Flail Mower Let's talk flail mowers

[Dan in MN]

Got some decent mowing done today and took some pictures of the area I'm having trouble with.. The first picture is what it looked like after I mowed days ago with the mower high and how the tall stalks are still standing...



Second picture is after I just went over it again with the mower dropped low, got a lot of them but a lot still standing. The pass I just made is to the right of the tractor, and wasn't as heavy as what is in front of the tractor..



I later raised the front of the mower more with the top link and it seemed to do quite a bit better as I had thought it might, I may raise it even more but have to check the max length on my top link as I have it out pretty far right now..

Dan

 

[CADplans]

I later raised the front of the mower more with the top link and it seemed to do quite a bit better as I had thought it might, I may raise it even more but have to check the max length on my top link as I have it out pretty far right now..

Dan

On my FM,,, the top link could be removed during operation. it is literally doing nothing, it is only along for the ride.
The top link only comes into play when the mower is lifted, as during transport.

The three point hitch arms adjust the height of cut.

Hmmmmmm,,,,

Now, this is mine,, different FM's may be different in how you adjust height.

 

[IslandTractor]

On my FM,,, the top link could be removed during operation. it is literally doing nothing, it is only along for the ride.
The top link only comes into play when the mower is lifted, as during transport.

The three point hitch arms adjust the height of cut.

Hmmmmmm,,,,

Now, this is mine,, different FM's may be different in how you adjust height.

I think that is mostly true but may not be completely accurate. Think of the flail as pivoting around the rear roller while being dragged by the 3PT arms. If the 3PT arms are set so the weight of the flail is on the rear roller then the toplink length does allow slight adjustment of the position of the cutting rotor/blades. Lengthen it and the front of the flail will rise up a bit, shorten it and the flail will drop a bit. I don't fiddle with the toplink much as the difference in cut height it makes is measured in fractions of an inch. I just leave it in a middle position in the toplink mount slot so the mower can pivot as it likes.

 

[Dan in MN]

On my FM,,, the top link could be removed during operation. it is literally doing nothing, it is only along for the ride.
The top link only comes into play when the mower is lifted, as during transport.

The three point hitch arms adjust the height of cut.

Hmmmmmm,,,,

Now, this is mine,, different FM's may be different in how you adjust height.

My hydraulic system has no down pressure, so with the 3 pt dropped all the way down (which it is when I set the mower height with the top link) when the mower encounters a rise the whole system moves up and keeps the mower relatively flat (where it was set up). With no top link the roller would rise up, which dips the cutters down. I've only used a Bush Hog for a couple of hours on a neighbors compact tractor with a quick hitch and the top link unhooked, and found that I needed to keep a hand on the 3 pt height control and keep adjusting for changing ground. With my setup I drop it down and it just follows the ground. Per the directions on mine the roller height is changed for larger height adjustments, and the top link is used for finer adjustments. Also, as I described earlier with the tall stalks that weren't getting cut I believe mine will work quite a bit better with the back low and the front raised to expose the material to the cutters better and not allow it to be pinned down and stay under the cutters.

A question I forgot to ask last night, I'm having trouble with grass wrapping up on the roller and jamming the roller with the scraper bar. My scraper is off the roller a bit, are they typically set pretty tight? I need to try something different with that (either adjusting or removing the scraper) before I go out again today, had to stop several times in an hour last night to clear it..

 

[Catoosa]

I will have to disagree with the above a bit. I have a hydraulic top link on my 3000 and by just adjusting the top link I can go from digging dirt to a 2+ inch cut with both my flail mowers. I put the roller adjustment in whatever holes positioned the roller just below the skid rails and set the 3 point so it was level. May not be the accepted way to adjust the cut height but works for me.

 

[Dan in MN]

The three point hitch arms adjust the height of cut.

If your top link is still hooked up and you are using the 3 pt arms to adjust height then to go higher you are lifting the mower off the ground instead of letting it ride on the roller, which is not how it was designed to work and probably quite hard on the tractor with ~800 lbs (whatever yours weighs) bouncing around on the 3 pt arms.

 

[CADplans]

Oh, well,,
I am willing to bet,,, that, with a FM, more people use a piece of chain as a top link,,,
than people who successfully use a top link in compression to control mower height.

If it works for you,,, enjoy.

 

[Catoosa]

Dan, not going to be allot of help as I really do not understand why you are having so much trouble cutting that field. I just cut 3 acres I had let go all summer that was every bit as tall as yours and other than having to go slow it cut just fine. I think grass getting around the roller is a direct result of the mower not cutting the grass in the first place. I may have missed if you said and not sure exactly what I am talking about but if you have finish knives on that mower, that may be your problem. Both of my mowers have single spoon looking cutters that will chop up just about anything.

 

[Catoosa]

If your top link is still hooked up and you are using the 3 pt arms to adjust height then to go higher you are lifting the mower off the ground instead of letting it ride on the roller, which is not how it was designed to work and probably quite hard on the tractor with ~800 lbs (whatever yours weighs) bouncing around on the 3 pt arms.

This might be true after I rebuild the lift cover over the winter and maybe the reason I get away with it is because my lift isn't working as well as it should. It will only go about 1/2 way up with a load and my roller never comes off the ground. I have to pull the top link all the way in and go to full lift to get the roller off the ground.

 

[CADplans]

If your top link is still hooked up and you are using the 3 pt arms to adjust height then to go higher you are lifting the mower off the ground instead of letting it ride on the roller, which is not how it was designed to work and probably quite hard on the tractor with ~800 lbs (whatever yours weighs) bouncing around on the 3 pt arms.

Which is better equipped to control the position of the (in my case 1,100 pound) weight of the FM?
Two massive 3 point hitch arms
or
One spindly top link
????

I do not lift the mower off the roller until transport,,, that is the purpose of the slot for the top link.
During mowing, the roller is in contact with the ground 100% of the time.

On another note,, my FM will mow hood height weeds, grass, etc,,, FLAT in one pass.

(Note: in that pic, the tractor is connected to a blade,,, no slot for the TL)