Top Load Round Bailer

Top load round bailer HAY & FORAGE HARVESTING Balers (6) 14-2-23 You've never seen anything like this new top-loading round baler that has no hay pickup. Instead it's designed to be top-filled by a forage chopper to make densely packed silage bales with virtually no leaf loss. The Orkel GP 1200 baler trails behind a conventional forage chopper that can be set either to direct-cut or pick up windrows. The blower chute is set to blow directly into an open chute at the top of the fixed chamber baler. The baler is the brainchild of Norwegian manufacturer Gjonnes Mek Verksted. The company says the baler works great to make silage bales in both hay and corn and can also be used to chop and bale straw. It's designed for at least a 60 hp. tractor and features a pto-driven split gearbox that lets the tractor pto drive both the chopper and baler. The baler has a fixed chamber with 13 chain-driven rollers. As crop material is blown into the baler it's tumbled loosely by the rollers until the chamber is about half full, at which point the bale starts forming as with any other round baler. When a bale of preset density is formed, a red light is illuminated on either side of the machine. If one or the other of the lights doesn't come on, the operator can direct more material to that side of the bale chamber until it does. Once the bale is tied, the hydraulically-operated rear tailgate lifts and the bale is ejected. Because the crop material can be finely chopped it can be put under much greater pressure in the bale chamber. Bale weight ranges from 1,300 to 2,400 lbs., or 20 to 30 percent higher than conventional bales. The manufacturer has produced bales as heavy as 3,300 lbs. Hydraulic cylinders on either side of the baler double as tailgate openers and bale density regulators. Density is controlled with a regulator at the front of the baler that can be preset from 1,120 to 1,820 psi. In operation, the baler follows the tractor but sits at an angle on its chassis so that it faces the spout of the forage harvester, which is offset to the side of the tractor. The distance between the harvester and baler can be adjusted on the drawbar. Once formed the bales can be wrapped or bagged. Because they're so tightly made, spoilage due to air infiltration is cut to a minimum. Tests by a Norwegian government agency have reportedly shown that the direct-harvested bales produced by the new baler have a higher dry matter and protein content than bales made by conventional fixed-chamber machines harvesting wind-rowed hay. The Orkel baler is already on the market in Norway and the company is looking for foreign distribution. For more information, contact FARM SHOW Followup, Mr. J. Gjonnes, Gjonnes Mek Verksted, N-7320 Fannrem, Norway (ph 01047 74 85744; fax 01047 74 86205).

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