First Of Its Kind 3-Pt Double Rake

First of its kind 3-Pt Double Rake HAY & FORAGE HARVESTING Rakes (44) 14-4-34 "There's not a machine like it on the market," says A.J. Walterscheids, Carlsbad, N.M., who modified a pair of side delivery rakes to mount on a 3-pt. frame. The rakes pull windrows from two 14-ft. swaths into a single giant windrow. Walterscheids says the thing he likes the best about his double rake is its maneuverability. "The rakes fold in against the tractor for transport. They fold right out in the field and you can start raking right away without getting off the tractor. Makes it easy to move from field to field, which is important to us since we farm terraced fields and have to move around a lot." The double rake started out as two separate 8-ft. Ferguson rakes. Walterscheids totally disassembled both rakes, extending each to 10 ft., 4 in. in length and rebuilding all components. He reversed one rake so it would run in the opposite direction, and replaced the pfo-drives on both rakes with hydraulic motors that drive the original 20-in. dia. pulleys. He built 3-pt. frame out of 6-in. dia. pipe and support arms that run out above the rakes out of 4-in. pipe. Hydraulic cylinders fold the rakes in alongside tractor for a transport width of 14 ft. "I spent about $1,000 in materials and did a lot of machining and welding. We can easily throw two windrows together at the rate of 15 acres per hour. A commercial rake this size costs $12,000 or more and won't work as slick as this one. It's the only 3-pt. rake of this size I've seen," says Walterscheids. He has already contacted Deere & Co. and Ford New Holland. Both manufacturers have expressed an interest in his ma-chine and plan to test the design. Walterscheids also made a nifty windrow turner that mounts on the side of his IH Super C tractor. "It's an old Ford rake, about 8 1/2 ft. long. It's mounted at a sharp angle so rakes just 3 ft., which is just enough to turn over a windrow. I travel at 15 to 20 mph. Works great. Tines at the rear end of the rake hold the windrow in place so it just turns over once." The rake attaches to front of tractor frame and to the rear axle. "I moved the wheels in and put a bearing on the end of the axle for the rake to pivot on when it's lifted." The windrow flipper is pto-driven by a shaft that runs from the rear of the tractor up to the front of the rake via two U-joints. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, A.J. Walterscheids, 3129 HeplerRoad, Carlsbad, N.M. 89220 (ph 505 236-6241).

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