Mechanical Pitchfork Loads Hay Bales

Mechanical Pitchfork Loads Hay Bales HAY & FORAGE HARVESTING Bale Handling (5) 3-4-3 "Does the work of four strong men," says the Canadian importer of a new one-man bale-handling device from France, designed for easy handling of conventional hay or straw bales. Called the Nicholas Bale-Throwing Arm, it works like a mechanical pitchfork in picking bales off the ground and tossing them, with a flip of a switch, into a high-sided trailing wagon. "The arm's pointed sharp fingers ride free over the ground on a gauge wheel," explains Robert Lemay, general manager of Forano Farm Implement Division, Plessisville, Quebec. "The driver steers the arm into a bale, then activates the cylinder which flips the bale back into the wagon and automatically drops the arm back to the ground, ready for another bale. The arm can throw a bale and be back on the ground in just 2 or 3 seconds. The driver controls all the action right from the seat of the tractor." The hydraulic throwing arm is actually a mechanical, jointed pitchfork. Its 7 needle-sharp tines ride a few inches over the ground, going anywhere the tractor goes. It mounts on any Cat. I or II 3-pt. hitch and requires just 35 hp. to operate. The arm can lift up to 200 lbs. and is adjustable for length. Throwing speed is controlled by flow of hydraulic fluid. The arm is totally visible, being right up next to the driver. "Operation is simple," says Lemay. He notes that the unit will throw bales into most any high-sided bale wagon or trailer. Cost (FOB Plessisville) is $1,480 (Canadian dollars). For more details, contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Nicholas BaleThrowing Arm, Foraio, 1495 St. Anne St., Plessisville, Quebec, Canada G6L 2Y9 (ph. 819 362-7395).

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