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Big Baler Twine: How to Choose the Right Type for Your Bale Size and Segment

Author: Oğuz Kaan Çiçek — ANSA Sustainability Unit

The problem that costs you a harvest window

You run a large square baler on a tight harvest window. The crop is in, the bale is formed at 90×120 cm and weighs close to 360 kg. The twine holds — until it doesn’t. One snapped knot in the field and a heavy bale opens up on the headland. Now you are not harvesting. You are collecting.

Field failures are almost never “the twine was weak.” They are “the wrong twine was selected for that bale size and that duty segment.” This article is a buyer’s decision guide: how to read the four ANSA Big Baler Twine types (T106–T150) against the two variables that actually decide which one belongs in your baler — bale size and segment.

ANSA Big Baler Twine spool
ANSA Big Baler Twine — spool product photo.

What the twine is actually holding

A large square bale is not a static load. From the moment the plunger compresses it, the bale is trying to expand, and that expansion force is transferred onto the two (sometimes three) strands running around it. Three load regimes act on the twine, in sequence:

  1. Bale expansion force — the residual pressure inside the compressed bale, highest at the chamber and proportional to bale density and crop type. This is the continuous static load the twine must resist just to keep the bale’s shape.
  2. Handling and logistics loads — dropping the bale onto the field, lifting it with a grab, stacking it on a trailer, tying it down for transport. These are dynamic spikes that can briefly exceed the static expansion force.
  3. Outdoor storage degradation — if the bale stays in the field or open stack for weeks, the twine is exposed to UV. Polypropylene loses mechanical strength over time outdoors unless it is UV-stabilised.

The weakest point in the whole system is the knot. The baler’s knotter ties the splice, and a knotted textile joint retains only about 60% of the linear (un-knotted) breaking load. This is why knot strength is tested and reported separately from breaking load — a twine that breaks at 425 kg linear may only hold ~255 kg once it is knotted. Relying on the breaking-load number alone overstates what the bale is actually held together by.

Two decisions that pick the right type

ANSA Big Baler Twine ships in four polypropylene types. Before reading the table, run your situation through two decisions:

Decision 1 — Bale size. This product family serves three large square bale formats: 90×120, 70×120 and 80×70 cm. The bale size sets the base geometry the twine has to wrap and hold; a bigger, denser bale generates more expansion force per strand.

Decision 2 — Segment (duty). ANSA segments its big baler twine into four duty classes — heavy, normal, medium and light — reflecting how demanding the baling operation is (crop type, bale density, handling intensity). Pair the bale size with the segment your operation actually runs, and the type resolves directly.

The type table, read as a decision tool

Typem/kgBreaking Load (kg)Knot Strength (kg)Length/Spool (m)Bale sizeSegment
T106106425255106090×120 cmHeavy
T118118381229118090×120 cmNormal
T130130346208130090×120 / 70×120 cmMedium
T150150300180150070×120 / 80×70 cmLight

Two columns are in tension and that tension is the point: m/kg (runnage) rises as the twine thins, so each spool carries more metres — but breaking load and knot strength fall in step. T106 gives you the strongest bale-hold and the shortest spool (1060 m); T150 gives you the longest spool (1500 m) and the lowest strength. You are not buying “the best twine” — you are buying the right point on that trade-off for your bale size and segment.

All four types share the same 10 kg spool, 112 spools/pallet, 1120 kg/pallet standard pack. The knot-to-breaking ratio holds at ~60% across all types, which tells you the knotter splice is the consistent weak link regardless of grade.

Decision shortcut

If you don’t want to work through the two decisions above, use this:

  • 90×120 cm, heavy-duty operation → T106. Maximum knot strength (255 kg), shortest runnage. Pay for strength.
  • 90×120 cm, normal-duty operation → T118. The balanced choice for the most common 90×120 baling.
  • 90×120 or 70×120 cm, medium-duty operation → T130. Mid-range strength covering two bale sizes.
  • 70×120 or 80×70 cm, light-duty operation → T150. Longest runnage (1500 m/spool) where the bale and the duty don’t demand peak strength.
ANSA Big Baler Twine gallery image
ANSA Big Baler Twine in the field.

Machine compatibility — the second filter

Once you have narrowed the type by bale size and segment, confirm it against your baler. ANSA’s Baler Twines by Machine technical document maps compatible types to specific models across eight brands — CLAAS (1150, 2100–5300 series), CASE IH (IHLB 324/334/424 XL/434 XL), KRONE (870–1290; HDP/HDP II/GEN 5), FENDT (990–1290; XD/UD), John Deere (1424–1534), Massey Ferguson (2240–2370; XD), New Holland (870–9090 Plus) and KUHN (LSB 870) — with the denier specified per model for forage and straw, standard and extreme conditions. Match the type to the bale and segment first, then verify the denier against the model in that document.

Why knot strength and UV are where ANSA’s risk control sits

Two things separate a twine that holds from one that snaps, and ANSA’s production is built around both:

  • Knot strength is tested separately, not derived. Because the knot is the weakest link, ANSA reports knot strength as an independent quality-control result — not as a percentage applied to the breaking load. The buyer sees the number the bale actually rests on.
  • UV stabilisation is compounded in, not coated on. HALS (hindered amine light stabilisers) are added into the polypropylene resin, so the protection runs through the full cross-section of the strand rather than sitting on the surface where it weathers off. For bales that stay outdoors, this is what keeps the knot strength you specified on day one still holding in week six.

Production runs under ISO 9001:2015 (production control), ISO 14001:2015 (environmental aspects) and ISO 50001:2018 (energy review). The product is specified to ISO 4167:2006 (Polyolefin agricultural twines) and ANSI/ASAE S315.5 (Agricultural Baling Twine for Automatic Balers). Polypropylene (resin code 5) is mechanically recyclable.

Before you order

If you can answer two things — your bale size and the duty segment your operation runs — the type selection above resolves directly. If you want it confirmed against your baler model, request the Baler Twines by Machine sheet or a sample spool before you commit a full pallet.

References

  1. ANSA. Big Baler Twine — Technical Specifications. https://ansa.tr/big-baler-twine/
  2. ANSA. Baler Twines by Machine. https://ansa.tr/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/ANSA-Baler-Twines-by-Machine-US.pdf
  3. ISO 4167:2006, Polyolefin agricultural twines.
  4. ANSI/ASAE S315.5 AUG2018 (R2023), Agricultural Baling Twine for Automatic Balers.
  5. ASABE. Twine Tension in High-Density Large Square Bales.
  6. “Effects of UV Stabilizers on Polypropylene Outdoors.” PMC / NCBI.
  7. ISO 9001:2015; ISO 14001:2015; ISO 50001:2018 — ANSA certified management systems.
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