Suspended Vs.ground contact mowers???

[hitower]

Can any of you guys tell me your experiences with your MMM's?
I am trying to decide wheter to buy a 2920 with the suspended mower or a 2630 with a ground contact mower.
Which ever tractor I pick, it will be primarily a lawn cutter and I would like to know if one deck (or tractor)is better than another for grass cutting.
Thanks for any info.

 

[thetooth]

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/...ng/173553-ground-contact-suspended-mower.html

this should help . i proposed the same question in May . I have yet to buy a tractor so I cannot offer any first hand experience .

 

[leonz]

About mowers,

As I mentioned previously I like the flail mowers as they offer a better cut in my opinion as they are a full ground contact mower with a full width rear roller as standard equipment and the agrisupply folks have an internet sale price if you order from their home page and delivery the cost nationwide is free for the Caroni mowers if bought from the agrisupply home page.

I do not remember off hand but I believe you can buy an anti scalp full width roller as an option for them too.

There are lot of happy Caroni owners that have the orange beasts of burden in theire stables.

I dont know how much a land pride mower in Kubota colors retails for and I believe it comes under the Kubota Zero Percent Option for purchases

A Kubota tractor without a loader will be harder to sell out right or get a decent price for a trade from past examples.






leonz

 

[davatk]

Can any of you guys tell me your experiences with your MMM's?
I am trying to decide wheter to buy a 2920 with the suspended mower or a 2630 with a ground contact mower.
Which ever tractor I pick, it will be primarily a lawn cutter and I would like to know if one deck (or tractor)is better than another for grass cutting.
Thanks for any info.

I have the 60" MMM on my B2630. I must say I have been impressed with the cut. It is a ground contact and I have it adjusted to cut the grass at 2". It does leave "marks" on the lawn where the wheels of the deck travel, but I think that is somewhat normal for any type of ground contact mower and can vary I'm sure depending upon grass types. I've heard that the '30 series premium tractors have upgraded power steering as opposed to other models. Not sure if that is what makes the difference on mine, but I swear I can turn my B2630 on a dime - I almost feel like I have a Zero turn. Additionally, the 60" deck seems to be perfectly lined up with the rear tire, so that when trying to mow close to something you don't have to worry about them protruding different lengths.

Anyhow, that's my experience - so far.

 

[stevem5215]

A ground contact mower will put the weight of the mower deck on it's own wheels. That can be good or bad and the bad of it is when you have a yard that's pea soup. The smallish wheels will dig in and make trenches where they ride plus it will drag the engine down on the tractor when doing it. I have this problem when it rains a lot like it has this year and last. I have some soupy areas that can be a issue. The ducks like them though. Got a mallord living in the soupy area for some reason this year. Even with the grass cut.


Steve

 

[aczlan]

Suspended will have a SLIGHTLY better cut (less scalping) and will be less likly to leave marks if you mow when it is damp out.
That has been our experience with our B7510 (60" ground contact MMM) and our BX2660 (60" suspended MMM).

Not enough difference to worry about unless you have a golf course lawn or mow professionally.

Aaron Z

 

[James Loehr]

Can any of you guys tell me your experiences with your MMM's?
I am trying to decide wheter to buy a 2920 with the suspended mower or a 2630 with a ground contact mower.
Which ever tractor I pick, it will be primarily a lawn cutter and I would like to know if one deck (or tractor)is better than another for grass cutting.
Thanks for any info.

If you are considering the 2630 tractor it is the best tractor in it's size and nice extras. As for the mower I seen someone suspend the mower deck on one of these. He made hanger brackets and chain to suspend it. Unless you have a very rough lawn I would not worry about the ground contact mower deck.

 

[KU Gator]

That is an issue I would also struggle with. I recently had a chance to check out a B3030 on a trip and that is a very nice tractor and I am assuming the 2630 is just like it except for the HP. But I don't think I would prefer to have the ground contact mower and given that some of the current owners are coming up with ways to convert it to suspended, I would assume they have some issues with it.

If you are primarily mowing with a mid mount mower, the B2920 or for that matter B2620 will do a good job. The mower is drive over and can be removed or re-installed in probably 5 - 10 minutes. It cuts as good as our JD garden tractor. The mower can be left on and locked in the up position when doing other things including using the 3 pt hitch and still has reasonable ground clearance.

The B2630 I believe offers stronger hydraulics for the 3 pt hitch and FEL. The other advantage of significance is it has is the 3 pt hitch is position control vs 1/4" valve control on the B2x20 series. I would rather have the position control for using the rotary mower (brush hog) as it will hold the mower at a set height as opposed to the 1/4" valve on the B2920 which needs to be bumped up as you mow ever so often or the front of the mower will be on the ground. But that would not matter if you were mowing only with a MMM. The B2630 also has telescopic stabilizers which help in hooking up implements to the 3 pt hitch.

So with that said, I would like the features of the 2630 or 3030. Are they worth the price, only the person writing the checks can decide that. But I would prefer the suspended mower deck.

 

[ChuckinNH]

That is an issue I would also struggle with. I recently had a chance to check out a B3030 on a trip and that is a very nice tractor and I am assuming the 2630 is just like it except for the HP. But I don't think I would prefer to have the ground contact mower and given that some of the current owners are coming up with ways to convert it to suspended, I would assume they have some issues with it.

If you are primarily mowing with a mid mount mower, the B2920 or for that matter B2620 will do a good job. The mower is drive over and can be removed or re-installed in probably 5 - 10 minutes. It cuts as good as our JD garden tractor. The mower can be left on and locked in the up position when doing other things including using the 3 pt hitch and still has reasonable ground clearance.

The B2630 I believe offers stronger hydraulics for the 3 pt hitch and FEL. The other advantage of significance is it has is the 3 pt hitch is position control vs 1/4" valve control on the B2x20 series. I would rather have the position control for using the rotary mower (brush hog) as it will hold the mower at a set height as opposed to the 1/4" valve on the B2920 which needs to be bumped up as you mow ever so often or the front of the mower will be on the ground. But that would not matter if you were mowing only with a MMM. The B2630 also has telescopic stabilizers which help in hooking up implements to the 3 pt hitch.

So with that said, I would like the features of the 2630 or 3030. Are they worth the price, only the person writing the checks can decide that. But I would prefer the suspended mower deck.

+1 on those observations

 

[brownsl]

OK, I am confused now. In the brochure for the 2630 it lists two 72" MMM. The RCK72-27B is listed as a ground contact mower while the RC72-30B says the mounting method is parallel linkage. I thought this second mower, which is what I ordered, was a floating deck but now I am not sure. What does parallel linkage mounting mean and is the RC72-30B floating?

Shawn

 

[AMR]

I mowed 3 seasons with a BX23, suspended deck, and this is my 3rd season with my B3030, ground contact deck.

Suspended - pros are that it is easier to adjust the cut height cons are that it scalps on the downhill side when cross cutting a slope, some folks report having a problem getting suspended decks set up, I never had a problem adjusting mine though

Ground contact - pros are that it does not scalp on the downhill side of a cross cut on a slope and cons as has been mentioned is that it can leave wheel tracks in soft conditions, but I found that if it was that soft my tractor wheels would sink and then even the suspended deck would dig in some

I find the cut quality to be the same between the two and really couldn't find a compelling reason to get one over the other, or even recommend one over the other. The one thought that I do have is that I wouldn't select a tractor based on this, I would look at all of the other specifications to make a decision.

 

[davatk]

I mowed 3 seasons with a BX23, suspended deck, and this is my 3rd season with my B3030, ground contact deck.

Suspended - pros are that it is easier to adjust the cut height cons are that it scalps on the downhill side when cross cutting a slope, some folks report having a problem getting suspended decks set up, I never had a problem adjusting mine though

Ground contact - pros are that it does not scalp on the downhill side of a cross cut on a slope and cons as has been mentioned is that it can leave wheel tracks in soft conditions, but I found that if it was that soft my tractor wheels would sink and then even the suspended deck would dig in some

I find the cut quality to be the same between the two and really couldn't find a compelling reason to get one over the other, or even recommend one over the other. The one thought that I do have is that I wouldn't select a tractor based on this, I would look at all of the other specifications to make a decision.

I would tend to agree with the statements above - I don't think I would select a tractor based on it. I think you will be pleased with either. I can tell you that with my floating 60" MMM on my B2630 I haven't noticed any scalping at all, which I did notice occasionally with my prior garden tractor (yardman) that had a 46" suspended deck.

 

[BrianR]

I have a BX2200 with suspended deck and have never had scalping problems (with the exception of mole hills!). When these decks are setup correctly they shouldn't scalp at all. I keep my anti-scalp rollers at .5 to .75" clearance from the ground when at cutting height.

After using Simplicity tractors with ground contact mowers, I wasn't sure I'd like the Kubota with the suspended deck when I bought the BX, but after mowing with the Kubota the first time, I knew I made the right choice.

 

[BrianR]

Also, ground contact mowers like a nice smooth and flat lawn or they tend to bounce a lot. This constant bouncing reduces the life of the bushings, mounts, pins, wheels, etc as well as making the cut of the yard look uneven (transfers the irregularities of the ground to the cut of the grass).

My yard stays pretty smooth, as I constantly move my tire tracks around each time I mow, so as not to make ruts in the yard.

 

[Lindy]

OK, I am confused now. In the brochure for the 2630 it lists two 72" MMM. The RCK72-27B is listed as a ground contact mower while the RC72-30B says the mounting method is parallel linkage. I thought this second mower, which is what I ordered, was a floating deck but now I am not sure. What does parallel linkage mounting mean and is the RC72-30B floating?

Shawn

I believe the RCK72-27B works only with B series compact tractor models B2710, B2910, B7800. Maybe an error in your brochure?

You need a tractor model that ends in "30" (either the B2630 or B3030) to use the RCK72-30B or the RCK60-30B MMM's.

I have a B3030 with the RCK72-30B mower. It uses the 3pt linkage to raise/lower the mower. Yes, it rides directly on the ground. I like it very much for my applications. I had the 60" MMM (RCK60-30B), but moved up to the 72" MMM after a few months.

 

[hitower]

Thanks guys for all the info. I am going to order the 2630 because I like all the extra features over the 2920. I'll just wait and see how I like the deck on my flat lawn, I'm sure it will be fine.

 

[davatk]

Thanks guys for all the info. I am going to order the 2630 because I like all the extra features over the 2920. I'll just wait and see how I like the deck on my flat lawn, I'm sure it will be fine.

Great decision - but I'm partial. One bit of info that you might find helpful - when you adjust the height of the deck, measure the blade height - don't just go by the diagram for the front suspension wheels. I found that on mine the diagram is not correct - not sure if the holes were drilled wrong or not, or exactly what the issue is, but my first mowing was unlevel until I looked at it and figured out what was going on. Once I adjusted it level it mows great.

 

[Gator6x4]

The only negative I see with a ground contact mower is the greasing of the center roller on the rear of the deck. You almost have to lay down to be able to reach the grease fitting. I Also grease the wheels every other time I mow. You will be surprised at the "Cut Finish" the mowing deck will provide.

 

[TripleR]

Congratulations on your new purchase.

 

[red4now]

The only negative I see with a ground contact mower is the greasing of the center roller on the rear of the deck. You almost have to lay down to be able to reach the grease fitting. I Also grease the wheels every other time I mow. You will be surprised at the "Cut Finish" the mowing deck will provide.

Ditto on those thoughts. For the rear center wheels, I try to grab the nearest kid hanging around and mention to them that they need to learn how to use a grease gun..