Baler ????

Look around where you are and see if somebody has one junked out by the barn with good needles. Then see if you can get the whole thing for parts.

thanks dave

--->Paul

I've heard more bad than good about Wisconsin V-4's. They can be a pain to restart when they're warm. My experience with the NH 66 itself was very frustrating. I put more money into it than I care to admit to try to get it running right. The NH 68 IMHO is a much better deal.

I would go for either the 14T or the 24T, with the prejudice towards the 24T all other things equal. If your WD45 is healthy and the PTO works okay there is not any reason to avoid a PTO baler. You should have power to spare.

Any of them would work. You should be able to get manuals and parts for any of them. I would bet the Deere's would be a better deal from what you've described.

If you keep it adjusted right, and run it right the NH will keep baling right even when it's worn completely out, but you won't be able to keep the JD adjusted so it does'nt throw lop sided bales, break needles, break the twine, and jam the knotters.

A feller that is just starting out learning which type baler to use danged sure won't ever learn on a wore out Deere.

My brother took over the farm and replaced the 14T with a 24T because it had a thrower. It continues to work well.

Secrets or hints:
1) Shed the machine.
2) Clean out the bale chamber, I found lopsided bales were caused by accumulations inside the "compression chamber". Adjust the hand cranks even number of turns.
3) Use 8000 rated twine on the thrower, 10000 twine if hand catching.
4) Use square knots to splice the twine bales, unravel and tuck the loose ends into the feeding twine.
5) Carry a spare bill hook for the knotter, and know how to replace it.
6) Keep the plunger and knotter knives sharp.
7) Keep the roller chains taut and lubed. 8) On the 14T the plunger stop is retracted by the needles catching a hook. The last year(?) a hinged lever was used and is superior. We had that mod installed in '62. Make sure the needle brake is adjusted and the needles won't drift back.
9) Keep your rpms up tying. If you don't have a tach, I remember ~58 strokes per minute on the plunger.

Don'ts
1) bale more than one fence post at a time.
2) bale green or damp hay for storage. We had a neighbor who would bale green hay to feed out immediately with a NH, but we could never do that with our 14T. Too much strain.
3) forget to replace the machinery guards
4) pitch the ball peen hammer into the field when you bend up ;the needles.

If he's found the equipment he says he has it's wore out. If nothing else, just from sitting outside they're rotted down.

I've had both balers myself that dang sho was'nt wore out, and he'll still lose a crop trying to learn how to run a wore out JD.

Cleaned her up, put in fresh twine, got some advice, greased what the book said (and the owners manual and parts book were readily available from the Deere place), and she worked. Most of what trouble I had was because I didn't know to keep the plunger knife sharp and adjusted. Put up 1000 bales that summer, and about that many the 3 summers after that. And I'd never had my own baler before, either. We'd had to have somebody come do that for us when I was a kid.

I am no great fan of Deere stuff, except that their parts support is what I'd judge anybody else by. And their parts prices ain't all that bad either. Go price a set of needles for that NH66 and compare that to the Deere prices.

And if you go with that 66, be sure all that knotter drive chain, wadboard drive chain, sprockets and mumblewoof are in good shape.

I called JD and they could'nt find a source for new needle for the 14, but for the 24 it was $71.49 plus wait 3 days to 2 weeks after ordering them. I don't know if they use the same needles or not.

I called NH and the needles are $54.96 ea on the 66, and they have them in stock.

You're 100% right on the cleaning, sharpening and adjusting the baler before you use it.

I always think it's a good idea to pressure wash the baler, grease the unit, and spray oil on all the moving parts at years end. When I start to put it up for the year I check all the knotters, plunger, and pto shaft for wore out parts.
Next spring all I do is re-grease it, sharpen all cutting edges and adjust everything including the plunger back to specs.

I'm still running 1 NH 68 Hayliner twine baler, and it still does good. The wire baler was still doing good, but it got so hard to find wire around here I parked it.

Back in '86 a set of needles for the 14T ran about $100 and I didn't have long to wait for them. It's hard to believe Deere's not supplying them anymore, but I'll take your word for it.

In '90 or so when I was fighting the NH66 I was waiting for a week or more for wadboard, and wadboard drive parts, to show up from New Holland out of Detroit. The dealer was in the middle of Ohio, which is not that far away.

So far both of our NH dealers are still Mom & Pop dealers. I get a better price and service both from NH.

Anyway...to the original topic. I believe any of those three machines would work. But if the guy has a healthy WD45, for reasons stated above I still think the 24T would be the better choice.

I once heard a guy up in Minnesota claim that a Case IH dealer told him that a new set of needles for an IH 47 would run $500. Maybe some of the dealers don't want to die poor.

Them JD balers are good, but they're not as forgiving while you're learning to bale with them as the NH is.