Power Knife Slices Big Round Bales

Power Knife Slices Big Round Bales HAY & FORAGE HARVESTING Bale Handling (5) 5-3-23 Some people use chain saws, some use hand saws but an Italian manufacturer has come up with a cutter designed specifically to cut chunks off big round hay bales or stacks of silage. "Big bales are gaining wider and wider acceptance in Europe. This machine makes them much more versatile to use in the barn," says Giorgio Cantarella, sales representative for Officina Meccanica Cattini in Correggio, Italy. The "Tagliafieno", as the Italians call it, features two broad, pie-shaped cutting blades that could have been sliced out of a large circular cutting blade. Powered by a 1/2 hp. electric motor, the blades slice back and forth against each other and, with the 39 lbs. weight of the machine behind them, slice right through big bales from any angle. "This machine is safe. It only operates when a button on the handle is depressed. The instant the thumb is lifted, the machine shuts down. Also, it's built in such a way that it does not vibrate the operator, causing him to be unstable. And it makes very little noise," Cantarella told FARM SHOW. The machine is available in 220-V or 110-V models. A 15-ft. high stand with a counterweight, attached to both a cable and to the Tagliafieno to make handling easier, is also available. The hay cutter sells for about $700. For more information, contact: FARM SHOW Followup, OMC, Via XXV Aprile, Correggio, Reggio Emilia, Italy (ph 0522 69 21 95).

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