Hello everyone, Today I picked up a New Idea 403 Rake at auction VERY cheap. The rake appears to have either been rolled over OR possible a large beam fell on one side of it and broke the frame ( the part that goes from the hitch and arches back to the rear axle. The previous owner apparently liked it so much they fixed it all up and from a pretty good inspection they seem to have done a very admirable job. They welded a good bit of angle and readjusted the postion of the pulleys and also adjusted how the hitch set. I thought for the price.. Why not take it home and see what she will do. IT already has many newer teeth (maybe 30 or more, used just 4 or 5 years at most by the amoutn of wear)SO all that aside I brought it home and engaged the drive mechanism and she worked well. There are about 4 or 5 teeth that seem to catch on the basket in spots that seem to prevent it from a free flowing motion. So they will need replaced as they are bent up pretty good. and one of the basket rollers are bent. So now having said all that. THe bearings in the left side when facing (not the drive belt side) appear to be shot. The wheel that connects to the bars that actually do the raking is sloppy to the tune of 1/2" or more of play. The drive belt side seems quite solid and tight. My questions! 1. were these OK rakes? I do about 30 acres of hay a year so nothing to great. 2. Parts supplier? where can I get parts for these? 3. Mainly looking to get a spare belt although the one that is on it looks great. 4. Also the bearings... can I acquire those somewhere or are they NLA? 5. Lastly! do they make any type of treatment for that large belt to keep it in good shape? I have to say I"m pretty excited to try it out especially for the cheap cost and provide I don"t have to put a ton of Cash into it. Thanks everyone!
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