Mowing JD 350 sickle mower

   / JD 350 sickle mower #1  

laurencen

Veteran Member
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Feb 19, 2007
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saskatchewan Canada
Tractor
Bobcat Toolcat 5600T Kioti CK20, Cat D2 dozer, Cat 420 tractor loader, Deer 644E loader, Bobcat E32 mini and Bobcat 590 skidsteer, Toro Groundsmaster 325D
Hi all, got a Farm King finish mower that is not working well, basically it is plugging to the point the blades will not run if I turn off the PTO, anyway got a JD350 sickle mower, plan on putting it on the CK20, is this going to work for long grass, weeds and alfalfa, main use is the roadway ditches and longer grass, maybe once cut the finish mower can work fine, someone said its the alfalfa that is mushing up.

Other option is the rough cut mower 5 foot model but at $2,000 versus $100 for the sickle any recoendations, also will a sickle cut a ditch in other words run along the road and have the sickle end lower than the tractor wheels about 30 degrees, how is the blade held up in the vertical position for transport

Thanks
 
   / JD 350 sickle mower #2  
Hi all, got a Farm King finish mower that is not working well, basically it is plugging to the point the blades will not run if I turn off the PTO, anyway got a JD350 sickle mower, plan on putting it on the CK20, is this going to work for long grass, weeds and alfalfa, main use is the roadway ditches and longer grass, maybe once cut the finish mower can work fine, someone said its the alfalfa that is mushing up.

Other option is the rough cut mower 5 foot model but at $2,000 versus $100 for the sickle any recoendations, also will a sickle cut a ditch in other words run along the road and have the sickle end lower than the tractor wheels about 30 degrees, how is the blade held up in the vertical position for transport

Thanks

You might have a hard time with the alfalfa even with the sickle mower it will tend to plug the grass and weed should cut fine .Have you tried cutting with mower set higher and and let it set for a couple of days and do it over again I find that if vetch is dry it will mulch better the if its mowed on a regular basis it is easy to maintain
There should be a rod that goes into sickle holder to frame with a nut or a hook IF you have never used sickle before DO NOT place fingers in knife area when lifting for transport.
BTW if it does not already have one an anti plug knife on the end will help a lot.
 
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   / JD 350 sickle mower
  • Thread Starter
#3  
Thanks for the reply, know to keep fingers out and away the knives, I tried mowing higher but the same thing happens just takes longer, the sickle arm does not seem to have a stop for the lower position, the spring tensioner I assume is to offer support for the blade, does one cut with the 3pt lowered as desired and the end of the blade has a device that runs on the ground.

any guidance and suggestions are appreciated
 
   / JD 350 sickle mower #4  
Hi all, got a Farm King finish mower that is not working well, basically it is plugging to the point the blades will not run if I turn off the PTO, anyway got a JD350 sickle mower, plan on putting it on the CK20, is this going to work for long grass, weeds and alfalfa, main use is the roadway ditches and longer grass, maybe once cut the finish mower can work fine, someone said its the alfalfa that is mushing up.

Other option is the rough cut mower 5 foot model but at $2,000 versus $100 for the sickle any recoendations, also will a sickle cut a ditch in other words run along the road and have the sickle end lower than the tractor wheels about 30 degrees, how is the blade held up in the vertical position for transport

Thanks

Your 350 mower is a similar to my MF-41 sicklebar.

DSCF0020Small.jpg


It cuts a lot better now that I've replaced the worn out sickle sections and guard/ledger plate assemblies. I'd recommend that for your mower if you haven't done so already.

Don't know why a properly maintained 3pt sicklebar can do a good job mowing alfalfa. My neighbor mows about 30 acres of irrigated alfalfa field with an old New Holland self-propelled windrower that has a 12-ft sicklebar. Of course, he keeps that mower head in real good shape.

Don't know how much down angle you can run on the 350. The MF-41 bar can be tilted downward to cut ditches, but I haven't tried it myself. My 1951 Farmall Super A has a mid-mount sicklebar mower that can cut ditches pretty well (it was originally a Caltrans mower).

You'll probably have to rig a chain to hold your bar vertical for transport. That's how my Allis Chalmers 80T trailer type sicklebar is rigged

DSCF0062Small.jpg


My MF-41 has a threaded rod to handle this task

DSCF0024Small.jpg
 
   / JD 350 sickle mower
  • Thread Starter
#5  
well all got the sickle mower, mounted it to the CK20 and runs fine, the issue is how to get the lift, the 3pt lifts it up but the blade is still down, there is a large spring that has a chain thro and on the cutting head 2 points where a chain is attached, played a bit and this chain is attached to a bar that pivots on the 3pt mounting frame, anyone got a picture of how this should look and be rigged, I assume the levercauses the cutting bar to raise when the 3pt is lifted

Thanks
 
 
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