Spring Shuttle Return Needle Protection

A knotter assembly for use with a baler, operable to produce knots in strands of binding material during a tie cycle to bind a bale of crop material compressed in a baling chamber of the baler with a reciprocating plunger, the knotter assembly comprising:

• a plurality of knotter mechanisms provided crosswise of the bale chamber at spaced intervals;
• a needle assembly configured to interact with the plurality of knotter mechanism to form knots in binding material, the needle assembly comprising:
• a plurality of needles such that there is one needle for each one of the plurality of knotter mechanisms;
• a needle frame on which each of the needles are mounted;
• a shuttle configured to move the needle frame such that the needles are shiftable relative to the baling chamber during a tie cycle;
• a needle drive assembly that moves the shuttle between a full-throw position in which the needles extend into the bale chamber to advance strands of binding material so that the knotter mechanisms can secure the binding material around the bale and a home position in which the needles moved out of the baling chamber to permit operation of the plunger;
• and
• a biasing mechanism attached to the shuttle to bias the shuttle into the home position.