Old FMC Sidewinder bush hog slip clutch

[japody]

Thank you! I was able to order one from the link japody sent. Also ordered a new set of blades. Should be here early next week. I値l probably b wrestling with that all week. LOL
Gearbox oil is full but looks a little milky so I知 changing that too.

Hercules took over some of the mfg of Sidewinders when FMC gave it up. They also acquired the inventory from FMC. They're my first choice when I need parts for my SW's.

 

[devodad]

Yes. I called them and they seemed real knowledgeable on it. Thanks for the web site info.

 

[devodad]

Thanks again for the detailed instructions on disassembling the clutch and for your good eye catching that mine had a broken spring disk. Took mine apart just like you said and found a whole lot of pitting and badly rusted metal parts. Ended up ordering a whole new clutch and blades for mine from Hercules in Louisiana. It was a bear taking the old blades off and putting them back on. Very hard to keep them from turning. I still think it was worth it cause now it’s just about a new machine for a little over $300. Still too wet here to try it out tho.

 

[pcbauer]

I ended up repainting using oxide red and Caterpiller Yellow. Also replaced the cutting blades with OEM length. Blades that were on were 4" shorter than originals. E mailed Hercules to see if I could get a set of safety/warning decals since old ones were removed for painting. No reply yet. Will probably call them in the next couple of days. Maybe someone else on the forums now where to get replacements. Left FMC Sidewinder logo unpainted on both sides since I doubt I could redo that. Taped over model but haven't removed tape yet. I cut a field last week and unit seems to work and cut better with longer blades. I worried that they had installed shorter blades to keep unit from bogging down. Most likely they got what ever was available at the time. Noticed that there is a removable skirt section on the side of the Sidewinder. Not sure why it was made to be removed. Any ideas?

 

[countrybumpkin]

The removable panel is so the crop you are cutting can be raked and bailed instead of being mulched up into smaller pieces.

 

[devodad]

Your unit looks really nice. I think I’ll paint mine too. I have a little different model with a single rear wheel. Mine doesn’t have that removable panel but the other reply to this post makes sense to me. My blades are 36” long and 1/2” thick. Man, what a difference the new clutch and blades made! I was finally able to mow with it this week and it didn’t bog down at all. Cut thru some really tall and thick pasture grass with ease. Thanks again for your help and suggestions.

 

[heathocker]

I see that it has been about a year since last post but may help others. I have a FMC Sidewinder GB-722 with same style clutch. Have same issue as person that posted original message. Disassembled clutch (See photo attachment) cleaned and installed new friction discs that I obtained through the internet. To disassemble back off the clutch tension nut completely, then remove the four (4) bolts holding the yoke to the clutch system. Under the old grease you should find a C clip on the end of the spline shaft from the cutter gear box. Remove. Then either slide clutch assembly off shaft or you may have to tap on alternating sides of clutch assembly to work of shaft. Cleaned spline shaft and assembly. Cleaned metal clutch faces with brake cleaner and reassembled with the two new friction disks. On the photo from the original post it appears that the spring disk that the large tension nut screws down on is broken. It should be a complete piece as seen in photo of my set. Sharpened blades. Haven't had a chance to try it out yet. Plan on painting upper deck when warm enough. Hope this helps.View attachment 544279View attachment 544278View attachment 544277

Thanks for the info on replacing the friction discs. We have an old sidewinder cutter as well, and one of the discs just busted on us. Dad wants to pay someone to replace them or even look a new cutter, but I think we can fix it ourselves with the proper discs.

I tried to click on your picture links, but they did not work. Any chance you can post them up again? (not sure why but the pics show up in your quote when I preview this reply....)

Anything special in the way of tools to get the clutch disassembled to replace the discs and then put it back together? The cutter is at our cabin an hour away, so we do not have a full tool box there....just want to try to make sure we have everything we need before we go tearing into it.

Thanks in advance!

 

[pcbauer]

Sorry. Just saw your post. I use a different e-mail account now and hadn't updated the one at Tractorbynet till now. As for tools, For doing the clutch assembly I would suggest a 3/8 socket set. A small crow bar to slide into U joint to hold shaft steady, A medium size flat head screw driver to pop off the C clip, a small hand sledge to tap the clutch off the spline if it's reluctant and I used a large old pipe wrench I found for the tension nut. Just pay attention to how the parts come off. Swap out the friction discs. It doesn't show in the parts layout photo i took but mine had two spring discs nested together.

I couldn't find original photos. My browser Edge and google Chrome both bring up the photos from the post on my system.

Hope this all helps.

 

[heathocker]

Thanks very much, I appreciate the response. I was able to see the old thread pics after some finagling with my browser. We will be attempting the repair work this weekend after a morning turkey hunt. I will let you know how it goes.

 

[heathocker]

We were able to complete the job in about 30 minutes time. That included trying to clean up the plate faces that contact the friction discs. It went quite smoothly. Thanks again for your help and the pictures!