Yard Raking Attachments

[Elviscaretaker]

I too have two full grown (80 ft) Sycamore and a full grown Soft Maple in my front yard. The Sycamores are the biggest problem. .... with stix galore after every routine storm. I can't think of a thing, nor even imagine something that will collect the branches and stix that they drop year around.

I bought a Cyclone Rake a few years ago. It is great for leaves and such things as pine needles, pine cones...maybe even a walnut or two....but, mowing over the stix, just cuts them up without sucking them up. Likewise, my Pine Needle Rake is good for Pine Needles etc....and somewhat effective at general debris in rough areas.....but of no use in gathering Sycamore stix/limbs.

Your idea about stabilizing the Pine Needle Rake tines sounds like it's worth a try. In the meantime.....I just "pick up' or hand "rake up" the crap every now and then.....and then haul it off to a burn pile or run it thru my Chipper Shredder.[

Cheers,
Mike

???? https://www.drpower.com/power-equipment/leaf-blowers-vacuums/tow-behind-leaf-vacs

 

[dbritt]

I pick up anything that would damage the mower, then I just mow over what's left and chop it up. That's how I've dealt with the problem for 50+ years. Oddly, it doesn't seem to do any noticeable damage to the blades. But, anything larger than 3/8" diameter gets picked up by hand. Last week of April a 100+ mph straight wind that took care of a lot of the sources of the sticks and leaves. Rain, rain and more rain this spring has softened the ground to the point that 21 big oak, hickory, walnut, and maple trees, plus a huge pecan tree all uprooted. Think about cleaning all that up before you mow and your problem won't look so bad.

 

[D&D]

Last week of April a 100+ mph straight wind that took care of a lot of the sources of the sticks and leaves. Rain, rain and more rain this spring has softened the ground to the point that 21 big oak, hickory, walnut, and maple trees, plus a huge pecan tree all uprooted. Think about cleaning all that up before you mow and your problem won't look so bad.

What a terrible loss for you

 

[Zork]

I bought a 3 bag bagger 29 years ago and have never regretted buying one. This tractor has now retired for bagging only.

 

[Zork]

There is also an estate rake but you would still need to get the leaves up and off the lawn afterwards.

https://www.northerntool.com/products/strongway-55in-inline-acreage-rake-operating-width-55-in-model-acr-600tswl-6105428?cm_mmc=Google-pla&utm_source=Google_PLA&utm_medium=Lawn%20%2B%20Garden%20%3E%20Dethatchers%20%2B%20Rakes&utm_campaign=Strongway&utm_content=6105428&ogmap=SHP%7CPLA%7CGOOG%7CSTND%7Cm%7CSITEWIDE%7COOT%7CGroundsMaintenanceOwnedBrands%7C%7Badgroup%7D%7C%7C19587235355%7C148243178151&gclsrc=aw.ds&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=19587235355&gbraid=0AAAAADpPfbNOBJZZwc6iwH4dmHY5hKZvQ&gclid=CjwKCAjwl_XBBhAUEiwAWK2hzo0A7dKLPIjonYHOHitndJzJ_2Lhuh7ljiBJ7ZczPcInszIMS3DZjRoCAHQQAvD_BwE

 

[Wannabe Tractor Man]

I have the same issue you have and bit the big one 27 years ago and purchased a cyclone rake. Best investment I ever made! It’s so easy to use I use it every time I cut the grass. The machine is extremely well built and the company is a pleasure to deal with. Anyone who talks bad about this machine is crazy. Cyclonerake.com

 

[masscity]

My older brother who died 3 years ago loved his cyclonerake. His whole yard was covered with trees. He used it on a zero turn first, but bought another garden tractor, he said it worked better on.

 

[Pecosbill7]

Try one of these. It’s pretty darn effective and it’s especially good at getting up leaves in the fall. You need to find just the right setting to where it just flicks the debris up into the basket. If you set it too deeply it will just get bogged down in the grass; too lightly and it won’t pick anything up. You can attach a rope to the basket and when it’s full you just drive to your dump/mulch site and pull the rope and dump it out. I’ve used one for years and once you get it dialed in it works pretty darn good, especially for the money:

https://www.northerntool.com/products/brinly-hardy-54in-lawn-sweeper-with-double-helix-brushes-working-width-54-in-hopper-capacity-31-ft-model-ls2-54bh-g-6489396

 

[Hoho223]

How about picking up anything over a half inch or so and just mow/mulch the rest.

 

[coopdog]

Anybody have a GOOD way to rake their yard with some sort of attachment or yard tool outside of a good old-fashioned hand rake?
I have over one and 2/3 acres of yard with many maples and Sycamore trees that lose branches and twigs like leaves. Every time there is wind, I am out there raking by hand and in many cases, I am raking the complete yard by hand.
I have tried a Pineneedle Rake, and the tires are so springy that they release the raked contents after a little loading, and do no good. I do have an Estate Rake, but twigs are not its friend. It does wonders for detaching, however.
Other options I have thought of our a power rake like a Shindiawa or Stihl, and although it’s not manually raking, hustling a 40 pound yard tool with an 18 inch brush or rubber, paddle roller, seems like a fair amount of work.
Having a $20,000 tractor sitting there, sure tries to get me to think of ways to either find an attachment, or make something that would work to save me some time.
Any thoughts are appreciated.

I use a ride on Scag Windstorm machine which does wonders. It’s expensive but I have a lot of leaves to move.
A less expensive option for you is a PTO leaf blower attachment. There are several brands available depending on your needs.

 

[smaywork]

Anybody have a GOOD way to rake their yard with some sort of attachment or yard tool outside of a good old-fashioned hand rake?
I have over one and 2/3 acres of yard with many maples and Sycamore trees that lose branches and twigs like leaves. Every time there is wind, I am out there raking by hand and in many cases, I am raking the complete yard by hand.
I have tried a Pineneedle Rake, and the tires are so springy that they release the raked contents after a little loading, and do no good. I do have an Estate Rake, but twigs are not its friend. It does wonders for detaching, however.
Other options I have thought of our a power rake like a Shindiawa or Stihl, and although it’s not manually raking, hustling a 40 pound yard tool with an 18 inch brush or rubber, paddle roller, seems like a fair amount of work.
Having a $20,000 tractor sitting there, sure tries to get me to think of ways to either find an attachment, or make something that would work to save me some time.
Any thoughts are appreciated.

I have a wet weather creek/wash coming thru my yard about a 1/2 mile long. About twice a year heavy rains overflow the creek and put all the forest s#$t all over my yard and washes the gravel out of my driveway into the yard. I've just got a plain old 6' spring rake from TSC that I use to rake it all into piles near the creek and then turn the rake back the tractor into the piles and push it into the creek bottom, gone with the next rain.. works great also pulling the gravel back into the driveway.

 

[ismilelots]

Anybody have a GOOD way to rake their yard with some sort of attachment or yard tool outside of a good old-fashioned hand rake?
I have over one and 2/3 acres of yard with many maples and Sycamore trees that lose branches and twigs like leaves. Every time there is wind, I am out there raking by hand and in many cases, I am raking the complete yard by hand.
I have tried a Pineneedle Rake, and the tires are so springy that they release the raked contents after a little loading, and do no good. I do have an Estate Rake, but twigs are not its friend. It does wonders for detaching, however.
Other options I have thought of our a power rake like a Shindiawa or Stihl, and although it’s not manually raking, hustling a 40 pound yard tool with an 18 inch brush or rubber, paddle roller, seems like a fair amount of work.
Having a $20,000 tractor sitting there, sure tries to get me to think of ways to either find an attachment, or make something that would work to save me some time.
Any thoughts are appreciated.

This thing works great! It's also great on gravel drives! I love mine.
Heavy Duty 3-Point Dethatcher Rake (60″) ----> Heavy Duty 3-Point Dethatcher Rake (60") CMP Attachments

 

[Gord Baker]

Anybody have a GOOD way to rake their yard with some sort of attachment or yard tool outside of a good old-fashioned hand rake?
I have over one and 2/3 acres of yard with many maples and Sycamore trees that lose branches and twigs like leaves. Every time there is wind, I am out there raking by hand and in many cases, I am raking the complete yard by hand.
I have tried a Pineneedle Rake, and the tires are so springy that they release the raked contents after a little loading, and do no good. I do have an Estate Rake, but twigs are not its friend. It does wonders for detaching, however.
Other options I have thought of our a power rake like a Shindiawa or Stihl, and although it’s not manually raking, hustling a 40 pound yard tool with an 18 inch brush or rubber, paddle roller, seems like a fair amount of work.
Having a $20,000 tractor sitting there, sure tries to get me to think of ways to either find an attachment, or make something that would work to save me some time.
Any thoughts are appreciated.

 

[Zork]

The other option would be a mulched. But you need to do your research because some mulches do not mulch effectively as others.

 

[Gord Baker]

I usea Brinley Yard sweeper, 44". Mow the debris first then Sweep. Brinley has 3 rows of brushes vs Agri-fabs 2 row.

 

[boatmoter]

Anybody have a GOOD way to rake their yard with some sort of attachment or yard tool outside of a good old-fashioned hand rake?
I have over one and 2/3 acres of yard with many maples and Sycamore trees that lose branches and twigs like leaves. Every time there is wind, I am out there raking by hand and in many cases, I am raking the complete yard by hand.
I have tried a Pineneedle Rake, and the tires are so springy that they release the raked contents after a little loading, and do no good. I do have an Estate Rake, but twigs are not its friend. It does wonders for detaching, however.
Other options I have thought of our a power rake like a Shindiawa or Stihl, and although it’s not manually raking, hustling a 40 pound yard tool with an 18 inch brush or rubber, paddle roller, seems like a fair amount of work.
Having a $20,000 tractor sitting there, sure tries to get me to think of ways to either find an attachment, or make something that would work to save me some time.
Any thoughts are appreciated.

if your using a lawn tractor use a set of quality mulching blades to grind it up as you mow. or you can get a pull behind lawn sweeper. I use the mulching blades on my yard

 

[Licklog]

Years ago I bought a used Little Wonder Walk behind parking lot blower, attached a 6' tongue to the frame, and mounted a ball coupler to attach to my tractor or utv hitch. Use it to blow my driveway and yard areas of all leaves and other debris.

 

[JVR5333]

Anybody have a GOOD way to rake their yard with some sort of attachment or yard tool outside of a good old-fashioned hand rake?
I have over one and 2/3 acres of yard with many maples and Sycamore trees that lose branches and twigs like leaves. Every time there is wind, I am out there raking by hand and in many cases, I am raking the complete yard by hand.
I have tried a Pineneedle Rake, and the tires are so springy that they release the raked contents after a little loading, and do no good. I do have an Estate Rake, but twigs are not its friend. It does wonders for detaching, however.
Other options I have thought of our a power rake like a Shindiawa or Stihl, and although it’s not manually raking, hustling a 40 pound yard tool with an 18 inch brush or rubber, paddle roller, seems like a fair amount of work.
Having a $20,000 tractor sitting there, sure tries to get me to think of ways to either find an attachment, or make something that would work to save me some time.
Any thoughts are appreciated.

One idea is to use a yard rake ATV attachment - can pull behind most mowers as well to at least get all the yard debris in manageable rows for easier clean-up. The previous owners of our 30acre horse property left one of these in the barn. I used it a few times when grass clippings were crazy, but now I just back-cut over them to chop them up. I haven't used the rake in years. Worked well though.

 

[schmeal]

Anybody have a GOOD way to rake their yard with some sort of attachment or yard tool outside of a good old-fashioned hand rake?
I have over one and 2/3 acres of yard with many maples and Sycamore trees that lose branches and twigs like leaves. Every time there is wind, I am out there raking by hand and in many cases, I am raking the complete yard by hand.
I have tried a Pineneedle Rake, and the tires are so springy that they release the raked contents after a little loading, and do no good. I do have an Estate Rake, but twigs are not its friend. It does wonders for detaching, however.
Other options I have thought of our a power rake like a Shindiawa or Stihl, and although it’s not manually raking, hustling a 40 pound yard tool with an 18 inch brush or rubber, paddle roller, seems like a fair amount of work.
Having a $20,000 tractor sitting there, sure tries to get me to think of ways to either find an attachment, or make something that would work to save me some time.
Any thoughts are appreciated.

I bought one of these a number of years ago for pine straw and leaves, and the only complaint I have with it is that I didn't buy it sooner! https://www.everythingattachments.com/Pine-Needle-Rake-Pine-Straw-Rake-p/ea-pnr-60.htm

 

[OldPaint]

Try one of these. It’s pretty darn effective and it’s especially good at getting up leaves in the fall. You need to find just the right setting to where it just flicks the debris up into the basket. If you set it too deeply it will just get bogged down in the grass; too lightly and it won’t pick anything up. You can attach a rope to the basket and when it’s full you just drive to your dump/mulch site and pull the rope and dump it out. I’ve used one for years and once you get it dialed in it works pretty darn good, especially for the money:

https://www.northerntool.com/products/brinly-hardy-54in-lawn-sweeper-with-double-helix-brushes-working-width-54-in-hopper-capacity-31-ft-model-ls2-54bh-g-6489396

Had one similar. Great unit until the hopper gets full. It isn’t very good for trying to dump into a hole because the hopper tilts forward. The broom cannot be disengaged to freewheyit to the dump site. It was still a lot better than raking 1.5 acres of water oak and elm leaves up to 8 times every year. I still had to pick up and haul the debris in a small trailer because that sweeper isn’t very good with uneven terrain. I was regularly repairing the brushes and baffles from dinging roots and rocks. It would be a decent machine on a nice flat lot with small debris. But I would probably recommend either picking up or chopping up any sticks bigger than 1/4 inch before trying to use that sweeper. I think the larger stuff was the OP’s primary concern. A hay rake would work to windrow the stuff and most of those are designed for uneven pasture/field conditions with spring teeth like the needle rake. I solved my water oak problems a different way last year for $700 each. Despite losing the shade, seeing the inside of the stumps confirmed it was a solid decision to remove them. Every one of them was rotten in the stump because of root girdling. If you’re losing that much of the sycamore branches you might want to get it checked for disease and remove it if it’s a threat to your house. As far picking up the sticks, stiffening the needle rake might be a great idea. It’s likely to prove a decent dethatcher as well.