Martin is my first name, not my last name.  I was raised on a small dairy farm in York Co.  I moved to Franklin Co. in 1984, and have been here since.

I know of the Martin's who pull.  I don't think I have ever met them personally.  Actually, there are a lot of "Martin's" (last name) in this county - and in Lancaster Co. as well.

I would suggest getting yourself a Koster tester to run moisture, if you don't have one already.  Yeah, you can use a microwave if you wish.  However, most guys who I know would have tried this method have not continued with it.  Another idea:  PSU engineers have designed a "make it yourself" forage drier using a hair dryer.  You would still need to purchase a set of scales. However, the hair dryer does the actual drying.  (I'll see if I can find info on the web about this.)

I would pull samples every time you weigh a load.  Put it in a quart size ZipLoc freezer bag.  I say "freezer bag", because I think they are heavier. Have a cooler there, pull the sample put it in the Ziploc bag and place it in the cooler.  Later that day, run moisture on it.  Or freeze it, and come back and run moisture another day.  Another option would be to run the Koster tester as you harvest - if that is a workable solution. Note: if you might this is too many samples to test, pull a sample on every other load you weigh. Initially, I think I would pull samples on every load you weigh, bag them, label them, and place them in the cooler.  If you decided not to run moisture on every one, no problem - you can just "toss them".  However, I would rather pull too many samples and not use them, rather than pull too few and wish I had pulled more.   Once you try this, you will find out what works for you.

Another suggestion: about 2002 or so, I went and bought a lawn and garden leaf shredder.  In the fall, I hand-harvest about 6 corn stalks from a field, grind them thru the leaf shredder, and then run moisture on them with my Koster tester.  I do this to help my customers determine when to start harvesting corn silage.  I think looking at corn and "guessing" the moisture level is not very accurate.  This method has been helpful to my clients, especially in drought years such as 2007. Since I have done this, I am seeing more nutritionists, and even agronomists doing the same thing (in my area). If, every year, you find yourself guessing when to start harvesting, I recommend buying a leaf shredder and doing the same.   

Martin

P.S.  Is Gerard your Crop Scout?  If so, I know him (and he knows me.)