Baling with Welger AP51

Baling with my Welger AP51 behind my Zetor 6745.

This baler was sold to me in "good working order", but just needed a gear fitted. Three years later I have finally got it running well.
Credit to Phil McKee for machining the new gear so it would actually fit.
Brian Hall for fixing a bunch of broken stuff and Phil Owens for fixing a bunch of other broken stuff and continues to do so with a smile.

No thanks to the $105 +tax per hour tractor mechanic from the Welger dealer who couldn't fix anything.

I've learnt a lot about how knotters work, how important a low resistance twine path is and the joys of belt driven balers.

If you have one of these beauties I recommend :

• align the brackets that feed twine into the needles so that the twine doesn't cut into the edge of the needle.

• polish all surfaces that the twine touches from the twine box through to the bill hook. We found rust on the path from the twine box was causing too much resistance and so the knots were being tied tight on the billhook and so the twine would break rather than pulling the loose knot off the billhook.

• there should be four bolts holding the front gearbox pulley in place. Two of the bolts are difficult to access and so don't get replaced if they fall out. Two are access from the front, two from underneath. It might help to remove the gearbox to see where the bolts go.

• make sure the belt hasn't stretched. There should be plenty of clearance under the belt where the pressure roller rests on the belt. If there is no spare clearance then the belt needs to be shortened slightly. This will improve belt tension.

• against the advice of Phil, I've used a drive belt adhesive spray on the rollers to reduce the number of times the belt was coming off. We've since improved belt reliability using the other tips mentioned here, so should have less need for the belt adhesive. But it's a quick fix in a can.

• remove, unseize, lube the chains. Fix the chain joiner link. My pick up chain was seized solid, I have no idea how it actually worked. I managed to get it freed up, but it still needs replacing because the rollers no longer rotate which will cause wear on the gears.