Rotary Cutter 305 Bush Hog 5'

[First one]

Ok , so I stopped to check out this mower one more time before buying it for $750 . Got talking to the guy and found out he knew my family from way back and came down to $650 on it .:thumbsup:
Now as I was looking it over I noticed the pins where my arms would hook up seemed bigger then what mine would take . I took the pin home and sure enough they were to big.:confused2:
I've got to ask , can I get smaller pins or what's the deal ?
The pto shaft is alot bigger then whats on my flail mower, but that's a cheap brand though.
After getting to look it over more this is in really good shape . I don't see any damage anywhere .
Any other advice on what to look for before i pick it up?

 

[RoyJackson]

Now as I was looking it over I noticed the pins where my arms would hook up seemed bigger then what mine would take . I took the pin home and sure enough they were to big.:confused2:
I've got to ask , can I get smaller pins or what's the deal ?
The pto shaft is alot bigger then whats on my flail mower, but that's a cheap brand though.
After getting to look it over more this is in really good shape . I don't see any damage anywhere .
Any other advice on what to look for before i pick it up?

Sounds like it might be set up as a Category II attachment.
You might want to check the spacing between the lower pins. IIRC, a Cat II hookup is a few inches wider then a Cat I.

 

[First one]

Sounds like it might be set up as a Category II attachment.
You might want to check the spacing between the lower pins. IIRC, a Cat II hookup is a few inches wider then a Cat I.

So just what do I need to do to change it or can I?

 

[kebo]

The pins can be changed to CAT 1 easily enough. As far as the width of the pins, sometimes you can turn the pins inward instead of outward to achieve a narrower overall width. Naturally I've not had to do that with any of my CAT 1 stuff, so don't really have any experience with it. With the pins turned inward, it may be a little more difficult to hook up to the tractor?

Maybe you can take your tractor to his place and try hooking it up to see if it will work well with your tractor .... or not??

 

[RoyJackson]

So just what do I need to do to change it or can I?

Before you go into any work, what kind of tractor was the seller using? Is his tractor a Cat I?

Although the pin description sounds like a Cat II, it doesn't mean it is. A 5' cutter seems to be small for a Cat II tractor (but I could be wrong!!!).

Anyway, measure the pin spacing two places:
Inside (from where the pin threads into the frame...maybe just measure the frame width (outside to outside) instead)
Outside (end of one pin to the end of the other pin)

If your Kubota's lower links swing wide enough to slide on to those pins and allow the lynch pins to lock them in place, you're good to go (except for the pin diameter...those will have to be replaced or turned down).

If the frame width is too wide, you'd have to do some fabrication. Then you've got to decide if that's the route you want to go...

 

[LD1]

Swapping pins should be no problem.

Cat II uses 1-1/8" pins and cat 1 uses 7/8" pins. TSC sells cat 1 pins that have the larger diameter threads made for replacing cat II pins.

As far as the spacing, measure it. I believe cat I should be 26" and cat II should be 32".

If it IS cat II, sometimes cat I tractors lower arms will go wide enough anyway to get on. If not, putting one or both pins facing inward solves this problem. It just makes it a tad more difficult to hook up as mentioned already.

Eitherway, it would not be a deal breaker for me

 

[sandman2234]

I have a 305 and a 306 out back sitting in the weeds for parts. Wasn't failure that took them out, just being used next door to Florida's fine salt supply, called the Atlantic Ocean, and I am pretty sure they were never maintained as far as paint or even brushing the clippings off the deck. Rusting out decks is a terrible death for such a sweet implement.
One of the drawbacks to a bush hog, is IF the gearbox ever fails, it isn't a cheap replacement. I offered one of mine to another member who purchased one with a bad gearbox and I think with shipping it was approaching $275 or something like that (don't make me go check, please!) but I think he ended up either finding one local or just replacing it with a cheaper mower. An aftermarket gearbox can be had for those prices as new if you shop for the cheaper built mowers.

Glad to see Farmwithjunk posting, as his posts always impressed me. I was afraid we had lost him a while back, due to a bad gearbox discussion on a cheaper brand mower.
David from jax

 

[dieselbeef]

I just bought a 306 for 100 bucks. completely rusted thru on the decking. ill get some pics..its sad. I can fix it but im thinking 3/16 metal? too heavy? also mine has had the sides trimmed off it to apparently let the grass out the sides as well as the back. looking at the owners manual I see it was totally enclosed so I intend to put it back that way.\any ideas why they would've trimmed it off the sides from halfway and then all of the back is wide open?

 

[MESSMAKER]

I understand that the Bushog is a great unit. I have seen the King Kutter and it looks like a fine unit. KK gets taken down by the performance of their standard duty cutter. It is fine, but not great for heavy duty stuff. I would tike the Bushog against the KK if the price was the same but they are not. Last time I priced a Bushog, it was about trice the price of a KK. I think I might rather have a new $1800 KK than a new $1800 Bushog.

 

[LD1]

I just bought a 306 for 100 bucks. completely rusted thru on the decking. ill get some pics..its sad. I can fix it but im thinking 3/16 metal? too heavy? also mine has had the sides trimmed off it to apparently let the grass out the sides as well as the back. looking at the owners manual I see it was totally enclosed so I intend to put it back that way.\any ideas why they would've trimmed it off the sides from halfway and then all of the back is wide open?

Post some pictures.

Yes it was 3/16 metal for the top (7ga).

One of the sides IS removable to let grass discharge. It is the left side if looking from behind. So it may not be trimmed, might just be missing the bolt on side.

And yes they are heavy. ~1100lbs

Not sure what tractor you have, but you list a deere 2010 and a bota BX. The deere will handle the weight just fine. Not a chance on the BX though.

 

[dieselbeef]

guess i should update my sig then..i have a 01 5219 jd so i can swing the hog...ill get some pics up. its rough..but gfor 100 bucks and a 150 lb fert spreader ifinally got out of my barn after 5 yrs of not using it i was happy enough.. most of the pics ive seen have it enclosed all the way around tho. even the owners manuals i got offline. it couldnt be worn off that much. blades and stumpjumper look like new almost.

 

[LD1]

Here is a link to my old thread about my 306. You can see some pics with the side plate off, cause thats how I mow with mine. You can see all the bolt holes along the top of that side. IF yours dont look like that, then maybe someone did cut it out.

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/attachments/220111-bushhog-306-fresh-painting.html?highlight=

 

[dieselbeef]

wow..ill get some pics of mine..its in waaaaaaaaaaaaaay worse whape than yours was..but i traded a 150# fert spreader for it....and 100 bucks.

mine has no sides on either side..but i think ill be putting them on. enclosing all of it. im sure it was to let the debris out but i need the good mulching of the enclosures.

it probly wont get fixed too soon but it has been moved into the barn..they used plywood to fill in the holes..mostly the deck is gone cept for a cpl places...oh yea..mine will be green...

 

[msjanket]

The model 305 Bush Hog mower is a heavy duty cutter. MUch more so than ANYTHING you can normally buy in that price range. I'd be all over that before it had a chance to get away.

I've seen people say that the heavy duty hogs don't do as well on grass cutting as the lighter duty ones. Is this true or is it just a matter of tip speed combined with a good, sharp edge that determines grass cutting efficiency? Would a medium duty hog be a better choice for double duty on grass and 2" brush?

 

[RickB]

Tip speed and blade condition.

 

[LD1]

Tip speed and blade condition.

Old thread, but correct.

How well it cuts light grass is all about blade speed and how sharp you keep them.

Good heavy duty cutters, people tend to use cutting alot of thick brush with. And in doing so, you DONT want sharp blades as it turns all the saplings into little spears that will go right through a tire. Dull/blunt blades shatter and splinter them, no spear to go through a tire.

I'v seen cutters with as low as 10,000 FPM blade tip speed and ones as high as 17k. And anything in between. The higher speed dont really gain you much if cutting brush, saplings, briars, etc. But helps tremendously on grass.

Another huge help is high lift/suction type blades.

 

[kebo]

Old thread, but correct.

How well it cuts light grass is all about blade speed and how sharp you keep them.

Good heavy duty cutters, people tend to use cutting alot of thick brush with. And in doing so, you DONT want sharp blades as it turns all the saplings into little spears that will go right through a tire. Dull/blunt blades shatter and splinter them, no spear to go through a tire.

I never sharpen the blades on my bushhog for this reason.

 

[LD1]

That's fine if all you do is brush.

Pasture grass that gets done 2-3 times a year...sharp blades are nice

 

[msjanket]

Not sure if price is good for Hog as a picture is worth a thousand words. But you are kidding right about your 3240 running it right? Cause that would not be a issue at all for your Grand L, it would run it like a breeze.
DevilDog

A old Bush Hog information booklet said that 305/306 need at least a 60HP (52PTO) tractor to run properly. I have not heard that at all on this site. Some people say you need 5PTO HP per foot of machine cut width. That's pretty close, talking 25HP for the 5' hog.
Where, then, does Bush Hog get the notion you need a 60HP mill to run this thing?

 

[RickB]

A old Bush Hog information booklet said that 305/306 need at least a 60HP (52PTO) tractor to run properly. I have not heard that at all on this site. Some people say you need 5PTO HP per foot of machine cut width. That's pretty close, talking 25HP for the 5' hog.
Where, then, does Bush Hog get the notion you need a 60HP mill to run this thing?

The 305 and 306 are heavy duty cutters rated for 3" diameter material. You're gonna cut 3" brush that kind of HP IS a requirement. Cutting light grass will obviously not require that kind of power.