A type of
mower, usually pulled by a
tractor. These mowers are often used for
hay production, because unlike some other mower types they do not
shred the
crop being cut.
Sickle mowers convert the
rotary motion of the tractor's
PTO shaft into a linear side-to-side motion of the sickle.
The sickle is made of a small, long steel bar which has many triangular knives, or sickle sections, attached to it with rivets or bolts. A large, somewhat flexible steel bar provides support for the sickle through the guards, which are bolted to the large bar and support and protect the sickle. This assembly is easily raised or lowered using a hydraulic cylinder.
Modern sickle mowers may have cutting widths as great as 9 feet, and double sickle models cut even wider.