Sickle Bar Sickle Mowers and Brush Hog

[thcri]

Did the Brush Hog just kind of take over the sickle mowers? I thought instead of using my neighbors 4ft brush hog I would get a 5ft for behind my tractor and then my wheels would at least be covered up. Then I was thinking how about an old sickle mower? But you can't find them used for a decent price and a new brush hog is less money almost. And I guess the brush hog would be easier to maintain.

But then again you would think if the brush hog is takin over you would be able to find the sickle mower used all over the place?

Just kind of confused here.


murph

 

[BobG_in_VA]

Sickle bars are/used to be used for haying and the occasional cutting along roads/pond edges, etc. Brush hogs are for beating stuff into submission. You could possibly cut hay with a brush hog but you couldn't clear an area made a brush hog work with a sickle. BobG in VA

 

[thcri]

I was thinking for the open area in my back yard. It is just all grass with really nothing to worry about hitting. In fact I am sure it was hay at one time as it has a lot of clover in it. I just want to cut it down.


murph

 

[Birdman]

I think the sickle mowers were originally for hay and have been replaced by lots of newer/faster implements. But I like to "bush hog" with my sickle mower. I have a 7 ft. model and that is 2 ft. more than my bush hog. Plus I have lots of rocks and it gets pretty exciting when I hit them with the bush hog, no big deal for the sickle mower. Check with any farmers in your area, they probably have them sitting behind the barn and might let you have it cheap, that is how I found mine.

 

[RoyJackson]

I looked into a sickle mower before I got my Land Pride cutter.

Sickle mowers are more expensive ad require more maintenance then a cutter.

Also, when using one with a smaller tractor, one is putting a substantial amount of weight extended off to one side. Even with a counterweight, I was told the tractor is less stable.

Also, the only sickle bar mower I could find that would fit my 670 was a 5 footer. That wouldn't help me much on my embankments.

I looked at one to clear a heavily brushed area and embankments. I ended up using a 60" cutter for the brush and using a weed wacker on the embankments.

 

[JerryG]

<font color="blue"> I would get a 5ft for behind my tractor and then my wheels would at least be covered up. </font>
A sickle is offset. It wouldn't cover your tracks. They are made so that you are not running over any of the grass that is being cut from the round you are currently cutting.

 

[RonR]

I think the other thing that drove sickle mowers out of favor is the effort to maintain them. When the sickle guard (the teeth) start wearing and the sickle wears, the thing won't cut worth a hoot. Especially some grasses are TOUGH to cut and a worn sickle mower just won't cut it. A bush hog, even with dull blades, will beat the stuff into submission.

Plus, hooking up a sickle mower is more complex than a bush hog. Some of them bolted to a cross bar and used the 3PH to raise/lower the cutting bar.

Having said that, if you want to mow over a ditch or next to a pond, a sickle mower is invaluable!

My 2 cents.
ron

 

[thcri]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( <font color="blue"> I would get a 5ft for behind my tractor and then my wheels would at least be covered up. </font>
A sickle is offset. It wouldn't cover your tracks. They are made so that you are not running over any of the grass that is being cut from the round you are currently cutting. )</font>

Jerry,

I was thinking here about a 5 ft brush hog. I am using my neighbors 4ft right now and my wheels are wider which doesn't do a good job. Your right that is in part why I wouldn't mind a sickle because it is offset. Even with a 5ft brush hog your wheels will knock the grass down and then not mow so you end up coming back over it a few days later.

murph

 

[JerryG]

Sorry, I guess that I got your sentences out of order.

 

[frank_f15]

Remember tho the sickle mower will cut the grass and leave it just lay there whereas the hog will chew it up into smaller pieces. You are also correct, trying to find a used sickle mowere is next to impossible, unless it is junk.

 

[Syncro]

Sickle mowers were all we had when I was a kid. We cut hay with them, thats before swathers when a side-delivery rake made the wind-rows. They cut timothy and other hay varieties pretty good, but didn't like grass.

I got to disliking sickle bars due to all the maintenance, not to mention driving too close to an imovable object and catching the end of the bar. I remember breaking an expensive casting that way once. Then there is the issue of breaking a tooth, having to sharpen the bar, wear etc.

Yup, a bush hog sure is better for simply cutting grass thats not going to be bailed. No way would I want one of them critters again! /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[thcri]

I guess because they are not used as much I figured I could find one fairly cheap. Just me being cheap again but as usual it didn't work. So maybe the next time TSC has the 5 footer King Kutters on sale I will get one.


murph

 

[dknarnd]

Growing up we used a sickle bar mower and old hay rake for cutting and baling the timothy. Now all we do is bush hog the fields down once a year but the trees along the edges are encroaching on the field so it is difficult to reach in to the edges with the bush hog. Also it seems like every time we get close to the stone rows we get to close /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif Since we still have the sickle mower but it doesn't fit on the current tractor I decided the best thing to do was buy an old 1952 JD so I can get the sickle mower back in operation /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif It won't be ready for this year but next year the banks along the road and edges of the fields will be lookin good.

 

[RonR]

I used to know a lot of farmers who kept their sickle mower mounted to an IH or JD tractor--that's the only thing they used it for!

Easier to keep one dedicated and have it available to use whenever than mess with attaching/detaching.......

ron