Mowing Alfalfa/Grass with a John Deere Model A and No. 5 Sickle Mower

Mowing hay (a mixture of alfalfa and grass) with a John Deere Model A and Number 5 sickle mower.
We have a nice rotary swather, but thought it'd be fun to spend some time and shoot some video of the A and No. 5.

[@thomassojka2704]

A nice sharp sickle mower lets the plant recover much quicker than our modern disc mowers. Sometimes the old way isn't all bad! Great video! Thanks for the excellent work putting together.

[@jimnowak3960]

The sound of that A brings back a lot of good memories.

[@joebonola7458]

OH...for the simpler times, the sounds, the smells, the satisfaction,...and "YES" the relaxation.

[@BrodieBr0]

These tractors were built with pride and will last forever. Sad we live in a bygone era where everything is built to just barely make it to the end of warranty and is near impossible for the average man to fix. Never let go of these old machines!

[@johndeere1951a]

I enjoy seeing the different seasons, changing look of your mountains. Seeing the same A feed the live stock out in the snow. I have a '51 A with a no5 7' mower for New Hampshire old grazing fields. My uncle gave me my first ride when I was 7 back in the 50's. That's the reason I bought this A w/ no5 out of Ohio 3 years ago. At 70 now my uncle rides with me. Very emotional. Keep them running . ♥️

[@mickeyphillips6603]

Something about watching this is very relaxing.

[@MrJohndeerejon]

It just doesn't get better than this.

[@Chevy4x4dawg]

Kyle As always a great video. Mix of background music and the true sound of tractor. Great drone, ground, and on tractor views! And as always I think you have the most beautiful view and backgrounds!!!

[@Hillbillysniper]

Another awesome calming video !

[@stevemccoy8138]

Wow, Reminds me of my youth. I've mowed Alot of hay with a Ol johnie Popper and a #9 mower, It wasn't nearly as good as the #5 . Good video. Thanks so much.

[@jimnowak3960]

That's the way it's done. Nice job man.

[@jasonbush8148]

Very enjoyable. Thanks for sharing

[@jonmiller8819]

Another great video Kyle, keep it up 😎

[@deernutOO]

Where I was 70 years ago at age 13 running model A on No. 5 Sickle mower. Remember it well, and enjoyed every bit of it. Wish I were in that seat right now, but no complaints what I am doing. Cutting dead trees and splitting firewood.

[@ronrobertson2242]

Beautful !

[@dankinnard1833]

Great video! Mowing off and swathing very nice, will rake up nice for baling when dry.

[@kansaskev8684]

I always enjoy watching your videos.

[@Wickhaven1]

Awesome drone work.

[@brd1242]

Early 70’s, Ford 600 with a sickle mower, 1968 Ford 5000 row crop with a crimper and if you got out of the swath, the crimper would ball up and break the drive chain...1973 bought a Gehl 1090 swather...pure heaven.... lol

[@alhemshorn5207]

It just don't get much better then this!!!!!!!!!

[@ericthatcher3462]

This brought back some very good memories of running my dad's 49 A with our No. 5 mower. We had a 47 B too that also used on the No.5 but I think I liked the A better.

[@stevenbetassa7329]

B was a small tractor then A, Ive seen a number of #5 mowers used with Model B's

[@littleofeveything]

There used to always be at least one neighbor that had a 3 legged dog when I was young it seemed.... Be careful, loved the video

[@russhfan]

When it cuts nice like that without plugging a 7' #5 is a great mower.

[@keithkuckler2551]

Before i got my first haybine, i had a belly mounted mower on my 3010, i pulled the conditioner behind the tractor, so, i could mow and condition in one pass. Here in Minnesota, if the weather is perfect, warm with some wind, i could mow early one morning, rake the next and bale in the afternoon. We made smaller windrows then, and, the hay dried out much better than the really big windrows that i see now. Really heavy alfalfa, might take two days though.

[@drbrickner]

Used one for hundreds of acres back in the fifties. It was on our B first and then on our 50. One thing always scared me. There is a clip that prevents the sickle from sliding out of the bar when it was folded. The bolt holding the clip in would sometimes fallout making it extremely dangerous to fold. I always folded my fingers into my palm when folding just in case that clip was missing. My other memory gets me to this day over 70 years later - the mower connects to the tractor on a Quik hitch mechanism that is usually fool proof and easy. When unhooked the mower rests on a couple of fold up stands. This particular day it had rained so the mower sunk down about an inch or so on one side. I lifted it into position by hand. Of course there wasn’t room to lift with my legs so I lifted with my back. Every once in awhile my lower back pain reminds me of my stupidity that day.

[@deannelson5187]

The best part of the video was the very last without it at annoying music. Just the sound of the Papa John and the circle mower. Awesome sound

[@jefffrayer8238]

Doing it perfectly Kyle using your Grandpa's mower. He would be proud. It's relaxing and takes a lot less fuel than disc mowers when weather permits. Not sure but it may dry just as quick with the sickle mower cause it's laying flat.

[@mystic24100]

Dad had a ‘51 A and a #5 mower. That dog running around reminds me the Dad cut one hind leg off of our dog with the #5 mower. I was only about 4 or 5 at the time. That dog was with us for some time after that.

[@jimsteele7108]

Nice drone shots

[@paulrichards2713]

We had a 1940 B hand start with No. 5 mower we used for years

[@fergusonmfgijsm9714]

Ik am love the John Deere A

[@danw6014]

Looks like second cutting. I started out with a new idea mower mounted on a 60. Haying has been a challenge this year. Still trying to get first off.

[@flyboyslc1]

That dog would not be there if I was mowing. One rabbit and it happens so fast. Legs gone. Happened to my grandfather.

[@designertjp-utube]

Splendid patient work action! Never got the chance to ask my Grandpa about the gas consumption in his JD Model A. Were you able to cut that entire field on a full JD tank? In 1962 my Grandpa would have stopped about halfway thru and smoked a Pall Mall Cigarette. Wait I take that back. He would have lit one or four of 'em while continuously mowing. We was both hooked on JD, Baby!

[@JJKHaywood]

It cut real well. My Uncle used a Model A JD To Cut and Rake. Then my other Uncle would use a A/C Rotobaler

[@brianvosburgh1720]

Love it. Curious where this is?

[@derekseiders3597]

Great video how much longer does the hay take to dry vs. running it though a conditioner

[@rodirby5952]

We had a JD A with a no5 and a JD 730 with a no8 mower

[@pollxz]

kyle que buenas manos tienes, como siega de bien ese peine con lo antiguo que es

[@kellybeckstead2894]

I can almost smell it.

[@zacbrown650]

Hey kyle, how long did it take to cut all this??

[@paulrichards2713]

We had two B John Deere with number 5 mowers running about everyday, used two more for conditioners

[@oldcroneysgarage9739]

I have a model a my grandpa gave it to me I hope to restore it I wanna hear the sound of an ole johnny popper in real life again I was looking at it how do you pull the engine?

[@oldcroneysgarage9739]

Hi Kyle I'm a big fan Ben watching you for who no's how long

[@MilkMan608]

Great setup! (Unless you're dealing with wet SE Minnesota pocket gopher mounds.) 😡

[@coreytrout3857]

Those mowers will really cut when the timing is right and they have enough blade lead

[@timnewman1172]

Good ledger plates helps a bunch, too!

[@rodneycraig3118]

My dad would cut the brush out of the fence row with an old John Deere no. 5 sickle mower. He said if it can get into the sickle, it will cut it off.

[@user-dc3qf7wd1w]

👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍

[@jeffreyhershey5754]

I know that this a old video but I just ran across it again the number five was a great little mower but the number eight was just a little bit better cut thousands of acres of hay with both behind the A and the B with both tractors and both mowers

[@KyleWeber]

I have a 38 that I’d like to hook up and use. It needs a few parts and time, but I think it’d be fun!

[@jeffreyhershey5754]

@@KyleWeber they were just before they stylized them or one year either way I had a styled A according to the serial number that was a 1941 electric start and lights and a wide front row crop tractor I understood that was the first year of electric start and lights then the war started and I heard it was almost impossible to get anything new in those days

[@MrMarthasville]

Nice job, you must have everything set just right. I think I'd leave the dog at home though.

[@RichieRichOverdrive]

Dad said he had a dog named bandit get into one of these. His name was changed to bandage for a good while. Lucky, that one.

[@jerrylansbury9558]

Anyone know where you can buy a windrower for a sickle mower ?

[@amyyarak3302]

Is dit een messen balk .een mes? Of een dubbele messen balk

[@iskenderkurban3623]

@198c bence şunu denemek lazım think we should try this

[@joescheller6680]

mowed thousands of acres with G john deere and no 5 mower quite a contrast using a drone to show the tehnology of the past

[@lundholm4]

Where in the world is this?

[@keithkuckler2551]

One other thing, i used to lock my dogs up if i was mowing, they wanted to chase things that i scared up, and, i was always afraid that they would run into the cutterbar which you can not see in the hay.

[@rightsideofthegrass8114]

Yes, we used New Idea 7 ft sickle mowers for hay and seed crops (with swather). Dogs or cats in the field with mowing usually ended up with a missing limb.

[@RyanForst]

I have a number 5 also I just need to replace the blades on it

[@hoipigeons]

which blades? The sections, or the guards?

[@wtasch]

I used an old 35 model deere sickle. When I turn in tall grass it ends up make me cuss every time I get off and have to pull grass off it. I am getting better at it, but still get too much hay near the pitman ball joint the, quit cutting and live a long line of uncut grass. Need more patients.

[@davidsignor7931]

Should have a crimper behind the tractor

[@hm12460]

Looks like a 1951 or '52 A.

[@joescheller6680]

this looks so out of place i learned to operat a mower similar tractor and mower but not without a foot lift and hand clutch on both side and stony ground to worry about lifting the mower over badger holes for the front end in and snapped off twice all while pulling a dump rake and tripping it when forming the windrows

[@thomasevans7892]

No music let the tractor talk!

[@joescheller6680]

wow this old fart used to mow with one of them No 5 mowers and a John Deere G wore one of them mowers out

[@oldtimer4144]

Cut the noise. We want to hear the old girl run.

[@richardharms8748]

I'd rather hear the motor than the music

[@eliseiatanasov9074]

Pp

[@1947wdx]

Turn off the musak and fancy drone footage, and let us listen to the trackor.

[@dougtheviking6503]

Like the tractor But those mowers suck . Won't be long his Pittman arm flys off

[@timnewman1172]

I learned on a John Deere #5 mower, maintain them and they will mow forever!

[@rodneycraig3118]

@@timnewman1172 There are still a lot of old no.5's around. There are 2 still in my mother's shed.

[@garywes1397]

60 years ago With a John Deere 3010 side mover With a hay conditioner behine it

[@allanlavallee7171]

I have mowed thousands of acres with these mowers as well as massey harris and never lost a pitman. Keep the sickle sections sharp and good ledger plates and there are no problems. John deere mowers did plug the end shoe more than massey but there is a cure for that too

[@danvanhoose6783]

Lose the music,jeez.