F5600 Plus

F5600 Plus High Performance Film Binding Baler

Over the last decade the McHale range of balers have been operating in over 5 continents in some of the world’s most difficult conditions. McHale balers have developed a reputation for providing high output, excellent reliability, operator comfort and top resale value.

The F5000 range of balers brings baling to a new level with features like progressive greasing and oiling, our drop floor unblocking system which combined with our high specification components, ensures long life, reliability and a machine that is rugged enough to handle the toughest of crops and ground conditions.

The McHale F5600 PLUS is fitted with a servo operated load sensing control valve, which makes the baling process fully automatic. The machine is also equipped with a 25 knife chopping unit and an in chamber film bale binding system.

The F5600 Plus fully automatic round baler comes standard with all the high specification features of the F5600 round baler but also benefits from;

A High Performance Film Binding System
An Expert Plus Control Console with a Large Graphic Display
Automatic Tailgate Operation
Knife Pressure Display
Knife Position Sensor
Load Sensing Valve

Film Binding

The concept of putting film on the barrel of the bale is known as “Film binding technology.” The plastic which is applied to the barrel of the bale forms an additional layer of wrap across the largest surface of the bale, whilst also binding the bale together.

The film which is applied to the barrel of the bale can be stretched to approximately 20%, a higher ratio than what can be achieved with net wrap. This additional layer of film on the barrel of the bale provides higher quality silage as the film can be stretched more than net. This in turn, expels more air, resulting in better silage quality.

By using film to bind the bale together, recycling is made easier as the farmer is only left with one form of waste to recycle and can avoid the unpleasant and time consuming job of separating net from the plastic.

Advantages of Film Binding

Chamber Film Acts As A Wrapping Layer
The plastic which is added to the barrel of the bale to keep the bale together also forms part of the wrapping process. This adds value by placing more plastic on the largest surface of the bale.

Chamber Film Results In Better Shaped Bales
When plastic is applied to the barrel of the bale it can be stretched to approximately 20%. The stretch ratio is higher than what can be achieved with net wrap or twine and as a result the material is kept tighter, which ultimately results in better bale shape.

Chamber Film Delivers Higher Quality Silage
As the plastic is being stretched during application to the barrel of the bale, it expels more air than net wrap does and as a consequence, results in better silage quality.

Chamber Film Makes Recycling Easier
As plastic is used to both bind the bale in the bale chamber and to wrap the bale, on feed out the farmer will be left with one form of waste. This reduces the time needed to feed the bale and avoids the unpleasant and time consuming job of separating the twine or net wrap from the plastic before the plastic is recycled.

Built To Last

Features

Specifications

Videos

Gallery

Patented Film Binding

In the development of the Fusion 3 Plus, McHale realised that changes in temperature and sun light could affect the chamber wrapping film; as the day got hotter or cooler the film was either being overstretched or under stretched, and this in turn would cause reliability problems and result in inefficient film use.

Pick-Up

Over the last decade, McHale has designed and developed various types of pick-ups. After extensive testing, McHale decided it will offer customers the choice of 2 pick-up options depending on their working conditions:

Heavy-Duty Pick-Up

The specially designed McHale pick-up is positioned close to the rotor to improve delivery of the crop through the rotor to the bale chamber. Large diameter lateral feed augers help direct crop to the bale chamber ensuring a consistent and even crop flow for producing high density bales.

Adaptive Intake

Over the course of a baling season, machines have to work with different volumes of crop. McHale have designed an adaptive intake which allows the intake area to automatically adjust for light and heavy crops to facilitate a smooth crop flow into the chamber.

Split Drive GearBox

A 540rpm Split Drive Gearbox is fitted to all machines in the McHale Fixed Chamber Range as standard. The gearbox design ensures that power is evenly distributed to both sides of the mac

Optimal Power Distribution

The rollers in the bale chamber are driven from the left-hand side of the machine and the pick-up and chopper unit are driven from the right-hand side of the machine. This system ensures direct, short transfer paths, leading to optimal power distribution.

1000rpm Gearbox (Optional)

In order to optimise machine performance, a 1000rpm gearbox is available as an optional upgrade on all machines in the McHale fixed chamber baler range. We recommend you speak with your local dealer or distributor regarding which gearbox is best suited to your requirements, based on your working conditions.

Rotor

The star shaped, twin finger feed rotor ensures a high-capacity flow of crop into the bale chamber.

F5500 Rotor Types

15 Knife Chopper Rotor (Standard)

Rotor Formation	Spiral
Flight Thickness	Inner: 8mm Outer: 12mm
Number of Knives	15
Selectable Knives	Optional

25 Knife Chopper Rotor (Optional)

Rotor Formation	Spiral
Flight Thickness	Inner: 6mm Outer: 12mm
Number of Knives	25
Selectable Knives	Optional

Chopper Unit

To ensure a consistent and even chop quality, two chopping options have been developed for the McHale fixed chamber machines.

Chopper Units

15 Knife Chopper Unit (Standard)

The 15 knife chopper unit is the standard chopper unit on the McHale F5500. A bank of 15 knives provides a chop length of approximately 65mm.
Flight Thickness	Inner: 8mm Outer: 12mm
Number of Knives	15
Selectable Knives	Optional

25 Knife Chopper Unit (Optional)

The 25 knife chopper unit is available as an option on the McHale F5500. A bank of 25 knives provides a chop length of approximately 46mm.
Flight Thickness	Inner: 6mm Outer: 12mm
Number of Knives	25
Selectable Knives	Optional

Selectable Knife System

All McHale F5600 machines have the option to be fitted with a selectable knife system. Various knife configurations can be chosen depending on the knife bank specification.

15 Knife Bank Options

0, 7, 8, 15 Knifes

25 Knife Bank Options

0, 12, 13, 25 Knifes

BENEFITS OF SELECTABLE KNIVES

ADJUSTABLE CHOP LENGTH

With selectable knives, the operator can vary the chop length by engaging or disengaging either knife bank. If fine chopping is required, the operator can choose to engage both knife banks. Should a longer chop length be required, the operator can disengage one bank of knives from the comfort and safety of the tractor cab.

REDUCED SHARPENING INTERVALS

When using both knife banks separately, if the first bank of knives become blunt, the operator can lower the first knife bank and raise the second bank. This reduces the downtime and allows the operator to continue working. By having consistently sharp knives, fuel consumption is reduced and the machine always delivers optimum chop.

OPERATOR COMFORT & SAFETY

A new sharp set of knives can be engaged, without the operator having to physically replace knives, ensuring a well chopped crop and continued high output. Should different chop lengths be required the operator can make the adjustments by engaging or disengaging the knife bank without having to leave the tractor cab.

Drop Floor Unblocking

For over a decade, all machines in the fixed chamber baler range are fitted with the McHale Drop Floor Unblocking System, a feature which operators have come to love for it’s simplicity of use and effective unblocking cycle.

1 – Drop the Floor

Should a blockage occur, the sound of the slip clutch alerts the operator, who can hydraulically lower the floor from the tractor cab. When operating the drop floor cycle, the knives and the drop floor drop together during the unblocking process, giving even more clearance to allow the blockage to be fed through.

2 – Re-engage the PTO

This widens the feed channel at both the front and rear of the drop floor where the blockage is more likely to occur. By lowering the front and rear of the drop floor, the blockage can be fed through and effectively cleared when the PTO is re-engaged.

3 – Reset the Floor

The floor can then be reset to its original position and baling can resume. On the F5500,F5600 and F5600 Plus the drop floor is equipped with a drop floor sensor to ensure the chop quality is consistent by indicating to the operator via the control box if the drop floor is open and the knives are down.

Bale Chamber

The bale chamber on the McHale F5600 PLUS round baler produces a 1.23 X 1.25 metre round bale. The bale chamber on the F5600 round baler is comprised of 18 heavy duty rollers.

Heavy Duty Chains

High quality heavy-duty chains ensure reliable operation all around the machine. The main drive chain coming off the gearbox is a high tensile, heavy duty 100H endless chain for maximum strength. All other chains on the drive side of the bale chamber are inch and a quarter (20B). The rotor chain is inch duplex (16 B2) and all pick-up chains are three quarter inch (ASA 60H).

Chamber Bearings

Single sprocket rollers on the chamber drive side are equipped with 50 mm shafts and bearings. Rollers under the most load are fitted with double row bearings. All rollers fitted with double sprockets are equipped with 55 mm shafts and double row 55 mm bearings. The non drive side of the bale chamber is also fitted with heavy duty 50 mm bearings.

Bale Density Adjustment

On the F5400 and F5500 balers the chamber pre charge pressure can be easily adjusted on the density control valve on the machine platform. By adjusting the handle in a clockwise direction density can be increased, while rotating the handle in the opposite direction reduces density.

Roller Design & Sealing

Bale chamber rollers are fitted with 50 mm bearings on the drive and non-drive side. Rollers fitted with double sprockets are equipped with 55 mm shafts and double row bearings. All roller ends are fitted with high performance self-cleaning seals that have a unique reverse-thread sealing system that prevents crop from getting into the bearings. The seals prevent the grease around the bearings from becoming contaminated by crop resulting in increased reliability.

Oiling & Greasing

The McHale fixed chamber range of balers are all fitted with a continuous oiling system. Once the PTO is engaged, the continuous oiling system constantly lubricates the chains to ensure a long lifetime. A lube alarm sounds after 300 bales to inform the operator to refill the oil tank.

Continuous Oiling System

The continuous oiling system on the machine is driven off the gearbox and delivers oil to the following chains:

Chamber Drive Side Chains
Rotor Drive Chain
Pick-Up – Drive Chains
Pick-Up – Cam Track
Pick-Up – Drive Gears

Greasing

All machines come fitted with a number of manual greasing points which are easily accessible throughout the baler either individually or through a centralised greasing block. The following bearings highlighted below are greased:

Bale Chamber – Drive Side
Bale Chamber – Non-Drive Side
Rotor Bearings – Drive Side
Rotor Bearings – Non-Drive Side.

Automatic Greasing

With the exception of the McHale F5400, all machines in the McHale Fixed Chamber Baler Range are fitted with automatic greasing as standard. A pressurised system delivers a measured amount of grease every time a bale is ejected from the bale chamber. Automatic greasing saves time as it reduces the amount of manual greasing to be done by the operator. A lube alarm sounds after 300 bales to inform the operator to refill the grease cartridge.

Automatic Tailgate Operation

Once the bale is netted in the chamber of the McHale F5600 PLUS Film Binding Baler, the tailgate of the baler automatically opens, allowing the high-density round bale to be ejected.

Bale Kicker Sensor

The McHale F5600 PLUS Film Binding Baler has a sensor on the bale kicker, which ensures that the bale has been ejected from the chamber before the tailgate closes.

Expert Plus Control Console

The F5600 PLUS is controlled with an Expert Plus Control Box, which features a large graphic display; this allows the operator to monitor the baling process graphically from the control console.

Net Wrap for Baling Hay & Straw

The McHale F5600 PLUS can revert back to the traditional method of using net wrap and the switch over process is very simple. If the operator is doing hay or straw the switch back to net wrap is simple and user friendly.

Film/ Net Loading & Storage

Film/ Net loading has been optimised on the F5600 PLUS baler by the simple yet very effective rock and roll net loading system.

The operator simply releases the straps on the spare roll of Film/ Net on the machine platform and moves the Film/ Net roll from its storage position over the lip in the platform and rolls it into the net box. Storage for an extra roll of net is provided on the baler platform.

Options

McHale machines work in different conditions around the world. To optimise machine performance, we offer a number of options in the McHale fixed chamber range. We recommend you speak with your local dealer/distributor as regards the best configuration to meet your requirements

Options F5600 Plus

Camless Pick-Up	Optional
Selectable Knives	0,12,13,25 -Optional
1000rpm Gearbox	Optional
Crop Roller	Optional
Hydraulic Brakes	Optional
Tyre Options	520/ 55-R 22.5 560/ 45-R 22.5

Camless Pick-Up

The 2.1m camless pick-up runs smoothly, particularly in short crop, and requires less maintenance due to a reduced number of rotating parts. All camless pick-ups in the McHale fixed chamber baler range are fitted with six tine bars and a double crop roller to provide excellent ground cleaning and fast delivery of crop to the rotor.

Rotor / Chopper Unit

The 25 knife rotor and chopper unit is available as an option on the McHale F5500,F5600 and F5600 Plus fixed chamber machines and delivers a chop length of approximately 46mm.

Selectable Knives

A selectable knife system consists of two knife banks which allow for various knife configurations to be chosen depending on the knife bank specification. If a machine is equipped with 25 knives, then a bank of 12 and a bank of 13 knives are available to be chosen from. Where a machine is equipped with a 15 knife chopping unit, then a bank of 7 and a bank of 8 knives are available to be selected. If no chopping is required then the operator can select for no knives to be engaged. On the McHale F5600 PLUS, knife selection can be decided from the tractor cab.

1000rpm Gearbox

McHale machines work in different conditions around the world so in order to optimise machine performance, a 1000rpm gearbox is available as an optional upgrade on all machines in the McHale baler range.

Crop Roller

A small diameter high throughput crop roller is available as an optional extra. This crop roller helps to level out uneven swaths and has the ability to increase baler throughput. A Double Crop Roller is also available should it be required.

Brakes

All balers in the McHale F5 fixed chamber baler range can be equipped with brakes as an optional extra. McHale offer the choice of hydraulic or air brakes.

Tyre Options

McHale offer a number of tyre upgrades depending on customer preferences and ground conditions.