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Hay
Jul 19, 2016 16:32:14 GMT -6
genebo likes this
Post by wvdexters on Jul 19, 2016 16:32:14 GMT -6
Hay is in!
Well, we are set for a while. Enough to see us through the winter and plenty extra with it getting so dry.
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Hay
Jul 20, 2016 7:33:07 GMT -6
Post by dexterfarm on Jul 20, 2016 7:33:07 GMT -6
I have just one more small field to do. I was going to cut today but it rained 3" yesterday so the ground is to wet. Will try for tomorrow. It is a small filed but a heavy producer. 4+ big bails per acre. After such a dry June it has been a wet July.
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Hay
Jul 20, 2016 16:07:08 GMT -6
Post by genebo on Jul 20, 2016 16:07:08 GMT -6
I spent the day cutting hay and repairing the sickle mower. Got it done, though.
The grass had good growth and responded well to the timing of the first cutting. Very few weeds and what few there are were not mature, yet. Cutting them before seed heads form is good.
What's bad is that neighborhood kids with 4 wheelers and dirt bikes have been using the hay field for a raceway. The grass is packed down so I'm only cutting about 1/2 of it. It's also so packed that it broke the pittman arm on the mower. Expensive! And time consuming.
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Hay
Jul 22, 2016 9:30:52 GMT -6
Post by dexterfarm on Jul 22, 2016 9:30:52 GMT -6
Gene does that one have the wooden stick? When I used a sickle mower my belt was probably not as tight as it should have been but I left it that way because when it got clogged it would just slip the belt instead of breaking stuff.
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Hay
Jul 25, 2016 9:00:40 GMT -6
Post by dexterfarm on Jul 25, 2016 9:00:40 GMT -6
Hay is all done for another year Still have to stack the last of it. Tractor is also done just in time for hay season to be over. It runs better than it ever has since I have owned it. The real test will be next hay season when I really start pushing it. Big list of repair items before next years hay season. Including replacing every hydrolic hose on the baler that has not already been done. Popped 2 of them this year. Now on to the list of everything else on the farm that I have been putting off. Next up The main battery went out in my Prius a couple of days ago.
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Hay
Jul 25, 2016 20:08:42 GMT -6
Post by genebo on Jul 25, 2016 20:08:42 GMT -6
My sickle bar mower is a John Deere, with belt drive and wooden pittman arm. I keep the belt tight enough to keep the teeth from jamming on heavy grass. That plus the fact that the pittman arm is 3 or 4 years old, contributed to the arm shattering when I hit a big, dried clump of grass, dirt and roots. Kids had been riding 4-wheelers in the field and doing do-nuts. They uprooted the clumps and I hit one.
I'm glad you got your tractor working. Doesn't it feel good to have something that works so well you don't have to worry about it or baby it?
Sad to hear about the battery in your car. That is expensive, isn't it?
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Hay
Jul 26, 2016 8:11:06 GMT -6
Post by dexterfarm on Jul 26, 2016 8:11:06 GMT -6
Its a 1965 no such thing as not worrying about something breaking but at least I know the engine is sound.
ya the dealer wants $3300 for the battery. I am going to try and macgyver it now that the tractor is out of the garage so I have some room to work. I also need to find time to ad inside gates to my stock trailer. It currently has 2 large compartments. I am going to make it so it has 4 5'x7' stalls. I need that done before the MO show. Taking 6 animals down and need individual stalls for the bulls.
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Hay
Jul 26, 2016 8:47:59 GMT -6
Post by genebo on Jul 26, 2016 8:47:59 GMT -6
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Hay
Jul 26, 2016 8:59:44 GMT -6
Post by dexterfarm on Jul 26, 2016 8:59:44 GMT -6
yes my plan is to take the battery apart and see how many cells are week or bad. If not to many I will try replacing the cells with used ones. The other option I can get one that it has already been done to for 1300. Yes it is used but they do give a 3 year unlimited mileage warranty on it.
Yes its a lot of money and I hate to pay it but have to look at it like this. that battery lasted me 220,000 miles and I payed half the price for gas as everyone else did during that time.
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Hay
Aug 9, 2016 21:36:09 GMT -6
Post by wvdexters on Aug 9, 2016 21:36:09 GMT -6
Hope everyone is having a good hay season, and maybe even a 2nd cutting in some areas. I know this drought is really causing a great deal of concern for a lot of people.
We've been lucky and had some rain here last wk. But just a few miles away it is so dry. I doubt if there will be too many extra cuttings except maybe down by the river.
We're still looking for another tractor. The old 8N is a real workhorse and is great on the hills but we need something that can handle these large hay bales a little easier, and is 4wd for the snow. Good used tractors are hard to find.
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Hay
Aug 10, 2016 8:48:02 GMT -6
Post by genebo on Aug 10, 2016 8:48:02 GMT -6
Your old 8N is built low to the ground and feels safer on a slope than the newer tractors. I bought a Kubota because the seat height was 4" lower than a New Holland and it has a very wide rear tread, but it still scares me on slopes.
It's hard to beat the easy shifting, foot throttle, extra power and 4 wheel drive of the new ones, though.
Start a fund for a new tractor and I'll chip in a dollar if you won't tell where you got it. I don't want to be known as an easy mark.
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Hay
Aug 10, 2016 9:33:45 GMT -6
Post by dexterfarm on Aug 10, 2016 9:33:45 GMT -6
We started getting rain here. Could do a second cutting if I wanted to but learned my lesson from the past. If I take a second cutting it will only hurt my yield next year better for me to rotate cows through the fields. It will still be more than the cows can eat but will have all that much better pasture and hay for next year. I should be set until I have to pull them off when the snow gets to deep or it gets to cold and cant keep water open.
Its hard to find older 4 wheel drive tractors for sale. none of mine are 4 wheal drive.
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Hay
Aug 10, 2016 15:37:00 GMT -6
Post by wvdexters on Aug 10, 2016 15:37:00 GMT -6
Glad to hear about the rain. That's always good news.
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Hay
Aug 31, 2016 8:29:18 GMT -6
Post by dexterfarm on Aug 31, 2016 8:29:18 GMT -6
well that didnt work. There was one cell that was clearly bad. I replaced it with a used cell but still the same end result. So I put a new factory battery in it last night. They come more than some assembly required. It is just the battery and case none of the electronics that are attached to it. You have to remove all of that and put it on the new battery pack.
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