ATV field cutting

[Kosmo]

Hi,

I am wondering if anyone cuts fields with their ATV. I have a somewhat hilly 5 acres of goldenrod, milkweed, small saplings , etc., that needs to be cut once or twice a year. The terrain is a liitle steep for the tractor but a 4X4 atv would not be a problem. I just am concerned with the ability of self powered brush cutters to do the job. I'd appreciate any feedback befor I buy. Thanks

 

[BarryinMN]

I drag a Swisher behind a Gator to mowtrails & pond slopes. I think it's a 10 hp motor bought used.

Power wise not a problem it takes down 5' weeds & woody saplings. It stalls out only when hitting dirt peaks.

For 5 arcres do the math & consider the running hours. Gonna take a lot of determination!!!

 

[natem]

Check out the DR company. They make a tow behind Dr field and brush mower. You cant lose with them. Simply by there machine and try it out if it does not do the job, just send it back for a full refund including shipping. You just cant go wrong with them.

 

[Ken45101]

Check out the DR company. They make a tow behind Dr field and brush mower. You cant lose with them. Simply by there machine and try it out if it does not do the job, just send it back for a full refund including shipping. You just cant go wrong with them.

Do you actually have one, or are you just impressed with DR?

I've had a walk behind DR for ten years and it's great. But the tow behind is a disappointment, a major disappointment.

First of all, it's too heavy for a 4 wheeler to pull except in ideal conditions. First time out with mine, I got stuck on a slight grade that was a bit muddy. Had to bring down a second 4 wheeler to get enough traction (both 400CC 4wd units).

The hitch mechanism is horrible, I really don't know what it was designed to mate with. I ended up having to get a plate welded to the hitch for it. And then it doesn't have enough range of movement for rough terrain.

I've ended up pulling it with a Kubota RTV900. That, or a compact tractor are appropriate tow vehicles, but if you have a compact tractor, a 3 point brush mower ("bush hog") is a lot less expensive and a lot better option.

The control box is awkward and the cable is not long enough. I've also had continuing problems with the throttle control cable.

Oh yeah, they do have a " 6 month return policy"....just try to figure out how to get it repacked and sent back! The crate is too big to sit in a pickup truck properly (I had to balance mine on the wheel wells) and almost couldn't get it out of the truck when I got it home, even with the loader!

My other complaint about the DR tow behind is that it does not cut very low. The lowest setting is a lot higher than the DR walk behind or what I can do with my brush mower. IOW, it does not cut low enough for walking trails.

I'm very happy with the DR walk behind mower, but the tow behind was one of my bad purchase decisions.

Ken

 

[chazzy]

Ken,
Thanks for your write up about the actual experience on the DR's tow behind junks. I almost spent $2000 on it.

 

[Ken45101]

Ken,
Thanks for your write up about the actual experience on the DR's tow behind junks. I almost spent $2000 on it.

DR did improve the hitch on new units.

Glad to be of help.

Ken

 

[linearxs]

I've got a 44" Swisher rough cut mower. I've used it three times. Last time i used i ran over a basketball sized boulder. Man that was a scary sound . Still ran OK afterwards. I'm going to use it again this weekend. I use a 14hp John Deere garden mower to tow it.

 

[Ken45101]

I've got a 44" Swisher rough cut mower. I've used it three times. Last time i used i ran over a basketball sized boulder. Man that was a scary sound . Still ran OK afterwards. I'm going to use it again this weekend. I use a 14hp John Deere garden mower to tow it.

I can imagine My 6' rotary cutter (e.g. bush hog) has encountered many obstacles over the years including rocks and logs. Make a heck of a racket, even scares my wife back at the house!

Ten years ago, my DR walk behind mower argued with a hidden concrete block....and WON! It actually chewed the corner off the block before I could stop it. I bought the mower with a spare "heavy duty" blade. I've never used it and I've never sharpened the original blade that had the encounter with the block.

Ken

 

[jiminsc]

Hi,

I am wondering if anyone cuts fields with their ATV. I have a somewhat hilly 5 acres of goldenrod, milkweed, small saplings , etc., that needs to be cut once or twice a year. The terrain is a liitle steep for the tractor but a 4X4 atv would not be a problem. I just am concerned with the ability of self powered brush cutters to do the job. I'd appreciate any feedback befor I buy. Thanks

Acre Ease Kunz engineering is the best unit, but they are expensive compared to swisher
Kunz Engineering Inc., AcrEase Pull Mowers & Till-Ease ATV Tillage Equipment, Finish and Rough Cut Trailmowers

 

[1bush2hog]

Acre Ease Kunz engineering is the best unit, but they are expensive compared to swisher
Kunz Engineering Inc., AcrEase Pull Mowers & Till-Ease ATV Tillage Equipment, Finish and Rough Cut Trailmowers

I have an acrease 57in rough cut - it was expensive but for a reason. If you cut on steep hills you need to think about the lubrication, and Acrease addresses this with a Kohler engine. The tow method is unique but takes getting used to, and the way the wheels are layed out you can go across most any ditch without bottoming out. Backing up the mower is a challenge, until you get used to it

My mower is a heavy so I use a 660 Grizzly to tow it - I would recommend larger ATV's if you go this big on the mower and you're on slopes

My son did manage to get jacknifed sideways while mowing on a slope and ended up flipping over, but the hitch broke before the mower turned over. The grizz did flip, but the wheel offset on the mower kept it from going over

This is a heavy duty, well built, cutter. I have never been able to even come colse to bogging the engine down. The only other consideration I will mention is transportation. This is a long unit due to the frame configuration, so you will need a longer trailer

 

[natem]

Just catching up on this post. I do not own the tow behind model, I also have the walk behind model and love it. I also have there leaf vac, and chipper, They have all been really good machines, and a great company to deal with. I figured that the tow behind model would live up to the reputation that the rest of there line has. But you have used it first hand, and found it not to be very good.

 

[ddivinia]

Hi,

I am wondering if anyone cuts fields with their ATV. I have a somewhat hilly 5 acres of goldenrod, milkweed, small saplings , etc., that needs to be cut once or twice a year. The terrain is a liitle steep for the tractor but a 4X4 atv would not be a problem. I just am concerned with the ability of self powered brush cutters to do the job. I'd appreciate any feedback befor I buy. Thanks

Do you have a tractor now?

D.

 

[tommu56]

I just cought this thread

I have swisher trail mower behind my Polaris 330 it cuts fine it dosen't follow the same track as the 4 wheeler so on curves it misses some till you get the feel for how it tracks.
The tires on the atv will press the grass down so you don't get a finish cut (but mine isn't a finish mower any way) so I don't care.

I would rather have a brush hog but my wife will cut with this and not the tractor so it saves me some work.

tom

 

[Ken45101]

I would rather have a brush hog but my wife will cut with this and not the tractor so it saves me some work.

tom

Hmmm....good idea, I may have to try that on my wife

Ken

 

[ddivinia]

Hmmm....good idea, I may have to try that on my wife

Ken

I thought a Swisher mower would get the job done. What PITA - not very good for rough cut. Also, you have saplings, etc - I think you should look at other options.

D.

 

[Ken45101]

I thought a Swisher mower would get the job done. What PITA - not very good for rough cut. Also, you have saplings, etc - I think you should look at other options.

D.

Yeah, agree. The DR tow behind doesn't do nearly as nice a job in the pasture as the bush hog. But still it would be a way to get my wife to help out. The way things are growing this year, I can't keep up. I assume the DR would do better at lower towing speed.

 

[tommu56]

Speed is a real issue I think the manual says don't go over 5 mph and it will cut better if you go slower my wife runs it at about 2-3 mph she feels it is fast enough

tom

 

[Ken45101]

Speed is a real issue I think the manual says don't go over 5 mph and it will cut better if you go slower my wife runs it at about 2-3 mph she feels it is fast enough

tom

The manual for my Woods 6' rotary cutter (e.g. "bush hog") recommends 1-5 mph. I suspect I usually mow at 3-4 mph.

Ken

 

[MNBobcat]

The Swisher rough cut is a real animal. It will tackle most everything that you throw at it. I've cut grass/weeds/brush that was 5 - 6 feet tall. When cutting something like this, don't expect it to make a perfect cut in one pass. You'll need to go over the area a couple of times if you want a really clean looking cut.

It does track directly behind the ATV when going straight, but like ALL tow-behind mowers it will move to the inside on a turn. I don't like the design of the hitch on this mower. It has a height-adjustable hitch where the adjustment is made at the ATV end and not where the hitch hooks to the front of the mower deck. Therefore, the vertical square tubing, which provides the means of adjustment, tends to hit the "trunk" on the back of the Honda ATV. They should have made the height adjustment occur where the hitch attaches to the deck. The swisher is almost indestructible. It will take the tops off gopher mounds and handles hitting logs with aplomb.

The Cycle Country rough cut is a 3-wheel unit. The front wheel articulates similar to the front wheels on a zero turn mower. Its much nicer to tow than the Swisher and is easier to move around the garage by hand. It has a very tiny gas tank, however. You will fill this unit 3 times to every one time that you fill the Swisher. The Cycle Country doesn't handle the heavy brush as well as the Swisher and tends to bog in heavy grass.

You can flip the hitch over on the Cycle Country mower and off-set the mower behind the ATV. I've done this and then dropped the mower over the side of a 4 foot ditch and mowed the sides of ditches that are too steep to walk on (the ATV stayed above on flat ground). The Swisher also allows you to off-set the mover via the hitch. However, when you drop the Swisher over the side of a ditch the front of the mower gets hung up on clumps because it doesn't have a front wheel and depends on the ATV and the hitch to hold the front of the mower up off the ground. The Cycle Country mower is the mower of choice for ditch mowing.

I've not tested the Kunz. They were too cheap to send a test unit. I don't consider any company legitimate that doesn't provide test units.

I'd recommend the Swisher for brute force cutting. If you're mowing less brush and more grass than the cycle country would be a good choice.

 

[vanb]

I had the swisher 44 inch pull behind before I got my bx2350. I mowed 3 acres for 3 years and kept up atv trails on 200 other acres. I sold it once I got my tractor, I wish I still had it for the trail cutting. It cut 3-4 foot weeds fine and pulling it behind my polaris sportsman, I never worried about getting stuck in some of the swampy areas. I wanted to buy a KK rotary cutter for my tractor, but my wife shot that down, just to cut the atv trails. (she thinks the neighborhood association should pay for it) I'm still trying to figure out if she would notice it in the garage if I just went and bought one.