King Sized Stacker Speeds Hay Making

King Sized Stacker Speeds Hay Making HAY & FORAGE HARVESTING Bale Handling (5) 6-6-31 "This is the cheapest way we've ever found to put up hay in a hurry," says Leroy Staffanson, Sidney, Mont., pleased with his king-sized hay handler which can pick up several tons of hay at once and stack it in huge piles up to 18 ft. high. The hay stacker features a unique dolly-type frame built around a tractor but supported almost entirely on its own frame and wheels. The stacker connects to the tractor only on a pivot point attached to the drawbar. The operator tows the unit down the road with the stacker behind him and when he reaches the field, simply cramps the wheel and drives under the stacker to go to work. Once the tractor is directly under the stacker, it's steered like "an old buck rake" according to Staffanson, by simply turning the front wheels in the opposite way that you want to go and then turning back to follow the unit. "We used to stack our hay in large stacks in the field, then haul it in as needed during the winter," explains Staffanson. "Now, we bring it all in off the field on two trucks outfitted with large hay carrying racks and then stack it up in one big pile near our cattle. This saves us a tremendous amount of time and all the fuel we would have used chasing back into the fields during the winter." Staffanson says they've picked up as much as 4-tons at once with the rake with no problems. He says most of the weight rests on the front wheels, with little on the drawbar except when a big load is held high. When fully extended, the teeth on the stacker reach 18 ft. off the ground. The stacker features both a tilt cylinder and a "dump off" device to push the loaded hay off onto the pile. Staffanson spent about $350 to build the unit, buying old bridgework for the frame and an old Chevrolet rear end for the support up front which is outfitted with duals. The pivot on the tractor drawbar is a 4-in. ball and socket, anchored to a 12-in. vertical pipe that serves as a hydraulic resevoir for the pto pump that powers the unit. He says the entire unit can be unhooked in 10 min. or less with just two bolts on the drawbar and one in the cab to unhook the three hydraulic controls. He has used the patented stacker for one year and would like to find a manufacturer to build it. For more details, contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Leroy Staffanson, Route 1, Box 3076, Sidney, Mont. 59270 (ph 406 798-3354).

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