Raking Hay
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The above illustration shows the John Deere
No. 594 Steel-Wheel Side-Delivery Rake. The same brochure that this
picture came from also
shows the No. 594-LW (Low-Wheel Rake) with regular "fat"
implement tires. However, the rake that I have has high wheels with
rubber tires: 4.00 x 36!! This was just another option for the same machine. The parts for it DO show up in the parts catalog. Here are a few shots of me, raking the field the way it used to be done, with a 1940 John Deere Model B, and a No. 594 Rake. The tractor is a hand-start "early styled" type. The rake hitches to the drawbar with just a pin. There is no PTO coupling, because the rake is "ground-powered". In other words, the raking mechanism is geared to the wheels, and only turns when the rake is in motion. |
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The original brochure says "rake in the same direction as you mowed." That would mean going around the outside
of the field, in a clockwise direction, in the same pattern
as you did the mowing. The rake picks up a swath of hay about
10' wide and pushes it to your left, in a "windrow". Several people have written and advised me that it is better to go the OTHER way. I have tried it, and I agree. Those of you who have farmed all your lives will wonder why I am so amazed with such a primitive contraption. Those of you who have never farmed will be just as fascinated as I am!
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