Frontier V rake revisited

Fred Werring · Aug 1, 2015

A month ago I posted on here asking opinions about frontier v-rakes. Wound up buying it.

The good news is, it works well, raked 8 acres of some really heavy second cut clover today. It was over the push bar on the front of my haybine, and thick, all the rain made it really come on.

I like the way it raked, just kind of scoots the hay over, doesn't beat it like my bar rakes, should hang on to more leaves with it.

I understand the concerns about bunching up in really heavy hay, had it happen once while running over a previously made windrow, have to see how it does next spring on first cut grass hay.

Was hoping it be OK, had a repair on it the guy never mentioned in his ad, and needed a rake wheel. Wound up giving him $1400 for it, another $138 for the wheel, an hour and a half adjusting it per the owners manual that came with it (and a couple more in the field tweaks), and it rakes hay.

I'm satisfied with it.

Fred

original post

casecollectorsc · Aug 2, 2015

Must be several companies that make a wheel rake with that design.
Bought a 3 point mounted v rake that is identical for $400 a couple years ago.
It's designed to take one rake completely off and have a single 5 wheel rake for road ditches or small fields.

Josh in Pa · Aug 2, 2015

I wouldn't get rid of the bar rake. In heavy hay I don't think the wheel rake will work well, especially on turns. Nice for later cuttings though.
Josh

RedGreenGuy · Aug 2, 2015

Did custom baling for 10 yrs. Had 3pt wheel rake with same wheels you have. Raked 1000's of acres. Turning corners just takes learning to make them long turns, Tried to cut ends across fields first so most cutting was long ways to reduce turning with rake. Also made baling much easier without turns

notjustair · Aug 2, 2015

Raking hay is an art. I take pride in raking so that I don't have to do much turning with the baler and the field doesn't need cleaned up when I am done. The only thing that is tough with wheel rakes is the tendency to make meatballs if you hit a windrow just right. You can go with them combining two, you can go 90 degrees off to make the bales come out better (hill), but if you take the hay and combine two at a 45 it is meatball city. I just fly over them with the 435 baler. It's kind of a challenge to see how she does.

Spent five hours raking today and then baling. Not too bad with cab tractors. Thank heavens for air conditioning.

JDseller · Aug 3, 2015

I sold my bar rake 15 years ago and have never missed it. The wheel rakes of today will rake heavy hay if you keep the angle steep and do not try to rake too wide.

Fred Werring · Aug 4, 2015

Not figuring on getting rid of the bar rakes.

There's times, especially on second cutting, where I might be putting 4 mower swaths together to make bigger windrows, less time on the baler. Can't see how to do that easily with this v rake, (unless I'm missing something?) might as well use the bar rakes. And it's always good to have back up equipment...not like anything ever breaks...

Only done 1 field with it, just 8 acres with a lot of corners and pockets, need to play with it more to figure out how to make it clean. Should work easier on the bigger square fields I'll be
baling in a couple weeks.

Was told by the local guys to rake the middle of the field first, then go around the outside to clean up the windrow ends and loops. Would have worked OK I think, except I worked from the inside out, then wound up with 1 mower swath along the fence, and a full windrow on the other side of the rake. Thats when I found out firsthand about the bunching problem when too much hay hits the frame. There is a learning curve, what works, what doesn't.

Fred

Fred Werring · Aug 4, 2015

I'm jealous, a cab tractor is on my list, not enjoying the dust and heat as much as I used to.

Fred

Texasmark1 · Aug 4, 2015

I don't think you can compare what you show in the picture to the 4 wheel model of which I have had the most displeasure. Totally different animal.

Matter of fact I was in town yesterday and on the way saw a guy running just such a rake as yours at a good clip, heavy material and was making a nice job out of it.

I don't know how that would do on a light crop like Coastal Bermuda with the wind blowing hard, which it is said that the wind blows more around Dallas than Chicago. On the few times I have attempted to use my 4 wheel, raking into the wind just made it glue itself to the wheel. The parallel bar has no problems with that.

Other thing is seeing custom guys going down the road, that rake of yours packs well where the bar doesn't unless you mortgage your farm to buy one of the big JDs that has 2 in 1 and they fold back to fit in one lane of traffic.

Fred Werring · Aug 5, 2015

Late 60's early 70's, we had an old steel wheel bar rake, did a good job but would about shake itself to death trying to pull it up
the road to another field, couldn't go much faster than raking speed. (they were a LOT more lenient about steel wheels on the road
back then)

Dad decided to get modern, bought an Oliver (if I'm remembering right) wheel rake, had 4 or 5 wheels, they had like a masonite type
filler in the rake wheels.

Most didn't work right piece of junk ever. Went back to using the old bar rake. And bought newer bar rakes.

Which is why I've waited until now to buy a modern wheel rake, just couldn't believe a wheel rake would work...but it does.

Big test will be next spring in heavy first cutting stuff.

Fred

Frontier V rake revisited

Fred Werring

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casecollectorsc

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Josh in Pa

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RedGreenGuy

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notjustair

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JDseller

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Fred Werring

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Fred Werring

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Texasmark1

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Fred Werring

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