Choosing Between a Disc and
  Sickle Mower-conditioner


 A recent article in Hay and Forage Grower magazine indicated that nationwide sales of disc mower-conditioners had exceeded that of sickle mower-conditioners for the first time in 1997.  Disc mowers do offer some advantages to the more conventional sickle types.  They perform more dependably where forage is lodged or in thick grass stands and can be operated at higher mowing speeds.  The primary disadvantage is a higher initial price.  Pull-types will range 20 to 30 percent higher in price while self-propelled units may approach 50 percent more.  Some producers don’t like the more “ragged” look of a field left by the disc mower compared to the sickle mower.  This is more of an aesthetical disadvantage rather than a practical one.

The early disc mower-conditioners were maintenance and repair price nightmares.  A problem with one of the disc gearboxes usually transferred to all of the gearbox units resulting in a repair bill approaching the purchase of several acres of land.  Manufacturers have since rectified this problem with each gearbox isolated from the others.

Local dealer trends and comments

          To see how local sales trends of disc mowers compared to U.S. sales, I called five Fond du Lac area machinery dealers to summon their comments.  Interestingly, sales figures and perspectives differed and varied between dealers and company lines.  In the case of Gehl, for example, they no longer even offer a sickle mower option.  Local dealers whose primary sales were self-propelled units still had a larger market share going to the sickle mower-conditioners and cited the higher cost of a disc unit as the primary reason.  In the case of pull-type units where both a sickle and disc machine were available, one dealer reported that sickle mowers still out-sold disc units by an 8 to 2 margin.  He did note dealers (with the same company line) in other parts of the state were reporting a large sales advantage toward the disc units.  Another area dealer retailing yet a different machinery line noted disc mowers were outselling sickles by about 50 percent.

Which one to buy?

         There may be no right or wrong answer here.  Disc mowers shine the most in tough mowing conditions.  If your typical situation is a pure stand of alfalfa that isn’t excessively wet or lodged, the advantages of a disc mower may not be warranted relative to the additional cost.  However, if this is not the case, or if you have large acreages of hay to cut, disc mower-conditioners may be worth the added investment.  If you’re still undecided, field test both types of units and evaluate performance first-hand before making an investment you won’t be happy with.



For more information contact Mike Rankin
Return to FdL Agronomy
Home Page