When you sharpen the knifes (stationary and the moving one on plunger ) shim knifes to just clearing each other, most important part ,is to turn the baler by hand first ,to test clearance first , so the knifes are ok , I've known who just turn on the PTO , without testing the by pass by hand first and damaging the knifes, when they hit each other, and always watch the baler timing ,when removing parts, if the baler get out of timing ,the needles will hit the plunger and break, you'll see a lot of welded needles, because of this reason, I liked working on NH baler over the years,.my father used to rebuild his knotters in the winter, he used to rebuild them for other farmers also also, we used to buy several old balers and combined them to make operating ones., I learned to tear down equipment and fix.it this way.
The New Holland 68 was one of the finest pieces of hay equipment. It marked the beginning of a completely new design in small square balers which still exists in many if not all NH small bale balers to this day It's a win for you.
Yep, I know, I left it in transport mode just for testing (I couldn't fit through a spot, so I left it). When I just baled with it, I used the bale position and it worked great. Video on that soon. Thanks for the comment!
Tightening your bale chamber will eliminate the banana bale issue, we have a 68 that we run about 3k-4K bales through a year without any issues, Best baler I have ever owned
Thanks for the tip! I also found out that I should always use new twine, not the old stuff that was in it :) Will have a video up soon of everything I learned my first time baling.
The banana bales will be gone as soon as you replace your hay dog springs with new ones. There is an often over looked and ignored part under the hay dogs. They are the hay dog stops and they serve two purposes: first, they let the hay dogs protrude just enough into the bale chamber so they dont hit the plunger during the backstroke and two, it avoids metal on metal contact when the hay dog hits the baler. On this old balers, those hay dog stops were made originally from tire carcass but after a while, NH switched to some weird acetate plastic.
I bought a 268 New Holland for $75 and completely rebuilt it with all new bearings, etc. then paint all the parts separately (better than new) and also added a 72 bale thrower which I also rebuilt therefore I can appreciate the work to restore a baler. You can find cheap throwers or a bale chute at auctions. I purchased two throwers from a guy that would take them off the balers and then would sell the balers to the Amish.
Good work so far. What you may find when you start baling properly is that as soon as you push on a bit the bent bales will come back. It took me ages to find out on our 68 that there is a spring inside the square box that the rakers clamp to. Changing that transformed the speed we could bale at. Also check the rollers on the raker arm as it isn't good if they jump the track
Them old balers are tough as nails. But if it were me I think I would have spent a bit more for one in better shape. I think you took what could have been a parts baler, and made it work. So my hat is off to you, hope it works for years to come.
I agree, it took a lot of work and probably would have been worth buying a newer one, but there weren't a lot of options that were near me. It works and now I have the luxury of knowing it in and out :)
A torch is handy . Heat those bolts and they usually come out. I had a 68, it’s a parts baler now. Never could get anything but banana bales out of it. An old timer told me they came from the factory making bananas.
Thanks for the advice, I did replace the springs on the top hay dogs but I am still running without a hay dog on the bottom, so that could be an issue, it is working pretty good right now. Not much curl and seems to depend on windrow and chamber pressure most. I found the horses don't care what shape the bales are :) I am also making erosion bales for a lot of the construction work I am doing. I will try to line up another hay dog and report back.
@@driftlessinwi yeah for sure if you replace the bottom dog and spring the Bales will straighten right out about perfect and another thing you can try to watch is when you tighten down your hand cranks for your bale tension try to keep them as even as possible a lot of times I will pull a bail out of the chamber and actually take a tape measure and measure between the top and bottom bar to make sure I'm applying even pressure side to side
On those old nuts and bolts, Liquid Wrench is your friend. I usually soak them for a week, giving them a spray twice a day, then heat with a torch, and spray while hot. the only ones that this doesn't work on, should be replaced anyway as they are too far gone to reuse. Those knife bolts though, if you can't get to the threaded side with LW, then not sure what I would do to get them out other than torching them with oxy-acetelyne.
Yes, I tried that too. They are still stuck. Like you said, it is hard to get to the threads with the LW. I feel like about the only thing I can do is weld large nuts on the top of the knife bolts and use a breaker bar. Those allen nuts are extremely hard to get a lot of leverage without rounding out them out. For now it is cutting just fine, but I know I will eventually have to replace the blade so it is a matter of time :) Thanks for the comment!
@@driftlessinwi Thats what I am scouring the internet for now, how to get those allen screws out (I have a m-65). I sprayed WD-40 for several days, heated with a torch and used my impact tool at max pressure - nothing.
They needed to make a more constant feed and they would of been a great baker ours was a banana baler from the day it was new !!! It's there hit and miss feed as my dad described it
you should really put the baler in the operation position before you start your pto because rn you're just asking for a blown u joint on that pto shaft
The feeder fingers might need a bit of adjustment, and you need to keep the pickup full. Otherwise it doesn't push enough grass across to the outer side of the chamber. ( and you get banana bales)
@@driftlessinwi Hello, I got an old second hand 68 that was seating in a shed for 15 years. I also discovered that it doesn't like being fed with too little hay or straw. I plan on tearing it down this winter for a good maintenance, and I know your video will help me a lot. I need also to replace the friction disks, juste hope I will find spare parts where I live. Thanks.
@@driftlessinwi My baler has bolts on the inside of the baler could have been modified at on stage not sure but will check the the manual. Just used a ring spanner and some spray. Maybe you need to heat up the hex head bolts and then rattle them off and get some new bolts and grease them before installing new bolts.
you should have soaked your wood slides in drain oil, before putting them on, and move your baler swing arm hitch over to the baling position, before baling, so the drive shaft is in a straight line, or you stress the u-joints to much
Yes, it held up to rough terrain and a few hundred bales. But you are right, they aren't known for their build quality :) The baler will certainly outlast it
@@driftlessinwi I'm getting a crash course in baler repair. tomorrow I'm working on pulling the plunger out of a New Holland D1000 medium square baler (2'x3'x6' bales). Large knife came loose from chamber and caused damage(crash) to plunger that will require some surgery and new small knives on plunger. Some steel fins broke off in chamber near plunger. Need to fab new pieces and weld up inside the bale chamber. Fun fun.
Thanks for the tip...getting into the bale chamber to do the backs of the bolts is nearly impossible though because there is really no good way to access. I took your advice today and torched the bolts holding the plunger knife (on my spare plunger) and it still didn't work. A word of advice to anyone who can get their blade off the plunger, put anti-seize on the bolts before reinstalling! :) Thanks again for the comment!
@@driftlessinwi Try using an impact driver to get those bolts out, it's like a bit holder that you hit with a big lump hammer. The two direction shock force should be enough to do it if the hex heads are not already rounded off.
@@driftlessinwi I got a japanese one at a yard sale, but any will do, they are heavy and pretty simple things, here is a demo th-cam.com/video/VENsuGWDzmg/w-d-xo.html
When you sharpen the knifes (stationary and the moving one on plunger ) shim knifes to just clearing each other, most important part ,is to turn the baler by hand first ,to test clearance first , so the knifes are ok , I've known who just turn on the PTO , without testing the by pass by hand first and damaging the knifes, when they hit each other, and always watch the baler timing ,when removing parts, if the baler get out of timing ,the needles will hit the plunger and break, you'll see a lot of welded needles, because of this reason, I liked working on NH baler over the years,.my father used to rebuild his knotters in the winter, he used to rebuild them for other farmers also also, we used to buy several old balers and combined them to make operating ones., I learned to tear down equipment and fix.it this way.
Great tips, thank you!
The New Holland 68 was one of the finest pieces of hay equipment. It marked the beginning of a completely new design in small square balers which still exists in many if not all NH small bale balers to this day It's a win for you.
Thanks for the slow MO views with good explanations
You need to swing your baler over by pulling the pin under the pto shaft or else you will ruin the knuckles on the pto
Yep, I know, I left it in transport mode just for testing (I couldn't fit through a spot, so I left it). When I just baled with it, I used the bale position and it worked great. Video on that soon. Thanks for the comment!
I think you did an outstanding job working and learning the mechanics inside and out.
It’s not on fire, so that’s good. 😉
Excellent helpful video. Thanks for showing all problems. Patience and not giving up are positive lessons.
On stuck bolts, heat is your friend. If no oxy/act torch, use a propane torch. Just takes longer. Almost always works!!
Tightening your bale chamber will eliminate the banana bale issue, we have a 68 that we run about 3k-4K bales through a year without any issues, Best baler I have ever owned
Thanks for the tip! I also found out that I should always use new twine, not the old stuff that was in it :) Will have a video up soon of everything I learned my first time baling.
The banana bales will be gone as soon as you replace your hay dog springs with new ones. There is an often over looked and ignored part under the hay dogs. They are the hay dog stops and they serve two purposes: first, they let the hay dogs protrude just enough into the bale chamber so they dont hit the plunger during the backstroke and two, it avoids metal on metal contact when the hay dog hits the baler. On this old balers, those hay dog stops were made originally from tire carcass but after a while, NH switched to some weird acetate plastic.
Thanks for the info!
Good work. I did the exact same thing with a inter 440. The same with not taking the wedges out before removing!
I bought a 268 New Holland for $75 and completely rebuilt it with all new bearings, etc. then paint all the parts separately (better than new) and also added a 72 bale thrower which I also rebuilt therefore I can appreciate the work to restore a baler. You can find cheap throwers or a bale chute at auctions. I purchased two throwers from a guy that would take them off the balers and then would sell the balers to the Amish.
Good job! Don't give up!
Good work so far. What you may find when you start baling properly is that as soon as you push on a bit the bent bales will come back. It took me ages to find out on our 68 that there is a spring inside the square box that the rakers clamp to. Changing that transformed the speed we could bale at. Also check the rollers on the raker arm as it isn't good if they jump the track
Thanks for the tips!
Well done! Enjoyed that useful video. My NH 366 has similar wooden slides to sort out.
Have a planer handy! :) Hopefully your bolts aren't seized up as bad
Them old balers are tough as nails.
But if it were me I think I would have spent a bit more for one in better shape.
I think you took what could have been a parts baler, and made it work.
So my hat is off to you, hope it works for years to come.
I agree, it took a lot of work and probably would have been worth buying a newer one, but there weren't a lot of options that were near me. It works and now I have the luxury of knowing it in and out :)
A torch is handy . Heat those bolts and they usually come out. I had a 68, it’s a parts baler now. Never could get anything but banana bales out of it. An old timer told me they came from the factory making bananas.
I run a model 68. If your getting bananna shaped bales i would suggest replacing the springs on the hay dogs on the top and bottom of the chamber.
Thanks for the advice, I did replace the springs on the top hay dogs but I am still running without a hay dog on the bottom, so that could be an issue, it is working pretty good right now. Not much curl and seems to depend on windrow and chamber pressure most. I found the horses don't care what shape the bales are :) I am also making erosion bales for a lot of the construction work I am doing. I will try to line up another hay dog and report back.
@@driftlessinwi yeah for sure if you replace the bottom dog and spring the Bales will straighten right out about perfect and another thing you can try to watch is when you tighten down your hand cranks for your bale tension try to keep them as even as possible a lot of times I will pull a bail out of the chamber and actually take a tape measure and measure between the top and bottom bar to make sure I'm applying even pressure side to side
Sweet, thanks for the help!
PB Blaster is pretty amazing at getting old bolts to loosen. Though work there.
I also run three sets of the long aluminum teeth on the feeder bar.
On those old nuts and bolts, Liquid Wrench is your friend. I usually soak them for a week, giving them a spray twice a day, then heat with a torch, and spray while hot. the only ones that this doesn't work on, should be replaced anyway as they are too far gone to reuse. Those knife bolts though, if you can't get to the threaded side with LW, then not sure what I would do to get them out other than torching them with oxy-acetelyne.
Yes, I tried that too. They are still stuck. Like you said, it is hard to get to the threads with the LW. I feel like about the only thing I can do is weld large nuts on the top of the knife bolts and use a breaker bar. Those allen nuts are extremely hard to get a lot of leverage without rounding out them out. For now it is cutting just fine, but I know I will eventually have to replace the blade so it is a matter of time :) Thanks for the comment!
@@driftlessinwi Thats what I am scouring the internet for now, how to get those allen screws out (I have a m-65). I sprayed WD-40 for several days, heated with a torch and used my impact tool at max pressure - nothing.
They needed to make a more constant feed and they would of been a great baker ours was a banana baler from the day it was new !!! It's there hit and miss feed as my dad described it
you should really put the baler in the operation position before you start your pto because rn you're just asking for a blown u joint on that pto shaft
Agreed, thanks!
Great video. A lot of work gets rewards or in this case, bales.
I have a 68 , I found it will make banana bales if the windrow is inconsistent, or to light
Good to know, thanks!
The feeder fingers might need a bit of adjustment, and you need to keep the pickup full.
Otherwise it doesn't push enough grass across to the outer side of the chamber. ( and you get banana bales)
Thanks! I noticed this too when baling.
@@driftlessinwi Hello, I got an old second hand 68 that was seating in a shed for 15 years. I also discovered that it doesn't like being fed with too little hay or straw. I plan on tearing it down this winter for a good maintenance, and I know your video will help me a lot. I need also to replace the friction disks, juste hope I will find spare parts where I live. Thanks.
Buy yourself a good torch and a.impact wrench, save alot of time and money in the long run.
I have a old 455 international baler they have plough bolts. It took 3hrs to remove and another 3hrs to install.
Did you drill them out? How did you get the ones in the bale chamber?
@@driftlessinwi hello
@@driftlessinwi
My baler has bolts on the inside of the baler could have been modified at on stage not sure but will check the the manual. Just used a ring spanner and some spray. Maybe you need to heat up the hex head bolts and then rattle them off and get some new bolts and grease them before installing new bolts.
I heat up any bolt i have to take off or break
This is a bit late but buy a tourch and heat the bolt head up and they will come out way easy.
you should have soaked your wood slides in drain oil, before putting them on, and move your baler swing arm hitch over to the baling position, before baling, so the drive shaft is in a straight line, or you stress the u-joints to much
need to put your baler in bale position to bale
Those hand truck tires are usually pretty weak hubs/bearings. Did you hay last year and did it hold up?
Yes, it held up to rough terrain and a few hundred bales. But you are right, they aren't known for their build quality :) The baler will certainly outlast it
@@driftlessinwi I'm getting a crash course in baler repair. tomorrow I'm working on pulling the plunger out of a New Holland D1000 medium square baler (2'x3'x6' bales). Large knife came loose from chamber and caused damage(crash) to plunger that will require some surgery and new small knives on plunger. Some steel fins broke off in chamber near plunger. Need to fab new pieces and weld up inside the bale chamber. Fun fun.
@@falfas55bgas good luck! Ratchet straps are your friend :)
Is that angle iron and c channel in the middle also.
Which middle are you referring too? The middle of the bale chamber where the bale tension is set? Not sure I understand the question...
Got to take wedges out
You need to heat 🔥 the back side of the bolts with a torch .
Thanks for the tip...getting into the bale chamber to do the backs of the bolts is nearly impossible though because there is really no good way to access. I took your advice today and torched the bolts holding the plunger knife (on my spare plunger) and it still didn't work. A word of advice to anyone who can get their blade off the plunger, put anti-seize on the bolts before reinstalling! :) Thanks again for the comment!
@@driftlessinwi Try using an impact driver to get those bolts out, it's like a bit holder that you hit with a big lump hammer. The two direction shock force should be enough to do it if the hex heads are not already rounded off.
Thanks for tip, got any brands/models you recommend?
@@driftlessinwi I got a japanese one at a yard sale, but any will do, they are heavy and pretty simple things, here is a demo th-cam.com/video/VENsuGWDzmg/w-d-xo.html
Pasar el video en español
Those wedges r more important than the teeth u will bale the teeth if u mov them too much
That burping and farting machine has that baler shaking like a leak in a hurricane.
She has held up nicely so far. Will be doing my second cut in a couple weeks. Thanks for the comment
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