Sickle mower

[LarsT]

Im looking at a #6 sickle mower. The owner said its off a Farmall A and wont work with my New Holland TC-33. I cant think of any reason it wont, everything I run with my 2N works on the New Holland. Implements and PTOs are universal, right?

 

[DanielW]

I don't know this for sure, but I've never heard of a model #6 sickle mower. Do you mean a 6' sickle mower? If so, it would depend on hitch type. There were a lot of IH semi-mount mowers built specifically to fit certain Farmall/IH models. Because the A didn't have a factory 3 PT hitch, I suspect it's one of these models with bracketry designed to work specifically on the A with a manual lever lift.

If this is the case, you're better off finding a 3 pt. hitch mower. There's certainly lots of them around. If it's a trail type then you should be ok, but it sounds like it's an IH semi-mount.

 

[NY 986]

Is this a rear mount or belly mount mower? Older rear mount mowers were made to attach to a fixed drawbar then raise the cutterbar via a hydraulic cylinder or manual lever. They did not come ready to mount on a 3 point hitch but the engineering is pretty simple to adapt one to a 3 point hitch. The alternative is to sell the one you have and buy one ready to go on your tractor.

 

[Absent Minded Farmer]

No, that mower was built before ISO 500 was created to standardize the PTO. The drawbar for that mower was not very interchangeable between IH tractors of the same vintage either. You could always cobble something together, I suppose. It would be best to see one mounted up properly on a tractor to get an idea of what you are dealing with before doing so.

Might be easier for you to find a 3PT mower.

Mike

 

[LarsT]

Thanks for responding. I guess I knew the older stuff had their own systems but since everything Ive used fit the old Ford I figured Id be ok. I have a 3 pt mower that I use most of the time but would like a sickle to get the ditches. I have a nice shop and should be able to fab what I need. I was hoping I didnt have to but that will reflect what I pay. Maybe you can answer this. Will the PTO shaft be the same? If not is there an adapter I could buy? Im not up on a lot of this, Im not even sure what brand of sickle it is.

 

[LarsT]

Its pulled by the drawbar. I could fab something to make that to fit. Any idea about the PTO shaft. I can fab just about anything I need but would like to keep this a simple project.

 

[paul]

Some sickle mowers were belly mount, or bolted onto the tractor frame between the front and rear wheels.

The old letter series of IHC only had a rear drawbar. Some special implements like a sickle mower would bolt onto that drawbar. There was no three point or other universal fit lift. They did come up with some special lifting systems, but they are rare and very specific to ihc.

So, if your mower fit on an old IHC tractor, it will not fit on a 3pt hitch without some drastic frame and bracket fabrication. It was built to bolt onto the bracketing on an IHC model tractor.

Then the pto. Many of the older and smaller IHC tractors came out with the small sized pto shaft. It did not take long before the slightly bigger pto shaft became the standard. When looking at old implements of these models, you need to check the pto. There are adaptors to make things fit, but they often make things not fit so well and the joints to flop around more or not be lined up right.

Any of this can be fixed and machined up and cobbled together. With enough time and money.

But locally, I see pretty good 3pt sickle mowers sell for $40 to 300. (They used to top out at $1200 or more, but disc mowers have really slowed down sickle mower demand!) I sure wouldnt wan t to put the time and effort and expense into converting that mower into a 3pt and the wonder if things line up well.......

Paul

 

[LarsT]

Thanks for replying. I posted a picture of it. It just has NO 6 Mower painted in big letters. I have a 60 inch 3 pt mower but our cabin road is 3/4 mile one lane. I would like to mow the ditch because it gets narrow when the alder brush grows up later in the season.

 

[LarsT]

Thanks for the info. It is pulled by the drawbar, I can fab something up there. I guess my main concern was the PTO. Thanks for clearing that up. I was wondering if it would fit or if an adapter was available. I know what you mean by time and expense. Little projects are fun but can turn into a headache fast. Ive been looking and like you said, Ive seen sickles from 100$- 1000$. If I can get this cheap enough I might have a project. Ive been told it works well and is used regularly.

 

[Leroy]

The only No. 6 Mower that I am aware of in the McCormik is a horse drawn mower. That mower remindes me of a Massy Harris but don't think it is. I think? that they had a No 6 mower but do not think it was a tractor mower.

 

[Absent Minded Farmer]

Oh! That's a Massey Harris mower. May want to ask on the MH-MF board & see what those guys say about mounting & PTO info.

Mike

 

[peteL]

Connection info

 

[BarnyardEngineering]

No need to fab up anything. Get a drawbar that goes between the 3pt arms, and the mower will bolt right on.

The PTO should work too without modification unless this mower is pre-1940-ish. That's about the time when they went from a 1-1/8" 6-spline PTO to the common 1-3/8" 6 spline. A quick measure will tell the tale.

 

[LarsT]

Thanks for replying and jogging my memory. I have a
drawbar for the 3 point somewhere around my garage. I
used it on my 2N with a homemade ballast box. Ill have to
check the spline size when I get it. I know they make an
adapter if it is the smaller or I can redo the shaft. Thanks
again, Im gonna go out to the garage and dig around.