The large surface contact area of the new plastic glide bar option on the 8.4m Top 842C twin-rotor rake improves the load-bearing capacity on soft land.
Called Flowtast, and unveiled as a concept at last November’s Agritechnica, the glide bar replaces the wheels under each rotor.
The focus during the development phase was to produce as clean a forage as possible. Pöttinger reckons that when a wheeled chassis reaches its limits on soft land, the wheels can sink in, and when they do the tines scrape the ground and the material becomes contaminated.
The company says the Flowtast met this season’s field test expectations, gliding effortlessly over wet and peaty soils without leaving any wheelings.
Each glide bar comprises five individually exchangeable 15mm thick plates. Installed close the tines, the Austrian manufacturer says the glide bar tracks the ground across the full raking length of the tine arc to provide perfect ground tracking. A hydraulic cylinder ensures a ground pressure of around 200kg, which is claimed to reduce wear and lower stress on the rake frame.
After testing various materials, the tough-wearing plastic (PE1000) selected by engineers, which is similar to that used for a plough mouldboard, is said to provide good abrasion resistance.
The proven Multitast jockey wheel system can be fitted as an option for additional ground tracking performance when using the Flowtast glide bar.
