New VERMEER ZR5 1200 Self-Propelled Round Baler

Big Tractor Power talks with a representative from Vermeer at the 2020 National Farm Machinery Show about the new ZR5 1200 Round Baler. Learn more at www.vermeer.com/NA/en/N/equip...
Over 314,000 attendees packed the Kentucky Exposition Center for the four-day event that celebrated 54 years of providing the agricultural industry’s latest and most comprehensive display of equipment, services and technology in 2020. With the largest number of exhibitors in its history, NFMS spanned more than 1.3 million square feet filling 920 booths.
Learn about and find information on the 2020 National Farm Machinery Show at farmmachineryshow.org
The 2021 National Farm Machinery Show will take place February 10-13, 2021 at the Kentucky Exposition Center located at 937 Phillips Lane Louisville, KY 40209-1398.
Connect with Big Tractor Power @ www.bigtractorpower.com
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[@foxacresfarm7595]

Can’t wait to run one in 40 years when there used.

[@oukvantha]

Always great tractors! Thank you so much for sharing.

[@bigtractorpower]

Thank you for watching.

[@donstravelsandrants.]

That man explained the technology very well. Great looking machine 👍

[@mrourcanada8964]

Now that’s thinking outside the box thanks for sharing it I was pretty cool

[@ArchersView]

Really interesting machine, great to see!

[@wyattsaemrow3475]

Given that the pickup is driven separately can it be reversed in order to clear a clog in the pickup, or is there a way to disengage the pickup to allow you to wrap the bail like in a Kuhn. Otherwise, think of how fun it would be to crawl under there to dig it out.

[@ikonseesmrno7300]

That is one cool baler! The setup for the front wheels is interesting. Can't wait to see your video of one in operation in the future. Regards.

[@bigtractorpower]

I hope I get a chance to spend some time in the field with one. They are impressive.

[@leebob86]

An engineering marvel. Sounds like it's easy maintenance, easy to perform repairs!!!

[@kopenhagenkid]

Awesome machine

[@Studio23Media]

Wow! That thing is cool!

[@soybeansforlife]

My vermeer dealer custom bales for me and he has one. It works very good in irregular shaped fields since it can turn on a dime. So for custom guys with a lot of clients with small odd fields this the way to go

[@gavinhenderson3861]

It will be interesting to see if it will catch on.great video

[@iowainternfarmer6095]

Quite a cool peace of machinery!!

[@karanjakamau57]

great machine, keep up the good wok, bigtractor power

[@kopenhagenkid]

Great video

[@stanleybaker1520]

That is one wicked machine 😎😎😎😎

[@michaelbaumgardner2530]

Very interesting concept.

[@LaHaSi4208]

Very interesting Machine!

[@favorit926vario5]

Nice invention.

[@brentreid7031]

Thank I always wanted to see one up close. That would be nice to put high quality hay and good consistent feed is the key to production. Again thank you so much I really enjoyed that eh.

[@luisnunes7933]

Amazing machine!

[@thehayteamtv6830]

We would love one of these

[@garyreid7865]

just sub to youer channel the day great vids

[@milesrand8675]

Saw one at the iowa state fair very cool machine.

[@Murphyslawfarm]

G'day great video mate.

[@woolybuck6852]

Wow!! So much nicer than the old New Holland self propelled balers. Those things just beat you to death and the cab was positioned where you got all the dust made by the baler up into the cab. Cheers...

[@MianwaliVillageTractors]

best tractor machine and tractor

[@adamotto2977]

With all the recent growth in large square balers, I've been surprised no manufacturer has invented the same concept for them

[@tingbase84]

Adam Otto search deutz fahr powerpress,they built these back in the early 90s but I don’t think they where very popular,they also where fairly notorious with setting on fire

[@TheWhedgit]

I heard of a guy gutting a combine and putting it in front of a baler to make an all in one unit. I have never found videos of it or the actual machine.

[@RyTrapp0]

This is such a genius product, not to mention a legitimately truly innovative design! It may not be the first self propelled baler(the third I think? At least from a major manufacturer I believe), but it certainly has to be by far the most complete, thoroughly developed design. But, most importantly, it doesn't just take a towed implement and attach an engine & steering wheel to it - but rather this takes the limitations of a towed baler and actually improves on them by actually making it self propelled, the benefits of which(by way of their incredibly well thought out steering & suspension system) result in a higher output thanks to the higher average baling speeds that this machine can operate at versus the traditional towed baler. It seems like a lot of companies over the years have taken all kinds of implements and attached an engine, a couple more wheels, and a seat & steering wheel, just to say "Ta da! It's better because we gave it it's own engine & wheels!" - but without actually offering any meaningful improvement over the towed implement. But, this? Such an impressively well designed machine, I honestly don't think it would've made production if Vermeer couldn't gain a performance advantage out of it. NOW... if only Vermeer would just add a pre-chamber to this machine - a self-propelled non-stop(no stop unloading) baler would be a damned WEAPON in very large fields, talk about a significant time savings! But, surely they're already thinking about this - it's a no-brainer, it just seems like the obvious next step for this machine!

[@Jaxon-iu6vb]

But is the time saved worth the cost of the added complexity? IDK

[@RyTrapp0]

@@Jaxon-iu6vb This thing is pretty damn simple actually, it's all hydraulic control - the steering system, the bale chamber attachment mechanism(don't even know what to call it, lol), even the wheels are driven by two hydraulic motors(which is why they're such large diameter, hydro motors have piles of torque but are pretty RPM limited), so, presumably, the only thing that the engine drives is a hydraulic pump(s) and maybe a PTO mimicking element driving the pickup & baler itself(although the whole baling unit may be hydraulic motor driven too, that part I'm not sure about). Cost is the big question though, since this lists as a ~$250,000 machine - but, keep in mind that everyone will be financing these of course, so the cost could possibly be spread out enough to actually pay for itself with the time savings and assuming that purchasing a new bale chamber will be meaningfully cheaper than replacing an entire towed baler should help in the long term. Needless to say, I wouldn't even know where to begin to run the numbers vs a towed baler(and the hours put on the tractor and fuel burned vs this thing) to actually justify this financially, but the price shouldn't be unreasonable for large operations that bale a LOT of material. Especially in areas where rainfall can shorten the baling window, this machine will at minimum increase output under such circumstances. It's a big "we'll see" though, this could become a long term product for Vermeer, or it could die off in just a few years if no one is buying them. Either way, all we have right now is speculation.

[@Jaxon-iu6vb]

I should have been more clear, when I was talking about complexity I meant the complexity of adding a pre chamber for continuous baleing. If you think about it this self propelled barker is more simple than a tractor and a baler. I also think it will be interesting to see if this thing sells.

[@brettknoss486]

Where is the engine? I'm kinda worried it would be hard to do repairs (I'm sure maintenance stuff is accessible). Also, is it Cummins powered, same as MacDon?

[@hughwhaley3179]

I think it will save time neat machine 👍

[@rburli]

Great video BTP, I have no opinion good or bad about this baler. I hope it will make money for the owner and maintenance costs are kept low. Keep up the great work

[@marks_sparks1]

If they could make the pickup header interchangeable with a swather head, you'd justify the price for smaller acreage farmers.

[@JFBence]

Does it have a Claas combine cab? It seems like it.

[@piperdoug428]

Yeah he can just go n demo that up here at Piperdoug's hay field where Alpine like gopher hills are at 1 to 1.5 per square meter, does it come with a track option?

[@markgamble8377]

Nice.thats a big bale 6x5

[@noelhohberger1188]

Great for a custom baler

[@FoodwaysDistribution]

It looks nimble and great. What is the purpose for the machine to quarter turn to dump the bale? thx for another great video

[@phillydip5609]

my guess is the field looks a little rough, and when you drive with the loader to pickup the bales it gets too rough and bouncy going against the rows

[@SimonKL11]

I think you meant "vermeer" and not "case IH" in the description, right? Great video anyway, I think It's an interesting machine👍

[@JimMcCormick17]

Wish Vermeer would sell in Australia.

[@awatchmanonawall6188]

any plans on making a big self propelled square baler ?

[@billycarter3399]

I have 2 comments actually. 1 how much have they updated this baler from the time it first came out. 2 remember when they came out with the countinous baler, (sorry if that word is misspelled) when are they going to put it on the sp unit.

[@richardpoe2461]

I wonder? Does Vermeer have any plans to build big square balers? I am also wondering what the price tag of the self propelled baler is? Great video!

[@kennethgreen2829]

Interesting video and machine BTP and while I can see a use for it I would be more interested in a self propelled square baler..

[@Whiskey-xp6vu]

I would suggest replacing the steering wheel with an armrest joystick would allow you to rest your arms on the seat armrests during long days

[@tingbase84]

Trouble is it’s old round bailer technology,if Vermeer developed there own Continuous bale chamber like krone and Kuhn it would be a real game changer but they’ve stuck with 1960-70s tech

[@Jaxon-iu6vb]

This self propelled round baler might cost less than a pull type big square baler. Square balers are also more expensive to maintain, and knotters are a pain. Square balers are cost prohibitive for most hay producers. Round bales shed water and don’t necessarily need to be stored indoors, where as square bales are wrecked if they get rained on. Square balers have their place but they are not for everyone.

[@tingbase84]

Jaxon 9882 I’m not comparing it to a big square bailer,krone and Kuhn do Continuous round Bailers meaning you don’t ever have to stop ! The bailer this is based around is such old technology

[@thr8061]

@@tingbase84 The new continuous round baler design is still being worked out. They've had problems with the complexity of the design and are making changes all the time. Both the Krone & the Kuhn are semi-variable or not variable in the bale sizes plus they stick an individual bale wrapper on it. What if you do not want or need that? Vermeer does have a prototype continuous baler out there. For the sheer speed of this unit, it still is faster that a regular pull-type round baler or continuous baler.

[@tingbase84]

thr8061 I doubt it’s even possible to have a variable chamber for bale size with continuous round baler due to it all having to work in perfect timing with the storage of hay whilst the bales being net rapped. As with the rapper on the back I would assume If krone and Kuhn made the bailers first the us market it wouldn’t come with it as mostly the us only found bale hay not silage. Yes in the perfect field this self propelled might be quicker than a continuous but in the real world I doubt it

[@Jaxon-iu6vb]

Square bale technology is older than round bale technology. The big square balers use the same tech as the old small square balers, and just because a design is newer doesn’t mean it’s better.

[@deandanielson8074]

Wow, what an innovative machine. Dumb question, but other balers seem to have to stop when dropping out the bale. Can this baler be continuous in high-speed movement of picking up the hay yet also dropping off the bale without stopping? Thanks! Dean from Minnesota

[@bradsimpson8724]

Nope, the have to stop to eject the bale. Or rather, the custom guys that came out to my neighbour's place last fall did. Full stop, 90° turn, eject, 90° turn back onto the windrow, and away they go. It was pretty quick cycle, though.

[@Joey-ve7ku]

A continuous baler would smash this.

[@davidpfohl9678]

fs19 needs this

[@corkhayman5064]

What is the engine in this? Thanks for the video

[@kcgibbs]

200 HP Cummins

[@beckywatt5048]

Wow ! that a lot of hp.

[@sahholsteins1]

I'd love to run one of these, but dont make enough hay to justify

[@tlb84gaming5]

Too bad it doesn't have a preload chamber for non stop baling. A built in silage wrapper would be awesome to. Maybe in a few years, one can only hope.

[@bigtractorpower]

All good points. Maybe a 1205 version in the future?

[@billylindauer3636]

Maybe a self propelled square baler too...

[@amdx6452]

The cab is built by Claas. I want one. 😁

[@NicksFarm]

Amd X64 yeah you know it’d be great in the cab 👍

[@brucejudkins8793]

When are you going to have a plastic wrapper on it also. So you can net wrap an plastic wrap all in one pass

[@krisbaird5555]

What be a awesome machine too run but boy that price tag is ouch

[@kcgibbs]

A new tractor and baler of this capacity would be every bit as costly.

[@highlightsbottleflipnbanfl1847]

@@kcgibbs plus you can have the tractor collecting bales sooner as it's not hooked to the baler.

[@sahholsteins1]

Its farming eveything has a price

[@brettknoss486]

@@kcgibbs but then you would have a tractor to do other stuff with. I can see it for commercial guys though.

[@dejavu6475]

Now we can put up huge windrows and that thing will gobble them up, put that continuous chamber on it and we can just fly through the acres because we would not need to stop to wrap and dump.

[@jeffreyhollink985]

just the cap from ah claas jaguar

[@ronkeking97]

When will the you guys in the us move away from varibal chamber balers, here in norway we havent used one for over 40 years. Really looks like you guys are really behind us in baling technology

[@damianzimmer2545]

The whole inside of the cab is all claas

[@kensampson604]

something like that makes baleage seem a lot cheaper to do than silage in bunkers.

[@gwgillman1]

Vermeer has always had some very Impressive Balers,and other equipment,but this is just the Cats ASS,Id say they will be a huge SALE for them

[@gregm8344]

Nice baler what’s the price tag on that one?

[@bigtractorpower]

I do not know. If I get to film one working I will find out the price for info the video.

[@davidwillison2815]

How big of a windrow can you run underneath that machine

[@bigtractorpower]

I am not sure but there is allot of clearance compared to a tractor especially a FWA tractor. If I film one in the field I will ask about this detail.

[@highlightsbottleflipnbanfl1847]

Depends on the yeild of the crop.

[@thesmallscalefarmer1849]

What if it caught on fire? At least with a regular baler you can unhook the tractor quickly but with this if caught on fire it is gone.

[@phillipprewett9452]

You can un hook it

[@joshuajones7384]

How much

[@cameronbennett4733]

There's one of these at our local dealer

[@thunderbolta2357]

Yeah same

[@matthiasschulz5526]

Kinda slow at 12 mph I did straw baking up to 15 mph with a jd567. Always thought it would be nice to drive a self propelled.

[@mikebonge7206]

Has to be a machine to make money with

[@angelopaulo9781]

What year model

[@bigtractorpower]

They went into full production in 2020 were announced in 2018.

[@davidstout5883]

I would like to see a rake connected to the front. I pull a vermeer 2300 with a baler hooked to it. Works well but if l could do away with tractor it would be better. I bet the first selfpropeld combine would not be practical.

[@davidstout5883]

Haha people are so reluctant to change. I can't wait to see what is next.

[@tompreiss5010]

Best toy out there and they don't incorporate continuous ball and hay rap what a bad marketing plan cose that is what you want if you're a costume farm cose that is the people that can afford this. Just think all that with tandem axles and a set-up like Claas with a folding rack in the front be the sadist baller out there. Surprised Vermeer has not thought off it!!!!

[@timgeissler6045]

For a small hay producer this machine is useless ( talking 200 acres or less) but I do like the idea for the large hay/straw producers

[@highlightsbottleflipnbanfl1847]

You would be amazed by how many guys want a hand rolling up hay before a rain event.

[@timgeissler6045]

@@highlightsbottleflipnbanfl1847 oh I know I raise beef but for $2500 I bought a second round baler not pretty but rolls the hay ahead of the rain

[@1juanitosully]

now that a little feller, she's a good un

[@NicksFarm]

Looks great but very pricey

[@j-ydelteil]

Le prix $ / zr5.

[@bobsmith1814]

Interesting machine but costly

[@ernpethick4891]

We have two fendt tractors and vermeer balers and we can bale 45 bales per hour

[@victorsenna3780]

Farm simulator?

[@jamesfl1968]

How big of a hayfield would have to have to justify this machine over a pull behind bailer???

[@markgroth4380]

On big fields it wouldn't be much more efficient than pull-type. This would be more efficient in lots of small fields covering hundreds of acres.

[@bigtractorpower]

It’s not field size. It’s the amount of acres you need to cover. I would say if you had 400-600 acres to bake this would be a good fit.

[@uhohspagettioh97531]

We did 2700 round bales last year, I'd bet you would need to do 10,000 per year to pay for it without knowing the price. So I'd say min 1k acres. Really enjoy your videos!

[@ampatriot]

Shut up and take my money!!!

[@elizabethtaylor9321]

Only any good for contractors or big farms , but 200 HP , you can haul a big baler with a 50 HP tractor , C Taylor .

[@bigtractorpower]

I would not want to run a big baler on a 50 hp tractor all day. You will feel every plunge of the baler.

[@elizabethtaylor9321]

bigtractorpower just making a point , many people big bale with 50 to 70 hp tractors , a 100 hp engine would have been big enough , C Taylor .

[@captaindee6130]

I'm guessing Vermeer didn't just blindly develop this -- surely they talked to producers regarding potential demand first. Maybe customers asked for it. Cool concept, and a significant step up in production for big-time haymakers at a big-time price! I wonder if a continuous baler might be in the works, eventually? But so much negativity! Man! "Round bales are so stupid. Big squares are a billion times better." To each their own, but I think the marketplace proves what's good or not. Big square balers are not only more money, but also require so much bigger of a tractor, which many smaller operations don't have. Round bales work. Sheesh.

[@pocketchange1951]

👍👌❤🇨🇦

[@zimmermanservice7474]

Unless they make it available with a 4 foot wide baler as well as 5 foot, they are missing a huge part of the market. I've never even seen a 5 foot baler here in PA.

[@thebeast8285]

Very few run 4 foot in ks

[@iowafarmhandanf2266]

I despise 4 foot wide bails.

[@zimmermanservice7474]

@@thebeast8285 right. You're in Kansas. That's not the east coast. The entire east coast runs 4ft wide balers.

[@zimmermanservice7474]

@@iowafarmhandanf2266 you're in Iowa. I'm a custom operator in PA. If I bought a 5ft baler I would have no customers.

[@jwhitley101whitleyfarms9]

@@zimmermanservice7474 we run the 504r premium everybody here wants 5x4 rolls

[@5er593]

Why hydrostatic ? Electro disel setup would be more efiscient and probably same price and much longer life and cheper maintanence.

[@onealfarms9967]

Jason do you remember the IH square baler that was self propelled I believe it was built in the 70s

[@onealfarms9967]

krinkov545 yes sir they did I forgot about that seem like new holland put cabs on there’s to I only seen IH in our nec of the woods thanks for reminding me love talking about the equipment

[@onealfarms9967]

krinkov545 we only had IH and Ford dealers here I remember seeing one at our dealership in the show room I thought it was the weirdest thing lol until somebody bought it a few farms away from us I think it only went 15 mph wide open down the road fun to watch

[@kiwifruit2022]

Efficient!! 200hp to round bale, I think he has had his head in the chamber a little too long.

[@kcgibbs]

To bale that speed and volume you would need a tractor of that hp.

[@kiwifruit2022]

Kirk Gibbs lol no you would not. Hydros are never the most efficient way to covert energy plus it’s not a one use machine $100.00 to the charity of your choice if they still are making them in 10 years time

[@kcgibbs]

@@kiwifruit2022 They said the same about self propelled combines in the 1950s. To each his own. The market will decide. Why let a bet determine if you donate to charity? Seems odd. Split the difference and just donate $50 to the charity of your choice.

[@kiwifruit2022]

Kirk Gibbs I do anyway Kirk but to compare a combine to this? Yes the market shall white elephant for me

[@zimmermanservice7474]

If they make it available with a 4 foot wide silage baler I would buy it. I make a living doing custom baling and this thing would be the cats meow. But I can't use a 5ft baler, and the 605n/604n are not very good at silage...

[@patdrake2258]

BTP that’s not metal! That’s American STEEL!

[@bigtractorpower]

👍🇺🇸

[@samuelstahl3134]

Nice but use for 1 month per year 🤪

[@highlightsbottleflipnbanfl1847]

With the current cost of hay right now, and with the added capacity and efficiency with the added benifit of freeing up a tractor to collect bales with in the early morning hours will translate to $'s in our pockets.

[@Doyle-Nutbush]

Price ???

[@bigtractorpower]

I am not sure. Hopefully I can film one in the field and include that detail on the video.

[@itskingchozenbrah932]

First born and cowboys round 1 draft pick

[@Doyle-Nutbush]

@@bigtractorpower Thanks for the quick reply, guess I can just wait.

[@matthewmccune]

funny they are promoting this but wont give you a price or ability to buy one yet

[@bigtractorpower]

You can buy one now. It’s in production. I did not ask price in the interview. One I film one in the field I will ask that detail on price.

[@nealfigary3288]

🤚🏼

[@joelmartin2549]

Why 34 mph? I’m sick of these unlicensed SMV blowing their 25 mph speed limits. Either license your vehicle and pay road tax, or stay below your speed limit.

[@74superglide]

A zero turn baler lol

[@rustycornboy]

I don't think there is a viable market for an overpriced, redundant machine that could never operate on soft ground.

[@GosselinFarmsEdGosselin]

Lol.. ya! Fronts are wide enough, maybe.. but pretty sure I could stick er in the driest fields we have.

[@Fired8914]

Fs19 anyone

[@josippenezic7106]

Back in 2000 Kverneland / vicon made sides in baler chamber you can change and they are from teflon and reduces friction .... and Vermeer brags that you can change whole baling part of this machine ????????? thats probably 20000 $ and maybe more ... why they make it so greedy who will buy it if they dont make 50000 bales a year. in 5 years in stone soil that baler will be hollow . They only say comfort , speed , searing ..... then its a normal baler on itself , not faster not more productive . And its not even fast at road All feature he says isobus balers have ???!!!! Kverneland / vicon fast bale is much beter choise for someone who needs a lot acers or ha to make and it has wrapper . Vermeer is great company i think that it would be beter that they fishiness Continuous baler then maybe Kverneland fastbale would bring price down ... Maybe Im wrong maybe some one can enlighten me ?

[@mikegoodman447]

He lost my attention when he had hesitation in setting up the screen. To much goofy tech, Not needed in a farm machine.

[@jeremyfreeman717]

The most expensive way too put hay in the most useless form

[@iowafarmhandanf2266]

😕 what?

[@zimmermanservice7474]

Yup, just buy a large square baler.

[@highlightsbottleflipnbanfl1847]

@@zimmermanservice7474 then you need the added expence of protecting those bales from rain as the squares don't handle rain very well.