BossEliminator - 3/4/2021 06:53
Most farmers in our area had kickers. We had both a JD with the pan kicker and NH with the belt kicker. Liked the pan kicker a lot better. Easier on the bales and better control to fill the wagon. I think at some point the Patten ran out and the newer NH balers have the pan kicker option. I think that would be the best combination. Pan kickers can be dangers. A local farm is missing an arm from working on one and it tripped on him.
https://www.tractorhouse.com/listings/farm-equipment/for-sale/202230...
I'd agree with the pan kicker being nicer to use. I've ran both, like the pan kicker better. Easy to beat up the back of a kicker wagon as well with the belt throwers. Regular missle launcher. The pan kicker tosses the bale in more of a gentle arc. Because of that, you can have have a higher gate in the front of the wagon. Or an extra bar or two across the front of the wagon, above the front gate, which allows you to get more bales on the wagon without them trying to tumble back off. Pan kickers aren't as simple, though. Not much to go wrong with a belt thrower.
I believe the newer NH balers are better at making a nice bale than the older offerings were. One of my gripes over the years with NH balers were their tendency to make a "banana" shaped bale if pushed. Deere seemed to make a nice, neat "brick" in spite of varying feed rates. We sell hay/straw not only private, but to dealers as well. We get a lot of comments on how neat and uniform our bales are. A good operater makes a difference, too.
Years ago our family was good friends with a farm family from church. They had a big family, with lots of boys. One hot summer evening when the parents when to town shopping, the boys decided to try a new twist for a diving board. They backed their JD 336 with a 30 kicker up to the pond bank, and turned on the PTO. Leaving the tractor running about half throttle, they took turns standing on the edge of the kicker pan while a sibling tripped the manual trip lever. It was GREAT fun, they could even get a somersault or two in while airborn!!
Those boys were the limit!!
Did they use bale kickers (ejectors, throwers) in your area?
