Will Gumbert
Member
There's a foot of snow out there but I'm starting to think about spring mowing.
I have decided to get a sickle mower for mowing creek banks and small hill sides on our property, which I have always done with an old scythe or a weed whacker. I have no experience with a sickle bar mower but since I'm a Ford-tractor guy and there is a New Holland dealer right up the road, I would like to get an older used Ford 501 or 515 to use on my NH TC-33 compact tractor.
There are quite a few of these for sale on the web and going by photos some don't look too bad and range from about $500 to $1500.
My questions are: If I get one, can I expect to sharpen or fix the cutters (ledgers and sections?) or find replacements? Do they come with a stabilizer or sway strap of some kind? Can I adjust the bar for both angle-up or angle-down cutting? Are the ones without the pitman rod inherently better?
Any advice in general would be appreciated. Thanks, Will
I have decided to get a sickle mower for mowing creek banks and small hill sides on our property, which I have always done with an old scythe or a weed whacker. I have no experience with a sickle bar mower but since I'm a Ford-tractor guy and there is a New Holland dealer right up the road, I would like to get an older used Ford 501 or 515 to use on my NH TC-33 compact tractor.
There are quite a few of these for sale on the web and going by photos some don't look too bad and range from about $500 to $1500.
My questions are: If I get one, can I expect to sharpen or fix the cutters (ledgers and sections?) or find replacements? Do they come with a stabilizer or sway strap of some kind? Can I adjust the bar for both angle-up or angle-down cutting? Are the ones without the pitman rod inherently better?
Any advice in general would be appreciated. Thanks, Will