tow behind york rake

[RickS 70]

Has any one used a garden tractor sized york rake? The york rake I have in mind has two wheels to help support it. In some cases the rake portion can be replaced with a box blade. I need to clear out a horse pasture of rocks and small branches. There are too many rocks and small branches to pick up by hand. The town has a large tow behind york rake I could use, but I don't want my Ford Explorer in the pasture. I did perform a search for "york rake" but none of the postings returned really addressed my questions. Is someone has any other ideas, please post them. Thanks Rick.......

[comet66 0]

Why not pull the town's rake with your tractor? I think a rake is pretty pricey unless you have plenty of need for it.

[Guest]

So that's what they call that type of implement. How big of rocks will this thing handle?

[RickS 70]

The town's york rake is about 10 feet wide, and it very heavy. I don't think my 3416H would be able to move it. I cannot feel it behind the Explorer, but that has a V-8. Cost is a factor. But I could use the rake on my dirt driveway, horse ring, and private road. But that would mean less grador blade use. Rick........

[plastikosmd 952]

I have the one on our site as pictured here: http://www.simpletractors.com/attachments/york_rake.htm works well, b12 has no trouble dragging it, but is 4ft not 10ft, tilts, angles and elevate/down, so is good for even or un-even surfaces. I dont own a grader so this will suffice. Havent used much of late and with dozer coming (as posted in show and tell) may sell. But have had a lot of fun with it. scott

[RickS 70]

Scott, That is the unit I was thinking of! Do you think it will work picking up rocks (the size of softballs) and small branches / roots (about 1' - 3' long)? Even if the rake only moves the rocks and junk to one area I can then use my Johnny Bucket to pick them up. Currently the rocks are scattered all over the pasture. You mentioned you may be selling the unit. Can I be so forward to ask the selling price? If you prefer you can PM me the price. If you feel uneasy about giving out a price, no hard feelings, I will wait until (and if) you list it. Rick.......

[plastikosmd 952]

It should work well for those size rocks, sticks are a pain, it will move them but often if this a field type setting, the grass will entangle the sticks and you will miss more of them, tho i just get them the next pass. If it is dirt it is less of a problem. Have also used it for light dethaching as I was bored, and smoothing out ruts that i created in my lawn with my truck, (dont ask.) Unit is much heavier than appears. Once i get dozer back to home and see if i still have a need for it will send you a PM. scott

[RickS 70]

Scott, Thanks, that gives me hope. I will wait for your PM. Where is the dozer located? You mentioned a 12 hour drive. Rick.........

[BrianP 1]

Rick, I used one just like Scott has for much the same purpose you have in mind. The rake I used (borrowed from my Uncle) worked pretty good for gathering rocks. Sticks were a real bear. They got stuck in the tines and were hard to remove. The one I used (this was back in the mid 70's mind you) had the optional flip-down grader blade plate that swung down in front of the tines. In that mode it was great for leveling out our gravel driveway. If you use it where there is grass or other groundcover, the rake will grab it also. From my experience I wouldn't invest in one, but that's just me. Hope this helps.

[MPH 12]

I have a 3pt version I modified for my B-112 first and now use it on the 4040. Think in ways the wheeled models would be better most of the time as the mounted model digs into soft dirt. I use it mainly for rock removal, works best if the ground is really hard. Fresh tilled dirt wind up pulling too much dirt to get the rocks out. Kinda a 'better then nothing' tool for rock removal in my opion.

[JohnFornaro 38]

In the Northern Hydraulics (Northern Tool & Equipment?) full catalog, under ATV, you might find a pull behind york rake, maybe 4 feet wide. It's about $450, as I recall, and it's not necessarily there in every catalog. Even tho it's made for an ATV, it basically has a garden tractor hitch.

[Tom_Byrne 0]

I just borrowed A York rake like the one Brian described to do my back driveway. Had a load of QP delivered and A friend came up and spread it with his loader. I used the rake to pull out the big stuff then dropped the blade to smooth it out. Worked great for that, but with the tines so close together on this particular rake it would be tough to use in a field for brush and sticks, I think.

[RickS 70]

Currently my field in just dirt, no grass yet. I did plant winter rye to help prevent runnoff. I want to get the rocks and branches cleared out before next summer. The plan is to plant a year round grass the horses can eat. I have located a 6 foot york rack I can rent. The owner is aware of my two tractors and thinks the 3416H can pull it. I may rent that one and try it. Please keep the ideas comming. Rick.........