More haybine trouble

I looked at the New Holland 488 manual to learn the words for the parts I talk about.

The sickle bar (which I will still call it that) is also called a knife.

The bolt is called a knife head bolt.

The round object placed in the sickle bar end is called a bushing, or a rubber bushing as it has rubber inside of it.

The arm that moves the sickle bar is called the wobble assembly.

I didn't get my haying done today.  Not even close.  More disasters.

Starting off, the shorter grass just wanted to lay on the haybine's bed and stop the sickle bar from moving.  Over and over I had to clear the grass off the haybine's bed.  Two rows cut and the sickle bar's bolt sheared.  I got another bolt.  More grass laid down.  Then this bolt sheared.  Over and over where the shorter grass would either lay down or a bolt shearing.   If the grass or alfalfa was tall, the haybine cut it fine.

 

I ran out of bolts long enough to put a nut on the other end.  So I put in a few to the bushing and wobble arm.  Kind of worked, but then would either shear or pop up and out.   I cut a bolt to the right length and put a nut on it.  It sheared and also halfway destroyed that bushing.  I had one more bushing I could use.

Halfway destroyed/melted bushing.

I then thought the belt running the sickle bar arm was too loose.  I looked into taking the belt off to replace it.   But that is a major job in removing several metal parts and the PTO shaft.

Then I saw there is a middle wheel/pully that can be adjusted to tighten the belt.  So I did.  Then I sheered another bolt and had to go to Home Depot to buy new bolts.  Donna was here when I returned.  I put a new bolt in and tested the sickle bar movement.  It worked.   I drove out to test cutting some hay and the universal u-joint that attaches to the tractor's PTO immediately broke. Oh no!  Another problem.  That put a stop to my work.  I'll have to take the u-joint to Riebe's Machine Works on Monday for them to fix it.

I didn't take a picture of my broken u-joint.  But here is a picture of a similar piece of equipment.

Tomorrow I plan to rake what I cut.  Two rows into one row.  And maybe start baling what I had cut if it is dry enough.