Rake widths in excess of 36 feet are available, which permits the merging of two passes of an 18-foot mower-conditioner. The twin or double rake design has become more popular to meet the needs of large hay production systems. Inadequate tension will cause more rapid tooth wear and greater contamination of the forage with soil, rocks, and other debris. Excessive tension may cause the wheel to float over the crop and leave some crop behind. The rake wheels are supported with springs having adjustable tension. These rakes are known for gently handling the swaths. As a result, wheel rakes are frequently limited to raking drier crops that will be harvested as dry hay. These machines may have difficulty moving wet, heavy swaths or windrows. Rather, forward motion of the tractor and the engaging of the rake wheels in the crop and/or soil drive the rake wheels. Wheel rakes are not powered directly by the tractor PTO or hydraulic system. Each of these machines has strengths and weaknesses which allow the producers to select a machine that best fits their production system needs. The machines include rakes (wheel, parallel bar and rotary), mergers, and tedders- inverters used to manipulate swathes. Moving the swath from wet to dry ground.Inverting the crop to allow wet forage on the bottom of the swath to be exposed to sun and wind for faster drying, and.Merging swaths together to match the windrow density with the harvester or baler capacity,.Creating a narrow swath in windrow sufficiently narrow to meet the width of the harvester or baler pickup,.Rakes/mergers are often used for four purposes: Numerous studies have provided results on equipment performance and selection that fit specific forage harvesting systems. Selecting the proper equipment and operating it correctly will ensure high quality hay and forage with a cost effective harvesting system. Hay and forage producers have a wide variety of equipment options for raking and merging swaths or windrows. Ronald T. Schuler, Extension Agricultural Engineer
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