Rastrillo de heno de rueda de dedos 9LZ-6.0 | Rastrillo en V de 12 ruedas y 6 m

The single-tractor hay workflow

On a single-tractor operation, the 35 HP floor means the same 40 to 55 HP utility tractor handles every step in the hay program: connect the mower, cut; swap to the rake, windrow; swap to the forage baler, bale. The 9LZ-6.0 adds no tractor upgrade requirement to that workflow. Its ground-driven mechanism also leaves the rear PTO completely free — so if your workflow runs the baler and rake sequentially on the same machine, there is no PTO reconfiguration between implements.

🔄 Shorter Headland Turns

A 6-meter V-rake requires approximately 8 to 10 meters of headland turning radius at standard working speed — less than a 9-meter machine's 12 to 14 meter requirement. On fields with 20 to 30 meter headland strips (common on small rectangular fields), the shorter turning radius produces more effective field time per pass and less crop material driven over by the tractor during headland turns.

🚪 Field Gate Clearance

The 9LZ-6.0 folds to a compact transport width well within standard U.S. agricultural implement road limits. For operations with narrow field entry lanes or farm gates, the folded transport profile is easier to maneuver through restricted access points than wider 9-meter machines whose folded dimensions push the boundary of standard implement road limits in some states.

🏚 Implement Shed Storage

At ~800 kg and 6-meter working width, the 9LZ-6.0 stores more conveniently in a standard farm implement shed bay than commercial 9-meter machines. The folded footprint fits a standard single-bay implement shed without requiring a dedicated wide implement building — relevant on operations where covered implement storage space is limited.

🌿 Irregular Field Shapes

Fields with curved borders, diagonal corners, and irregular geometry are better served by a compact-width machine that can make shorter, tighter passes at the field boundary to minimize unraked strips. On a 20-acre irregular field, a 6-meter rake may require 3 to 4 fewer wide headland turns than a 9-meter machine, recovering material that would otherwise remain as headland windrow residue.

The Alfalfa Leaf Retention Advantage

For operations where alfalfa quality grade directly affects sale price, the transition from a rotary rake to the 9LZ-6.0 finger wheel design is often the single highest-ROI equipment upgrade available. Three to five percent less leaf shatter per cutting, multiplied across 150 bales per year at $10 to $15 per bale quality premium, produces a first-season recovery of $450 to $1,125 — real numbers from operations that have made this switch.

12 Bearings — Minimal Annual Upkeep

12 disc hub bearings are the machine's only mechanical wear components beyond spring tines. At typical small-farm annual hours (50 to 60 operating hours per year), bearing replacement intervals run 4 to 7 years — a maintenance profile more similar to a fertilizer spreader than a complex mechanical implement. Total annual service cost on a well-maintained 9LZ-6.0 at this utilization level typically runs under $200 per year.

Consistent Windrow — Better Bales

12 independently floating discs processing a continuous 6-meter mat produce a windrow of consistent density from the first meter to the last. Baler operators consistently report that bales from well-windrowed hay with a finger wheel V-rake are more uniformly round, denser, and easier to wrap consistently than bales produced from rotary-raked windrows where density peaks and troughs are common.

No PTO — Full Versatility

Ground-driven disc rotation means the 9LZ-6.0 can be towed by any tractor with a drawbar and one SCV hydraulic outlet — including tractors whose rear PTO is already occupied with another implement, or older tractors where PTO maintenance is a concern. The machine leaves the rear PTO completely free throughout operation.

Right Capital Cost for the Operation Scale

The 9LZ-6.0 is priced at the level appropriate for operations producing 50 to 200 hectares annually — not at the commercial-fleet price of 9-meter machines that are amortized over 400+ hectares per year. Buying the correctly-sized machine at the correct price point recovers capital faster and leaves budget for other farm investments that produce returns at the same operating scale.

Scalable Upgrade Path

When annual hay acreage grows past 200 to 250 hectares, the 9LZ-6.0 has demonstrated its value and the operation has the cash flow data to justify the step up to a 9-meter model. Starting with the right-sized 6-meter machine builds institutional knowledge of the finger wheel V-rake system — operating procedure, tine management, windrow-width tuning — that transfers directly to the larger machine when the time comes.

🔩 Daily During Cutting Season (every 8 hrs)

🔧 Per Cutting or Every 20–30 Hours

📅 Pre-Season Annual

Three years on a rotary star-wheel rake before switching to the 9LZ-6.0. The first cutting comparison told the whole story — I walked the field after the first 9LZ-6.0 pass and saw noticeably less leaf material on the ground compared to what the rotary rake left behind. My elevator hay analysis showed a 2.8 percentage point improvement in crude protein on the same alfalfa stand, same cuttings. That improvement pays the machine cost back in quality premiums in under two seasons on 85 acres at Grade 1 pricing. Operating on a 52 HP Massey Ferguson 1754E without any strain.

Single-tractor operation on a 48 HP Kubota MX5400 — the mower, the rake, and the 9YG-1.25 baler all run on the same machine. The 9LZ-6.0 was specifically chosen because it runs on the same tractor without any additional HP requirement. Three cuttings per year, about 100 bales per cutting, and the 9LZ-6.0 clears 40 acres (the field size I have in blocks) in 7 to 8 hours per cutting. Windrow quality is noticeably better than the old rotary rake — the baler fills more consistently and bale shapes are rounder.

Horse hay operation selling to boarding facilities and sport horse owners who pay premiums for high-leaf alfalfa. The 9LZ-6.0 was purchased primarily for the leaf retention advantage on second and third cut alfalfa, which commands the highest premiums. After the first season with the 9LZ-6.0, three of my regular buyers independently commented on the improvement in hay quality without knowing I'd changed equipment. That's the most credible endorsement I can give. Paired with a 40 HP Kubota B3350 — works on flat fields with care on the minor slopes.

Four stars rather than five simply because of the bearing greasing requirement — daily during cutting season is a discipline I had to build into my routine. Once I got that habit established, the machine has been trouble-free for two seasons. It handles wheat straw at 12 km/h as easily as the grass hay, which I was not expecting. The 6-meter width is right for our field sizes (20 to 35 acre blocks) — I can work all the headlands without the backing/repositioning that a wider machine would require on the odd-shaped fields in Whitman County. Running it behind a 58 HP John Deere 5065E.

Organic certified alfalfa sold directly to organic dairy and horse customers at significant premiums. At our price point, every percentage point of crude protein recovered through leaf retention translates directly to revenue. I was initially skeptical about buying any rake equipment from outside our usual dealer network, but the pre-purchase consultation with the foragebaler.com team was thorough — they confirmed our 42 HP tractor was compatible on our flat Lancaster County fields and walked me through the windrow width adjustment for our 9YG-1.0C baler. First season was seamless. The machine cost paid back in quality premiums before the third cutting.

70 acres of native grass and orchard grass for 45 beef cows, baled for winter feed. Not selling hay commercially — feeding it ourselves. The economics here are different: every bale I produce myself is a bale I don't pay $75 to $100 to buy. The 9LZ-6.0 was the upgrade from a worn-out old rotary rake. The improvement in windrow quality is immediately visible in how much less material we leave on the field after each pass. On our rocky Colorado mountain field edges, the spring tines deflect over rocks without breaking — something the old rigid-tine rotary rake could not do. Second season in with zero mechanical problems.