Used Wheel Rake Questions

[Kelly in tx]

I have a four foot (4') wide pick up round baler. I cut with a 9' cutter/conditioner. I want to get a wheel rake. I'm looking at a Massey model #1508. It is an 8 wheel for 16' to 20'. Questions - is it gonna work for me - 1) wide enough to gather two 9' windrows? - 2) will the resulting double windrow be narrow enough for my baler? Thanks for the input. Any drawbacks of the Massey model #1508?

 

[rrlund]

I have a four foot (4') wide pick up round baler. I cut with a 9' cutter/conditioner. I want to get a wheel rake. I'm looking at a Massey model #1508. It is an 8 wheel for 16' to 20'. Questions - is it gonna work for me - 1) wide enough to gather two 9' windrows? - 2) will the resulting double windrow be narrow enough for my baler? Thanks for the input. Any drawbacks of the Massey model #1508?

Is this a double 4 then? If so, then yes, that's the size you want for a 9 foot cut. A ten wheel double five is too wide. It'd take part of the next swaths.

 

[Tx Jim]

Is this a double 4 then? If so, then yes, that's the size you want for a 9 foot cut. A ten wheel double five is too wide. It'd take part of the next swaths.

That's one of the important things concerning hi-cap rake I posted. If hay gets too thick or raking width needs to be narrowed just move scv lever to narrow raking width. I've closed my hi-cap rake down to just rake one 9 ft swath when hay was exceptionally heavy.

 

[farmersamm]

I always followed a swather/windrower for about 30yrs......................so a wheel rake was new to me, and required a bit of a learning curve.

First off.................. While a rake might be able to gather a wide swath...........you have to consider what your baler will handle. My old 650NH will eat hay like a champ ONCE YOU GET THE BALE STARTED. But.......to start that bale requires a windrow that's not wider than the pickup, and relatively low in height. I'll call it a "lean windrow".

Some balers can start huge windrows, mine can't. So I was forced to take a smaller bite of the apple, and remove 4 rake wheels.........making my rake a 6 wheel rake.

This is something you need consider. I think the 8 wheel rake your considering falls within a good size range for your baler.

Another thing to think about................................. Not all balers can take a huge messy windrow, and make a nice tight bale. And just about ALL balers will make tighter bales with smaller windrows.

When I used to sell my hay..........I made bales that were marketable.......not overly tight, not sloppy either. It was about the NUMBER of bales. Mo bales..........mo money. (Around here, it's hard to convince someone that a rock hard bale contains enough additional hay to justify a fair price for it)

Now, we feed all of our hay. So, I want the tightest bale possible (without imposing excess wear on the baler), and the least number of bales possible per cutting. Mo bales.........mo time to move 'em. Plus.......tight bales last longer in the feeder........mo hay.

I have an ancient V rake.

Mine can't be narrowed like most modern rakes. If I narrow the front of the V, the windrow gets very wide. Some newer rakes allow you to adjust windrow width somewhat separately from gathering width, so I understand. ON MINE, THE ONLY WAY TO CUT DOWN ON GATHERED MATERIAL, IS TO REMOVE RAKE WHEELS. Something you might have to do........it's not a big deal.

When I brought my antique(sigh) Kelderman back from the dead.....along with many other modifications, I included a provision for storing unneeded rake wheels on the rake itself.

It's a crazy way to live, but I guess we all do the best we can with what we have.

These rakes don't go for much because they're not worth much. https://www.purplewave.com/auction/251001/item/EP0510/Kelderman_Mfg-Hay_Equipment-Hay_Rake-Kansas

The rake in the above auction gallery is FOLDED AS NARROW AS IT WILL GO. This is one of the biggest drawbacks to these rakes. It took the master fabricators at Uranus Incorporated to solve the problem

So anyways...........some of this might give you some food for thought if you've never owned a wheel rake. Better to think first, rather than face problems later.

 

[David from Kansas]

The folding wheel rakes are about the only thing that is used around here, mostly H&S and a few others.

 

[Fixingfarmer]

I think you will like the parts availability at the local agco dealer better than just about anything

I think you will like the walking tandems on the rake wheels my Kuhn that is the same width should be 20 feet has that

It should be wide enough to grab 9 for sure my 8 foot 6 mower it does and sometimes part of the next one

If it doesn’t you can always take a bit less with the mower and make tighter rows.

Width wise on the back for the baler I would assume to be ok but I suppose the best thing you could do if it’s a neighbor is see if you can try it. I’m not sure how much adjustment there is that would be tight cramming it to 4 but you are going to find that with all of them.

If you are done baling for the year by the time you get it worked out you could always break open a small square and put half on each side of the rake and see where it comes out at the back for width. All you would need is a tape measure and the bale you want to feed in the small bunk next. Wouldn’t even have to come home for that and you could test it albeit over a limited area.

Would save the hassle of going to get the rake then taking it to the auction when it doesn’t work but they keep their value fairly well and you are buying one at the end of the season so you would likely come out alright there too