How To Mow Farther Toward Treeline

[drizler]

I致e got the typical tree line burdock scrub encroachment that痴 been going on forever. I don稚 hay the field but I do mine with a 5 foot brush hog deck behind my Massey. Tell me is there anyway to get my deck to offset further To one side about buying any special gear? I keep ripping loose my rear light on that side and have had enough of it. I do plan on relocating both lights to the inside of the ROPS which will help but I壇 really like to get the hog off to the side as well. IDEAS.??

 

[seville009]

I just back into that stuff. Takes longer, but it works.

 

[boomer1025]

Old 9 foot sickle bar mower would work

 

[Scrambler82]

You can just your 3-point a little to one side but how far is the question.

Two thoughts: (Thinking out loud AGAIN) !

1) Is your Brush Hog wider than your tractor ?
The Brush Hog is wider by 6", and with a little side adjustment it can be sticking out almost that amount.

2) What about a shield around the Taillight ?


Also, I too back into scrub with the Brush Hog raised as high as it will go,I low it slowly and USUALLY it cut pretty good. A couple of passes and the bush is gone. Not sure it is a good practice or not but it works for me and now I read that someone else does it...seville009 !
Once the big stuff is backed over, then I stat the usual back and forth movement and after about the this cutting the bushes are gone, some of the smaller, 3/4" - 1", scrub is cut up to fine pieces.

 

[drizler]

You can just your 3-point a little to one side but how far is the question.

Two thoughts: (Thinking out loud AGAIN) !

1) Is your Brush Hog wider than your tractor ?
The Brush Hog is wider by 6", and with a little side adjustment it can be sticking out almost that amount.

2) What about a shield around the Taillight ?


Also, I too back into scrub with the Brush Hog raised as high as it will go,I low it slowly and USUALLY it cut pretty good. A couple of passes and the bush is gone. Not sure it is a good practice or not but it works for me and now I read that someone else does it...seville009 !
Once the big stuff is backed over, then I stat the usual back and forth movement and after about the this cutting the bushes are gone, some of the smaller, 3/4" - 1", scrub is cut up to fine pieces.

Too bad as far as I can get to the side itç—´ just even with the edge of the tire. Probably the best thing I致e ever done that tractor with is dismount the entire ROPS. That let me finally get up underneath much farther than you imagine. Even the bottom uprights snag on everything and there is no way to keep from bashing my lights. Theyæ±*e. just far enough to the side that, I couldn稚 quite keep branches off of the light. As for the shield itç—´ nothing more than a false sense of security. I致e that light on enough times that I finally started using adhesive silicon so it値l break off easier. I can now sit there with that battery powered trimmer and knock off most of that overhang that I couldn稚 quite reach before. It値l work well enough and the chainsaw the bigger stuff.
I do have a Very sharp BXpanded Piranha tooth bar that works on some of it. Unfortunately those 1 to 2 inch saplings 10 or just fold over and scrapes across the top much of the time. Between them all it値l happen, just take time.
Before That ROPS Goes back on the lower part it痴 going to be modified. I知 going to cut that mounting plate off that sticks out and put them facing inwards. That way the light unit will be far less easily damaged. I don稚 do much road driving anyways and never at night.

 

[Scrambler82]

So how wide is your tractor and the Brush Hog ?

If the Brush Hog is not wider than the tractor, IMHO..., I think you need a larger one.

My Tractor is abut 58" wide and my Brush Hog is 60", this works for me, it is only two inches wider BUT it will adjust to one side or the other and extend the cut by about 2 additional inches.

Is that enough, for your application or maybe a wider cutter is needed, $$$, but sometimes it is just better to get another wider one than fool around with something that isn't going to work no-how !

 

[powerscol]

Trade the brush hog in for an offsetting flail mower, I have whats called a ditch bank unit that swings out on an arm. Can cut vertical too. It mulches the grass and does not leave clumps Will get to about 4 feet from the edge of the tire. Some will reach further depending on your tractor. Many have reported they can cut faster with the flail too.

 

[jgedmond]

Trade the brush hog in for an offsetting flail mower, I have whats called a ditch bank unit that swings out on an arm. Can cut vertical too. It mulches the grass and does not leave clumps Will get to about 4 feet from the edge of the tire. Some will reach further depending on your tractor. Many have reported they can cut faster with the flail too.

What he said ^ :thumbsup:

I have an offset flail on order and should get next week. I bought it for your exact need as well as pond edges and some vertical trimming.

 

[nybirdman]

I have(had) a very similar problem.Six foot brush hog and loosing cab lights.With my brush(10-12' tough stuff) backing in just lifts the hog up+I have miles of hedge rows and backing in isn't practical.
I hired a Skid Steer and FECON head and he beat back mine and now I can keep up.

 

[LouNY]

MK Martin has an offset 3 point hitch with the pto built in to work with your existing 3 point implements, they have it in a 60' and an 84";
MK Martin | Axis Tool Arm

 

[RickB]

That’s cool Lou. I’ve never seen or heard of anything like that.

 

[bcp]

Save money and modify the cutter you already have.

Mount your 3-point A-frame on a sliding tube. Here's the first example I found.

https://farmimplements.com.au/implement/h-range-rotary-cutter/

Or make a set of alternate mounting points like this. The pins are in the offset position.

Bruce

 

[MossRoad]

MK Martin has an offset 3 point hitch with the pto built in to work with your existing 3 point implements, they have it in a 60' and an 84";
MK Martin | Axis Tool Arm

That is pretty slick. Wonder how much it costs? They have a nice video on it.

MK Martin | Videos

 

[LouNY]

The dealer that had it when I looked at one wanted several thousand for it, it has been a while but I want to say around 4 but don't quote me on that it was more then I wanted to pay and it couldn't handle my 8 ft brush hog.

 

[MossRoad]

I like the suggestion of getting a sickle mower. Those aren't cheap either.

How far off to the side do you want to offset your 8' brush hog?

 

[BrokenTrack]

Every few years I just take an excavator and bat down the long limbs that stick out into the fields looking for light, and while I am there, dig up any brush that is encroaching. Once you do it, you can then mow further back.

I figured it out, and the first year I did this, I gained an extra 7 acres on one field alone. I did not think that was right so I did the math again...yep 7 acres!

It was 50 feet from the rockwall to where the hay was mown, and it is exactly one mile around this field. 50 ft times 5,280 feet equals 264,000 square feet. At 43,000 square feet to the acre, I took back 7 acres of land! Over the years I have really increased the amount of fields I have.

 

[RickB]

The only surprising thing about that is there is a field near Belfast of that size!

 

[LouNY]

I like the suggestion of getting a sickle mower. Those aren't cheap either.

How far off to the side do you want to offset your 8' brush hog?

I wanted to offset the whole 8 ft anyway maybe a bit more plus be able to tilt up and down, just like a heavy duty offset at less cost.

 

[EddieWalker]

I致e got the typical tree line burdock scrub encroachment that痴 been going on forever. I don稚 hay the field but I do mine with a 5 foot brush hog deck behind my Massey. Tell me is there anyway to get my deck to offset further To one side about buying any special gear? I keep ripping loose my rear light on that side and have had enough of it. I do plan on relocating both lights to the inside of the ROPS which will help but I壇 really like to get the hog off to the side as well. IDEAS.??

Is that your backhoe in your profile picture? I use my backhoe to remove saplings and branches where I want to mow so I can get in close to the tree and maintain it. Ounce you have all the underbrush removed, it's pretty easy to either break off the low hanging branches with the backhoe, or for a cleaner look, get the chainsaw out and make it pretty. It's time consuming, so I only do so much at a time, but once it's done, it's super easy to maintain afterwards.

 

[Hay Dude]

I have(had) a very similar problem.Six foot brush hog and loosing cab lights.With my brush(10-12' tough stuff) backing in just lifts the hog up+I have miles of hedge rows and backing in isn't practical.
I hired a Skid Steer and FECON head and he beat back mine and now I can keep up.

I do this for customers.
I rent a machine and cuts back years of field overgrowth. It's expensive, though. Cheapest weekly rental I could find was $3000/wk. Ssometimes I can use the wing of my CX-15, but even with 4-5' of overhang, it's not enough.
I had to do some of my own fields over the years and I'm really cheap, so reluctantly I bought a Stihl FS560 brush cutter and cut the brush myself (mostly autumn and Russian olive, stickers and vines). I pull the brush pieces into openings where I could pile it up in small piles, then grind it up with my Kubota M-135x and 15' Deere CX-15 into wood chips. If the chips end up in the field, I take the hay rake and whisk the chips off the grass and into the woods.

I have had a lot of success doing this and have turned at least 30 acres of wasteland back into the productive farm fields they once were. I'm doing a large area of brush now. It's been fantastic exercise for my health and I'm gaining more and more bales of hay, so it pays for itself in the long run.

Sorry for the sideways picture. I find this website incredibly difficult for uploading photos.