Bale Wrapper Fits Any Skid Loader

Bale Wrapper Fits Any Skid Loader TRACTORS Skid Steer Loaders 30-6-25 "It frees up a tractor, and the driver has a clear view in front of him without having to look back," says Bob Clapper, Ag Nation Products, East Canton, Ohio, about his big bale wrapper for skid steer loaders. The Ag Wrap bale wrapper has been on the market for several years as a 3-pt. unit that operates off tractor hydraulics. It was invented by a Maryland farmer in 1993. Clapper has been a dealer for the bale wrapper for many years and bought the manufacturing rights two years go. He recently came up with a new universal quick-tach adapter plate, which allows the wrapper to be quickly mounted on any brand of skid loader. It installs with three pins. "As far as I know it's the first skid steer-mounted bale wrapper on the market," says Clapper. "A lot of farmers use skid loaders to move bales to the edge of the field where another machine wraps them. Now you can move them and wrap them at the same time. By the time you get to the edge of the field, the bale will be already wrapped. It takes only about two minutes to hook up the adapter plate." The machine is built heavy and will last a long time, says Clapper. "We bought the fifth machine ever built 12 years ago for use on our own farm. It wrapped more than 37,000 bales before we sold it, and it's still going strong today." Less wear and tear is a big benefit, he says. "On a stationary bale wrapper, the table that holds the bale rotates rapidly which causes a lot of wear on the center bearing. And much of the bale's weight is on the arm that holds the plastic, which causes the bearing in the arm to wear out prematurely. On our bale wrapper the arm does the work by slowly rotating around the bale. Every pin, pivot point and bearing has a grease fitting on it." The only disadvantage, he says, "is that you don't want to turn around real quick or you can tear up the field. You want to make gradual turns." Two different models are available, to wrap bales either 4 to 5 1/2 ft. or 4 to 6 1/2 ft. An optional skid steer wheel assist kit can be used to take the weight off the skid loader. The kit consists of a pair of caster wheels that extend out to the end of the bale wrapping arms and help support the weight of the machine. "Some smaller skid loaders can have a hard time handling the extra weight out front. This wheel assist kit solves the problem," says Clapper. Also available is a handheld remote valve control that's used to adjust plastic overlap and wrapper speed. Sells for $9,200. The adapter plate sells for $300. The remote valve control sells for $500. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Ag Nation Products, Box 30127, East Canton, Ohio 44730 (ph 800 247-3276 or 330 418-5093; agnationproducts.com; www.agnation.com).

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