6 Best Fendt Wheel Rakes for Heavy Crop Conditions

There’s nothing more stressful than a field of heavy, cut hay with rain in the forecast. That first cutting of alfalfa or a dense stand of ryegrass can feel like wrestling a wet blanket when it’s time to rake. Choosing the right rake isn’t just about speed; it’s about preserving every ounce of quality you worked so hard to grow.

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Why Fendt Rakes Excel in Heavy Forage

When you’re dealing with heavy, damp forage, the weakness of a lesser rake becomes immediately apparent. Flimsy tine arms bend, frames twist under load, and the whole machine struggles to form a consistent, fluffy windrow. Fendt builds their Former rakes with the understanding that haymaking conditions are rarely perfect, and their engineering reflects a commitment to durability and performance when it matters most.

The core of their strength lies in the overbuilt components. The rotor gearboxes are fully enclosed and run in a sealed oil bath, protecting them from the constant onslaught of dust and moisture that destroys lesser designs. The tine arms themselves are made from heavy-gauge steel, designed to flex just enough without permanently deforming. This robust construction means the rake can handle the sheer mass of wet hay without skipping a beat, ensuring that your windrows are uniform and ready for efficient drying and baling.

Key Features for Raking Dense, Wet Hay

Moving heavy crops cleanly requires more than just brute strength; it demands smart design. Fendt incorporates several key features that make a tangible difference in the field. The most critical is their cardanic rotor suspension, which allows each rotor to follow the ground contours independently in three dimensions. This means that on uneven ground, the tines stay at the correct height, picking up all the crop without digging into the soil and contaminating your feed with ash and dirt.

Another crucial element is the tine design and mounting. Fendt uses what they call the "Fendt Effect," where the tines are angled to actively pull the crop away from the ground and gently lift it into the windrow. This lifting action is vital in damp conditions, promoting air circulation and fluffing the hay rather than roping it into a tight, dense pile that will never dry. When looking at a rake for heavy conditions, pay close attention to these features:

• Cardanic Rotor Suspension: For superior ground tracking and clean forage.
• Tangential Tine Arm Control: Ensures tines lift out of the windrow cleanly, preventing crop wrapping.
• Sealed Gearboxes: For long-term durability and minimal maintenance.
• Hydraulic Windrow Width Adjustment: Allows on-the-go changes to match the crop density and baler pickup.

These aren’t just marketing terms; they are functional designs that directly impact the quality of your final product. A rake that ropes wet hay creates a baling nightmare and can lead to moldy bales. A rake that contaminates the windrow with soil lowers the nutritional value and palatability of your feed. Fendt’s focus on these details is what sets them apart when conditions are tough.

Fendt Former 14055 PRO: Maximum Width

If your operation is pushing the upper limits of a hobby farm or you’re doing some custom work for neighbors, the Former 14055 PRO is your machine. With a massive working width of up to 44 feet, this is a tool designed for maximum productivity and covering ground quickly. Its four-rotor design creates a perfect, boxy center-delivery windrow that is ideal for large round or square balers. The PRO-specific features, like the hydraulic rotor height adjustment and load-sensing hydraulics, make operation smooth and precise, even over long days.

This rake isn’t for the faint of heart or those with small, tight fields. It requires a capable tractor and plenty of room to turn at the headlands. But if you have the acreage to justify it, the time savings are immense. If you measure your hay fields in the dozens of acres and your primary bottleneck is raking speed before a storm rolls in, the 14055 PRO is the definitive answer. It’s a serious investment, but it delivers professional-grade performance that will fundamentally change your haymaking workflow.

Fendt Former 8055 PRO: Versatile Performer

The Former 8055 PRO hits the sweet spot for many serious hobby farmers. It offers the high-performance features of its larger siblings, like the cardanic suspension and robust PRO-grade components, but in a more manageable twin-rotor, center-delivery package. With a working width up to 26 feet, it can still cover ground efficiently, easily keeping ahead of a modern baler without requiring a massive tractor to run it.

This rake is for the farmer who values both performance and versatility. It’s large enough to be highly productive in big, open fields but still nimble enough to handle varied terrain or slightly irregular field shapes. The center-delivery windrow is consistent and easy for any baler to pick up, minimizing misses and ensuring uniform bale density. If you need a high-capacity rake that doesn’t compromise on features and can adapt to different fields and crop loads, the 8055 PRO is the most balanced and capable choice in the lineup.

Fendt Former 7850: Compact Powerhouse

Don’t let the "compact" label fool you; the Former 7850 is built with the same DNA as the larger Fendt rakes. This twin-rotor, center-delivery rake is a powerhouse designed for operations that need excellent windrow quality and durability but work in smaller or more awkward fields. Its robust frame and proven rotor design ensure it can handle heavy, wet first cuttings without complaint, forming the same tidy windrows Fendt is known for.

The 7850 is the ideal solution for someone who has invested in high-quality forage but doesn’t have hundreds of acres. It’s perfect for navigating around obstacles, working on contoured strips, or simply for farms where storage space is at a premium. You get the clean sweep and gentle crop handling of a premium rake in a footprint that won’t feel oversized. For the dedicated farmer with 20-50 acres of prime hay ground, the Former 7850 provides professional results without the unnecessary bulk, making it a smart, long-term investment in forage quality.

Fendt Former 456 DN: Agile Side Delivery

The Former 456 DN is a different beast entirely, and for certain operations, it’s the perfect tool. As a single-rotor, side-delivery rake, its primary strength is flexibility. You can use it to rake a single windrow, or on a second pass, combine two windrows into one for a large baler. This is incredibly useful for lighter second or third cuttings where a single windrow might be too small for efficient baling. It’s also excellent for raking around field edges and in tight corners where a center-delivery rake would be cumbersome.

This rake is for the farmer who values options and has varied conditions. If your fields are irregular, or if your crop yields vary significantly from one cutting to the next, the ability to merge windrows is a game-changer. It’s also a fantastic choice for turning damp windrows over to aid in drying. If your haymaking strategy requires adaptability above all else, the Former 456 DN provides a level of control and flexibility that center-delivery rakes simply cannot match.

Fendt Former 12545: High Capacity Raking

The Fendt Former 12545 is a high-output, four-rotor rake that sits just below the top-tier 14055 PRO, but it’s no slouch. It’s built for one thing: processing immense amounts of forage quickly and cleanly. With its adjustable working width up to 41 feet, it’s designed for large-scale operations where every minute counts. The heavy-duty frame and running gear are built to withstand the rigors of constant use in heavy crops, ensuring reliability when you can’t afford downtime.

Think of this as the workhorse for the farm that bales thousands of bales each season. It forms perfectly shaped, uniform windrows that allow a large baler to run at maximum capacity. The straightforward, robust design prioritizes throughput and durability over the more advanced electronic features of the top PRO model. If your goal is to rake the maximum number of acres per hour with unwavering reliability, and you need to feed a hungry, high-capacity baler, the Former 12545 is the machine built for that singular purpose.

Fendt Former 351 DN: For Smaller Operations

Just because your acreage is modest doesn’t mean you should compromise on the quality of your equipment or your hay. The Former 351 DN is a single-rotor, side-delivery rake that brings Fendt’s legendary build quality and performance to a scale that fits smaller hobby farms perfectly. It features the same excellent tine design and rugged gearbox construction found on its bigger brothers, ensuring a clean, gentle sweep even in heavy crops.

This is the rake for the farmer who takes pride in their work, regardless of scale. It’s ideal for 5-20 acre fields, where a larger rake would be inefficient and difficult to maneuver. Its simple, durable design makes it easy to maintain and operate with a smaller utility tractor. If you demand the best forage quality and want a rake that will last a lifetime, but you don’t have the acreage to justify a multi-rotor machine, the 351 DN is the premium, no-compromise choice for the small-scale professional.

Proper Tine Height for Clean Crop Gathering

Owning a top-tier rake is only half the battle; using it correctly is what produces top-tier forage. The single most important adjustment you can make, especially in heavy, wet hay, is setting the tine height. The goal is simple: get all the hay without picking up any dirt. The tines should float just above the ground, gently sweeping the crop. A good rule of thumb is to be able to slide your fingers between the tine tips and the soil surface.

Setting the tines too low is a catastrophic error. You’ll scrape the ground, introducing soil, manure, and rocks into the windrow. This dramatically increases the ash content of your forage, making it less palatable and harder for livestock to digest. It also accelerates wear on the tines and risks damage to the gearbox if you hit a solid object.

Conversely, setting the tines too high is a sin of omission. You’ll leave a layer of valuable forage behind on every pass, reducing your yield and leaving a messy field that can smother new growth. In damp, heavy hay that lays flat, this is a common mistake. Take the time to get off the tractor, check your work in the first few feet, and adjust as needed. That extra five minutes will pay for itself in higher quality and better yields.

Matching Your Tractor to the Right Fendt Rake

A great rake is useless without the right tractor to power it. When matching a Fendt rake, look beyond the simple horsepower requirement. For larger, multi-rotor rakes like the 14055 PRO or 12545, you need to consider the tractor’s hydraulic capacity. These machines use hydraulics for lifting, folding, and adjusting rotors, and a tractor with an inadequate hydraulic pump will feel sluggish and slow, killing your efficiency.

Weight and stability are also critical. A wide rake, especially when folded for transport, presents a significant mass that can make a light tractor unstable on hillsides or during road travel. Ensure your tractor is heavy enough to handle the implement safely. For smaller rakes like the 351 DN, almost any compact utility tractor will suffice, but for the large center-delivery models, you need a machine with the physical and hydraulic muscle to operate it effectively and safely.

Finally, consider the operator’s station. You’ll be spending hours looking behind you. A tractor with a comfortable seat, good visibility, and intuitive controls will make the job far less fatiguing. Don’t just match the specs on paper; consider the entire system—tractor, implement, and operator—to create an efficient and safe haymaking process.

Ultimately, tackling heavy crop conditions is about control—control over your timing, your windrows, and your final forage quality. Investing in a rake built for the challenge, like a Fendt, gives you that control back when you need it most. Making the right choice for your scale and conditions ensures that your hard work in the field ends up as high-quality feed in the barn.