# H&S BF14HC, Wheel rake kicker wheel options?



## jmoneyhe (Apr 7, 2010)

Hi guys,

I just bought a used H&S bi-fold wheel rake and looking to add kicker wheels as we tedder most of our hay. What I have seen on the H&S kit it looks like there ought to be better out there. Has anybody adapted kicker wheels from a vermeer or any aftermarket companies? Or if anybody has testimony on the H&S kickers that would help swallow the $1,800 for the kit.

Thanks,

Justin Moneyheffer


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## somedevildawg (Jun 20, 2011)

Wow....$1800..that's ridiculous, perhaps he saw your last name......I would adapt one in a heatbeat.....my frontier had one on it, I paid the JD dealer an additional $300 for it.....good luck, no business for these people!


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## rjmoses (Apr 4, 2010)

I don't have a problem with either of my V rakes where I would need a kicker wheel and I often ted my fields. You might try running without a kicker wheel and see if there is any lost crop first---and it will depend on how you have your pickup set up and how tall you leave your stubble.

Ralph


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## rajela (Feb 15, 2014)

If it has been teddered then you should be able to pick it up no problem.


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## 8350HiTech (Jul 26, 2013)

I'd be more worried about any moisture hiding under that tedded hay rather than the baler's ability to pick it up. It's nice to move every last bit of hay to a new spot before baling HERE.

$1800 seems like a lot compared to $300 but the cost of an add-on when buying new is going to be different than the cost to walk in and buy them for a used machine where the dealer hasn't already made money by selling it new.


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## rajela (Feb 15, 2014)

Moving it and then raking it right back to the same spot doesn't seem to help with the moisture issue.


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## Tim/South (Dec 12, 2011)

rajela said:


> If it has been teddered then you should be able to pick it up no problem.


Same here. Once the tedder has the hay fluffed up you can rake it about any way a person wants and the baler will puck it up. That is why we did not add the kicker wheel.


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## 8350HiTech (Jul 26, 2013)

rajela said:


> Moving it and then raking it right back to the same spot doesn't seem to help with the moisture issue.


Oh but it does. It gets it up off of the ground and let's more air underneath.


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## rajela (Feb 15, 2014)

OK if you say so...........


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## mlappin (Jun 25, 2009)

Have a HT154 New Holland myself and would never buy another without the center kicker wheels.

When I go to a rotary rake two absolute must haves are center delivery and somehow it will have the kicker wheels or something like Vermeer uses on the R2800.

Look at the locations of people saying you need them compared to the locations of people saying you don't, where are you compared to them.


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## somedevildawg (Jun 20, 2011)

I had a center kicker wheel because I sometimes will not Ted hay.....I don't like to Ted and sometimes it's not a prerequisite.....for those times the center kicker wheel pays off....if the hay has been tedded, no need for the center wheel....


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## Colby (Mar 5, 2012)

somedevildawg said:


> I had a center kicker wheel because I sometimes will not Ted hay.....I don't like to Ted and sometimes it's not a prerequisite.....for those times the center kicker wheel pays off....if the hay has been tedded, no need for the center wheel....


Exactly.


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## barnrope (Mar 22, 2010)

I hope you have better luck with your H & S BF 14 HC than I did. I bought one new and had it from spring to August and traded it because it was a light pice of crap. Had nothing but trouble with things bending and wheel springs breaking and getting stuck in the rake wheels. I was going to add the center kicker to the H & S, but instead traded for a new Verrmeer 14 wheeler with center kickers.


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## OhioHay (Jun 4, 2008)

Who is your market? If cows, a dusty spot from a green bunch is not such a big deal and I wouldn't worry about center wheels. If for the horse market, then one green bunch that gets dusty or moldy can cost you one or several customers.in this case I would put on the center wheels. This happens even with tedded hay in my neck of the woods.


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## Tx Jim (Jun 30, 2014)

I have owned a H&S BF 14 HC since 2002. It's raked 1000's upon 1000's of acres of gopher,fire ant infested hay fields without breaking. I have no kicker wheels,rake three 9'3" cuts laying 2 swaths on top of 1 swath and bale reverse direction of cutting and have no problems picking up the hay.


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## Tx Jim (Jun 30, 2014)

I forgot to mention H&S builds rakes for Frontier. You might get kicker wheels cheaper from JD than H&S. I did forget that my elderly(79 yrs old) rake tractor driver hit a post with my rake and bent frt center tube frame(not rakes fault) which I purchased repair part from JD dealer because it was cheaper.


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## jmoneyhe (Apr 7, 2010)

Thanks for the input guys!! If it ever clears long enough to get hay mowed we will see what it does without kicker wheels. Being in Northern Indiana you never know what the humidity will be but I can count on wet ground with all this hay being seed corn isolation and watered heavily. I have had problems in the past with hay pulling moisture from the ground tedding and long stubble has helped with that. We will try it without and hopefully we don't have a slimy bottom or miss a bunch of hay.


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