Feeding livestock over the winter is the most time-consuming task on many farms. This can be especially the case for farmers who feed large quantities of round-bale silage. If you’re a one-man or one-woman band, there’s an inconvenience in removing both net and bale wrap before feeding out bales. Realistically, it will involve getting in and out of a tractor/telehandler twice.
This laborious job has created opportunities for engineering firms to design and manufacture labour-saving feeding equipment to streamline the job. There are multiple bale-handling concepts on the market to make the job a bit easier. These range from bale unrollers to bale processors, to the simple bale shear concept featured.
The latter concept has been adopted by a number of Irish manufacturers, some of which include Tanco, Keltec Engineering and the Cashels Engineering machine featured here.
To find out more about the concept and whether it’s worth the investment, we caught up with Declan Waldron, who runs a 36-cow suckler-to-weanling enterprise near the village of Aghamore, Co Mayo. Declan, like many Irish farmers, uses all round-bale silage.
Step 2: The bale is split largely into two halves, half of which falls under the attachment, while the other half is retained in the bale cutter until released in the desired location.
Feeding upwards of 400 silage bales annually, Declan runs his own plant-hire business on a full-time capacity outside of the farm. In 2018, Declan decided to move to the concept. He explained: “I looked at all brands on the market. Two things drew me to the Cashels machine – the apparent strength of the four plastic retaining hooks and the proximity to where the machines are manufactured.”
Step 3: Once the bale has been opened and split, the operator can decide where he/she wants to release the hooks and drop the net/plastic.
Previously feeding bales with a spike on a front-end loader, Declan opted to purchase the Cashels plastic-retaining bale shear in 2018, just before winter feeding kicked off. Now entering its third season, Declan has been more than happy with its performance, noting that it hasn’t given an ounce of trouble. The reason he moved to the concept was predominately to save time feeding.
The machine features a patented curved frame and film catcher combination to ensure the net/film is retained.
“As I’m working full-time off-farm, I need to do all work on the farm as efficiently as I can. Before I bought the Cashels machine, I use to spend around an hour in the evenings feeding 10 bales by myself. However, with the bale cutter and film catcher, I can feed 10 bales in around 15 to 20 minutes. There are three big advantages here; obviously, the first is the huge time-saving, the fact I don’t have to get out of the tractor at all and there’s also the added benefit that you’re staying clean. You’re not handling the silage”, Declan explained.
How does the system work?
From watching the implement in action, there is a knack to where you grab the bale to successfully retain the net and plastic. Declan said: “There is a sweet spot to grab the bale, but it’s very simple. If you opened 10 bales you’d soon have it off to a ‘tee’.”
The bale is picked up in the storage area using the stone-fork tines mounted on the bottom of the main frame. Once held in the desired position, the bale is cut by dropping the bale cutter over the bale as can be seen in picture one. As the cutting head begins to close, the film gripper (the four hooks) is engaged.
The hydraulics use just two hoses.
This splits the bale largely into two halves, half of which falls under the attachment, while the other half is retained in the bale cutter until released in the desired location. Once the bale has been opened and split, the operator can decide where he/she wants to release the hooks and drop the net/plastic. Cashels Engineering has cut-out two small windows on the main frame to help the user to view the bale film when positioning the bale cutter over the bale.
Known by the Mayo firm as the bale cutter and film catcher, Cashels Engineering has patented its design. The firm notes that its machine is suitable for tractors, skid-steer loaders and farm loaders. It is designed to shear through bales with a significant 10t of pressure. Interestingly, Cashels says that it rigorously tested the machine in Scandinavia for two seasons prior to its launch, predominantly to perfect the design on frozen bales, some of which are up to 80% frozen.
The machine is available in a 4ft or 5ft model, while various linkage options available.
The machine features a patented curved frame and film catcher combination to ensure the net/film is retained. It’s equipped with a double-edged hardox blade. Declan noted that, occasionally, he gives it a rub with a file to maintain the sharp cutting edge.
As can be seen from the pictures, it’s fitted with two large hydraulic cylinders mounted on top of the cutting section. The hydraulics use just two hoses. The machine comes with five tines (CAT 2). The option to add two extra tines is available, aimed at giving the unit the flexibility of transporting two bales, if required. The machine is available in a 4ft or 5ft model, while various linkage options are available.
The Cashels bale-cutter and film catcher (4ft) as featured is priced at €3,000 plus VAT.
Model: 4ft.Length: 1,020mm (40in). Width: 1,810mm (71in). Height: 1,050mm (41in). Height closed: 1,575mm (62in). Weight (w/o bracket): 400kg.Price: €3,000 plus VAT.
Feeding livestock over the winter is the most time-consuming task on many farms. This can be especially the case for farmers who feed large quantities of round-bale silage. If you’re a one-man or one-woman band, there’s an inconvenience in removing both net and bale wrap before feeding out bales. Realistically, it will involve getting in and out of a tractor/telehandler twice.
This laborious job has created opportunities for engineering firms to design and manufacture labour-saving feeding equipment to streamline the job. There are multiple bale-handling concepts on the market to make the job a bit easier. These range from bale unrollers to bale processors, to the simple bale shear concept featured.
The latter concept has been adopted by a number of Irish manufacturers, some of which include Tanco, Keltec Engineering and the Cashels Engineering machine featured here.
To find out more about the concept and whether it’s worth the investment, we caught up with Declan Waldron, who runs a 36-cow suckler-to-weanling enterprise near the village of Aghamore, Co Mayo. Declan, like many Irish farmers, uses all round-bale silage.
Step 2: The bale is split largely into two halves, half of which falls under the attachment, while the other half is retained in the bale cutter until released in the desired location.
Feeding upwards of 400 silage bales annually, Declan runs his own plant-hire business on a full-time capacity outside of the farm. In 2018, Declan decided to move to the concept. He explained: “I looked at all brands on the market. Two things drew me to the Cashels machine – the apparent strength of the four plastic retaining hooks and the proximity to where the machines are manufactured.”
Step 3: Once the bale has been opened and split, the operator can decide where he/she wants to release the hooks and drop the net/plastic.
Previously feeding bales with a spike on a front-end loader, Declan opted to purchase the Cashels plastic-retaining bale shear in 2018, just before winter feeding kicked off. Now entering its third season, Declan has been more than happy with its performance, noting that it hasn’t given an ounce of trouble. The reason he moved to the concept was predominately to save time feeding.
The machine features a patented curved frame and film catcher combination to ensure the net/film is retained.
“As I’m working full-time off-farm, I need to do all work on the farm as efficiently as I can. Before I bought the Cashels machine, I use to spend around an hour in the evenings feeding 10 bales by myself. However, with the bale cutter and film catcher, I can feed 10 bales in around 15 to 20 minutes. There are three big advantages here; obviously, the first is the huge time-saving, the fact I don’t have to get out of the tractor at all and there’s also the added benefit that you’re staying clean. You’re not handling the silage”, Declan explained.
How does the system work?
From watching the implement in action, there is a knack to where you grab the bale to successfully retain the net and plastic. Declan said: “There is a sweet spot to grab the bale, but it’s very simple. If you opened 10 bales you’d soon have it off to a ‘tee’.”
The bale is picked up in the storage area using the stone-fork tines mounted on the bottom of the main frame. Once held in the desired position, the bale is cut by dropping the bale cutter over the bale as can be seen in picture one. As the cutting head begins to close, the film gripper (the four hooks) is engaged.
The hydraulics use just two hoses.
This splits the bale largely into two halves, half of which falls under the attachment, while the other half is retained in the bale cutter until released in the desired location. Once the bale has been opened and split, the operator can decide where he/she wants to release the hooks and drop the net/plastic. Cashels Engineering has cut-out two small windows on the main frame to help the user to view the bale film when positioning the bale cutter over the bale.
Known by the Mayo firm as the bale cutter and film catcher, Cashels Engineering has patented its design. The firm notes that its machine is suitable for tractors, skid-steer loaders and farm loaders. It is designed to shear through bales with a significant 10t of pressure. Interestingly, Cashels says that it rigorously tested the machine in Scandinavia for two seasons prior to its launch, predominantly to perfect the design on frozen bales, some of which are up to 80% frozen.
The machine is available in a 4ft or 5ft model, while various linkage options available.
The machine features a patented curved frame and film catcher combination to ensure the net/film is retained. It’s equipped with a double-edged hardox blade. Declan noted that, occasionally, he gives it a rub with a file to maintain the sharp cutting edge.
As can be seen from the pictures, it’s fitted with two large hydraulic cylinders mounted on top of the cutting section. The hydraulics use just two hoses. The machine comes with five tines (CAT 2). The option to add two extra tines is available, aimed at giving the unit the flexibility of transporting two bales, if required. The machine is available in a 4ft or 5ft model, while various linkage options are available.
The Cashels bale-cutter and film catcher (4ft) as featured is priced at €3,000 plus VAT.
Model: 4ft.Length: 1,020mm (40in). Width: 1,810mm (71in). Height: 1,050mm (41in). Height closed: 1,575mm (62in). Weight (w/o bracket): 400kg.Price: €3,000 plus VAT. 
This is a subscriber-only article
SHARING OPTIONS: