Test Runnimg Hesston Without Sickle

Bill VA · Aug 28, 2016

Pulling the sickle and guards from my Hesston 1110 today. Afterwards will be giving the swaybar drive mechanism a thorough inspection for play. Got a significant amount of hammering/noise from the mower - IMHO an unacceptable amount. Got rid of some of it when I retimed the rollers and set the roll contact gap so the rollers never touch. I'm thinking with the sickle absent from the machine - this would eliminate all sickle hammering noise potential and leave the sickle drive to make any noise. I think it's all in the sickle, but there might be worn bearings, adjusting of slack in a couple of areas that might be causing a racket and need adjusted.

When I was a boy, I saw a guy remove a lawnmower blade from a push mower. He started the mower and promptly knocked a hole in the block. In my mind, the sickle is the flywheel - just as the blade is for a push mower.

Run at idle without the sickle or don't?

Thanks!
Bill

rrlund · Aug 28, 2016

I don't see what it would hurt at an idle. I've broken the ball and the end off the bar of mine more than once over the years and it ran at full speed without tearing itself up. The balancer is on the shaft by the belts. The only thing is,you might not have enough resistance to make it hammer.
Don't overlook how much noise you can get from just very little wear in that one big bearing and those four small ones in that half sway bar. Also from those tapper bearings in the main sickle drive shaft. Finding a way to turn that big nut can be an issue. A 24 inch Crescent wrench can be a necessity.

Bill VA · Aug 30, 2016

Thanks for the info.

What happened you busted the ball and end from the cutterbar? I think iI've got all the parts in (last box is supposed to be setting on my porch today) for the cutterbar rebuild, including new sickle. Big crescent wrench. That nut you are talking about, the manual speaks to it in regards to hammering. It was bigger than the crescent wrench I had, but made a trip to harbor freight and bought one that would work. The wrench is so big, I have used it to bend a piece of flat bar! BTW - that bearing assy is tight.

I recall you bought a Kuhn FC mower conditioner with flails. Mechanically how is it holding up? Like it? Have you sheared a hub yet? I'm considering a FC 2860 TLS for a down the road purchase one of these days - maybe. It is the only 9ft-ish (8'-10") mower conditioner I can find on the market with 2 point lift arm hitch and steel on steel rollers.

Thanks again,
Bill

Test Runnimg Hesston Without Sickle

Bill VA

Well-known Member

rrlund

Well-known Member

Bill VA

Well-known Member

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