Buying another soon

[PapaJ]

So I have moved to Denton, TX, and I'm closing on a house tomorrow. My wife wants me to replace the BX2680 I sold before I moved here, with something that can move a round bale. L series? Don't want to mess with DEF, but buying new. Please give me your recommendations.

 

[RalphVa]

Depends on size of the round bale, somewhat. A B would do a medium round bale if on reasonably level ground. Check the lift capacity of the L to determine what it can do. You likely will need about an M size.

 

[Bmyers]

Well, the Grand series L will move a round bail. The MX series will also.

 

[rc51stierhoff]

I do not mean to be disrespectful…have you moved a round bale before? If not offer to help a neighbor that does for a day or a trailer load or something…or I’d recommend find a friend or neighbor who has a machine that can safely do what you want done…and judge size and weight off that machine wheelbase and weight. Lifting is important, but stability to handle the load across your terrain (at speed) and planned operating area is very important to move something that large repeatly. I’ve never seen a spec that tells the buyer that. Second if you are hurt who will need to move the round bales in your place? I assume the bales are for livestock and will need fed regular should you have have injury? Can your back up run the machine? Or ability to learn to run it?

 

[North Idaho Wolfman]

So I have moved to Denton, TX, and I'm closing on a house tomorrow. My wife wants me to replace the BX2680 I sold before I moved here, with something that can move a round bale. L series? Don't want to mess with DEF, but buying new. Please give me your recommendations.

MX or M for round bales

And Kubota's don't use DEF.

 

[mcmxi]

MX or M for round bales

And Kubota's don't use DEF.

Late last year I took the MX over to a "friend's" house to help unload 20 or more round bales. They were stacked two high and it was a bit tricky getting the top row off given that the loader was fully extended. The MX had no trouble picking up and moving the bales, but if I had to regularly unload round bales stacked two high I'd prefer an M of some sort.

 

[North Idaho Wolfman]

Late last year I took the MX over to a "friend's" house to help unload 20 or more round bales. They were stacked two high and it was a bit tricky getting the top row off given that the loader was fully extended. The MX had no trouble picking up and moving the bales, but if I had to regularly unload round bales stacked two high I'd prefer an M of some sort.

View attachment 77813

Excellent first hand information!

 

[mcmxi]

Excellent first hand information!

I had to stab the bales with the spikes angled downward and then use roll back to get the bale off the bales beneath. The MX had no issues at all with the bottom row of bales. These were 5x6 I think, and pretty darn heavy.

 

[BigG]

You need to define "round bale". At one time I was baling hay. I had a Massey Ferguson 1528 as a loader tractor. 28 hp and similar to a Kubota L2501 in size. I used a Case 8420 round baler. Not a great baler but it made nice little bales that my customers liked because they could roll them about.

I could load them easily on a gooseneck 2 high and 2 wide. I did have loaded tires and 2 sets of iron weights on the rear.

So it depends on the size of the bales as to the size of the tractor. The type of hay and the density and moisture will also make a difference.

A finial note. If you can use the rear 3 point type of spear you can move most 4 x 5 bales with a low weight tractor.

 

[PapaJ]

Thanks for everyone's responses. I have 1.08 acres, and will need to move hay from the street into the pasture. I will not be helping any neighbors, and since I am in a residential neighborhood, nobody around here has a tractor.

I moved round bales (600 pounds maybe) in VA with a BX 2680. It was not a good time.

Here in Texas, what is available to me is around 1000 pound bale. My wife is my backup, and spent more time our last tractor than I did due to my work schedule. She can manage, but she gets stuck sometimes, and so far I have been able to drive out of what she couldn't. This place doesn't flood or hold water as bad as VA did though.

I will look at prices once we are settled in and go from there.

 

[BigG]

With only 1 acre how much are you feeding? A 1000 pound bale on a 3 point bale spear of a L2501 should work but it is not a MMM tractor.

Do you need to carry the bale? You could use the tractor to roll the bale to the field without picking it up at all. I have suggested a bale buggy like this https://www.nextechclassifieds.com/listings/1763848/ which allows you to move a bale with a small tractor safely.

 

[JohnDB]

You need to define "round bale". ...

Completely agree. From discussion so far it seems we are assuming round bales of HAY. Round bales of silage (also called balage, but still they are "round bales") are wrapped in plastic to exclude air and normally weigh around 1700 -1800 lb. Heavy ones not far short of a ton.

What are plastic wrapped round bales of silage called in north america?

 

[Borane4]

All the bales in north TX are 5x6 it seems and I dont see very many that are smaller. I have an M4 that can move them without too much drama as long as something is on the back, like a box blade. If you are buying new be sure to visit the local Kubota dealer in Denton that starts with a Z. They are great at either not calling you back, or telling you that you are wrong when you call with questions or concerns. Their great conversation almost always ends with them telling you you need a bigger tractor. (I hope the sarcasm is obvious). I've had much better experience with Six and Mango in Frisco and they will deliver out your way.