How to use a side delivery hay rake

How to use a side delivery hay rake.

[@forreststevenson5052]

I'm 75 yrs old and raked 1,000's of acres of hay. The method you described, using the left discharge rake, advancing on the left and returning on the opposite side will give 2 windrows and a void where you say would be a double windrow. To actually double the windrow, go up on the right side and come back the windrow on your left.

[@nalley6815]

Hope you’re still doing good

[@mx500a4]

Awesome video, easy to understand and straight to the point. I just bought 40 acres a John Deere 50, a sickle, and a side delivery rake. Never done this before in my life, thank god for KZbin.

[@BillTheTractorMan]

Glad I could help. I really enjoyed making hay when I was on the farm. I look forward to getting my own land in the future. Thanks for watching!

[@bjre.wa.8681]

I had a NO. 15 IH rake and fixed and sold it. It was a real learning experience as it pretty much just roped the windrows. I bought a new rotary rake that fluffed the hay much better.

[@BillTheTractorMan]

The Minnesota and New Holland rakes are really good, I'm not much a fan on new idea, IH or John Deere rakes. I'm actually modifying a JD rake this afternoon hoping it will make a fluffier windrow.

[@m16ty]

That is kind of a over simplification of the art of raking. If you have plenty of room at the ends of the field, you can do as you subscribe, but if you don't have enough room to run the windrows out on the ends, you either end up with big balls of hay or missed hay at the ends. It's really a art to rake a field to make it easy on the baler.

[@jsi4452]

Very cool. I have a David Bradley tedder almost identical to yours. It's been a while since I've used it. There is a lever that lets the inner wheel turn and not turn when moving it somewhere. I can't for the life of me find that lever. Any clue where it would be located? Thanks love your video.

[@highcking]

On mowing ... please explain how you can turn the tractor and haybine tighter and tighter all the way to the center. On a ten acre field I can generally make between 5 and 10 rounds before I have to either use slow 270 degree turns, stress the daylights out of the haybine driveline on 90 degree turns, or switch to mowing down and back (which risks leftover triangles).

[@BillTheTractorMan]

highcking I'm not the most familiar with haybines. We used mounted sickle mowers and a pull behind. Those handled the 90 degree turns well. I imagine if you are unable to turn right enough just going up and down the field is your best bet. I was told farming is not about have the best fields, it's about doing the best you can given the fields you have. I was told this with a religous perspective, how ever I think it speaks very true in all situations.

[@jasonmushersee]

that's how do it. sometimes in a meadow with big trees everywhere and the windrows are all circles around these trees i just try to make as many straight rows as possible especially if the baler has a kicker. let me ask you this... when a tornado or straight line winds deposit storm debris all over the just cut hay field do you pick it all up before you start raking or do it as you go? i ask because the people i work for never do and it's all in the round bales then feed bunks. i did'nt always have a 4-wheeler and carrying my neighbors picnic tables/chairs on my lap while raking is pain! -_-

[@BillTheTractorMan]

we don't have much for trees near our hay fields, so we don't have to pick up stuff.

[@sirjaymes347]

rake is leaving a lot of hay on ground. I grew up and still use same pinwheel rake. Was taught to rake outward or in case of light hay and double windrows, with the last wheel basically kicking the whole windrow onto bare ground. Cleaner pick up on baler, better feeding... Basically like twisting a rope out of the hay... so it all links together. Hayed commercially with Pop and never left any hay on ground after baling, well maybe a pitchfork or two full extremely scattered. Watched guy in PA mowing one day, leaving rows of hay because he tried to mow too fast with obvusouly bad sickel bar setup. Next day raked and left half of swath, plus the standing grass. Field shoule be clean when you are done

[@BillTheTractorMan]

we have a lot of issues with this rake, the slip clutch is shot so it's not spinning the bars fast enough. our ground is really rough too in this field, WI it was set a little higher than usual.

[@lazio7495]

Don't you need to start counter clockwise first when you cut hay? Only time you don't need to go counterclockwise is when your cutting with a self propelled mower😉

[@irenejackson2803]

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