Many homesteads of twenty acres or less may have materials available for baling and storing for winter use but until now this has usually been impractical because of machinery costs. Here is a hand-powered baler that can be built with very little cost involved.
To build the baler begin by making the basic crate shape. This is done by constructing the sides, top, and bottom first. Next fasten these together to form the crate shape. All joints should be fastened with a waterproof glue and galvanized nails. The piston is put together the same way and care should be taken to make sure the spaces on the piston line up with the slots in the baling chamber. There are slots indicated on the top and bottom blocks of the piston.
This is for a board, cut to fit, which is used while compressing materials into a bale. This piston face is re- moved when tying the bale together. All of the pivot points are put together with aluminum conduit, washers, and cotter pins. The entire machine should be painted with a good exterior paint.