we found we could back over standard pallets then tie the bale off to something that was solid than drive away dropping the bale onto the pallets
the new trucks tail gates suck, older trucks have real tailgates …
I’ve been buying the 3xx3x8 squares because of the savings. I’m 67 and alone on the farm, my hay is stored in an empty stall. I have them load it onto my trailer, drive the trailer through the barn and pop the strings. I lay a tarp out, lay the flakes down onto the tarp and drag them into the stall. Work out for me for sure, as those things go 900 pounds or better, but the savings is worth it all.
I got a big pasture block today… I simply pushed it with the loader of my tractor into my barn aisle. Then I cut the strings and feed it as needed… A lot less work than stacking up all these small bales…
We were buying the large squares. This is what we did…my husband would put a spear through the middle of the bale then tape nylon tie downs with the ratchet on the end of the spear, then pull spear out of the bale. Then he would just wrap the tie downs around the halves of the bale and rachet them tight. One bale turned into two. Use the bale spear on the tractor to take them out to the bale feeders.
Great idea! However, I’m pretty sure the OP has no spear, forks, or grapple for her tractor and even if she did it sounds like it’s a tight squeeze to get into the hay storage area.
Unfortunately, a physical workout (hey, it’s like a free gym membership!) is the only way to handle a big square. A wheelbarrow, flat cart, or a tarp to tip flakes into from her truck bed is likely as easy as it gets.
One more tip though - if you have or can borrow a 3 prong long handled hay fork, those are the absolute best for messing around with bits of large bales.
I use to flip a large flake onto a wheel barrow and ,moved hay that way.
