Pulled the trigger on a Cyclone rake

[Mustangous]

Well after going back and forth between the DR Power and the cyclone rake, I decided to order the Cyclone Rake XL yesterday. DR has some serious deals that are ending very soon and I was almost stupid not to go with them, but i decided the cyclone rake because it would be better for me.

The main reasons i went with the cyclone rake was that it holds 415 gal over the 245(fixed hitch) dr, and the huge 8" deck discharge tube would be good with a 54" deck, and the size is much smaller then the dr. But i would think that the DR would be much less dustier during dry leaf pick up because of the top intake on the container area, which makes it much taller, but a benifit in that area.

Well I ordered their new XL series rake and it has a 9 hp engine and is supposed to have a much bigger impeller/housing, therefore making the suction much better. Well I should get it some time next week and will give everyone an update on it.

[Rara Avis]

Well after going back and forth between the DR Power and the cyclone rake, I decided to order the Cyclone Rake XL yesterday. DR has some serious deals that are ending very soon and I was almost stupid not to go with them, but i decided the cyclone rake because it would be better for me.

The main reasons i went with the cyclone rake was that it holds 415 gal over the 245(fixed hitch) dr, and the huge 8" deck discharge tube would be good with a 54" deck, and the size is much smaller then the dr. But i would think that the DR would be much less dustier during dry leaf pick up because of the top intake on the container area, which makes it much taller, but a benifit in that area.

Well I ordered their new XL series rake and it has a 9 hp engine and is supposed to have a much bigger impeller/housing, therefore making the suction much better. Well I should get it some time next week and will give everyone an update on it.

Well the one difference that I see between the two units is the Cyclone impellor doesn't seem to chop the leaves up as the DR is designed to do (10 to 1 reduction)...If that obeservation is true, then the DR 245 gals are really something like 2450 gallons of unchopped leaves...To confirm this I've sent off questions to both DR and Cyclone....

[Mustangous]

Well the one difference that I see between the two units is the Cyclone impellor doesn't seem to chop the leaves up as the DR is designed to do (10 to 1 reduction)...If that obeservation is true, then the DR 245 gals are really something like 2450 gallons of unchopped leaves...To confirm this I've sent off questions to both DR and Cyclone....

If you ever mowed over leaves before you would see that the deck greatly reduces leaves to tiny little pieces. I believe with both units, most of the mulching and choping is done with the mower deck and very little with the impeller. The cyclone rake says it has great mulching power that reduces many times its volume. It just doenst throw out any claims. Again i believe the majority is done by the deck.

Let me know what is the out come of that answer. I really didnt hear anyone on here that owned a DR, just some people saying that they should of got a DR. You do know that dr's big big sale is ending very soon? I would call and not wait for email responces...

[Rara Avis]

If you ever mowed over leaves before you would see that the deck greatly reduces leaves to tiny little pieces. I believe with both units, most of the mulching and choping is done with the mower deck and very little with the impeller. The cyclone rake says it has great mulching power that reduces many times its volume. It just doenst throw out any claims. Again i believe the majority is done by the deck.

Let me know what is the out come of that answer. I really didnt hear anyone on here that owned a DR, just some people saying that they should of got a DR. You do know that dr's big big sale is ending very soon? I would call and not wait for email responces...

DR is always having sales...

[SkunkWerX]

I built my own unit using a 10HP Cyclone Rake Impeller housing.

Forget about lack of chopping, that big impeller spinning around at 3000 rpm destroys dry leaves. I had contemplated cutting Vee grooves in the top edge of the impeller for some shredding action, but, it's not needed. To truly shred and get a big ratio reduction you would need flails, hammers and a grate they move through.
Honestly, I don't get the reduction I would with my leaf shredder, but it's pretty good.

If you are concerned with doing some drastic leaf reduction, do a pre-grind:

Make a blocking plate for your mower deck discharge.
On a dry day mow, using the blocking plate. This will grind leaves at about a 5:1 reduction. Set deck high enough that it doesn't clog if grass is still tall and green.

If the grass was green and tall, and you cut more than 1 inch off, then wait one day for the grass to dry a bit.
Install your vac Unit, and go back over the area, the unit will vac up all the stuff you grinded the day before, and will go 2 to 3 times the distance before needing to be unloaded, since you did the Pre-grind chore a day or two prior.

As dry as it has been around here, I'm not even going to bother with the pre-grind. The dry leaves will self-destuct inside the impeller housing just like you crushed them with your hand.

That 9HP unit will be plenty powerful, my 10HP unit is quite powerful, as it was able to lift my plywood box up several inches. I repalced the entire top with 1/2" x 1/2" mesh and run the unit at 3/4 speed.

Good luck, sounds like you got a nice machine there!

[Rara Avis]

I built my own unit using a 10HP Cyclone Rake Impeller housing.

Okay...so when are you going to start marketing it?...



Mustangous
Cyclone just called...between the mower and the impeller...they're leaning towards between 8 to 10 to 1...so they're the same...and Cyclone is way cheaper in price...

[BrianW]

I like my Cyclone because it folds flat and hangs on the wall when I am not using it!

[Mustangous]

Okay...so when are you going to start marketing it?...



Mustangous
Cyclone just called...between the mower and the impeller...they're leaning towards between 8 to 10 to 1...so they're the same...and Cyclone is way cheaper in price...

I have not been following dr, but iI never seen them have free shipping on everything, extra year warranty, and discounted price on theunits. It brought the 2 very simular in price. Again I had their literature from the summer than they sent me a sale paper, same prices on the net now. But I liked the cyclone rake better.

I ended up getting the dual wheels upgrade(figured a lot of weight, 415 gal worth on a swivel wheels), and the bagger system. So I can't wait to suck up some leaves....

Good luck on your decision and let us know how you make out....

[Rara Avis]

I have not been following dr, but iI never seen them have free shipping on everything, extra year warranty, and discounted price on theunits. It brought the 2 very simular in price. Again I had their literature from the summer than they sent me a sale paper, same prices on the net now. But I liked the cyclone rake better.

I ended up getting the dual wheels upgrade(figured a lot of weight, 415 gal worth on a swivel wheels), and the bagger system. So I can't wait to suck up some leaves....

Good luck on your decision and let us know how you make out....

So did you get the super hoses or the regular?

Also, after you use post how much dust you experienced?

Turns out after full pricing...its a coin-flip...

Cyclone DR
$1595 $1619
Dual wheels 99 0
Vacuum 179 179
Power unload 174 169
Mower Adapter 74.50 74.50
jack stand 69.50 0 included

Total 1942 2041.50
Pickup travel 270 miles 20 miles

[Mustangous]

So did you get the super hoses or the regular?

The XL comes with the Tuff-Pro Urethane Hose for the mower deck free.

Would you have to pay tax @ Dr if you picked it up? because with CR you do and the shipping would be almost the same, so it doesnt pay to pick it up.

Also the DR you are looking at MAY have the Chipper too....