay rate; some times we didn't. I do remember the fantastic lunch the wives prepared at noon--fried chicken, mashed potatoes, chicken gravey and all the trimmings. And man were the pies good too. Mighty good eating. We usually had a big cold Thermos of lemonade at the field too. Oh yes, one of the farmers paid a 25 cent bounty for each rat we killed in the barn. I don't remember anyone collecting on that though. It was hard work, but we always looked forward to hay season. This thread brought back many memories, mostly good ones.

I'm curious--what would you pay kids for that job today?
 
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