Baler-Mate Speeds Hay Making

Baler-Mate Speeds Hay Making BALERS Balers 30-3-28 You can get in and out of hay fields fast if your round baler is fitted with Baler-Mate rake wings. They attach to existing bolt holes on most big round balers. Inventor Dale Alvarez says he's able to custom bale fields by himself, eliminating extra labor and equipment, while saving fuel. "The custom hay baling market is getting more and more competitive, especially with the cost of fuel," says Alvarez. "Raking doesn't take a lot of fuel, but trucking a tractor and rake to the field does. Now I only have to haul one tractor and my Baler-Mate equipped baler." Alvarez estimates that he saves 3 hours or more a day compared to raking first and then baling. Eliminating hired labor increases savings even more. "It only takes a minute and a half to fold out and set up," says Alvarez. "Once in place, hydraulics lift and lower the rakes as needed." Initial set up is easy too. Alvarez designed Baler-Mate to match existing bolt holes on Deere, Vermeer and most other big round balers. The square steel tubing frame attaches where the baler tongue meets the baler frame. He is confident it can work with Hesston balers as well, though they will probably require a bracket to be welded in place. Regardless of what brand baler, getting parts for the Baler-Mate will be easy. "I tried hard to use off the shelf parts, not specialty items, so it will be easy for my customers to pick up replacements if needed," says Alvarez. "The standard rake wheels handle heavy hay crops, but they can be replaced with heavier duty wheels for corn stalks and other crop residue." The Baler-Mate comes in 6 and 8-wheel configurations with wide and narrow settings. The 6-wheel rake opens up to a raking width of 18 ft. from tip to tip in the wide setting, dropping back to about 16 1/2 ft. for heavy hay. The 8-wheel model runs 21 ft. tip to tip on the wide setting and 18 ft. on the narrow. Alvarez sells the 6-wheel rake for $4,200 and the 8-wheel rake for $4,800 plus S&H. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Dale Alvarez, Rt. 3, Box 164, Kirbyville, Texas 75956 (ph 409 423-3684; dalealvarez50@ aol.com; www.balermate.com).

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