Flail Mower Let's talk flail mowers

[hunt4570]

Sorry but this turned into a double post quickly

I replied to this one because it is the shortest! :laughing::laughing:

Ok, Mine is the B rotor (rough cut) with the knives hanging in shackles. It is box stock just as I bought it other than cleaning and greasing. I took a quick look of one set of knives and it seemed to me that both edges of the knives, front and back, were about the same degree of sharpness, or dullness depending how you look at it. I'll check and see if others are the same.

I have 100 acres here but I only really mow about 5 acres and some trails 2-3 times a year so I probably mow less than 20 acres a year, so it could be that they don't need it yet. I just figured after 3 years they would.


Yes I have plenty of tools, impact wrenches etc, and an almost endless supply of 2x12s as I have a small sawmill out back. So I'm good for doing the work, just looking for the best, preferably easiest, way to do this.


Thanks Leonz

 

[leonz]

Hello hunt4570,

is your sawmill a Cotton Hanlon sawmill or a Frick Sawmill?

 

[def38]

If I were to undertake making my own flail mower, I would have a automotive driveshaft shop make the rotor. They would understand static and dynamic balance, they know how to weld and they would have the correct steel alloy for the tube, understand bearings, etc. I would first buy the flails you wish to use and let them take it from there.

 

[Jack Yuan]

I took the cover off the belts a while back an everything looked okay with no signs of slippage and the pulleys and belts were remarkably clean. The tensioner feature is one of the reasons I chose this model.

This type belt tensioner is not good enough, it has risk that make the different belts working at different tension, I used to have this design several years ago then I gave up.

My suggestion to you is that often check the belts, and often tighten the bolts of power lock. If possible, add some glue and spring washer into those small bolts of power lock.

 

[StuartDK45SE]

This type belt tensioner is not good enough, it has risk that make the different belts working at different tension, I used to have this design several years ago then I gave up.

My suggestion to you is that often check the belts, and often tighten the bolts of power lock. If possible, add some glue and spring washer into those small bolts of power lock.

I'll keep this in mind. This flail mower will see very light use. Maybe 10-15 hours a year of grass only. The rest of the time it will be store indoors.

 

[Wrench83]

An update on my situation:

After getting nowhere with Woodmaxx customer service (their people have NO knowledge of how a mower works) I decided to pull the knives and dress them with a grinder to test my theory. I put a fresh edge on them and bam, back to a good cut. I've got a new set of knives on order. You would think a person who is fielding tech questions for a mower manufacturer would be familiar with common issues and solutions relating to said products instead of telling customers to live with it.

This spot of lawn hadn't been cut in about 10 days. It's a mix of thick bermuda grass and weeds that were about 4" tall. I knocked it down to 1.75" while wet with dew and had no clumps or windrows. This is how a flail is supposed to cut and anyone who says different is full of crap. **** close to ZTR or finish mower results and the ability to still cut brush with the same machine. Win win in my book.

 

[TX mower]

flail mower hydraulic shift questions

I'm considering adding a ~60" flail mower to my 'fleet' (have a 5' Rhino bush hog that's served it's purpose admirably for many years). Plenty of info here already about makes/models etc so I'm not asking that, more general Q's about flails with hydraulic side-shift ability. I have a number of trees in my 'pasture' (actually more like 'parkland') and am bound by fence on 2 sides of the ~7AC mowed area, so hydraulic shift seems attractive.

1. On a 'typical' ~60" flail, is the PTO gearbox on the mower centered on the mowing width or is it offset a bit to the left due to the mower drive adding width on the left-end? Or does that vary depending no the manufacturer design (it's not a 'spec dimension' I find on most mfr websites or owner's manuals)?

2. When mowing an open field, do folks tend the run with the flail mowing width 'centered' on the tractor or do you shift it so you are only mowing one tire path?

3. Do you tend to shift the flail 'on-the-fly' or do you need to slow or stop forward motion and lift the flail when shifting it side-to-side?

I'll need to add a control valve to my Yanmar 336D w/FEL if I go with a hydraulic shift flail mower. No problem, it's already plumbed for 'power beyond the FEL control' so that's where I'd add to the system.

4. I'll need a tandem-center single spool self-centering control valve, is that correct?

5. What mounting location do folks find most convenient for a flail-shift control valve / lever? Beside your seat on the right, the direction you'll turn to see the amount of shift of the flail?

6. Any specific suggestions for a hydraulic control valve appropriate for a 60" shifting flail would be most welcome!

Thanks in advance for the education or links to answers that I missed while searching :thumbsup:

 

[DieselBound]

TX mower, your situation sounds exactly like mine (though I've got several more acres, but those, other than about my primary 6-ish, are handled with my larger tractor).

1. I "think" they tend to be set a bit to the right side (gearbox set farther to the left), but I cannot say for sure how true this is, especially with side-shift models. Note that most flails in this size range tend to be more than 60" wide: manufacturer spec should clearly indicate implement width AND cutting width AND offset capabilities (either mechanical reconfiguration or hydraulic shift).

2. I'd want to run to cover tracks as much as possible. If you can do this then you're not limited to trying to calculate the necessary cutting path (end up with one swath to cut but you need to travel to the far end to turn around in order to get the flail to cover- maybe next to a fence or a ditch).

3. ALWAYS perform side-shifting with the flail raised. One would have to assess the situation as to whether it's of any safety concern to back off PTO speed (or disengage the PTO), but it shouldn't be necessary to perform the shift.

My B7800 doesn't have any rear hydraulics and I don't think I'm going to bother adding any. As such I'm still wanting hydraulic side shift on a flail. I figure that I can utilize some PVC pipes to fix the needed shifts: most side shifting needs would be for working along ditches- don't figure I'd be needing to do a lot of shifting. I have no experience with adding hydraulic controls so cannot comment there (usually controls are located on the right side).

 

[Fallon]

Most or a I've owned & seen are offset to the right or crop shredders.

I usually leave my new Peruzo somewhat or all the way offset to the right. It means the mower is covering more grass I havent driven over. Or I'm sticking it out to catch the brush I dont want scraping the hydraulic hoses & other stuff on the undercarriage of my tractor.

I shift it as needed, usually when moving & on the ground.

 

[Jerik]

The original belts on my Caroni TL1500 got fried after less than 20 hours. The roller has some black residue on it that I'm trying to clean with acetone, but it's not making much of a difference.

Does anyone have suggestions on how to deal with it?

 

[TX mower]

DieselBound, yes Flail Mower specs are always clear as to the difference between mowing width and overall width, and clearly the drive gear/pulleys adds width on only one end (left on all I've seen) no question about that. But none I've found indicate where the PTO gearbox falls relative to either of those widths. The offset capability always seems to be measured against overall width (when you add L+R offset for max left or max right shift it's always equal to the overall mower width).

Gotta ask - do you have 'hands-on' experience with a shifting flail mower yet?

Maybe I grossly misunderstand what you are talking about for your side shifting solution, in which case I apologize .... but if the notion is 'PVC pipes' as substitute for proper hydraulic lines/control valves, I do have enough experience with hydraulics to know that the pressures involved and the danger of skin-cutting/penetrating fluid leaks keeps me away from 'alternate rigged' solutions with other than genuine hydraulic-rated components for even temporary/occasional use situations. It only 'takes once' to have a very painful and dangerous injury from a hydraulic leak or line failure, totally separate from what the implement does.

Sounds to me like you need a 'manual side shift' mower - with the slide bars but sans hydraulics, just a way to push the mower to the side and lock/block it in either position. If I were in your shoes not wanting to install proper hydraulic controls and lines I'd consider disconnecting or removing the shift cylinder completely (stored for resale or when you add proper controls) and rigging the position lock/block bits rather than 'rigging' the hydraulics.

Most or a I've owned & seen are offset to the right or crop shredders.

I usually leave my new Peruzo somewhat or all the way offset to the right. It means the mower is covering more grass I havent driven over. Or I'm sticking it out to catch the brush I dont want scraping the hydraulic hoses & other stuff on the undercarriage of my tractor.

I shift it as needed, usually when moving & on the ground.

Thanks for sharing your experience!

 

[bkrgi]

Here is my Woodmaxx FM62H
You can gauge where the gear box sits relative to the flail being centered behind the tractor....sits a bit left. I would say manufactures compromise a bit to keep the gearbox/PTO shaft as close to centre of the tractor as possible whether your shifted left or far right

 

[TX mower]

Here is my Woodmaxx FM62H
You can gauge where the gear box sits relative to the flail being centered behind the tractor....sits a bit left. I would say manufactures compromise a bit to keep the gearbox/PTO shaft as close to centre of the tractor as possible whether your shifted left or far right

https://youtu.be/edaBFktoi_4

Thank you, sir! The FM62H is one of the units on my list being considered.

I've downloaded & read the Owners Manual for that unit but it's silent about side-shifting in use .... do you raise yours to shift or do it when moving on the ground?

 

[bkrgi]

I'll raise it slightly but really as long as your moving you could slide it....consider your having to just drag the roller sideways so doing so while moving should not stress things at all

 

[leonz]

Hello Jerik,


The snubber pulley did not seize did it?

Use a thick layer of DL hand cleaner to break the bond between the rubber and the metal.
Rub it in the snubber pulley and then wrap the pulley with a couple of blue shop towels if you have them and use a rubber band or two to hold the shop towel against the snubber pulley and leave it for a couple of days and the rubber should peel right off.
I would also do the same thing with the grooved pulley as well to clean it.
Believe me it does work and it works well. I used this method for years to break the bond of old rubber mining tires and steel rims especially if the so called "brains" that mounted them before me used never sieze to coat the rims which only made the rubber swell up and made it that much harder to remove them.

 

[Fallon]

The original belts on my Caroni TL1500 got fried after less than 20 hours. The roller has some black residue on it that I'm trying to clean with acetone, but it's not making much of a difference.
View attachment 564663
Does anyone have suggestions on how to deal with it?

Razor blade or scotch brite probably.

 

[Jack Yuan]

Re: flail mower hydraulic shift questions

I'm considering adding a ~60" flail mower to my 'fleet' (have a 5' Rhino bush hog that's served it's purpose admirably for many years). Plenty of info here already about makes/models etc so I'm not asking that, more general Q's about flails with hydraulic side-shift ability. I have a number of trees in my 'pasture' (actually more like 'parkland') and am bound by fence on 2 sides of the ~7AC mowed area, so hydraulic shift seems attractive.

1. On a 'typical' ~60" flail, is the PTO gearbox on the mower centered on the mowing width or is it offset a bit to the left due to the mower drive adding width on the left-end? Or does that vary depending no the manufacturer design (it's not a 'spec dimension' I find on most mfr websites or owner's manuals)?

2. When mowing an open field, do folks tend the run with the flail mowing width 'centered' on the tractor or do you shift it so you are only mowing one tire path?

3. Do you tend to shift the flail 'on-the-fly' or do you need to slow or stop forward motion and lift the flail when shifting it side-to-side?

I'll need to add a control valve to my Yanmar 336D w/FEL if I go with a hydraulic shift flail mower. No problem, it's already plumbed for 'power beyond the FEL control' so that's where I'd add to the system.

4. I'll need a tandem-center single spool self-centering control valve, is that correct?

5. What mounting location do folks find most convenient for a flail-shift control valve / lever? Beside your seat on the right, the direction you'll turn to see the amount of shift of the flail?

6. Any specific suggestions for a hydraulic control valve appropriate for a 60" shifting flail would be most welcome!

Thanks in advance for the education or links to answers that I missed while searching :thumbsup:

Hi TX mower, I suggest you this seller Nova Tractor which is located in Texas, NOVATRACTOR
Here are the answer for your questions:
1. On middle range 60" flail mower, the PTO gear box is almost at the center position of mower housing. Like this mower, Nova Tractor MD middle duty flail mower series its 61" mower's gear box sit almost in the center, you can see their details position according to the photo in the bottom of that page.

This is depend how manufacturer define the flail mower. On light duty flail mower, the shaft between PTO gear box and side pulley is much shorter than the heavy duty flail mower. So for factory mass production, we will not have too many different positions for the PTO gear box. Otherwise we have to produce too many different shaft and tube for each mower width.

2. Normally we suggest to choose the mower which cutting width could completely cover the tractor wheel track, but also not exceed too much. Sometimes we see small mower on big tractor, then they run the tractor in the round circle, mow and cover the wheel track in next round.

3. We always suggest to stop tractor first, lift the mower, then shift mower to the side. This is because we would not like to see your mower hit something unexpected when suddenly shift to the side.

4. Normally there is only one cylinder on side-shift flail mower, so you need single spool control valve to control the side-shift movement.

5. I have all the control handles on the right hand side, then I run the tractor steering wheel by my left hand, I back the mower mowing from my right back side. It's up to you.

6. Nova Tractor MFZ heavy duty flail mower series For this flail mower quick couple, it is G1/2" size.

 

[Jack Yuan]

The original belts on my Caroni TL1500 got fried after less than 20 hours. The roller has some black residue on it that I'm trying to clean with acetone, but it's not making much of a difference.
View attachment 564663
Does anyone have suggestions on how to deal with it?

I will use sand paper.

Is it over tightened? You can press the middle of each belt, press 1 cm by 5 KG force, then it is ok.

 

[ronjhall]

TX mower.
I have a Woodmaxx FM62H. Like it a lot. My Kubota B2910 handles it very well. Now that I have used it cutting little over 3 acres 5 times. I wish I had gotten the FM78 or other 6' flail mower. The 22 PTO HP of my tractor handles the 62" very well. Never bogs engine down like my 5' rotary cutter does. Unless you have restrictions for width. I would consider a flail mower that covers your rear tire width plus a few inches.

 

[Jerik]

The snubber pulley did not seize did it?
.

I don't think so, as it turns easily now. But the fact that I have the residue maybe indicates that it wasn't turning at some point.