mlhunter
Silver Member
Last fall I used the PT 425 60" rake to de-thatch my yard and scratch the surface at the same time for over seeding. The effort was successful but I could not use the rake in free float as the rake doesn't have enough weight to pull it down to the ground. Using draft control the rake followed the tractor angle versus the ground angle and it was difficult to keep consistent pressure on the tines; some places I went too deep and other places I barely scratched the surface.
I could live with this for occasional yard and cleanup work but I would like to use the rake to control some prescribed pasture burning next spring. After cutting around the field with the brush cutter, I would like to use the rake to move all loose fuel toward the edge where the fire would be. However, I would not want to use the draft control for a larger raking project for that. I need to to have a way to keep the rake on the ground without constantly fiddling with the hydraulic controls.
To solve this issue I would like to build a rack where I can easily add variable weight such as concrete or rock blocks or something similar to the rake. That would keep it on the ground in free float with adequate pressure for the job.
Has anyone determined how much weight is needed for this and what the best placement would be? Has anyone built anything like this already? Any thoughts on this would be appreciated!
My other option would be to find a used pull type side delivery rake. If you think I'd be better off going that route I'd like to hear that also.
I could live with this for occasional yard and cleanup work but I would like to use the rake to control some prescribed pasture burning next spring. After cutting around the field with the brush cutter, I would like to use the rake to move all loose fuel toward the edge where the fire would be. However, I would not want to use the draft control for a larger raking project for that. I need to to have a way to keep the rake on the ground without constantly fiddling with the hydraulic controls.
To solve this issue I would like to build a rack where I can easily add variable weight such as concrete or rock blocks or something similar to the rake. That would keep it on the ground in free float with adequate pressure for the job.
Has anyone determined how much weight is needed for this and what the best placement would be? Has anyone built anything like this already? Any thoughts on this would be appreciated!
My other option would be to find a used pull type side delivery rake. If you think I'd be better off going that route I'd like to hear that also.