Massey Ferguson 41 sickle bar mower

I bought a used 41 MF and it would mow a little but then get clogged up and lay the hay down. I put
new sections on it and then all new guards but still gets clogged up then just lays the hay down.
Any ideas to what I should do next besides buying a new mower?

Where is it plugging up? If it is at the outer end of the bar you may need a double section on the end. Swede

A lot of things can cause that. Not having the guards set so the sections ride right on top of them so there is no gap. Or the timing being off. Or the front of the bar sits down instead up up a bit

Do you have the manual that tells you how to set the register?

Have a dynaclog 41 mower here since it was new in 83. It got retired several years back for a disc mower. Great invention to keep your clutch leg strong.

I think your issue is that it is a sickle bar, if you are lucky you can start a swath and it will start to cut and fall behind the cutterbar and keep moving and it will "flow"

Make sure your belt is tight, worn belt can cause the drive to slip in heavier crop and plug.

I have the manual for the 41

There is no knife register on a MF 41. Nothing to time...

No sir, sure don't

It has a double on the end

Thank you, I only have around 7 acres to cut. Didn't want to get too deep into the pocket. Would you want to sell the manuel?

A MF41 is a great sickle mower....if such a thing exists. I spent years fighting one, then finally gave up and bought a drum mower. Making a sickle mower cut is an art...slowly understood and painfully learned. A perfectly performing sickle mower is a beauty to behold..minimal HP, smooth rippling swaths. But like a double rainbow or an eclipse ...is rare. Unless you plan to live forever and have nothing else to do.....move on!

I was hoping for a quick fix but it is starting to sound complicated, Thank you.

It may be that your pitman shaft is not the right length. The sections have to travel across the gap between the guards. When the blade is farthest to the left, the sections should be directly under the guards. When the blade is farthest to the right, the sections should be directly under the guards one space to the right. P.S. I use serated sections which cut my three acres much better.

Not complicated it is just one of those thing you either know about or you do not so it can be a thing you need to learn BTDT and had to learn years ago

I fought with a John Deere sickle bar one year. Kept clogging, did some research and determined that the bar was flat with the ground. It needs to be tipped up not flat.

what are you trying to cut? Some stuff like fine grass is tough to cut. if you have new sections and new guards - it sounds like you need to downshift a gear and speed up your motor. mowers cut better at higher rpms. Do you have the right length bolts in the guards and hold down clips? If they are too long they can grab onto the hay and cause plugging, been there. Are your hold down clips holding the sickle down on the guards?? can you post good pictures of your mower bar, might give us a clew as to what is going on. Good luck with her.

Make sure you have correct lead on the end of your bar should run inch or two in front of opposite end.as said by others use top link to tilt guards up a little make sure knife setting down on guards use hammer to bend guards up if need be drive 3 to 5 mph all I can think of

(quoted from post at 18:50:13 05/18/17) Thank you, I only have around 7 acres to cut. Didn't want to get too deep into the pocket. Would you want to sell the manuel?

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Still have the mower so need to keep the manual.

According to the manual you can mow up to 9 MPH and cut 6 acres an hour. HAHAHHAHAHHAHHAHAHAH. I was lucky to mow at 2 MPH not including stopping to clear it. I figure 1 to 2 acres and hour for 6 foot bar even with issues plugging.

(quoted from post at 21:30:14 05/18/17) It may be that your pitman shaft is not the right length. The sections have to travel across the gap between the guards. When the blade is farthest to the left, the sections should be directly under the guards. When the blade is farthest to the right, the sections should be directly under the guards one space to the right. P.S. I use serated sections which cut my three acres much better.

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No pitman on a 41, it's a balanced head mower.

good advice by others here already. You can still buy an operators manual for this mower, it is a good one. Your clogging can be caused by many things, but when the mower is set up properly it cuts grass hay very well. I cut 10-20 ac fields with none or just a couple plugs regularly. I tilt the horizontal bar angle up a little, and the outer tip of bar needs to be several inches ahead of the base. The manual explains all this. I usually run my 4-speed tractors in 4th Low gear, maybe 1st High if crop thin. Never cut over grass that has already been cut. It will plug for sure. I lift the 3-pt up when I need to travel over hay that has already been cut. I run pto speed around 450-500, your needs may vary. Sickle bars are best for first cutting of tall grasses like Orchard Grass and Fescue, not so good for clover and 2nd cutting when less stemmy. Also, as other said the sections and ledger plates/guards need to be close together. It cuts like scissors do. Try cutting something with a pair of scissors that have a big gap. When it's set up right it is great to see the tall hay drop down in perfect symmetry.

I guess I've been very lucky so far with my 41, I just hope it continues! I've cut about 15 acres 2X year for the last 17 years or so and before that all we ever used was a 41. Yes, I've clogged it up but usually due to wet/matted grasses and guards being out of line. I will second FinnMD's advice, an Owners Manual is worthwhile. If you cut with it very low then you tend to have plugging issues. When you get the adjustments set and the proper vertical alignment it cuts very well. If I remember correctly the lift arm pins should be 19.5 to 20 inches high from level ground and the vertical support tube should be close to vertical, as old says slightly up on the guards, with the blade laying in the mow position. Running at or near PTO speed helps as does the proper gearing. With a Massey tied to it I run 3 Low in heavy hay and bump to 4 Low once it gets a bit drier. In light or second cutting I can run 1 High usually. I think once you get the guards adjusted it will cut okay. I'm hoping mine doesn't "grenade" this year, it's getting long in the tooth. Good Luck on it!

Thank You

Thank you

Thank you all, now I have some new things to try.

I'm out on a limb here since I'm probably the world's least experienced sickle bar user, but that does mean I've been learning the hard way lately...

So, some "obvious" things which were not obvious to me:

The rock guard points are sharp and will catch sticks, old balls of hay from earlier cutting, or gobs of mud from crayfish hills. The upside is that this keeps that junk out of the blades. The bad part is it keeps the grass out too until I get off the tractor and clean it out.

I'm learning to watch the bar for this and catch it while the clog is small -- or in the case of bigger obstacles before I hit them at all.

The sickle bar hates to cut across grass it has already cut. To me this is *the* big secret to the thing, now I'm trying to learn how to mow without crossing over the same grass twice.

The swath board and grass rod are critical pieces which seem to be missing from a lot of old mowers. They are what keep the mower from cutting over the same grass twice. When I put a swath board on mine the difference was outstanding.

Make sure the hitch height is correct, at least on some mowers it affects angle of attack.

Get your breakaway link set as light as practical that way you can mow faster without worrying so much about breaking something.

Mow at the "right" speed. It seems like too slow is as much a problem as too fast. I think the grass falls forward instead of behind the bar, and there you are, trying to re-cut...

For me the manuals were money well spent. They don't tell everything you need to know but they are a start and give you diagrams which are labeled with the right names for stuff like gag link and swath bar, so when you post questions here you don't have to work so hard to make yourself understood.

There you have it, the voice of inexperience. Hope it helps you or someone a little.

When all else fails and you've pulled all your hair out, you can always go to a drum or disc mower. they don't plug up and you don't have to go 2 mph. They are a little pricey tho. on your mower, like others have said, you have probably tried to get the cutter bar to lay flat on the ground. They need to be pointed up a little as Old has said. Also check what others have offered (then follow my advice and you'll be glad you did) Just my thoughts, Keith

To add on what Random said below, you do need a good swath board at end and with the grass stick on it if you are cutting tall hay. It works to keep a clear path of about 1 ft so when you start to cut your next row you are running your inner bar shoe on that cleared path, so then your inner guards don't run over cut grass and get clogged. I prefer the metal swath board with metal grass stick. If you need parts try Nolts Equipment in PA, I'm not affiliated in any way.

Thank You