Grinding hay

By the way, what kind of sheep do you have? I have Polypays and know people in Harlan and Center Point, IA with the same kind.

I agree with the Cowman and kinda think you are trying to use the wrong tool for the wrong job.

Grinder mixers work great for small grains but they just aren't designed for grinding hay. I would imagine you'd just end up plugging the thing up even if you were to try feeding it with a pitchfork.

Screen sizes on a tub grinder normally run 3 or 4 inches and they can eat a lot of hay; like Howard says, a sizable tub can easily keep two loaders busy. Here's a picture of a little guy.

Oh yeah, and always put the discharge apron downwind. :>)

Allan

Maybe it would work, I dunno; it is just hard for me to get my mind around feeding hay into a grinder-mixer and that same ground hay feeding out of an auger without one's having to make a trip to the nearest tavern. :>)

One things for certain though, betcha you are going to have to "spoon feed" the thing.

One time I got in a jam and had to grind a stack of hay using a Fox 3000 equipped with a hay head. It was just me and the darned pitchfork and I had to be real careful of plugging up that brute. I remember that it sure made for a long morning.

At any rate, hope ya get 'er figured out,

Allan

It does not cost you much to grind a few bales with what you have, even if you really mess up and have to clean out the tub by hand.

If it is too dusty, you can use the mixer to add a little molasses (which the sheep might like) to keep the dust down or buy a bigger screen.

Note he said they ground 120 round bales per hour. The tub grinders are for large operations.

Also, my philosophy is animals waste hay when they are getting too much.

A sign of wealth in the cow world is throwing hay on to your back. They only do that when times are good and they can afford it. Kind of like trading in a two year old car.

Don't know anything about sheep. I always go to sleep trying to count them so if I had some I wouldn't even know how many I had. It's hard to manage a herd that way.

Let me understand this. You actually stand there and feed that thing by hand?

I think I'm on the wrong planet; I just can't imagine doing that. :>(

'Course, come to think of it, there are guys who tell me that they plow with an H too. That one, I wanna see someday 'fore I die. :>)

Allan

I was born at night, but it wasn't last night. I can't even imagine running hay through a grinder/mixer.

Wassamatta you? Are you tryin' to tell us that you ran hay through one of these things? How'd ya feed it?

Allan

The bale chute feeds directly into the hammermill and generally won't take more than a 4-inch high charge. Slow. 10 head.