[AT] Haying pictures

[toma at risingnet.net]

On Sun, 26 Jun 2016, John Hall wrote:

> Well thats something I have never seen or heard of--a crawler in a hay
> field! I bet making a left turn with the sickle mower is no fun!
>

Everyone around here used crawlers, the hills are too steep for wheel 
tractors. There was one family that used D4's for cutting and raking. They 
are mostly dead or gone now. Not too many of us making hay any more. The 
Open Space is taking over most of the hills and letting it all grow up to 
brush.

A sweeping left turn is no problem but in a sharp turn the bar is moving 
too fast for the knife. Ideally at a corner you stop and lift the knife 
and back up a quarter turn. My lifting mechanisim was not working so I 
had to whip around right turns and hope it did not plug up. There were 
spots with a lot of grass and I had to run in first gear to avoid plugging 
up. I need a new ledger plate in the inner show, maybe next year.