Swather Bale Handler

Swather bale handler HAY & FORAGE HARVESTING Bale Handling (5) 12-5-7 "We like the maneuverability and the up-front visibility," says Bill Hawthorne, Chadron, Neb., about the Hesston 620 swather he converted to handle big round bales. Hawthorne replaced the swather header with a 3-pt. off an old Allis Chalmers tractor. He mounted the 3-pt. on a support frame that consists of a railroad tie (as a lower brace) and a flat-iron cross brace (to support the top link). A set of Farmhand loader controls were mounted next to the operator's seat and tied into the swather's hydraulic system. With a Dew Eze bale loader mounted on the 3-pt., the swather's header lift cylinders now raise and lower the bale loader. "It's better than a tractor-mounted 3-pt. bale loader because it's up front so you don't have to twist around to see it. Also, the baler's hydrostatic drive eliminates the need to constantly shift gears and it'll turn around in its tracks, which makes it easy to maneuver in small stack yards. You never have to back up," says Hawthorne, noting that he added weights to the rear of the windrower to counterbalance the weight of the bale. He also built a pig box that mounts on the 3-pt. to transport pigs from place to place. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Bill Hawthorne, HC 75, Box 112B, Chadron, Neb. 69337.

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