Ladysmith news-budget. [volume] (Ladysmith, Rusk County, Wis.) 1907-1927, 1922-07-14
HOMEMADE
HAY STACKER
Rusk County Farmer Builds a
Homemade Hay Stacker
That Will Pile
Stumps


miles north of Ladysmith on the Gates
road is quite a genius in making
equipment to aid him with his farm
work and to help him clear land with
out the usual breaking strain
that accompanies such work when one
tries to do it without equipment
Mr. Kunce told the farm editor
about a combination hay stacker and
stump piler that he had made recent
ly and had put up two big hay stacks
of hay with it. Monday AFTERNOON we
drove out to see it. The outfit can be
built for a few dollars by any farm
er who is handy with tools. The rig
should be seen if one contemplates
building one. The main features of
this stacker are an eight-inch rock
elm pole % feet high and supported
by a frame consisting of four finch
poles which are fastened to the base
which is composed of two sills or run
ners IA feet long with three cross
sills 10 feet long. At the top of the
perpendicular pole another loft. pole
is placed horizontally with a tilt of 5
feet with pulleys on each end which
support a rope 100 feet long with
hay fork on the high end which low
ers with the rope doubled to the hay.
The whole frame is cross-braced and
braces run from the top pole to the
main standard. At the bottom of this
main standard a king pin is inserted
and an S-inch iron band is placed
around the end of it so it won't split.
The bottom end is creased so that the
pole may swing easily. The rope runs
from the top end of the horizontal
pole along the pole to the lower end
and then to the ground where it runs
through a pulley to the team. The
pole is swung around half way to the
load where the fork is set into the
hay. AS the team starts up the hay
raises and swings over onto the stack
where it is tripped The same action
will pile good-sized dry stumps into
a pile big enough to burn up if dirt
is knocked out of them before piling.
Mr.. Kunce uses a fat rack built on
couple of skids to haul his hay in
from the field.
Getting Started
Mr.. Kunce is working hard to get
his farm in shape to produce hay and
is now following the "Rusk County
Plan in his clearing operations AS
he has few acres for crops he now
devotes his time when clearing toward
getting his land in shape to NOW with
a horse-drawn mower.
On considerable acreage he has a
fine crop of grass on land that he
burned over a year ago last fall and
seeded broadcast the following
spring He S, id that he wished he
had taken time to clear and level this
hand instead of blowing up some 9th
er land.
In pulling stumps Mr.. Kpnce uses
a team and half-inch cable with two
single blocks. AS his stumps are most
ly dead and the roots are close to the
ground surface he makes short work
OF pulling them. lie pulled 2SO OF
these stumps in a surprisingly short
time. He has buzz saw and gas
engine and works at getting out and
hauling wood during the winter.
His west. forty is fairly level while
at the middle of his farm there is some
land that has some ridges while the
east end is smooth land. His barn is
built of logs for the first IA feet, then
with lumber for eight feet to the
caves. A shed, 14x24 feet is on the
north side of it. He has blacksmith
shop and machine shed, 12x24 feet and
his house is 24x2S feet, to which he
will add another building, 12x24 feet,
making it l. shaped. He has six cows,
a big mule, sorrel mare, and Shet-
land pony The pony's job is plow-
ing the garden and amusing the chill
dren.