[IT Excavate]

I'm new to using the power rake and was hoping to get some tips from you experienced operators. I know it's capabilities, but I also know it's tricky to use efficiently. I have some projects to practice on this winter and any operating info will help. I'm new to the forum and just want to say thanks to those that contribute, It really is helpful and I've learned a lot. It's appreciated. Thanks

[Dale Wiley]

Ohh.. my bad....I thought we were going to talk about motorcycles..

[NCSULandscaper]

are you using this on the front of a skid steer or the back of a tractor?

If its the skid steer model i can pretty much tell you anything you want about how to use it correct.

[Stonehenge]

Same here, re: skid steers usage.

It's a tricky animal on the front of a skid steer, and will take you a little time to become profisient. But there I things I (and probably NCSU) learned the hard way that would have taken a lot less time had someone been able to tell us.

[IT Excavate]

It's for a skidsteer, I wrestled with tractor vs. skidsteer and decided on skidsteer because they are so versatile. I prefer tractor mounted though, so I know it will be tougher to master.

[NCSULandscaper]

I think the trick to the skid steer model is to run the power rake with the front wheels of the skid steer off the ground, and use the castor wheels on the power rake itself. Then you can slightly curl the power rake to adjust your depth when you make your first pass to clean up all debris and cover rocks, etc..........then i make a second pass with the rake barely making contact with the ground to get a perfectly smooth surface........

[4seasons]

IT Excavate

when I use one around here in the clay and weed infested lawns I usually have to move pretty slow at first, with the front tilted up more so you are using mostly the bar.(and the rpms up almost the whole way). After I break the soil up enough or get most of the weeds out of the way, I can start pulverizing at a higher rate of speed, the front is then tilted down more so its resting on the tires and you would be fluffing only the top inch or so. This is when I also angle the rake to windrow stones for pickup. last we rake out our tracks after going a couple different directions. Try to ride on the previous track like you would when you mow, so as to cut down on the amount of tracks left behind. hope this helps.


Bruce

[Stonehenge]

I've broken lotsa U-bolts on the arms of those wheels from putting a lot of pressure on them, so we try to keep all 4 skidder wheels down.

My tips have to do with how you plan out the area.

I like to work in rectangular sections, starting at the furthest point away from my escape point (where I leave the dirt and enter the street). Wherever I start, I start by rolling the rake forward and driving forward - pushing soil as I go. Doing this allows you to fine grade the property more quickly than if you started by pulling. Once I've made my first push, I pull back along that same path. I take that pulled soil, skoot over a bit, and push - get to the end and pull back along that same path. Once that area has received enough push/pull cycles to get close to finished grade, I'll carefully drive down to the end of that rectangle and only pull. I'll drive past the end of that rectangle and drop the soil (to be picked up later), skoot over, drive down and do the next light pull. Reach the end of that rectangle and it should be ready. Then I move to the next rectangular section....

This isn't exactly how we do it (describing it exactly would take about a thousand more words), as I didn't include adding topsoil, when hand raking is done, etc. But you can get the gist of it.

Hope that helps.

[IT Excavate]

Thanks for the tips, that gives me a good starting point to build on.

[NCSULandscaper]

Originally posted by Stonehenge
I've broken lotsa U-bolts on the arms of those wheels from putting a lot of pressure on them, so we try to keep all 4 skidder wheels down.

Really? I havent had a problem at all with that happening. Maybe your skid weighs more than mine. Mine is a 236 CAT, i believe it comes in around 7500lbs.

[Pelican]

I run mine the same as NCSULandscaper with a Cat 248. I make a rough pass first, churning, leveling and getting the big rocks out. I do this going forward with the box wings to the front. I might make a few passes in this manner until the grade is where I want it. Then I put the wing on the back of the rake and start making final passes in reverse, just skimming the surface to remove the rocks. Again, you might need to make a few passes depending on how many rocks there are.

I think there's a myth around that you can prep a lawn in one pass with these things, but to do things properly you might make 10 passes over some areas.

[NCSULandscaper]

Originally posted by Pelican

I think there's a myth around that you can prep a lawn in one pass with these things, but to do things properly you might make 10 passes over some areas.

LOL yea that doesnt happen 9 times out of 10......

[IT Excavate]

couple more questions?? For final do you use it in float or keep it pinned in lock position? Also do you adjust the tire heighth to dig in more? Mine doesn't set very low without tipping it down and then the tires hold it up. Prob stupid questions, but then I could spend hours being really stupid by not asking!! Thanks

[Stonehenge]

Ours is always in the locked position - floating position moves around too much, gives an undulating grade. As for depth of the drum, for us it all has to do with the angle of attack. Turning the wheels up to allow the drum to dig in fully will cut into the soil more, but you run the risk of stopping the drum dead in it's tracks and blowing a hydro line.

And yeah, we need lots more than one pass to grade. Minimum of 6, sometimes twice that. But still much better and faster than a bucket and rakes.

@Pelican and NCSU, We run the rake on a 6635 sxt Gehl - not much heavier than your Cat (maybe a thousand pounds when you include our weight kits), so I'm not sure why we're breaking U bolts and you aren't - we sent one of the arms flying when both bolts let go and it got caught in the drum - pitoooey!