Steel Deals - Round Balers

Thanks to strength in cattle prices a few years ago, producers bought new forage equipment. That spike from 2012 to 2016 means a lot of used round balers are showing up this spring on dealer's lots and auctions.

Dave Mowitz is the machinery and technology editor for Successful Farming magazine. He says this doesn't mean dealers are eager to get rid of them at bargain prices, but you can probably negotiate a deal.

"Because, they don't want to be left with those balers on the lot after haying season's over, and particularly during the haying season. And of course, the other general trend affecting round baler values is the fact that they are one of the more easily transported pieces of equipment in the country," says Mowitz. "I've been at auctions and seen round balers sell 6,7,8 states away. Load them up on a semi-truck and head down the road."

Not too long ago, a baler was a baler. Now, they have all kinds of bells and whistles on them which will affect the price. Know what you want and fits your desired features.

"You start searching around and you can pick up balers that have mega-wide hydraulic pickups, and mega-wide pickup headers, these are extra, extra wide. They could have monitors, bale kickers or high-floatation tires, some of them even have high moisture kits," he says. "Or, they can come with both twine as well as net wrap."

Before you buy, he recommends checking the belts, cogs, gears, and low bale production. The less bales it's spit out, the less wear-and-tear on the machine.

Read more about the spike of used round balers