Even drying and thorough crop processing: swath turner for CLAAS LINER twin-rotor rakes

Bad Saulgau, September 2026. CLAAS is now offering a swath turner as new optional equipment for LINER twin-rotor rakes. The system requires no additional control unit and enables more uniform drying and improved crop pick-up in subsequent stages of the harvesting process. Its main areas of application are alfalfa harvesting, as well as clover-grass and hay harvesting, and the swathing of straw.

Due to the design of centre-swath mowers, crop material located in the centre is not picked up, turned over or loosely incorporated into the formed swath during operation. The material gathered from the sides by the rotors is deposited onto the untouched crop in the centre during swathing, which does not allow for optimal, even drying when dealing with challenging crop types and damp conditions.

Particularly during haymaking, where a consistent quality is required in relatively delicate crops, additional swath turners fitted in front of the rotors can promote drying. Alfalfa or clover-grass, for example, can thus dry on the mown swath and dry through evenly after swathing.

Wedge-shaped design and mechanical relief for optimum results
CLAAS now offers a new option for the LINER 3100-2600 twin-rotor rake that requires no additional control unit. The swath turner is mounted on the drawbar and connected to the existing hydraulic circuit, so that at the headland it is raised and lowered via the hydraulic circuit of the lift cylinders for the rotor arms. Two sets of two passively driven star wheels pick up the crop in the centre, even between the stubble, and convey it evenly to the sides, where the rotor tines pick it up and loosely incorporate it into the swath against the direction of travel. The uniform, airy placement promotes even drying. Furthermore, the swath can be picked up more effectively by subsequent harvesting machinery, as the stalks and leaves are no longer aligned lengthways but crosswise to the direction of mowing.

Thanks to the wedge-shaped arrangement of star wheels of varying sizes – small at the front and large at the rear – the swath turner operates even beneath the drawbar and conveys the crop reliably, evenly and widely to the sides under its own power. Specially developed tines, set in a flexible, resilient thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) frame, can adapt in three dimensions and are therefore designed to protect the forage and ensure durability. Intelligent tine positioning and a carefully selected choice of materials guarantee gentle and reliable transfer of the forage. Thanks to adjustable coil springs between the swath turner’s console and the two larger star wheels, the load relief can be easily adjusted. Standard plastic scrapers prevent particularly long crop from being ‘dragged along’.