WD45 or Case VAC for raking hay

old · Sep 18, 2016

I have been using a WD45 to rake hay with but now have a Case VAC. So which in the long run would cost less to use?? I'm thinking the VAC because it is smaller but since I have not tried it just wanting to know what you guys think.
Thanks

01gentdc · Sep 18, 2016

the vac should use less gas and the fighting power for the hills should be as good as the wd ,,if the vac is anything like the ones I have been around ,, I have raked level fields in 4th gear,the wd will do the same , it will steer harder ,, a knob will help on both tractors ,. just comes down to personal preference,, whether you want to set with your feet flat on the floor or sit loplegged ...

old · Sep 18, 2016

Being 6 foot tall I am thinking the VAC will be a better more comfortable ride. Now as for raking hay in 4th gear that is way to fast for my bad back. On the WD45 I use 2nd or 3rd gear but NEVER 4th

Eldon (WA) · Sep 18, 2016

(quoted from post at 19:42:19 09/18/16) I have been using a WD45 to rake hay with but now have a Case VAC. So which in the long run would cost less to use?? I'm thinking the VAC because it is smaller but since I have not tried it just wanting to know what you guys think.
Thanks

Well at 124 cid, the Case better cost less to run than the 226 Allis...definitely not near the grin factor, tho.

01gentdc · Sep 18, 2016

in a smooth field at less than 3rd throttle it worx okfor me , without severe back problems,,. but a seat cushion for me is a must,.. I get gauld on a metal seat ,.. and that aint no picnic ,.. 6ft tall on a wd aint bad until you need to get off or on ,, , the vac shines there ,,.fast forward to the 800 and 7-830 eagle hitchers ,,.case intended for the operator to stay on the tractor ,,you had to mount the tractor from front clutch side ,, and exiting was easier off the back for us seasoned drivers ,,Rich ,,. but of course when you are 19 yrs old a guy mite jump into the seat from the hayloft or leap from a galloping horse or off the seat of a motorcycle onto a moving 730 -830 Case ,,. BUT Time changes everything ..

old · Sep 18, 2016

Yep what I could once do I can not do now. I us to ride a motorcycle a whole lot and did stunts on them but not any more.
Only draw back I see with the VAC is I have not fixed the charging system but I know it should run for a good many hours with just he battery.

The WD45 for me is not real comfortable having to have my legs spread out and all. Plus the bad knee on right leg does not help. Also having this 5.5 inch scare in my lower back does not help with driving a tractor a much of any speed

NEKS · Sep 18, 2016

Hum, Since I have been ridding on a WD since I was seven, raking hay with one since 9 and now 72 I didn't know they were a pain in the a?? to get on and off. Going to have a whole different out look now when I walk by the machine shed and see it setting in there.

Moonlite37 · Sep 19, 2016

This may be my last year for raking hay, I like raking with my "B" Farmall. It rides so rough you cannot go fast enough to damage the rake and has wheels small enough that they will not get into the rake in turning, The narrow front is also a help in making sharp turns. A lade a step to mount from the front

Traditional Farmer · Sep 19, 2016

I raked a lot of hay in my youth with both and I'd pick the VAC unless it was very steep land,the VAC is a pretty smooth comfortable ride and The WD45 can be used for a lot of other
chores the Case can't do.

Richard G. · Sep 19, 2016

I prefer the VAC over a WD45. Vac has plenty of power for raking. Grease everything about the steering and you should be good to go. WD45 is very uncomfortable for me to stay on. The only thing a VAC needs is another step to get on and off. I have the material to build one in my shop.
Richard

4wdtom · Sep 19, 2016

On a WD or 45 you just swing your left leg back and put your left foot on the rear step. If you got to stop in a hurry just use the hand clutch. If the going is smooth you can also lean on the right fender. I don't know if I would call them uncomfortable, different maybe.

connor9988 · Sep 19, 2016

I have a 1951 VAC-13 and I like it for raking hay. I typically flip the seat up and stand on the platform every so often to stretch. My only two complaints are that the smaller wheels on VACs make for rough riding and that the road gear takes awhile to get you to any remote fields. I would say that the earlier VACs with the higher platform are better for the job simply because you don't have to straddle the transmission the whole time. Also, Mine has Eagle Hitch and I like to put a Harry Ferguson drawbar on the lower points so that I can raise and lower the hay rake with the 3 pt lever instead of getting off and turning the cranks. It works pretty darn good.

connor9988 · Sep 19, 2016

I thought I had some video of the VAC raking!

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/RYzLeZBXzo8" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Leroy · Sep 19, 2016

I have never sat on a WC,WD, WD45 and no interest in even trying. That contorsionest position you have to set in I could never stand to ride in even if I could get on or off of one. Just turned 73 and If I tried to get on one I think you would have to call the squad to get me back on the ground. Even when I was yound they looked so uncomfortable the way you sat I never even considered one.

D beatty · Sep 19, 2016

The Farmall B was all we used to rake hay and raked hay in third gear ( IH & Case steel wheeled side delivery rake). Ours rode good but was loaded with weight and had a loader on it which we took arms and bucket off in hay season.

brutus49DC · Sep 19, 2016

If you have a bad back an allis isn't going to do it any good. Many years ago my neighbor went to Rochester,Mn for back surgery. The doctor asked him what he warmed with. He told him he had a wd45. The doc told him that most of his patients farmed with ac tractors and if he wanted to get better he needed to get rid of it, which he did. There is a Norwegian community north of here. Many had ac tractors. They soon evolved to start having their kids born with one leg longer than the other so they could drive them! A wd/wd45 is about the least comfortable tractor anyone could have the pleasure of driving.

D beatty · Sep 19, 2016

I am 6 FT 4" tall and a WD 45 is hard to get on and off and you set crunched up on it. I have even made a bracket and moved the seat back 6" which helps a little. Now that I'am retired and tractor only goes to shows and pulls and a few small chores around place I am not on it that long any more. If I had to farm again with a tractor in same time frame as the WD 45 I would use a John Deere or IH.

steve_in_mo · Sep 19, 2016

We usually pulled the rake with my grandfather's Oliver 66.
He usually ran the rake because he liked doing it.
Once in a while our John Deere B or the neighbor's Ford 8N.

INCase · Sep 19, 2016

I mounted an old extra set of CASE 800 floor boards down and backwards (left floorboard is on right ect) on my 800 to use as steps. Helps alot but still a bit of a stretch. Have pictures somewhere. they also Make it handy for standing on to put gas in too. Climbing on the back is a pain.

Learned how to drive on WD/WD45s. didn't think they were too bad but i was 14-16ish and was happy to be behind the wheel of anything so no complaints.

I do recall having to stretch to get to the clutch pedal. Neighbors tractor and he was a bit taller so we couldn't adjust it out any.

Goose · Sep 19, 2016

Having spent more hours than I like to recall on both, I'd pick the VAC.

WD45 or Case VAC for raking hay

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