Hello all,

Looking at what you've got for hay production, particularly the mower.
I'll just offer my own experiential knowledge for thought..

I see that so far you've experimented with sickle bar designs,
have you thought about diskbine?

On flat land, sickle-bars perhaps are just fine, but from my perspective living on steep, rocky, and groundhog hole ridden terrain they lack durability (bars easily bent with impact) and are not a quick fix for a man on his own.
Also, they seem much more difficult to produce than centrifugal mowers.

With  a (my) disc cutter, there are 7 spinning heads each with 2 blades. Each head spins in alternating directions with the outer heads each spinning inwards (from the front)
They are simple to service (and quick), being able to change discrete elements rather than service a whole bar, durable under impact (ride on skid plates), and the parts themselves are of simpler geometry (easier construction)

Also many mowers have something called a conditioner which is just a spinning bar with many metal flails which break stems for (much) quicker drying, which is not an issue for wet balers feeding cattle, but very much so for dry hay.

Who is working on hay production? I'd love to talk about what's going on.

Leif S.