Better tractor for raking?

[LLR]

I currently use my AC WD for raking with a 9 ft ground drive rake. How small of a tractor could i rake with to get better fuel economy.I hate to say that ive been looking at one of those 25 hp chinese desiels just to rake with. My other tractor is an AC 190 gas which is so thirsty that OPEC sends me xmas cards. Thanks LLR

 

[bradk]

That WD should get pretty darn good economy IF tuned right.Forget the Chinese diesel.When parts are needed,it'll make ya cry!

 

[georgeky]

Farmall C's are good for raking and other things. Pretty easy on gas too. Any of the small gas tractors will handle a rake very good.

 

[1 Dollar]

That little tractor will bounce you to death if that is your main raking tractor. Neighbor used a JD 790 for a day in a pinch and just kept saying how rough it was.

 

[Tradititonal Farmer]

I use a Yanmar 330 diesel (33HP) and an AC 5040 (Fiat diesel)
(40HP) to rake with pulling a 256 New Holland used to use a WD the Yanmar burns about 1/4 the fuel the WD did.Either one rides alot better than the WD

 

[JMS MN]

An AC Model B or C would be a nice addition, runs cheap, matching color. Model CA if you want a 4 speed.

 

[JMS MN]

An AC Model B or C would be a nice addition, runs cheap, matching color. Model CA if you want a 4 speed.

 

[LenND]

If your WD is hard on gas then it needs something done to it, maybe a good tuneup. They are one of the easier tractors on fuel and they ride like a Caddy compared to the chinese one.

 

[kyhayman]

I've raked with something as small as an Honda Foreman ATV in a pinch. Not sure how good that is on the transmission and I would speculate that a transmission will buy a lot of fuel.

I used to rake with an 801 Ford. Used something like 15 gallons of gas in a long day to do it. When I decided to go with 'all alike' tractors that moved me to using an 86 hp Ford diesel to rake duties. Normally its the 7600 that gets drawn for the job but sometimes the 7710 gets the nod and occassionally the 7610. I still use about 15 gallons or so of fuel in a long day with the rake. Greatest fuel sipper I ever had was a 1210 Case DB. Thing would rake all day on 5 gallons but with parts costing twice what they do for the Fords I couldnt see keeping it for the savings.

I cant see ever saving enough fuel pulling a hayrake to ever pay for a tractor. If it saved 10 gallons a day and fuel was 4.00 a gallon thats 40 bucks a day. That would mean it would need to rake 200 days just to pay for an 8000 tractor. For most of us, thats a lot of years of raking at what I think are unreasonable savings. Plus, the first time you need a thousand dollar water pump (dont ask how I know about those, I had a Romanian tractor when I started out) over an 80 locally available one it makes it even worse.

To me, a better solution is (and was for me) to increase output. I added another rake and made an offset hitch so now I'm pulling two instead of one. Nominally I should do twice the work using the same fuel and time. Realisitcally, its not quite that efficient, in that I only save a third. Payback is a lot quicker on a 600 rake, with a 600 overhaul and 200 in a hitch than on several grand for a tractor. Plus, the time savings can be priceless when rain is coming.

 

[Anonymous-0]

I think it would be cheaper to upgrade your hayrake to something bigger to better justify using the larger tractor you have. Although 9ft on a 40-45hp? tractor sounds about right. If your WD is using lots of gas I'd say the carb isn't adjusted right.

 

[Gun guru]

You wouldnt actually buy a commie tractor that is substandard in quality parts availability and reliablity would you.

 

[Walt Davies]

If you can find one I use my 1953 Cockshutt (35) with a 4 cyl. Hercules engine. You fill it on Monday and run it all week. It also has Chelsy power steering added so its one finger steering.
My other favorite is my 1977 Kubota L-285 30 HP 4 cyl. its so good on fuel that it will give some back at the end of the week.
Walt
<a href="http://s77.photobucket.com/albums/j50/WaltDavies/?action=view&current=Haying2007Dallas004.jpg" target="_blank">

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[Leroy]

If you want a smaller handier all around tractor to go with your AC's get a CA, plenty of power for the rake and a lot of other jobs that your WD is too big for. Keed the WD and give it a tune up and find a good CA to go with it.

 

[Dave H (MI)]

We used a Farmall B this past fall for the first time. An improvement fuel-wise over the MTA. Did a fine job on rake and also pulling the wagons around the field. Think I may try it with a sickle next year just for fun.

 

[Bill in Colo]

BIL traded a 2010 utility for a new 5000 series deere cab air heat and radio two wheel drive. It mite get used 200 hour per year he puts up about 700 tons of hay. was tired not having air. Uses it to pull a 10ft khunn rotaray rake

 

[old]

I use a 1935 JD-B part of the summer to rake hay and also an AC C and an 8N ford. In the past I have uses a Farmall B also. None of those are hard on fuel and all of them do a good job.
Hobby farm

 

[Ron in AR]

I use my David Brown 880 and my Ford 2110 for raking. I can fill either one and get at least four long days of raking out of it before I have to fill'er up again. Plan to make a double hitch for this year just to speed things up a bit.

 

[JK-NY]

I use small tractors to rake and ted hay with, usually NAA Ford , sometimes 960 or 4000 Fords. Raking is fairly light work , I figure 1 to 1 1/2 gal/hr with NAA. Your WD ought to do about as well, or I'd put the money into a tuneup . I agree the little compacts would be a hard riding tractor for field work. Also a good idea from Kyhayman , go to a double rake hitch if you cover alot of ground.The WD should handle 2 side delivery rakes fine.

 

[jwal10]

Hey Walt, I was wondering where you got that hay rake. It looks like a New Idea. It also looks like it has a hitch welded on the right axle frame, is it a 1-1/4 solid unpainted piece? tapers to the hitch pin hole. It looks like a rake I bought new from Lehman Bros. in Amity in 1976. I sold it in the 1980's to Randy Smith over on Briddgeport road. He sold it to the people that bought his farm, the old Smith Dairy. Also the timbered land on the other side of the fence looks like a part of the 1000 acres. I worked on that farm for 20 years from early 1970's to 1990'2....James

 

[LLR]

Thanks for all the imput guys. I think i might try the double rake idea. I had chinese food for lunch, so ill blame that for the brain fart.
Later, LLR

 

[Anonymous-0]

Best option , I like to use a Case 430 Diesel ,with 2 rakes in tandem , or CASE DC plenty of power for hills and I lean down the Zenith Carb and He does quite well on a little gas, Most the time I idle in 4th gear and glide to 3rd when going down or uphill hill , rarely using the clutch .. or Sc Case , Same fuel use as DC except LESS power , What was CASE thinking when they built this girl ! ,, Least favorite is My YANMAR 2220,rice bunny rattlerey bouncer across rough ground , Likes as much fuel or more than the 430, And Will run dangerously hot on the 90 plus days pulling 2 rakes . Have used the 800 CaseO matic , and a real fuel mizer , Very Nice , But I usually have this one hooked up to the 489 haybine for 30 days straight ,, Thanx for reading , Jim

 

[fixerupper]

Dollar had a good idea. Use one that will ride smooth, meaning big wheels, and a good seat suspension. Your body will thank you later on. Fuel economy is important to all of us but fixing the body is darned expensive. I'm a little sensitive about this subject right now.


The days of riding rough tractors on hard fields have left me with two compressed disks in my neck and five in my lower back. I've spent several thousand from my pocket going to four doctors now and the surgery is still in the future. Hard lifting isn't the only thing that can wreck your back. Jim

 

[Andrew Z]

Farmall Super C, or C. even the H is really easy on gas all are great tedding, raking tractors. Iv used anything from a A to a Super M to rake and ted and i love my Super C the most great on gas easy to steer, comfortable to operate, and good power.

Andrew

 

[Anonymous-0]

I use my Ford Jubilee (NAA) on my pinwheel rake. I chain up all but 2 wheels to flip the windrow and then run the Grimm ground-drive over it to fluff it. However, I put a hitch on the back of the rake and do 'em both with one pass.

 

[Charlie M]

Heck even my F14 will pull a hay rake - do it all the time. Doesn't take much horse power to pull a hay rake.

 

[Anonymous-0]

My 2N is excellent on these Ohio hills pulling 9' JD side delivery rake. I usually use 2nd high range(Sherman) half throttle. Uses a gallon per hour or slightly less and handles the job effortlessly.
Mr. Bob

 

[Jimmy King]

I pulled a left and right rake with my 460 D Farmall it used 1/2 gal per hr. About 900 RPM in 4th mowed with a 12ft haybine. I could rake a 27 acre field in 2 hrs.

 

[paul]

I used my brother in laws B7100 mid 1970's tractor with the NH 55 rake one summer to do most of my raking. Was really low to the ground, couldn't stradle a windrow. Was about sitting in the dust. Short wheelbase sure made me bounce. This is a little 16 hp tractor. Pulled it fine, rake doesn't take much.

I would not get a China tractor, just buying trouble.

--->Paul

 

[Walt Davies]

James that the rake alright I bought it and a 7 ft. MF mower for $1200. The rake was once owned by Dave Walton over on Hwy 51 north of Independence.
He wants me to sell it to him as it was his first rake. That thing has been in this area a long time and still going strong.
The field I am raking is at the West end of Ellendale rd. from Dallas, OR
The field next to it is a forested area owned by a crazy guy who wanted to Bless me for a free bail of hay. I told him I didn't need a blessing I needed $2.50 for the bale.
Walt

 

[jwal10]

(quoted from post at 21:04:39 01/06/08) James that the rake alright I bought it and a 7 ft. MF mower for $1200. The rake was once owned by Dave Walton over on Hwy 51 north of Independence.
He wants me to sell it to him as it was his first rake. That thing has been in this area a long time and still going strong.
The field I am raking is at the West end of Ellendale rd. from Dallas, OR
The field next to it is a forested area owned by a crazy guy who wanted to Bless me for a free bail of hay. I told him I didn't need a blessing I needed $2.50 for the bale.
Walt

Walt, that was my rake, David's was a Farmhand wheel rake. I pulled his behind mine to rake 2 windrows at a time, then he would use it to rake his. You could rake a lot of hay in a short time. I pulled it with a farmall B and a 454 IHC. Were you out on Ellendale when they had it closed down for the cities new water line, just down the hill from there....James

 

[Anonymous-0]

You are right on that. Any tractor ever made rides better than a WD or WD45. They were tough old tractors but Allis could have made them more comfortable. They were absolute murder on the old back.

 

[Bus Driver]

Back in the 1950's, we used a (new at the time) Ferguson TO-20 with a lift-type side-delivery rake. Slick! Lift the rake, hit the steering brake, and you are heading in the opposite direction. Safer on one of the low profile tractors.

 

[Stinky Cheese]

I`d suggest you get a wheel rake. Then look at about a 4 wheeler to pull it with. Or something like a AC C if you want to use a tractor. GEO Tracker will work well also.

 

[rrlund]

Only thing I'm afraid of on those little chinese things is the narrow stance and instability of them.I'll tell you one that you practically had to drain fuel out of every now and then if you could ever find one. That's a David Brown 770. Neighbor had one years ago,wide tread,good balance,stupendous economy.

 

[KJFarms]

I've had various makes of tractors and my thoughts are, try a tune up on the ole allis or take a look at a farmall. Stay away from the chinese junk. I done an O/H on a 28 hp this past summer. 30 day+ wait on some parts and the cost-WOW- cost as much as my bigger tractors.

 

[mtgummibear]

I"m showing my bias but my Dad"s old Oliver 60 was the handiest darn thing for light duty work like raking. Turned on a dime, frugal with the gas, but alas I don"t think the 60 came in a wide front so you would be driving on more hay than with a wide front tractor.

I love any of the lighter duty Olivers because they were just so darn easy to maneuver etc.

Larry

 

[E.B. Haymakin']

I use a Kubota L2050 20pto & 25 engine hp. On rough ground it is a little uncomfortable compared to bigger tractors, but fuel economy is incomparable. Bought the tractor new in 1991. Great, reliable tractor. Use a 2 head wheel rake, and sometimes a straw rake.

 

[Walt Davies]

Hey James give me a call today 503 623 0460.
We can talk about the rake.
Walt

 

[Mike (WA)]

My old neighbor had a JD H that he didn't have any use for, so he serviced it and brought it over to my place at the beginning of haying season, and didn't expect to see it again until fall. I think H's had horsepower in the single digits, but it pulled the side delivery rake just fine. I think you could use about anything, down to and including Ol' Dobbin.

 

[TractormanNC]

I use a Farmall 130, stays hooked to the rake from about mid April until we finish first cutting.

 

[Bret4207]

Find a Case VA series or AC B. They'll do the job for a lot cheaper cost than a Ford or anything green, buying or running.