Cutting Hay Pattern and Swing Tongue Swather

Hi all,

kev/ont wrote: You pull the latch and swing the tounge to the open position before you turn on the pto. It swings the machine out away from the tractor and also provides you with better angles of turn and allows the pto shafts to turn on the right angles. You run the risk of serious driveline damage if you run the pto with the machines closed in.

obtain the operator manuals for your equiptment.this will cover most everything you need to know for safe and efficient operation.

When your swather is folded (more behind then beside the tractor) this is called transport position and that is all it's supposed to be used for. These things take a little learning just like everything else. A manual would be a very wise investment

Also I've found with a swather,and most other drawbar equipment, it helps to remove the 3pt arms. If you're not using them, get them out if the way.

Edited by thendrix - 10 Jul 2016 at 8:47pm

Tighter turns to the right, wide turns to the left.

I think the perspective of the turn might be the issue here. I've never run the model of mower you mention, but I've been mowing hay with that style of unit for....35 years or more?

First, yes, swing the machine out and leave it there. I can't imagine the time and misery involved in switching the tongue on every turn, and it's not going to do you any good anyway.

Back to the perspective thing. You're sitting in the tractor seat, and it may not seem like you're turning sharp. But look at the outside end of your mower. You can turn so that it's virtually stationary, even "backing up" slightly. You can turn short enough to the right, so that your back tire doesn't come into the tongue, and a little driveline clatter is OK. As you approach the corner, you're going to bring the cutter bar just to the edge of the standing crop, and turn sharp to the right, watch the back tire, and watch the outside end of the mower, and keep into the turn. About the time your front tractor tires are approaching the standing crop, turn to the left as quick as you can. Watch the outside end of your mower, and it will actually be backing up and you'll swing right into the cut. A little practice, and you'll make slight adjustments to what I just said and you'll get the hang of it.

On sharp corners, acute from 90 degrees, I will often cut the full point off the angle and swing around to the left. When you turn left, for me I think, there's less clatter in the driveline, and it seems like you're moving faster. In fact, if you have a hi lo and are in lo, flip it in high for the corner (Only for these left hand corners). So you are moving the mower faster, but not really saving time or turning sharper. Make sense?



Edited by Tbone95 - 12 Jul 2016 at 7:22am

Tbone95 wrote: I think the perspective of the turn might be the issue here. I've never run the model of mower you mention, but I've been mowing hay with that style of unit for....35 years or more? First, yes, swing the machine out and leave it there. I can't imagine the time and misery involved in switching the tongue on every turn, and it's not going to do you any good anyway. Back to the perspective thing. You're sitting in the tractor seat, and it may not seem like you're turning sharp. But look at the outside end of your mower. You can turn so that it's virtually stationary, even "backing up" slightly. You can turn short enough to the right, so that your back tire doesn't come into the tongue, and a little driveline clatter is OK. As you approach the corner, you're going to bring the cutter bar just to the edge of the standing crop, and turn sharp to the right, watch the back tire, and watch the outside end of the mower, and keep into the turn. About the time your front tractor tires are approaching the standing crop, turn to the left as quick as you can. Watch the outside end of your mower, and it will actually be backing up and you'll swing right into the cut. A little practice, and you'll make slight adjustments to what I just said and you'll get the hang of it. On sharp corners, acute from 90 degrees, I will often cut the full point off the angle and swing around to the left. When you turn left, for me I think, there's less clatter in the driveline, and it seems like you're moving faster. In fact, if you have a hi lo and are in lo, flip it in high for the corner (Only for these left hand corners). So you are moving the mower faster, but not really saving time or turning sharper. Make sense?

Ditto what Mike just said. Just go around and around. On your first round, you will be hugging the left edge of the field, and running on uncut hay. Once you've made the first round, your tractor will be running on what you just cut. At some point, you will go around the field "backwards" (counterclockwise, steering to the left) to cut that outside round. This way, the only driven on hay you will be cutting is that outside round. It doesn't cut the driven on hay the best, so you wouldn't want to go back and forth and keep driving on hay.

They do make mowers that swing from side to side quickly and easily with hydraulics. It will trail the tractor to the left or right, so you can go back and forth without running on hay. If you have seen field mowed with that pattern and wonder why we're telling you different, it is because they had a different type of mower than you.

So, I put up more hay this year and never could get a good grasp on turning the tractor with the pull type swather.  Many of you said I could make very tight turns if I went to the left.  I cannot make this work.  But, I also think I now know why.  I think my drawbar is too short.  Where I connect the swather and pin it, is in front of the rear portion of the tires.  As a result, if I make tight turns I end up hitting the tongue of the swather on the rear of the rear tires.  Does this make sense?  Do I need to get a longer draw bar so pin connection is completely behind the tires?  As always, thanks in advance.  

pull that jack off if you can, if not swing it the other way.

Best cornering mowers I have ever used are the ones with the offset axle like the
AC 82T and the NH 456.

If thatsa Kubota pulling the swather, it may have a 2 position drawbar.  Take the drawbar out, and see if it has another hole, that sets the drawbar, further back...

Tbone, Dave, and others on here are correct. Extending the drawbar away from the tractor will be a big help as well as moving the jack to the left side and positioning back farther. With practice you will be able to come to the end of a field, turn right with a little right brake sharp enough not hit the tongue of the equipment, and as someone said when you straighten back out to go across the field it should back up and start cutting again across the end of the field without stopping. Dad's AC 390 haybine does this well. If I could get the video on here you could see my 190XT and dad's 390 haybine in action, you would understand after seeing it done.

Another thing you can try is to use a 3 point hitch drawbar, between the lift arms, to pull the swather.  I don't recommend it on hills, but in flat areas, it should work fine...

I was mowing hay last night and I thought about this post. I have a 13' newholland hydroswing and I pull it with the 8050. I start turning when the mower is about 10' (not quite the width of the mower) from the corner. As the tractor turns it pulls the mower to the end and and backs right up and starts cutting a full swath making a perfectly square corner. I really don't have to turn the tractor that sharp either. I thought about trying to take a video but that would have been a little too much going on at one time I'm afraid.

We used to pull a 488 newholland with a D17 and it worked the same way but you had to spin the steering wheel pretty quick. I actually think the big mower is a little easier to turn.   I think if you can get that drawbar lengthened out you will have better luck.