Grass hay cutting/Ford 501 Sickle mower

Well an update on my 501 Ford Sickle mower. I got it working real good. In medium dense grass fields it cuts like a champ. However when it was time to cut my hay field which is a timothy, orchard, brone, tall fescue with a little bit of clover and alfalfa it just could not handle the job. I would like some recommendations on a type of cutter that a 8N would be able to handle and of coarse would cut my hay field.
Thanks in advance.
 
That 501 should work just fine if you have every thing as it should be. The guard have to sit tight to the bar sections and the timing has to be right as in the section should sit centered in the guard when at the end of the in and out stroke
 
John, Agree with Old, 501 sickle should cut dry hay without problem. I've used one for years. In addition to Old's recommendations, my key to success is sharp ledger plates on the guards. I end up replacing guards more often than sections. I use the double section on the end to prevent clogging. Good luck.
 
I don't know guys. Everything is sharp and in time. I let the field dry out for 8 days. Not really dry though. When the grass is 24-30 high I don't think the bottom area will ever dry do to ground moisture and morning due. Am I suppose to let sit for 2 weeks or more?
 
A little more detail on what is wrong would be helpful:
Does the outer shoe plug up?
Does the drive train slip under heavy load?
Is the mowed area ragged and uneven?
Does the tractor slow down under load?

Many possibilities ....................
 
In the less dense/dryer area in cut great. sometimes the inner or middle or outer would plug up. I would get off the tractor and grab a big arm full of cut grass to clear it out. I am sure the problem lies in the grass being too wet at the bottom where it cuts. I think if this cutter is to work I would have to let the field sit for 3-4 weeks for it to be dry enough. Is that common to have to let a field dry that long before cutting?
 
No problem with the equipment other than pluggin up. I ran it at high RPM through all the gears to see what would work the best. Same results. I think it was too wet.
 
If its grass hay sometimes if there is old grass underneath it can make it tough to cut. i had a valley that i couldnt cut when it should have been and it was as you described a pain in the south end of a preacher finnally gave up got the gyromower out had the rpms low and cut and raked it that way to clean it up
 
That sickle mower should handle cutting you hayfield just fine as the 501 is a good and well respected sickle mower. There is an art to setting up a sickle mower. You have to have good sickle sections and of the proper style for both the crop you are cutting along with the style of ledger you have will determine your best section type. There are smooth, under-serrated, and top serrated sickle sections (the sections do half the cutting). You then need good ledgers on the guards some ledgers are replaceable and some you have to buy the whole guard to replace the ledger portion- there are smooth and serrated ledgerss. Regardless of smooth or serrated type the ledger should have very squared edge to it- if it is rounded over then it is worn out (the ledger does the other half the cutting. Kinda like scissors - the sickle section is one edge and the ledger is the other edge). The timing adjustment must be correct (this is adjustable and critical), and the adjustment gaps between the sickle sections and ledgers must all be correct too (usually this is adjustable with big freakin hammer but it is critical).

Very generally speaking: if you have smooth ledgers then you want some type of serrated sickle sections. If you have serrated ledgers then you want smooth sickle sections. A sickle and a half section is a great idea for the very end of the bar.

Bar lead is also adjustable as is angle of the bar (all should be covered in an owners manual).

Even with a perfectly set sickle mower though, you need to wait until the morning dew has burned off the hay. Forget cutting anything wet or damp with a sickle. Basically no early AM cutting or late PM cutting with a sickle type cutter. (Think along the lines of cutting 11:30 AM to 6:30 pm or so in humidity type climates. )

Only other legitimate hay mower that an 8N could handle in hay would be a small drum mower. Drum mowers are very simple compared to a sickle, pretty much idiot proof, can cut wet tangled crops and do it faster than a sickle mower to boot (assuming you can handle the rough ride in the seat). You looking at $3500 or so for a new drum mower. Finding a used one is rare and still likely $1500 or more if you lucky enough to find one in a small enough size for an 8N to handle.

Poor man's hay mower is a bush hog (or rotary cutter) with the one side of the mower removed to help discharge the hay better. King cutter and other manufacturers still sell this "hay side" type of mower with removable side even today. There have been many farmer home brew conversions done to a regular bush hog mower with a torch or sawz-all. The Bad news: If you go the bush hog route expect 30% minimum to as much as a 50% yield loss though on your hay. The good news: is that a bush hog also serves as a improvised crop conditioner of sorts as well to aide with faster drying. I cut for a few years with a bush hog as my main hay mower, I believe my yield loss was more in the 30% to 35% range but it sure was slow going in heavy crops. That said it was maintenance free (dress the blades with a handheld grinder and that was it other than grease) and otherwise idiot proof.
 
Your are finding out why sickle bar mowers have been replaced in modern hay stands. The hay is thicker and yields much better. Those older sickle bar mowers just don't handle the heavier crops as well.
 
Is this field clean,that is,is there dead old hay from previous cutting or uneven dirt ruts that is in the hay? Old hay will DRAG and pile up on the cutter bar;dirt mounds will prevent cutting and cause a drag.One thing that I think helps is to tilt the cutter bar just slightly up;I think all you would need to do is lengthen your top link so that the guards are not pointing down while cutting,but slightly up.
The hay will always be wet towards the ground, so don't worry about that.
I have not cut with a non live pto,only live,but when I get a'drag' I back up and let the mower shake it off while running. You should not go no more than 10-15 ft when it drags; stop and back up.When I run a sickle bar, I set sideways in the seat and watch it cut more than where I am going.That all said,I nowadays use a disc mower. Mark
 
I use a sickle bar mower to do hay every year. There are way to set it up and if you do not have it set up right it will clog up easy. The bar should not lay flat but angle up some. You should also not be able to slide a piece of paper between the guard and the sections. I cut waist high grass this year with a sickle bar mower and had no problems at all. Going to fast causes many many problem also
 
I have read a not of negative comments regarding sickle bar mowers and believe them to be a hassle at times.

However, it's very encouraging to see the youtube videos of sickle bar mowers in action, leveling tall grass - even via horse drawn mowers too.

I think the best chance for a sickle bar mower to work is to KNOW how to set-up and operate them. I'm about to finish the set-up on my MF32 sickle bar mower and expect good things out of it, but I've been studying this thing like an exam - LOL.

I should think the Ford 501 will do a very good job, once everything is sharp, registered and set-up correctly.

Good luck,
Bill
 
I don't understand. What did you let it dry out from?

Standing grass wil dry down on one sunny day.

I bale a marsh, wheels get wet, but it can cut the grass. It dries down the dew burns off on a sunny day.

Paul
 
Something is not right, trash that should have been cleared off before, to wet or mower not set up correctly.
 

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