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Read articles →Tractor Mike walks his daughter through unloading 20 round bales for the first time, making this a genuine beginner's tutorial built around a real, unscripted task. He covers spike placement height, loader leveling through the arc of travel, RPM management for hydraulics and steering, 2WD vs. 4WD tradeoffs, and, most usefully, exactly what to do if the rear wheels lift. Best for first-timers learning bale-spear work on a compact tractor.
Tractor Mike is a longtime tractor-industry insider with decades of hands-on experience in the equipment business. He built his channel to help first-time and rural buyers make confident decisions, and his guidance comes from that deep, long-term background rather than a sales pitch.
Put them down low, maybe eight to ten inches to a foot off the ground, rather than in the middle, to get more lifting area from the loader travel.
Keep your hand on the joystick and let the bale down as easy as you can instead of dropping it, even if it hits or wedges in the trailer, then adjust and move slowly.
Normally 4WD is preferred for loader work, but for backing off and making sharp turns in a tight space, 2WD works fine without needing the extra traction.
Higher RPM improves power steering and hydraulic lift performance since both share the same pump, though it also makes the load move up and down faster and harder to feather.
