I'd like to sickle mow the cover crop in a vineyard with a team for the 8' rows and a single horse for the 6' rows. In order to do this I suspect I'd need to have someone custom build or modify a mower for me. For the 6' rows/one horse mower the bar would need to be about 3-1/2' long. The 8' rows (2 horse) would need a bar in the 5' range. The bar/blade on both of these mowers would need to be centered on the wheel assembly - not off to the side. I recently looked at a 5' sickle mower and it looks as though that could be modified by a skilled person without too much difficulty. The 3-1/2' mower might be more difficult. I've thought of possibly modifying a BCS sickle mower for this option. Anyone interested in taking on one or both of these projects? Suggestions?

Both David Bradley and Gravely made sickle bar mowers for their 2-wheel tractors. You can find these old things fairly cheep and may be able to modify and use the sickle bar portion like the BCS and it would be a whole lot cheaper if it doesn't end up working so well. The other option is just to use the whole 2-wheel tractor set up with the 3 ft bar up front. I'll tell ya, some of the things that look like a simple modification end up being a useless piece of scrap iron. Just keep in mind there was at least one horse mower manufactured with the mower in front, and how many of them do you see ANYWHERE, much less in operation. The only one I ever saw was in a book.

I have seen in Switzerland and in California a walk behind mower. It has a gas engine and you walk behind it, just as you would a roto-tiller. Yes, I understand it is not horse powered, but it is a small, narrow and manageable mower. Dennis

I can convert a horse mower for you to a single in 3.5 foot length. The 5 footers are everywhere.

Tony Clapier- contact me directly at (707) 431-8845.

Tony,
Converting a 5 to 3 isn't his problem the way I read it. The real problem is the width of the whole machine due to only 6 feet between rows. Even with a 3.5 foot bar you couldn't fit my mower down a 6 foot row without dragging some of it with me. LOL. Hence the stipulation that the bar be up front or centered and not off to the side. That will take a little more than whacking off a couple feet of iron.

I have a walk-behind Troy Built sickle mower, 36 inches wide. They made them up to 45 inches wide. It uses the same knife as the BCS, but a completely different drive system. 3 1/2 hp and will cut almost anything without clogging. Doesn't do as neat a job as my John Deere 8w mower or IHC #9, but it is acceptable and can get where the others can't without clogging. I purchased it used for 450 dollars in good shape. They are sold on ebay normally, but they are normally in Pennsylvania, Vermont, New Jersey, places with a lot of hill sides.

Looking at one I don't really see how you could modify it or a gravely/bcs to work behind horses. Maybe a belt driven cut down pitmanless bar off of a later tractor mower would work? I would personally either just use a walk-behind mower or, if you have to use your horses, look into the trailing rotary mowers like the guys with ATVs use and put a couple of sections of heavy rubber on the front of the deck to prevent rocks being flung forward. Trying to use a front mounted sickle on a ground drive mower is dangerous and not very practical, in my opinion. To clear clogs one would have to stand in front of the bar/whole mower so if the team took off you would be done for. Also sickles don't like going over grass that has been pushed down (horses walking on it) unless you travel the opposite way, which is not going to happen in your application.

Tony, You didn't leave a number for me to reach you.