Rake What's The Benefit of Wheels on a Landscape Rake?

[dshulsey]

I'm thinking of buying a landscape rake for seed prep and maintenance on my gravel driveway. My local dealer has a land pride LR15 without wheels...do I need to add them? Do they really make that much of a difference?

Thanks in advance for your help!

 

[M_Brown]

I have the wheels on mine and use it to maintain a gravel drive. The wheels allow me to put the rake all the way down and use the toplink to adjust the amount the tines contact the ground without having to raise and lower the whole rake and it seems to make a more precise adjustment. I am no expert by any means. I use the toplink adj to put more or less weight on the wheels which brings the tines in more or less contact with the road. In other words i use the wheels as a piviot to raise or lower the tine height. Without the wheels it will change height as the tractor moves over bumps and make it more difficult to make the road smooth. they also have spacers on them to raise or lower the rake above the ground. I can fill holes and make the road very smooth and it also brings up the gravel that is all packed in and makes it appear that gravel was added to the road bed. Works better in my opinion than a box scraper.

 

[sawduster98]

Ditto what M Brown said. One thing I'd add is to see if the wheels can be located on the front side of the rake as well as the normal backside position. I've seen some that do and some that don't have that feature. With wheels on the front you'll cover your tracks. You still use the wheels as a pivot point but now the rake can be a little more aggressive with a couple turns of the top link. Just my .02

 

[kebo]

They are generally known as gauge wheels. They are usually (but not always) adjustable which allows you to "gauge" the height of the tines above the grade that you are working.

 

[greg_g]

Mine are height adjustable and mount behind the tines. But about 95% of the time they're raised up and out of the way. They don't permit the kind of aggressive work I need out of the rake. So given the purposes for which I use the rake, they turned out to be a waste of money. Once I got more adept with the hydraulic position and draft controls, gauge wheels became redundant. The 5% of the I have used them in the past was either to level fresh gravel, or to wind-row cut weeds for burning. But it's been several years since they've been lowered. I've even given thought to simply taking them off and putting them on a shelf.

//greg//

 

[Rob-D]

I don't have them on my 6' Everything Attachments rake. I had them on my old York rake and never used them. If you have a tractor with an adjustable rock shaft hight I think you can get around the wheels.

Rob

 

[Army grunt]

Use it a few times an see. I take is youll get to know how to grade your drive an mostly everything else withought them. If it dosent work get them . What is the cost? $150.or so?
Army Grunt

 

[greg_g]

. If it dosent work get them . What is the cost? $150.or so?

I guess you don't own one. Gauge wheels can in some cases nearly double the price of the rake. That's why I consider mine to have been a waste of money

//greg//

 

[foggy1111]

I have an old Ford Landscape Rake. I have read about folks that like guage wheels on rakes.....but I have never had the need for them....and to me they would just be in the way.

I think how you set up the top-link can make a huge difference on rake operation. I'd try without wheels first. :thumbsup:

 

[dmay]

I'm thinking of buying a landscape rake for seed prep and maintenance on my gravel driveway. My local dealer has a land pride LR15 without wheels...do I need to add them? Do they really make that much of a difference?

Thanks in advance for your help!

Makes a difference if your tractor 3pt has no position control. I personally have never used guage wheels. If I want a light grading action I just turn the rake completely around so it floats on the tines. In this position you can add down force as well to increase grading action and not chew the ground up badly.

 

[cmhyland]

I have owned my rake with and without the gauge wheels... I went out and purchased them about 3 or 4 years after I bought the rake.... By the way my rake is a landpride LR15-72.

My opinion for what it's worth is this: if your grading driveways or preparing soil for lawns, this work can not be done well without gauge wheels. If you are cleaning debris away from stone walls and doing rough work like that... they will be in your way...

When I'm grading driveways... I often set the wheel on the edge to be deeper and adjust the lower link on that side down which allows me to maintain the crown on the driveway.

I would not purchase a rake without the gauge wheels....

Regards,
Chris

 

[vic4news]

As the previous poster said, I find them useful to keep a crown on the driveway.

When I put in my lawn, they helped to level the soil.

Vic

 

[zzvyb6]

The gauge wheels are usefull when leveling gravel (as in a roadway) when mounted at the rear behind the tines. Especially when the top link is off or a chain is used for lifting it. The wheels follow the gravel/sand/etc that has just been raked so that the tines keep producing a level surface independent of tractor pitch up or side roll. If you have ever used a straight blade or rake with a fixed top link, you would appreciate that the tractor following a roller coaster profile tends to increase the roller coaster effect rather than leveling it out as the rake travels. With sufficient loose material, you can 'store' plenty of gravel in front of the rake tines to fill in the pot holes and scrape off the mounds while the wheels set the desired grade or crown.

 

[devildog1]

As the previous poster said, I find them useful to keep a crown on the driveway.

When I put in my lawn, they helped to level the soil.

Vic

Hey Vic love the picture with the camping trailer! Don't get not better then that!
DevilDog

 

[Gizmo2]

You can get by without the wheels but I would not be without them for my rake. Makes a huge difference in finish work.

 

[JB4310]

I used mine today, still cleaning up after the nasty October storm.

I can't say how much better the wheels make the rake cause I've never used it with out the wheels. But man I really like what the rake can do.

The hydraulic top link also makes the rake so much more useful or at least I should say easier to use. I drop the 3pt all the way and adjust the rake with the top link, angled down and it digs like a blade, tilted back where the tines barely touch I can leave a beautiful finish. The wheels are always on the ground.

Greg mentioned that the wheels prevent the rake from working aggressively, but that has not been my experience, in fact I'm amazed how much rough work my rake will do. I can dig in and pull piles of gravel/dirt and feather it off using the HTL spreading the pile, leaving it where I need it. or pulling it into a pile.

I really love my 72 inch land pride with gauge wheels. If I had to choose just one out of my 3 basic 3pt implements, between the rake, the box scraper or the rear blade, it would be the rake without a doubt.

And yeah, definitely get the wheels.

JB

 

[slofr8]

It's already been said but I'll say it again.
I used mine with and without gauge wheels and had no opinion either way until I took my box blade and really worked up a section of road. Not happy with the finish, I hooked on to the rake and the wheels were on. Then it dawned on me. I set the left wheel about 8" lower then the right. (don't know if that's right or not but it worked) and drove up and down the road several times. I was left with the nicest crown you've ever seen. Sheds water real nice.
Dan.

 

[massey990]

I bought a Woods landscape (no wheels) rake at an auction this past spring. I was shocked to learn that a set of guage wheels (from Woods) cost considerably more than I paid for the rake.

So, I ordered just the brackets (from Messicks Parts) that hold the wheels and mount to the factory holes in the rake and bought some 8" wheels/castors from Northern Tools and made my own for less than $100.00, they work great for the final passes to really smooth out a gravel drive.

 

[greg_g]

Greg mentioned that the wheels prevent the rake from working aggressively...

Wheels prevent the rake from working as aggressively as a rake without wheels - or in my case, with them raised up out of the way.

//greg//

 

[KML]

As has been mentioned, I find them useful for restoring the crown (one set high, one low). They also really make a difference when working in loose material. A hydraulic top link and wheels on the rake are a great combination.