Best Tow Behind Leaf Collection?

[Johnkn]

Looking for a powered tow-behind lead collection system for my lawn tractor. trying to stay around $1500 or so. The DR looks promising. Any suggestions? having a collapsable enclosure is important to me for off season storage. Thanks

 

[leonz]

Looking for a powered tow-behind lead collection system for my lawn tractor. trying to stay around $1500 or so. The DR looks promising. Any suggestions? having a collapsable enclosure is important to me for off season storage. Thanks

Look at the Cyclone Rakes first as they have been around the longest
and they are very simple to use and maintain and have collapsable collection
trailers that connect directly to the tractors rear frame eliminating turning issues with a regular "trailer".

 

[4570Man]

I have a cyclone rake that I don't like. I can't knock it too hard though. We suck several hundred loads of leafs a year and it has lasted over 10 years. The motor on it is a pile of crap. It leaks oil terrible, and the starting pull cord kicks back nearly breaking your hand.

 

[KennyG]

I have a Cyclone Rake also. It's a quality piece of equipment. I think the DR, trac-vac and others are OK, but the CR is a step above. The new ones have the latest B&S engines which, in general, are highly thought of. The solid mount (rather than trailer hitch) has pluses and minuses. Doesn't really matter to me since I can back a trailer. What I like best is the fold up design which allows it to hang on the wall and take up very little storage space.

 

[rswyan]

Best in my opinion would be one that is self-dumping.

What that essentially means is that the floor of the collection hopper is fixed at an angle ... say, 45 degrees or so ... and there is a rear door, which, when raised, folds up out of the way and just allows the leaves/grass clippings to fall out on their own.

These are available (Toro and others) but are typically marketed as commercial turf management (aka golfcourses) products rather than a home owner item (with a price tag to go with them)

You likely won't find one within your budget of $1500 (at least not new) but if you're handy and can weld/fabricate you could probably build a real nice one for that amount.

That's what I plan on doing.

 

[KennyG]

Best in my opinion would be one that is self-dumping.

With the Cyclone Rake, you have to get off the tractor to raise the bed, but it tilts to 45 deg and then you can just drive off as it dumps.

 

[4570Man]

With the Cyclone Rake, you have to get off the tractor to raise the bed, but it tilts to 45 deg and then you can just drive off as it dumps.

I have never experienced that self dumping action. Leafs are packed in their like sardines. I have to rake at least half of them out before it will dump. If I do a pre mulching with another lawnmower they pack even tighter.

 

[Ed of all trades]

Rswyan I agree with you! I have been looking at the Happy homeowner trailers that are being talked about and can't see trying to dig the leafs or grass out of them. I hope to make a semi-mounted, pto, self-unloading vac in the next few years. if you have a few leaves it would be ok but if you have LEAVES then something more is needed. Ed

 

[yankeerider]

I have both a self dumping Giant Vac and the new (purchased last fall) DR vac. Both empty themselves very well. The only time I ever had to dig leaves out was when I left the Giant Vac full for a week before emptying. I consider the emptying effort equal between the two. There's more separate actions on the DR, but the Giant Vac requires more strength to lift the heavy steel door and relatch it. Pic of Giant Vac attached.

 

[rswyan]

With the Cyclone Rake, you have to get off the tractor to raise the bed, but it tilts to 45 deg and then you can just drive off as it dumps.

Would part of that activity include disconnecting and then reconnecting the discharge hose from the vac blower to the bed/hopper ?

Do you also have then undump the bed and refasten/secure it ?

... see what I'm gettin' at ?

 

[rswyan]

I have never experienced that self dumping action. Leafs are packed in their like sardines. I have to rake at least half of them out before it will dump. If I do a pre mulching with another lawnmower they pack even tighter.

Yup ... same here ...

It is a very rare occasion when our Trac-Vac (model 860 I think) will easily dump on it's own accord .... usually, it is only when the materials are very dry.

That's due to several factors, despite the hopper being narrower in front than in the rear (a "feature" Trac-Vac touts as making things "easier")

Poor design, probably attributable to economic considerations: the way that tow-behind Trac-Vac's are built they use small wheels/tires - this puts them:

1. low to the ground and

2. limits the dump angle ...

If the bottom/floor of the hopper - which is metal - isn't in smooth, pristine condition that adds resistance to getting the load out.

I have about 5 or 6 acres of lawn ... there have been times, that for one reason or another, things have gotten out of hand and the grass got very long ... I have, on several occasions, had to empty the vac 15 (or more) times for a single mowing ... that's just how much grass there was.

Having to dig the grass out of the unit with a pitchfork or rake - which should dump - is a royal PITA.

 

[rswyan]

Rswyan I agree with you! I have been looking at the Happy homeowner trailers that are being talked about and can't see trying to dig the leafs or grass out of them. I hope to make a semi-mounted, pto, self-unloading vac in the next few years. if you have a few leaves it would be ok but if you have LEAVES then something more is needed. Ed

'Zactly ... :thumbsup:

 

[rswyan]

I have both a self dumping Giant Vac and the new (purchased last fall) DR vac. Both empty themselves very well. The only time I ever had to dig leaves out was when I left the Giant Vac full for a week before emptying. I consider the emptying effort equal between the two. There's more separate actions on the DR, but the Giant Vac requires more strength to lift the heavy steel door and relatch it. Pic of Giant Vac attached.

yankee,

That's kinda the design I'm talking about ... with one exception:

Yours appears to be an older Giant-Vac ... on the newer ones the door was mounted on a pair of spring-loaded arms, kind of on an eccentric.

The eccentric held the door in place against the hopper (no "latching" required), but allowed it to be pulled out and up. A similar mechanism is used on fold-up garage doors ... although the only place I can recall seeing that specific type of garage door was in California.

I would think that the action of that type of mechanism would be quite amenable to be operated by a hydraulic cylinder.

In that case, one wouldn't even have to leave the seat ... other than to refuel the vac motor

 

[Garycw]

They're not all there cracked up to be. Only as good as the mower that your using. If the leaves get higher than the deck can go over, it just pushes them. After a bit they're packed in on top of deck and between wheels. Pretty soon you can't steer and the exhaust catches leaves on fire. ... And mower. You almost have ho vac every other day for a cpl weeks to stay ahead of it. That's my experience with them. True you can move a lot of leaves, just not as easy as the commercial shows.

 

[KennyG]

Would part of that activity include disconnecting and then reconnecting the discharge hose from the vac blower to the bed/hopper ?

Do you also have then undump the bed and refasten/secure it ?

... see what I'm gettin' at ?

I guess it all depends on how much automation you think you need. Yes there are two quick release latches to disconnect the chute. And yes, you have to manually lower the bed and reconnect after dumping. However, I haven't had to manually rake more than the last 10% of the leaves out of the bed, and I only to that on the last load of the day when I want it really empty. I'm trying to imagine a rig that dumps the bed while keeping all the hoses and chutes connected and it seems like that would be a really big machine.

 

[Ed of all trades]

My Massey does great, I can mow over a huge amount of leaves. My mother in law lives in oak woods and I have to mow it 3 times a year to mulch the leaves. A few years ago the youth group from her church came after I had mulched twice and got up her leaves. the piled them on my gardens. 3200 sf of garden and the leaves were about 1 1/2 ft deep on it all. I want something like yankeyrider but with more size and a latch on it like a round baler, pull a hydraulic leaver and it opens push it and it closes and latches, from the tractor seat. I have as many leaves as she does on top of hers but I just mulch mine. Ed

 

[4570Man]

I always mulch the leafs with my Dixie chopper first. If the leafs are thin just a mulching is sufficient. If the leafs are thick mulching them greatly decreases the amount of leafs I have to suck with the bagger. The mulched leaves don't bunch up in front of the deck, and since the Dixie chopper is a rear engine mower I can bunch up leafs in front of the deck without the fire danger. I find it quicker to set the deck as high as it goes and mow over the thick leafs as fast as you want to go, and then lower the deck to normal level and finish mulching.

 

[4570Man]

The inside of a cyclone rake just isn't very streamlined. The worst problem is that the cloth sides swell out around the frame making it impossible to dump without removing some material. The bottom has a wire frame which doesn't slide very good. I put a piece of plywood on the bottom which helps some. You do have to unhook the hose to dump, but it only takes a few seconds.

 

[rswyan]

I guess it all depends on how much automation you think you need.

The older I get, the better that automation looks ...

Yes there are two quick release latches to disconnect the chute. And yes, you have to manually lower the bed and reconnect after dumping. However, I haven't had to manually rake more than the last 10% of the leaves out of the bed, and I only to that on the last load of the day when I want it really empty.

Could be the difference between a C.R. and T.V. ... is the hopper on yours plastic or steel ?

I would think smooth plastic might allow easier dumping.

Personally, I have a real distaste for Palmor Product's Trac Vacs, mostly from a design/workmanship perspective.

I'm trying to imagine a rig that dumps the bed while keeping all the hoses and chutes connected and it seems like that would be a really big machine.

Well, I'm mowing/leaf collecting using a 30hp tractor with 6' wide belly mower ... on 5 or 6 acres of lawn/yard.

If the grass is thick and tall, or there are a lot of leaves, I want something pretty good sized so that I'm not having to dump it every time I turn around

And if it's easy to dump, I just might mind that aspect a little bit less

Getting the unit to self-dump isn't really so much a function of being large, as it is of design.

By making the floor of the hopper angled downward towards the rear of the unit, it will self-dump ... given a steep enough angle.

A PTO-driven Agri-Metal sweeper unit of the design type I'm talking about:

The one I'm planning to fab will be roughly similar dimensionally: 4' or 5' wide, 6' or so high, and probably 8' to 12' long. It won't be PTO-driven however ... if I'm flush at the time I build it, it will probably have an engine with electric start.

I have some of the components already (tires/wheels, steel) but still need to pick up some more stuff ... mainly sheet metal.

 

[rswyan]

Smithco unit of similar design: