Mowing Sickel Bar Recommendation

[davebic]

Looking for a used sickle bar for my Kubota 3130. Any recommendations on the max length bar to look for and any other insights would be appreciated. Thanks!

 

[flusher]

Looking for a used sickle bar for my Kubota 3130. Any recommendations on the max length bar to look for and any other insights would be appreciated. Thanks!

New or used?
Your 3130 can handle a 7-ft sicklebar, no problem.
Get a sicklebar that attaches to the 3pt hitch, not one that has wheels and attaches to the drawbar.

Here's the Massey Ferguson 31 mower I use.



If you're looking for a used mower, get one that's belt driven, not one with
a wooden pitman drive rod.
Used sicklebars need to be checked for worn sickle sections (the movable triangular blades) and worn ledger plates on the guards (the pointed things on the cutter bar). You'll have to replace these--the sickle sections are about $1 each; the guards are $5-6 each from places like Tractor Supply.

Good luck

 

[sweettractors]

Looking for a used sickle bar for my Kubota 3130. Any recommendations on the max length bar to look for and any other insights would be appreciated. Thanks!

We have new and good used sickle mowers. Are you looking for a beltdrive or pitman type? (beltdrive mows approx 70 degrees below horizontal and 90 deghrees vertical and pitman's mow about 35 degrees above and below horizontal) The pitman mowers are less expensive. Email sweet@scrtc.com and give me your zip code and type you are looking for and I will send some pictures. Ken Sweet

 

[blueriver]

There are alot of good brand name machines on the market ... new and used. I find the biggest problem is some of the old ones are really worn ... check them over good and keep in mind parts availability.

 

[KennyV]

7 foot should work fine, I use a AC 3pt on my Kubota L4200... KennyV

 

[Farmerford]

I have two John Deere 350 three point hitch belt drive sickle mowers, one with a 9' cutterbar and one with a 7'. Other than the length of the bar the mowers are identical. The 9' is more or less permanently mounted to a Kubota 2400 HST, with 18pto hp. That is more than adequate power for the mower, even in heavy going. But the offset nature of a sickle mower means that virtually all the weight is on the right three point hitch lift arm. On the 9' the center of gravity is actually a bit outboard of the right lift pin, so the mower is pushing down on the right pin and lifting up on the left. The B2400 handled the 9' on the TPH, but only after I replaced the OEM turnbuckle stabilizers with a more robust homemade system. Even then I felt that the B2400 TPH was being abused, so I made a backhoe type subframe attached to the axle housings to carry the mower. This works fine and the 9' will probably stay on the B2400 during the entire mowing season (March through September).

I also have a Kubota L2900 (29 db hp) that easily handles the 7' mower. Although I did not put the 9' on it, I am confident that the L2900 will handle the 9' as well.

The point of all this is that your tractor will have more than sufficient power for either a 7' or a 9' sickle mower. And since it is larger and heavier than my L2900, it should not be bothered by the offset weight of the 9' mower (which is only a bit more than the 7' anyway). So if it were me, I would get a 9' rather than a 7' if both were available. Assuming an effective cut of 6" less than the bar length, and a tractor travelling 4mph, in one hour the 9' will mow 4 1/8 acres while the 7' mows 3 1/6 acres, or about 3/4 the amount mowed by the longer bar.

And, if you are not happy with the 9', you can shorten it to 7' by cutting 2' off the cutterbar and knife and driling a couple of holes in the new cutterbar end to remount the outer shoe.

A loooong time ago I used both a John Deere pittman drive mower and a New Holland belt drive mower. Pittman drive mowers have three disadvantages: 1. They vibrate a lot due to the nature of the pittman drive, but I have never heard of any operator being shaken to death and I can't tell that the mowing I did affected my brain (no snide comments, please). 2. As Ken Sweet said, the cutterbar doesn't like to be more than a few degrees above or below the tractor, so you can't drive along the level top of a pond dam and mow the bank going down to the water if it is very steep. 3. The pittman arm itself is usually part or all of the safety system for the drive train; therefore it is made of wood and rough cutting may break one or two per season. But they are cheap and easy to replace.

The belt drive mower 1. has much less vibration (how much less depends on the brand and drive system). 2. Will mow with the cutterbar at large angles from the tractor, both higher and lower. But none (to my knowledge) of the older belt drive mowers came with a system to raise or lower the cutterbar to those extreme angles. Therefore, the advantage of mowing at extreme angles will be available only by adding a hydraulic or other power lift system. Several members of this board have done that and their pictures will give you a good idea of what is required.

The belt drive mower has two disadvantages: 1. They are much more expensive than the pittman mowers. Ken Sweet can give you an idea of how much. 2. The drive mechanism that eliminates the pittman drive (called a wobble head) is much more complicated than the pittman drive, and some of the internal parts of the wobble head are proprietary to the manufacturer and, even if available, are very expensive. The only American made belt drive mower still in production is the New Holland, and its internals are probably the simplest of the belt drives, so it is probably the best choice. The JD 350's I have have not been made in at least 10 years, but every part is available and given JD's custom of long term parts support, I believe these machines will outlast me. I don't know about parts for the International, New Idea, Massey Ferguson, and Allis Chalmers belt drive mowers, but other members can probably advise you on this.

Good luck and keep us posted.

 

[sweettractors]

I have two John Deere 350 three point hitch belt drive sickle mowers, one with a 9' cutterbar and one with a 7'. Other than the length of the bar the mowers are identical. The 9' is more or less permanently mounted to a Kubota 2400 HST, with 18pto hp. That is more than adequate power for the mower, even in heavy going. But the offset nature of a sickle mower means that virtually all the weight is on the right three point hitch lift arm. On the 9' the center of gravity is actually a bit outboard of the right lift pin, so the mower is pushing down on the right pin and lifting up on the left. The B2400 handled the 9' on the TPH, but only after I replaced the OEM turnbuckle stabilizers with a more robust homemade system. Even then I felt that the B2400 TPH was being abused, so I made a backhoe type subframe attached to the axle housings to carry the mower. This works fine and the 9' will probably stay on the B2400 during the entire mowing season (March through September).

I also have a Kubota L2900 (29 db hp) that easily handles the 7' mower. Although I did not put the 9' on it, I am confident that the L2900 will handle the 9' as well.

The point of all this is that your tractor will have more than sufficient power for either a 7' or a 9' sickle mower. And since it is larger and heavier than my L2900, it should not be bothered by the offset weight of the 9' mower (which is only a bit more than the 7' anyway). So if it were me, I would get a 9' rather than a 7' if both were available. Assuming an effective cut of 6" less than the bar length, and a tractor travelling 4mph, in one hour the 9' will mow 4 1/8 acres while the 7' mows 3 1/6 acres, or about 3/4 the amount mowed by the longer bar.

And, if you are not happy with the 9', you can shorten it to 7' by cutting 2' off the cutterbar and knife and driling a couple of holes in the new cutterbar end to remount the outer shoe.

A loooong time ago I used both a John Deere pittman drive mower and a New Holland belt drive mower. Pittman drive mowers have three disadvantages: 1. They vibrate a lot due to the nature of the pittman drive, but I have never heard of any operator being shaken to death and I can't tell that the mowing I did affected my brain (no snide comments, please). 2. As Ken Sweet said, the cutterbar doesn't like to be more than a few degrees above or below the tractor, so you can't drive along the level top of a pond dam and mow the bank going down to the water if it is very steep. 3. The pittman arm itself is usually part or all of the safety system for the drive train; therefore it is made of wood and rough cutting may break one or two per season. But they are cheap and easy to replace.

The belt drive mower 1. has much less vibration (how much less depends on the brand and drive system). 2. Will mow with the cutterbar at large angles from the tractor, both higher and lower. But none (to my knowledge) of the older belt drive mowers came with a system to raise or lower the cutterbar to those extreme angles. Therefore, the advantage of mowing at extreme angles will be available only by adding a hydraulic or other power lift system. Several members of this board have done that and their pictures will give you a good idea of what is required.

The belt drive mower has two disadvantages: 1. They are much more expensive than the pittman mowers. Ken Sweet can give you an idea of how much. 2. The drive mechanism that eliminates the pittman drive (called a wobble head) is much more complicated than the pittman drive, and some of the internal parts of the wobble head are proprietary to the manufacturer and, even if available, are very expensive. The only American made belt drive mower still in production is the New Holland, and its internals are probably the simplest of the belt drives, so it is probably the best choice. The JD 350's I have have not been made in at least 10 years, but every part is available and given JD's custom of long term parts support, I believe these machines will outlast me. I don't know about parts for the International, New Idea, Massey Ferguson, and Allis Chalmers belt drive mowers, but other members can probably advise you on this.

Good luck and keep us posted.

Thanks for the thorough explanation of the pitman and belt drive mower differences. I am sure this will be very helpful to all present and future sickle mower owners. One additional comment on parts availability for belt drive mowers, The International 1300, Case/IH 1300, Ford 505 and New Idea 522 are all the same mower. This makes these mowers also rank high in parts availability. Ken Sweet

 

[/pine]

...so I made a backhoe type subframe attached to the axle housings to carry the mower...

I'd be interested in seeing a picture or two of this if you could post them...

 

[Farmerford]

Slash Pine:

Be glad too. Give me a week or so.

 

[/pine]

Slash Pine:

Be glad too. Give me a week or so.

great..looking forward to seeing them...no rush...

 

[davesalisbury]

Hi all-

I've got a Kubota B2630. We've got about 2-3 acres that's not defined as "yard" that I mainly beat down with a bushhog 2X per year (and the bush hog is useful in making the woods look a little more presentable).

Mainly because it'd make the field look better than running said bush hog without having to increase mowing frequency (and as we speak it's over 4 feet tall), I'd like to track down a sickle bar mower. I might also use it to trim the ditches every now and then, so being able to mow at angles would be nice.

Since it's not much to cut, price is a premium (no new FarmMaxx cutters, sorry).

I've been looking, and came across what appears to be a Massey 41 (no wood Pitman arm and the outer drive box appears to be welded rather than cast). Picture is attached - sorry for odd cropping - didn't realize that daughter's head was in picture until I was back home from looking).

It's apparently been sitting for a few years (inside but on the dirt/mud) and the owner did hook it up and run it a bit for me. The PTO shaft is for a smaller PTO stub but the owner had an adapter (although I'd almost certainly want to change out to a more standard shaft at some point). It does seem to run well and the blades almost all look new. Ask is 575; I intend to see about the mid 400's. Bar is 7 feet long. Looks like a pressure wash and lube away from being quite usable, depending.

A few questions.

1-Does anybody know the weight of the Massey 41 unit? My manual says about 500-550 is the max implement weight, so I'd like to be pretty close on that.

2-Given the manual says 5-foot max cutting length on a sickle bar, how big a deal is the extra two feet? I realize there's probably a safety built into the spec, and there is a difference between violating the spec and VIOLATING the spec. Since the length spec is the same with the B 3030 it might be a tipping/stress on the 3PH issue. It looks like a competent machinist (or perhaps even me) could trim a couple of feet off the bar if it came to that.

3-Am I missing anything (other mower options, perhaps)?

Advice, expertise and poorly-informed opinions welcome .

Best,

Dave

 

[charleyfarmall]

Obviously the longer the cutter bar the more work you get done faster. The nice thing about sickle mowers is that they don't need a lot of hp. Your tractor can probably handle a lightweight sickle. If you have relatively smooth ground and are not trying to mow ditches and embankments, then a pitman arm mower might be exactly what you want. They are much lighter. I bet the 2630 can handle a 7 footer.

The Massey 41 is a good mower, and if you have a MF dealer nearby, they can still get parts. The biggest problem with these is that they sit outside and never get greased.

 

[sweettractors]

In heavy cutting the 7 ft bar may create some side draft pulling the tractor front to the right a little. No a big deal to shorten the blade. Machine is going to max out you capacity on the lift. We ship them at 650 including pallet weight. If you buy it, grease the head bearings about every 30 minutes when first using until you are sure those needle bearings a lubed REAL good. Price is fair. Ken Sweet

 

[flusher]

Hi all-

I've got a Kubota B2630. We've got about 2-3 acres that's not defined as "yard" that I mainly beat down with a bushhog 2X per year (and the bush hog is useful in making the woods look a little more presentable).

Mainly because it'd make the field look better than running said bush hog without having to increase mowing frequency (and as we speak it's over 4 feet tall), I'd like to track down a sickle bar mower. I might also use it to trim the ditches every now and then, so being able to mow at angles would be nice.

Since it's not much to cut, price is a premium (no new FarmMaxx cutters, sorry).

I've been looking, and came across what appears to be a Massey 41 (no wood Pitman arm and the outer drive box appears to be welded rather than cast). Picture is attached - sorry for odd cropping - didn't realize that daughter's head was in picture until I was back home from looking).

It's apparently been sitting for a few years (inside but on the dirt/mud) and the owner did hook it up and run it a bit for me. The PTO shaft is for a smaller PTO stub but the owner had an adapter (although I'd almost certainly want to change out to a more standard shaft at some point). It does seem to run well and the blades almost all look new. Ask is 575; I intend to see about the mid 400's. Bar is 7 feet long. Looks like a pressure wash and lube away from being quite usable, depending.

A few questions.

1-Does anybody know the weight of the Massey 41 unit? My manual says about 500-550 is the max implement weight, so I'd like to be pretty close on that.

2-Given the manual says 5-foot max cutting length on a sickle bar, how big a deal is the extra two feet? I realize there's probably a safety built into the spec, and there is a difference between violating the spec and VIOLATING the spec. Since the length spec is the same with the B 3030 it might be a tipping/stress on the 3PH issue. It looks like a competent machinist (or perhaps even me) could trim a couple of feet off the bar if it came to that.

3-Am I missing anything (other mower options, perhaps)?

Advice, expertise and poorly-informed opinions welcome .

Best,

Dave

The manual says it weighs 540 lb (approximately). I wouldn't worry about overload on your 3pt--it's conservatively rated. The extra 2 ft of sicklebar length is no big deal. The cantilevered weight isn't that much--not like a disc or drum mower that is nearly completely cantilevered off the 3pt hitch and puts a large strain on it.

I have an MF 31 sicklebar mower (550 lb weight) that I run with my Mahindra 5525 (54 hp engine, 45 hp pto, 2WD, gear tranny)--a lot more pto hp than necessary (15-20 hp would do nicely).



I bought it at auction for $550 and invested another $200 or so in replacement parts. Be prepared to replace the sickle sections (the movable triangular blades) and many if not all of the rock guard/ledger plate assemblies. The sickle sections are cheap (~$1 each); the guards are more expensive ($6-8 each). The sections are 3" wide--so for a 7-ft cutter bar there are 28 sections and 27 -28 guards depending on how the outboard end is configured.

Alignment of the sections and guards is critical for getting a good even cut and can be difficult for these old, worn mowers. I've rebuilt my MF31 three times so far and I'm still not satisfied with the cut. I'm switching to a drum mower next season (faster ground speed, cuts any type of crop, no jamming).

Sicklebars are notorious for clogging and jamming--so be prepared to dismount and clear these clogs by hand. You can try shifting into reverse with the mower shut off to remove these clogs, but I that approach doesn't work 100%. So just be very careful when yanking clogged hay out of your mower--those sickle sections are very sharp.

Good luck.

 

[ModMech]

We have a 7' JD #39 that we have used behind our B2410, yup you read that correctly. Your slightly larager tractor should have no problem with one at all. We need to use the AG tires at 20PSI RH and 10 PSI LH or the cutter won't lift evenly and then it is still not perfect.

Why is that? The JD has a lever that lifts the cutter bar between 6" - 18" as you raise the 3PH from the float position to clear ground obsticles or for transportation over short distances. Our CUT is too light in the front and I keep the tires soft for better traction.