Flail Mower Let's talk flail mowers

[ColdRider]

Cold rider,
I have smaller version of yours it does cut grasses better with the y knives. If the "grass" is thick and tall it will bog have to slow down till u get cut down. There are several adjustments u can make to adjust cut . Hight at roller and top link. Try different settings . May work better

Thanks, it's all a big experiment. We'll get it figured out.

 

[Barry Chipley]

New tractor owner and first time poster here.

After reading a lot of this thread and some others, I settled on a flail mower instead of a brush hog.

I ended up getting this Titan FL135 from a dealer in my state. Apparently these are not very popular in Alabama and this dealer was the only one I found that stocked small flail mowers.

I haven't seen much info out there on this model, so I thought I would share.

This is an Italian mower made by Cosmo and imported by Titan Implements (not palletforks dot com). I paid $2000 for it at Dixie Horse and Mule Company. It came with hammers installed but also included the Y blades. I wouldn't say it's QH compatible but I was able to connect it to my QH.

My little Kubota BX has no problem at all running it and I have been abusing it quite hard clearing some woods. I have been very pleased so far.
View attachment 756753View attachment 756754View attachment 756755

New tractor owner and first time poster here.

After reading a lot of this thread and some others, I settled on a flail mower instead of a brush hog.

I ended up getting this Titan FL135 from a dealer in my state. Apparently these are not very popular in Alabama and this dealer was the only one I found that stocked small flail mowers.

I haven't seen much info out there on this model, so I thought I would share.

This is an Italian mower made by Cosmo and imported by Titan Implements (not palletforks dot com). I paid $2000 for it at Dixie Horse and Mule Company. It came with hammers installed but also included the Y blades. I wouldn't say it's QH compatible but I was able to connect it to my QH.

My little Kubota BX has no problem at all running it and I have been abusing it quite hard clearing some woods. I have been very pleased so far.
View attachment 756753View attachment 756754View attachment 756755

Any idea where to get replacement hammer blades?

 

[diesel85]

Call Flailmaster.

Flail Master - Your BEST Choice for Quality Mower Parts

Your BEST Choice for Quality Mower Parts

flailmaster.com

 

[Kevrobster]

Can you smart guys (and gals) help me pick a used flail mower, and maybe answer a question about different knife types? I'm located in central Wi, with a 45hp tractor (1969 Case 580ck w/draftomatic 3pt and pto). My main use will be grooming a few acres of pasture with a little bit of fallen tree branches and occasional smaller saplings to mow over/mulch. Not necessarily looking to make the pasture look like a lawn-just want something that cuts and mulches better than a brush hog.

I have a couple of options that are currently listed:

6' John Deere 25a



6' Land Pride FM3072



They're both listed at roughly the same price.

Any opinion on which would be better for my needs? Also curious if there is a performance difference between those two knife styles. I notice that the 25a has the knives attached to the rotor via a clevis looking thing, whereas the Landpride is just pinned to the rotor. Is there advantage of one over the other? I tend to think the clevis type attachment would handle trash/debris better but would love to hear all your thoughts. Thank you.

 

[TheFarmerInAdell]

Can you smart guys (and gals) help me pick a used flail mower, and maybe answer a question about different knife types? I'm located in central Wi, with a 45hp tractor (1969 Case 580ck w/draftomatic 3pt and pto). My main use will be grooming a few acres of pasture with a little bit of fallen tree branches and occasional smaller saplings to mow over/mulch. Not necessarily looking to make the pasture look like a lawn-just want something that cuts and mulches better than a brush hog.

I have a couple of options that are currently listed:

6' John Deere 25a
View attachment 757863
View attachment 757864

6' Land Pride FM3072
View attachment 757865
View attachment 757866
View attachment 757867
They're both listed at roughly the same price.

Any opinion on which would be better for my needs? Also curious if there is a performance difference between those two knife styles. I notice that the 25a has the knives attached to the rotor via a clevis looking thing, whereas the Landpride is just pinned to the rotor. Is there advantage of one over the other? I tend to think the clevis type attachment would handle trash/debris better but would love to hear all your thoughts. Thank you.

Hello from Eastern WI.

I would personally take the JD 25A only because parts are going to be more readily available aftermarket. Either way, Flailmaster should have the knives and probably some other parts. The advantage of the clevis mount is the blades have an additional direction to move if they strike something. The knives will do just fine for what you are looking to do. I have an Alamo with a similar set up as the JD 25A, and I use it for the same stuff. I also mow my lawn with it, but I don't care much about my lawn so it does just fine for me. Just be careful on the fallen branches. I try to not run over anything over an inch or two. I've had larger pieces wedge into the hood and destroy my belt. When I mow heavier grass it will leave a nice carpet of clippings behind. I'd snap it up quick as they don't last long on the used market in this area it seems.

 

[Kevrobster]

Hello from Eastern WI.

I would personally take the JD 25A only because parts are going to be more readily available aftermarket. Either way, Flailmaster should have the knives and probably some other parts. The advantage of the clevis mount is the blades have an additional direction to move if they strike something. The knives will do just fine for what you are looking to do. I have an Alamo with a similar set up as the JD 25A, and I use it for the same stuff. I also mow my lawn with it, but I don't care much about my lawn so it does just fine for me. Just be careful on the fallen branches. I try to not run over anything over an inch or two. I've had larger pieces wedge into the hood and destroy my belt. When I mow heavier grass it will leave a nice carpet of clippings behind. I'd snap it up quick as they don't last long on the used market in this area it seems.

Thanks Adell. I've been watching the market for at least a year now. You're 100% right-good deals are gone in a heartbeat. I haven't jumped at either one just yet because they feel a little over priced for my blood. But then again what doesn't these days!? Curious what you think a fair price is for either unit?

I'd love to get an Alamo mower like you mention but the few I ever see listed that are in serviceable condition also end up way too high priced. What model Alamo do you have and what tractor do you use it on?

 

[TheFarmerInAdell]

I'd anticipate the JD to be about $1200 and the Land Pride to be about $1500, but those might be low as I'm basing this off when I was looking and selling a few years ago. Seeing that new prices have almost doubled on some implements, I wouldn't be surprised if they're asking double my numbers.

I would also like to note that those are not the original blades for the JD. JD used a duck-foot looking blade (seen in the Flailmaster catalog). But what is on there is a good replacement as those are the Alamo style blades. They are better priced and more readily available.

I have the SHD88 on my MF 2706E. I paid $1200 for it, but I drove 3 hours each way to pick it up in IL. It was an old Tollway mower and it was in need of all new blades, clevises, and pins. I also had to replace the rear roller after about 2 years use, because it was dented pretty bad when I got it. It broke one day mowing the ditch. I welded it back together to hold on until I was able to replace it. I was able to get the roller ends from Flailmaster and a piece of tube locally, and then weld it together myself. I also replaced the roller bearings at that time.

 

[JethroB]

Can you smart guys (and gals) help me pick a used flail mower, and maybe answer a question about different knife types? I'm located in central Wi, with a 45hp tractor (1969 Case 580ck w/draftomatic 3pt and pto). My main use will be grooming a few acres of pasture with a little bit of fallen tree branches and occasional smaller saplings to mow over/mulch. Not necessarily looking to make the pasture look like a lawn-just want something that cuts and mulches better than a brush hog.

I have a couple of options that are currently listed:

6' John Deere 25a
View attachment 757863
View attachment 757864

6' Land Pride FM3072
View attachment 757865
View attachment 757866
View attachment 757867
They're both listed at roughly the same price.

Any opinion on which would be better for my needs? Also curious if there is a performance difference between those two knife styles. I notice that the 25a has the knives attached to the rotor via a clevis looking thing, whereas the Landpride is just pinned to the rotor. Is there advantage of one over the other? I tend to think the clevis type attachment would handle trash/debris better but would love to hear all your thoughts. Thank you.

I only have experience with a 6 ft Caroni with 56 Y blades & 28 clevis’s. I replaced all bolts, nylocks, and clevis’s recently in an all in refurbishment. Clevis’s are the most expensive part.

 

[1956guillotineguy]

Can you smart guys (and gals) help me pick a used flail mower, and maybe answer a question about different knife types? I'm located in central Wi, with a 45hp tractor (1969 Case 580ck w/draftomatic 3pt and pto). My main use will be grooming a few acres of pasture with a little bit of fallen tree branches and occasional smaller saplings to mow over/mulch. Not necessarily looking to make the pasture look like a lawn-just want something that cuts and mulches better than a brush hog.

I have a couple of options that are currently listed:

6' John Deere 25a
View attachment 757863
View attachment 757864

6' Land Pride FM3072
View attachment 757865
View attachment 757866
View attachment 757867
They're both listed at roughly the same price.

Any opinion on which would be better for my needs? Also curious if there is a performance difference between those two knife styles. I notice that the 25a has the knives attached to the rotor via a clevis looking thing, whereas the Landpride is just pinned to the rotor. Is there advantage of one over the other? I tend to think the clevis type attachment would handle trash/debris better but would love to hear all your thoughts. Thank you.

I bought a JD 25A a few years ago that was severely abused and rusted into the ground. After replacing all the bearings, blades and clevis and several hours of welding it works like a charm. I was so happy with it's performance I cleaned it up and painted it.

 

[ColdRider]

I wanted to give you all a follow-up to my previous posts. Well, I changed out the hammers to y blades. Raised the rear roller up 2 holes. Adjusted top link so skids don't drag and still keep it level mostly.
Much better cut. Still occasionally bog and belt slip, yes I checked and tightened them. Very slow first cut but did a decent job. I will go over it again after it drys out some.
One question I have is this Titan has a slotted top link hole. All the pictures I have sent show this spot used. Right below is a nonotted single hole . Would it be better to attach the top link to this so it would stay solid and not allow the front to move up and down? It moves enough so the skids hit and start dragging piles of grass.