"It's a great way to cut and feed round bales," says Jack Hudon, sales manager for Dynavent, Canadian importer of the French "Silonet" cutting and feeding machine for silage and big round bales.

The 3-pt. mounted machine features a hydraulically lifted rear gate outfitted with a cutting blade that's got two horizontal reciprocating knives that slice down through big bales or silage in bunks, pulling material into the feedout hopper. A 16-in. wide shredder on one side of the machine feeds the material out the side into feedbunks or onto the ground.

"It makes an exceptionally clean cut on all types of silage, long or short, wet or dry. Cuts clean enough to minimize spoilage in a stack or bunk silo. Because the blade closes firmly onto the hopper, no silage is lost during transport. It'll carry up to 1,500 lbs. at once," says Hudon.

A key advantage of the clean-cutting reciprocating knives is that they don't loosen silage as they cut, which would cause loss due to mold, bad weather, and birds. With round bales of hay or straw, you simply back up to the bale and start cutting. No need to remove strings. The side-discharge shredder slices as it feeds material out.