Does anyone use or has seen one of these machines working? Are they any good or are they too cumbersome on the front of a telehandler in smallaer yards? Thanks Mark

I am glad someone else is looking at one of these (or similar). I need to bed yards up from a feed passage between them (as many must) and thought that one of these machines mounted crosswise would do the job well and allow us to move to big square bales rather than round. It would need to have rotors at each end to spread to both sides as some passages are blind ended. Hey presto, they are hoping to start making one next year, and it should be less of a burden on the forklift as it is closer mounted. I have been sent a CD rom with a video clip and it looks effective but it would, wouldn't it? The website is under construction I am told, I will quiz them at the Dairy event. I have three entries in the FG competition to win one, all with the strategic extra initial. Neil

Right that it I'm writing to FG! I only got one entry in as mother threw the first copy with the entry form out before I filled it in! I have seen a couple of malgar ones, one round bale one and one square bale one. Theyseem to work ok but couldn't stand a lot of stick. The thing I like anout the ST one is that it throws the straw forward so in our 7m loadall it would have a heck of a reach. The malgr one seemed to throw it over the front of the loadall if the boom wasnt well out. Will see one at the Dairy event as well. Also interested to see the diet feeder demo. Regards Mark

Mark are you on round bales or square? We have a Altec round bale spreader at the moment but considering the move to square to speed up straw carting, and get more bales under one sheet or barn. Who else makes one like the Spread Tech, someone must have jumped on the bandwagon? Neil

We use new holland D1010 bales (mini hesston) size. We moved over from sdoft centre round bales about 6 years ago. The advantages far outweigh the disadvantages. Ie you halve the number of bales for the same amount of straw and can get twice as much on a trailer. We stack everythig outside un sheeted and although by the end of winter the top layer is pretty much fit if the muck heap everything else is as dry as the day you stacked it, providing you stack it tight. One thing to do is to clear fields right behind the baler if the weather is catchy as they tend to soak it up like a sponge, unlike roud bales with net which the rain runs off. We bed everything by hand as we haven't seen a machine to suit our needs yet. A trailed blower is an option but our buildings arent ideal for one and there is the dist issue. Malgar made loader mounted spreaders for both round and square bales which consisted of a pair of hydrulicially driven diacs about 3 foot in diameter and a cradle which the bale sat on. As you tipped the machine back gravity pushed the bale onto the spinning discs. Hope this helps Mark

Like to know how you get on Neil - I've had some interesting home modified straw spreaders sent to me as well - mail me at mike@farmideas.co.uk

Got ours today. Seems like an age since we ordered it (2 weeks!) and bedding up seemed to be double the chore it was before we decided to buy one. Have only put three bales through it while the guy was there to set it up but impressed so far.