L039 moving round bales
Looking for advice from people experienced with round bale handling and unloading setups.
I’m a caretaker on a ranch and we’re working with an existing setup. Previous caretakers have handled hay in a similar way, trying to figure the most practical method .
We’re currently unloading and moving 4x5 round bales (approx. 1,000 lbs) using:
* Kubota L3901 with pallet forks (no bale spear)
* No loaded rear tires
* No dedicated ballast (only rear implement when attached)
* TB230 mini excavator also available
Hay is picked up by me on a hay wagon with 6 bales total, stacked two high (3 rows).
My question is specifically about unloading the wagon safely and efficiently with this kind of setup. I’m trying to understand how people realistically:
* Reach or remove top bales safely
* Work from the front rows of the wagon
* Do this with a compact tractor + pallet forks without excessive instability
just trying to understand the actual technique or whether there’s something I’m missing about how this is typically done.
With this equipment, what would your process be:
* Tractor with pallet forks?
* Excavator?
* Or is a bale spear / ballast essentially required in practice for this size bale?
Since September we’ve basically been using the excavator to unload and feed because it feels more stable and controlled on our terrain. It works, but it is definitely slower, so I’m trying to figure out if that’s just a workaround or if there’s a more standard way people handle this setup.
The guy we pick hay up from also said it’s kind of crazy doing it without a grapple and that our current tractor setup might be undersized for this kind of bale handling, especially compared to proper bale equipment.