DRAFT UGANDA STANDARD  
  DUS 1869  
First  Edition  
2017 -mm-dd 
 
 
 Reference number  
WDUS 1869 : 2017 
© UNBS 2017   
  
Sickles— Specification  
 DUS 1869: 2017  
ii © UNB S 2017  – All rights reserved  
 Compliance with this standard does not, of itself confer immunity from legal obligations  
A Uganda Standard does not purport to include all necessary provisions of a contract. Users are 
responsible for its correct application  
© UNB S 2017   
All rights reserved. Unless otherwise specified, no part of this publication may be reproduced or utilised in any 
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The Executive Director  
Uganda National Bureau of Standards  
P.O. Box 6329  
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Uganda  
Tel: +256 41 4 333 2 50/1/2/3  
Fax: +256 41 4 286 123  
E-mail: info@unbs.go.ug  
Web: www.unbs.go.ug  DUS 1869: 2017  
© UNBS 2017  – All rights reserved  iii 
 Contents  Page 
Foreword  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ............................  iv 
1 Scope  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ......................  1 
2 Normative references  ................................ ................................ ................................ ............................  1 
3 Terms and definitions  ................................ ................................ ................................ ...........................  1 
4 Types  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ......................  2 
5 Material  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ...................  2 
5.1 Blade  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ .......................  2 
5.2 Blade Reinforcing Strip ................................ ................................ ................................ .........................  3 
5.3 Handle  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ .....................  3 
5.4 Ferrule  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ....................  3 
6 Dimensions  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ............  3 
7 Hardness  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................  4 
8 Workmanship and finish  ................................ ................................ ................................ .......................  4 
9 Tests  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ .......................  5 
9.1 Impact test  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ..............  5 
10 Sampling and acceptance criteria  ................................ ................................ ................................ ....... 5 
10.1  Lot ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ...........................  5 
10.2  Sample size  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ............  5 
11 Marking and packing  ................................ ................................ ................................ .............................  6 
11.1  Marking  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ...................  6 
11.2  Packing  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ...................  6 
 DUS 1869: 2017  
iv © UNB S 2017  – All rights reserved  
 Foreword  
Uganda National Bureau of Standards (UNBS) is a parastatal under the Ministry of Trade , Industry and 
Cooperatives established under Cap 327 , of the Laws of Uganda , as amended .  UNBS is mandated to co -
ordinate the elaboration of standards and is  
(a) a member of International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) and  
(b) a contact point for the WHO/FAO Codex Alimentarius Commission on Food Standards, and  
(c) the National Enquiry Point on TBT  Agreement  of the Wo rld Trade Organisation (WTO).  
The work of preparing Uganda Standards is carried out through Technical Committees. A Technical 
Committee is established to deliberate on standards in a given field or area and consists of key stakeholders 
including government , academia, consumer groups, private sector and other interested parties.  
Draft Uganda Standards adopted by the Technical Committee are widely circulated to stakeholders and the 
general public for comments. The committee reviews the comments before recomm ending the draft standards 
for approval and declaration as Uganda Standards by the National Standards Council.  
The committee responsible for this document is Technical Committee UNBS/TC 4, Mechan ical Engineering 
and Metallurgy  
 DRAFT UGANDA STANDARD  DUS 1869: 2017  
 
© UNBS 2017  – All rights reserved  1 
 Sickles  — Specification  
1 Scope   
This draft standard specifies the requirements for plain and serrated blade sickles for harvesting of fodder, 
grasses , cereal crops, etc . 
2 Normative references   
The following referenced documents referred to in the text in such a way that some or al l of their content 
constitutes requirements of this document. For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For undated 
references, the latest edition of the referenced document (including any amendments) applies.  
DUS ISO 6508 -1, Metallic materials  — Rockwell hardness test — Part 1: Test method  
3 Terms and definitions   
For the purposes of this document, the followi ng terms and definitions apply.  
3.1  
blade 
main metallic part of the sickle used for cutting action.  
3.2  
Cutting Edge  
plain or serrated edge in the inner side of the sickle  
3.3  
blade reinforc ing strip 
strip of metal used as  a reinforcement and fixing the blade  
3.4  
ferrule  
protective metallic bush fitted at the junction of the blade and handle to keep the tang tight in the handle . 
3.5  
handle 
part for holding in operation of the sickle . 
3.6  
tang 
external portion of the blade or the reinforcement strip which is fixed into the handle . 
ISO and IEC maintain terminological databases for use in standardization at the following addresses:  
— ISO Online browsing platform: available at http://www.iso.org/obp  DUS 1869: 2017  
2 © UNBS 2017 – All rights reserved  
 4 Types  
For the purpose of this standard, the sickles may be  of the following two types:  
i) Sickles with solid blade (see Fig ure 1), and  
 
Figure 1 — Sickle  with solid blade 
ii) Sickles with serrated blade (see Fig. 2).  
 
Figure 2 — Sickle with serrated blade  
Note  Different shapes other than that shown in figures 1 and 2 may be accepted  provided the sickle  meets 
all the performance  requirements of this standard . 
5 Material  
5.1 Blade  
The blade shall be made or manufactured from steel with the c hemical composition as shown Table 1 below . DUS 1869: 2017  
© UNBS 2017  – All rights reserved  3 
 Table 1 — Chemical composition of the blade  
Constituent  Minimum  
% Maximum  
% 
Carbon  0.50 0.65 
Manganese  0.60 1.5 
Silicon  0.15 0.35 
Sulphur  - 0.06 
Phosphorous  - 0.06 
 
5.2 Blade Reinforcing Strip  
Blade reinforcing strip, wherever used shall be made of mild steel of minimum thickness of 1.5 mm.  
5.3 Handle  
5.3.1  The handle shall be made of a materi al that facilitates complete bonding with the blade and firm grip 
of the user. If it is made of wood, it shall be hardwood with a specific gravity of 0.66 to 0.80 after seasoning to 
not more than 20 % moisture content.  
5.3.2 All handles shall be shaped or profiled to match the human hand . 
5.4 Ferrule  
Ferrule if provided may be made from mild s teel tube  or mild steel sheet of minimum thickness of 1 mm  
6 Dimensions  
6.1 Dimensions of the sickles may be as given in figures 3 and 4 and Table 2. Serrations in ca se of 
serrated sickles shall conform to the details given in Fig ure 3. 
 
Figure 3 — Dimensions of sickles  DUS 1869: 2017  
4 © UNBS 2017 – All rights reserved  
 Table 2 — Dimensions of sickles  
Nominal size  L 
±5 A 
±2 B 
±3 C 
±0.5 D 
min. 
170 170 10 22 3 1.25 
225 225 12 28 4 1.25 
280 280 15 35 5 1.25 
Note  1 Dimension C is applicable for sickles having solid blade (see Figure 1) and D for sickles with reinforcing 
strip (see Figure 4). 
Note 2  Different dimensions may be agreed upon between the purchaser and the man ufacturer provided the 
sickle meets all the performance requirements of this standard . 
 
 
Figure 4 — Dimensions of sickles with reinforcing strip in mm  
6.2 The length of ferrule may not be less than 20 mm.  
6.3 The blade of the sic kle shall be forged and cut to the shape as given in figures 1 and 2.  
7 Hardness  
The blade of the sickle shall be hardened and tempered to the hardness range of 45 HRC to 50 HRC. The 
hardness shall be tested at a point 10 mm away from the cutting edge, at least at three places along the blade 
in accordance with  FDUS  ISO 6508 -1 
8 Workmanship  and finish 
8.1 The blade shall be free from cracks, seams, scales, pits, burrs, nicks and other defects. The blade shall 
be smoothly forged or cut without tear and blist er and the cutting edge shall be sharpened to give a fine finish 
for immediate use in case of plain type sickles.  All sharp edges, except the cutting edge shall be rounded off. 
There shall be no sign of deformation due to heat treatment, twist, strain, rus t, etc.  
8.2 The teeth of the serrated sickle blade shall have a uniform pitch and shall be finished smooth and 
sharpened pointing towards the handle.  DUS 1869: 2017  
© UNBS 2017  – All rights reserved  5 
 8.3 The handle shall be made of a material that facilitates complete bonding with the blade and firm grip of 
the user. If it is made of wood, it shall be hardwood with a specific gravity of 0.66 to 0.80 after seasoning to 
not more than 20 % moisture content.  
8.4 The reinforcing strip shall be tightly fitted into the handle with or without ferrule in position. Normally the 
handle shall be fitted with tangs centred to the entire length of the handle and fixed at the large end rigidly.  
8.5 The blade reinforcement strip shall be free from burrs and sharp edges and shall be finished smooth on 
the handle side. The ri veting should be done properly by tightening in a press or with a riveting machine.  
8.6 The ferrule shall be free from cracks, burrs and other defects and shall be finished smooth and bright all 
over. The brazing or welding shall be continuous and even.  
8.7 The blade shall be given a coat of anti -corrosive paint except the cutting edges. The cutting edge shall 
be smeared with suitable mineral jelly.  
9 Tests  
9.1 Impact test  
The cutting edge of the sickle shall be tested by striking six continuous sharp blows  on hard timber such as 
dry eucalyptus from a height of 30 cm. Neither the cutting edge nor the fitting of the sickle shall show any sign 
of damage or loosening during or on completion of the test.  
9.2 Hardness test  
The hardness shall be tested in accordan ce with, FDUS ISO 6508 -1 (B and C scales) . 
10 Sampling and acceptance criteria  
10.1 Lot 
A lot shall  comprise a collection of sickles of the same type . These shall  be identical in type, size, condition 
and time of production, etc. and samples shal l be taken  at random from each  “lot” for inspection.  
10.2 Sample size  
A Zero -based Acceptance Sample shall be selected based on an Acceptable Quality Value of 2.5 % as given 
in Table 2 below . 
Table 3 — Sample size based on Acceptable Quality Level (AQL) of 2.5%  
Lot Size  Sample Size  
Less than 90  7 
91 to 150  11 
151 to 280  13 
281 to 500  16 
501 to 1  200  19 
1201 to 3  200  23 
3201 to 10  000  29 DUS 1869: 2017  
6 © UNBS 2017 – All rights reserved  
 10 001 to 35  000  35 
35 001 & over  40 
11 Marking and packing  
11.1 Marking  
Each sickle sha ll be marked with the following particulars  on the blade:  
a) manufacturer’s name and recognized trademark,  if any; and  
b) batch or code number  
11.2 Packing  
The sickles of one t ype and size shall be packed in bundles of five or multiples of five, convenient for  handling 
in transit or as specified by the purchaser . DUS 1869: 2017  
© UNBS 2017  – All rights reserved  7 
 Bibliography  
[1] IS 4358:1996 , Specification for sickles  
[2] Agricultural hand tools in emergencies — Guidelines  for technical and field officers  
 DUS 1869: 2017  
© UNBS 2017  – All rights reserved  9 
 Certification marking  
Products that conform to Uganda standards may be marked with Uganda National Bureau of Standards 
(UNBS) Certification Mark shown in the figure below.  
The use of the UNBS Certific ation Mark is governed by the Standards Act, and the Regulations made 
thereunder. This mark can be used only by those licensed under the certification mark scheme operated by 
the Uganda National Bureau of Standards and in conjunction with the relevant Ugan da Standard. The 
presence of this mark on a product or in relation to a product is an assurance that the goods comply with the 
requirements of that standard under a system of supervision, control and testing in accordance with the 
certification mark scheme  of the Uganda National Bureau of Standards. UNBS marked products are 
continually checked by UNBS for conformity to that standard.  
Further particulars of the terms and conditions of licensing may be obtained from the Director, Uganda 
National Bureau of St andards.  
 
 DUS 1869: 2017    
 
ICS 65.060.50  
Price  based on nn pages  
© UNBS 2017 – All rights reserved