Rake Caddy vs. V-Rake

[cornshucker]

I would like to hear the pros and cons of a rake caddy with two side delivery rakes vs. a V-Rake am considering going to a rake caddy but can probably get by with less money buying a V-Rake. But like the job that the side delivery rakes do.

 

[derekuk101]

We use a v-rake. most of our ground is flat and we only have fescue orchard grass mix. It works like a champ in our situation. The turns can be a little tricky.

 

[farmerjim]

i think that w/ using either one of those caddies or v-rake you need to take into consideration what type of grass your baling/chopping and also what type of baler you have. most of the v-rakes i've seen make a rather high and thick windrow and if you have an older small sq baler that doesn't have much feed capacity you'll be baling even slower than you would if you just used a rotary rake or side delivery. the caddy if i'm not mistaken allows you to run 2 side deliverys and would probably allow you to rake in a shorter time, also w/ a caddy if you have small fields they can be a pain to turn, but you could also just un hitch the rear rake from the caddy and go to town w/ just 1 rake, then switch to 2 rakes on a big field. some of the v rakes are rather large and may also give you trouble turning in a small field. personally i like the side deliverys and the rotary rakes, but in some areas a v-rake may be better suited.

 

[funny farmer]

I don't own either, but I would think a v-rake would be faster to set up between fields and transport. And you can adjust them to make your windrow wider or narrower. I dream of someday owning a v-rake, but for now I have to stick with what I've got.

 

[cornshucker]

The round baler and the square baler we use both have the capacity to handle the wide heavy windrows and the caddy we are considering getting is hydraulically operated so set-up between fields is no problem. the only thing keeping me from going to the caddy instead of the V-Rake is that the left hand side delivery rakes are somewhat hard ti find and are pricey at best.

 

[zzvyb6]

I presume this is all about raking 2 windrow cuts into one for baling/chopping. But, why not consider both a front rake and a side delivery rake running offset to combine the rows? A front mounted hydraulic driven rake allows greater freedom to move into the field, you don't trample the hay when the cutting is spread out, and you run in the same track as you mowed. The hitch for the rear rake is a bit unusual but the setup is just like an offset mower or baler.

 

[chh]

I have used V rakes for years on grass hay. They are fast, cheap(relatively speaking), and easy to maintain. They do not do well in extremely heavy hay and the do not do well on sharp corners. We rake around the field 2 or 3 times and then go to a straight back and forth line pattern. In 99% of the hay we bale it works great. Turned 2000 or so round bales raking with it last year. My current rake is a HS 10 set to make a 4' windrow so I don't have to weave with the baler.

 

[deereguy]

We have a New Holland Twin Rower "caddy" with two left handed Hesston bar rakes, this set up works well but I don't have to move it down roads to other fields, that would be a pain. What's nice about the caddy is you can rake one rake in front of the other to make a double row if the windrows are light or flip the caddy and make two individual rows if the windrows are heavy. I saw a "V" rake in action this year and it worked well on the lighter windrows but he said they still had a bar rake if the hay got rained on or heavy dew and they needed to turn it 1/2 over. Ideally- a "turbo" rake would do VERY well, but they are pricey!! It's a big (10' or so) "wheel" that fluffs the hay and puts it in a windrow. A double rake set up this way is a REAL beast. Krone and a few others I believe make 'em.

Good Luck!!