Flail Mower Let's talk flail mowers

[sloooow]

I haven't seen much discussion of Sicma flail mowers here. It appears that they're carried by Everything attachments under a Phoenix branding and by Equipment Barn under Sicma and by Gearmore under their branding. Oddly, the Gearmore version of the SLE-120 is listed as being 60 pounds lighter than the other two.

Any thoughts on their quality and performance compared to the Caroni that everyone seems to buy?

 

[leonz]

The Sicma brand has been around for along time and
you will not go wrong with it.

Ken Sweet who is sponsor still handles them I believe.

You are not that far from the folks at Vrisimo mowers
either so thats something to think about as well as they are built in California.

 

[Thomabear]

The Vrisimo mowers are a little pricy but I like the fact that they are USA made along with a country wide dealer network.

 

[Mac2411]

I've just finished reading all 146 pages of this epic and interesting thread. Based on the information I think a flail mower is exactly the solution to my mowing requirements. I own approximately 30 acres of mostly open ground. Some of that land (about 9 acres) is in the Conservation Reserve Program which means mowing twice a year at most. There is some quite tall bluestem and other native grasses on that land. Some of the Big Bluestem is taller than my tractor. Approximately 5 acres was finished mowed by the previous owner using a riding lawnmower. About 2 acres are woods and will not be mowed obviously. Finally, there are two fairly large ponds that together use up about 3 acres. The remainder is in well maintained pasture that was mowed fairly regularly using an old rotary cutter. The finish mowed area has quite a few widely spaced trees, some of which will be a bit difficult to get under with the tractor. There is really no heavy brush to speak of. There are, however, some slopes. Only the two pond dams have any slope of significance, but the previous owner mowed those with his rotary cutter and a Kubota L series tractor so I don't expect there should be any issues with using the flail and my tractor on those slopes either.

Judging by what I've read on this thread, I think my needs would be well served by one of the Caroni TM1900BSC units. A golf course appearance is not something that is important to me. Quite frankly, the lawn doesn't have that appearance now with the previous owner's John Deere 500 series lawn tractor. My tractor has 42 horsepower and about 33 PTO horsepower. It is equipped with the three range hydrostatic transmission. Cost is a consideration, but so is quality. The Caroni seems to be a good balance of cost and quality-bang for the buck so to speak. What says Flail Nation? Any and all input would be appreciated-including suggestions of other makes and/or models.

 

[IslandTractor]

I've just finished reading all 146 pages of this epic and interesting thread. Based on the information I think a flail mower is exactly the solution to my mowing requirements. I own approximately 30 acres of mostly open ground. Some of that land (about 9 acres) is in the Conservation Reserve Program which means mowing twice a year at most. There is some quite tall bluestem and other native grasses on that land. Some of the Big Bluestem is taller than my tractor. Approximately 5 acres was finished mowed by the previous owner using a riding lawnmower. About 2 acres are woods and will not be mowed obviously. Finally, there are two fairly large ponds that together use up about 3 acres. The remainder is in well maintained pasture that was mowed fairly regularly using an old rotary cutter. The finish mowed area has quite a few widely spaced trees, some of which will be a bit difficult to get under with the tractor. There is really no heavy brush to speak of. There are, however, some slopes. Only the two pond dams have any slope of significance, but the previous owner mowed those with his rotary cutter and a Kubota L series tractor so I don't expect there should be any issues with using the flail and my tractor on those slopes either.

Judging by what I've read on this thread, I think my needs would be well served by one of the Caroni TM1900BSC units. A golf course appearance is not something that is important to me. Quite frankly, the lawn doesn't have that appearance now with the previous owner's John Deere 500 series lawn tractor. My tractor has 42 horsepower and about 33 PTO horsepower. It is equipped with the three range hydrostatic transmission. Cost is a consideration, but so is quality. The Caroni seems to be a good balance of cost and quality-bang for the buck so to speak. What says Flail Nation? Any and all input would be appreciated-including suggestions of other makes and/or models.

I have same size tractor and also mow field and conservation land. My Caroni TM1900 has done well over the past six season. My only issues is that being New England we grow rocks and I knock off a set of knives and clevis (about $20) a couple or few times a year. You've read about the need for a spare set of 3 B43 belts and diligent use of a grease gun. That's about all that's needed. The trade off compared to a bush hog is higher maintenance for better cut and less risk of throwing objects.

 

[Mac2411]

I have same size tractor and also mow field and conservation land. My Caroni TM1900 has done well over the past six season. My only issues is that being New England we grow rocks and I knock off a set of knives and clevis (about $20) a couple or few times a year. You've read about the need for a spare set of 3 B43 belts and diligent use of a grease gun. That's about all that's needed. The trade off compared to a bush hog is higher maintenance for better cut and less risk of throwing objects.

Thanks for the information IslandTractor. I'm in southern Illinois and we have rocks here too. This is hilly and largely wooded country in this part of Illinois-nothing like the open prairies and deep topsoil in the central and northern part of the state, but the soil in my location is relatively deep and the rock close to the surface was long ago removed if it ever existed. The rock that is encountered in this area is mostly sandstone, which is relatively soft. In the woods on my property there iare sandstone outcroppings, but that area is a draw that contains a little stream that helps drain the hilltop on which the majority of my property is located. In other words, erosion has worked its way down through the soil to the underlying sandstone in that area. On the flat top of the hill where my property is mostly located the soil is relatively deep and the surface stones were long ago removed by previous generations of property owners.

I've never seen a flail mower used in this part of the country except by highway departments. Most folks use rotary cutters. But I like the idea of having one machine instead of two (a bush hog and finish mower) and like the relative compactness of the flail which I believe will make the tractor that much easier to maneuver. I may still use a push mower in the area immediately adjacent to the house just to avoid having rutting issues from the tractor close to the house, but I think for the rest of the property a flail would be great.

 

[IslandTractor]

Thanks for the information IslandTractor. I'm in southern Illinois and we have rocks here too. This is hilly and largely wooded country in this part of Illinois-nothing like the open prairies and deep topsoil in the central and northern part of the state, but the soil in my location is relatively deep and the rock close to the surface was long ago removed if it ever existed. The rock that is encountered in this area is mostly sandstone, which is relatively soft. In the woods on my property there iare sandstone outcroppings, but that area is a draw that contains a little stream that helps drain the hilltop on which the majority of my property is located. In other words, erosion has worked its way down through the soil to the underlying sandstone in that area. On the flat top of the hill where my property is mostly located the soil is relatively deep and the surface stones were long ago removed by previous generations of property owners.

I've never seen a flail mower used in this part of the country except by highway departments. Most folks use rotary cutters. But I like the idea of having one machine instead of two (a bush hog and finish mower) and like the relative compactness of the flail which I believe will make the tractor that much easier to maneuver. I may still use a push mower in the area immediately adjacent to the house just to avoid having rutting issues from the tractor close to the house, but I think for the rest of the property a flail would be great.

I do that combo thing too. I have a small battery powered mower that does the lawn 20-30 feet from the house and the flail does most everything else. If I remember, I will use the bush hog for the first mowing in the spring to allow me to see where the new crop of rocks are but mostly I just use the flail for mowing.

 

[LouieJunior]

I'm wondering about whether a used Ford 918 3pt 8ft flail is too big for my "mule".

HP PTO = 32.5

Rear lift (at 24"): 2,200 lbs

Thanks

 

[IslandTractor]

I'm wondering about whether a used Ford 918 3pt 8ft flail is too big for my "mule".

HP PTO = 32.5

Rear lift (at 24"): 2,200 lbs

Thanks

How fast do you want to mow? With 32hp you could run the mower but in thick or moist grass you'd bog down pretty quickly.

 

[camdenlake]

So i am in the midst of getting a new JD 4120 or 4720. I am seriously looking at the JD 25a or 390. My concern is my yard is uneven and a has a couple steep hills. I have some rougher wooded area i want to make and trails and use the flail to maintain that. I looked though this thread a bit but couldnt confirm. I need to decide first of the week to get my order in so i can get the new tractor in soon. I appriciate the help. I really like the idea of how these work just not sure it would apply to my mowing.

Josh