# Case IH DCX 161 leaving strips



## wadeh9600 (Aug 2, 2011)

I bought a 2008 Case IH DCX 161 disc mower conditioner last fall in very good condition and I am having problems with it leaving strips of uncut hay in between each disc in alfalfa and some grass hay. I have the steel on steel conditioner rollers and am using 14degree knives. I thought maybe going to a different knife would help but my dealer says it would not. I have tried just about everything I can think of such as changing ground speed, pto speed, 3pt height, and cutting angle. I also keep good knives in it. I would be very appreciative of any suggestions. I am almost to the point of trading and going back to a hesston.


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## Greyhorse (Jun 22, 2009)

Only thing I can think of is to double check that they are the correct blades, if they were too short I can see that you might have that problem.


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## mlappin (Jun 25, 2009)

Looks to be a rebranded NH 1431 which is what I have.

Double check the blades and not to be condescending but I've seen it once, make sure they are on the proper turtles.

I only change blades before making the lighter cuttings, idle down and increase ground speed always works for me, I run mine all the way back except for in very down hay.


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## Vol (Jul 5, 2009)

"Double check the blades and not to be condescending but I've seen it once, make sure they are on the proper turtles."

Marty, are you saying that by chance someone could have replaced the turtles with a smaller version?? Therefore, one could have the correct blades installed for this mower but a incorrect turtle size would be cause for a shorter reach of cut.

Regards, Mike


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## mlappin (Jun 25, 2009)

Sorry about the confusion, I've actually seen left and right hand blades reversed. They had some on backwards.


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## Vol (Jul 5, 2009)

"I've actually seen left and right hand blades reversed. They had some on backwards."

Yes, I have seen the same thing. Easy to do for someone new to disc mowers.

Regards, Mike


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## rjmoses (Apr 4, 2010)

Had a guy helping me change blades on a KM3200--he didn't realize that the turtles rotated opposite --left-right-left--right....so he put the blades on every other turtle backwards. I caught the problem when I double checked his work.

Principle #2 - Make no assumptions/teach no assumptions. I assumed he knew what to do before he started.

Ralph


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## wadeh9600 (Aug 2, 2011)

I am pretty sure the knives are on correctly, but I will double check. I was talking to a friend of a friend the other night and he was saying that the steel on steel rollers push air forward. Any insight on this? Doesn't make sense to me but anything is possible. Thanks for the replies and hopefully I can get it working better when I start 4th cutting in a few weeks.


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## mlappin (Jun 25, 2009)

I wouldn't think steel rolls would handle air any differently than the rubber rolls. It's possible I suppose, how far are you idleing back in that light hay? WOT throttle for my Perkins is 2200, lighter hay I'll run down around 1700-1800 rpm, have run as low as 1600 rpm on the tach.


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## haybaler101 (Nov 30, 2008)

We drop to about 700 to 800 on the pto, gearing up to keep ground speed in the 8 mph + range.


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## cattleranch (Dec 17, 2010)

I run a Agco 3312 which is the same as a Hesston 1345. I am not sure what New Holland type swathers look like but sometimes mud will build up on the rock guards causing a strip. This is kinda what ours looks like with tounge towards the left, conditioners to the right.
( Disc 8
l
( 7
l
( 6
l
( 5
l
( 4
l
( 3
l
( 2
l
( 1

The mud will accumulate right where the l's are. Our dealer had a guy that stayed with sickle because he didn't let his field dry out long enough and the mud would accumulate there and so it would not cut. Most the time I have had this happen to me in alfalfa but I have had a time or two in grass.


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## wadeh9600 (Aug 2, 2011)

I have ran the tach on the tractor as low as 1800 rpm. I will have to try a little slower yet this next cutting. Thanks again.


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## maknhay (Jan 6, 2010)

If it's the same machine as a NH 1431 your stuck with the problem. The 1431 I had had the flail condtioner and it did the same thing in a short alfalfa crop. The company "know-it-alls" told me the same thing.....less PTO rpm and maintain the same ground speed. No difference. I helped a neighbor the other day on his short 3rd crop along side his NH self propelled with baisically the same head.......did it with his too and my Agco Razorbar cut it clean. I couldn't wait to trade that machine off.


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## carcajou (Jan 28, 2011)

If your cutting a light crop try using knives with a higher degree. I've found 18 degree blades cut much cleaner on my case 8850hp than 11 or 13 degree knives. Not needed on heavier crops.


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