Rotary Cutter 48" rotary cutter productivity?

Agentiron · Feb 14, 2006

48\" rotary cutter productivity?

I am trying to get an understanding of what I can expect from a 48" rotary cutter mowing lots. Most of my lots will be 1/2 acre and will be cut 4 times per year. I will hopefully take on some lots here and there that are out of control. I would really like to get a good estimation of how long it will take to mow these 1/2 acre lots with a 20 hp ck20 and 48" bush hog type rotary cutter? Any thoughts would be awesome!

I would love to hear input on what to expect from those of you who have experience with them, and also if you can give me ideas of time it takes with bigger hogs using higher hp units.

I don't want to be floundering around on a lot forever as I will be doing this for higher. I don't know what kind of speed I can maintain, but suppose terrian will be smooth enough.

Any reccomendations of a decent cutter would be great. I have access to Rhino, Woods, Howse, Midwest, and King Kutter to my knowledge. Howse is the cheapest with Midwest next followed by KK. I don't know how good the hog must be on such a small cutter deck.

Thanks

RonMar · Feb 15, 2006

Re: 48\" rotary cutter productivity?

There are quite a few variables, you mentioned a few. A half acre is roughly 208' X 104'. At a 4' cut, that works out to be 26 rows 4' wide which is 5408' or 1.024 miles of travel to cover the surface. At 1/2 MPH that is a little over 2 hours, not taking into account time to turn(26 turnarounds minimum), ammount of overlap which will require extra passes and turns and the time required to maneuver around obstacles. You mentioned terrain, that will be one factor in determining how fast you can go comfortably/safely. Grass condition and moisture will be another. Your 20HP tractor is probably around 15-17 at the PTO. That into a 48 inch cutter should do ok as long as the grass is dry. Add a little moisture or something other than grass(brush and sapplings) and you could find yourself really crawling or running the cutter reallly high up(requiring a second lower pass) to keep from bogging the engine down. If you could do 2 MPH then it would take you 1/2 hour plus the additions I mentioned above. It is of course all dependant on the conditions and your equipment capabilities. You will probably have to try it to see what your combination is capable of.

As for equipment, with a lighter tractor, mower weight will be a factor in how fast you can travel to-from and how fast you can mow over terrain(bouncing a heavy impliment can be real hard on a 3PH). If you are not planning on mowing too many rocks or busting real heavy brush, you should look into the lighter models. Preferably something that still has reenforcement on the leading and bottom edges of the sidewalls though as this will help retain the overall shape with prolonged use. We have a older JD light duty hog where I work, that you can barely tell was originally square /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif.

Bowhunter · Feb 15, 2006

Re: 48\" rotary cutter productivity?

I have a 48" rotary cutter (we call them all bush hogs down here, regardless of who made it) that I use behind my BX2200. It works great behind my little tractor, and I'm sure will work even better behind the larger framed CK. Smoothness of terrain and thickness of growth will dictate your speed, but the larger tires of your CK will allow you to travel faster over the same terrain than I would be able to on my BX. I can easily mow an acre per hour as long as what I'm mowing isn't tremendously thick or tall.

Of the brands you mentioned, I'd have to give the nod to Woods for best quality.

Farmwithjunk · Feb 15, 2006

Re: 48\" rotary cutter productivity?

( (we call them all bush hogs down here, regardless of who made it) )

Well, at least SOMEONE get's it right.

And by the way, I favor BUSH HOG brand mowers, but find it increasinly difficult to justify the cost of MOST of the "up-scale" brands, considering the very low cost of some of the more "generic" brands. A bush hog will get destroyed if used enough. Some expensive ones last longer, but not 3 or 4 times longer. Not uncommon to see them PRICED 3, 4, maybe 5 times higher though.

silo36 · Feb 15, 2006

Re: 48\" rotary cutter productivity?

Ditto. I have a 4' hog on my 1700 Yanmar, and i average an acre an hour without undue strain on the tractor. I have taken down some pretty heavy vegetation.

RalphVa · Feb 15, 2006

Re: 48\" rotary cutter productivity?

I've a 4' LX4 on my 18.5 hp 4010. It will generally only bog when sinking into sandy areas such that the blade starts hitting the sand or in really dense grass.

A fellow I met has a 20 hp Kubota that he runs a 5' brush hog on. He says the main problem with it is the weight of the hog on hilly terrain.

You speed mainly depends on whether you have abrupt dips or rises that require you to go slow for safety. These can toss your tractor over on its side if you go very fast.

Ralph

Justaplain · Feb 15, 2006

Re: 48\" rotary cutter productivity?

I have used a 60" on a Ford 17HP You don't have to cut full swath in heavy going, But /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

pennwalk · Feb 15, 2006

Re: 48\" rotary cutter productivity?

Take care. Even a little 48" bush hog will throw rocks and metal a looong way. I am always nervous when I am using my King kutter on the farm near the neighbors and if there are kids out in the yard I just forget about it. If I was doing it for hire I would rather have a flail mower.
I am using a Yanmar 186D which is 18 hp at the engine and puts around 14 hp to the PTO, I have mowed grass more than head high but the Yanmar has some very low gears and I have used them in heavy going.

Chris

Soundguy · Feb 15, 2006

Re: 48\" rotary cutter productivity?

( but find it increasinly difficult to justify the cost of MOST of the "up-scale" brands, considering the very low cost of some of the more "generic" brands. )

Ditto. I also find it hard to pay 2x to 3x the cost. While the cheaper brands are of lower quality.. the user is the biggest variable. I've seen a 'new' guy tear up a brand new rhino mower in under an hour... etc.

I have a KK 5' mower.. bought it solely on price.. use it 5ys, and parked it in the pasture.. never had a single problem with it. Upgraded tractors went from 33hp to 95 hp, so I got a 10' mower.. again.. went 'cheap' and got the HD line of howse. Have mowed a couple seasons with it with no more problem than a single loose lift pin...and I assembled it.. so that was my fault. Unit is decent.. and 60% of the price of the next cheapest model... followed by about 33% of the name brand units.

Soundguy

Agentiron · Feb 15, 2006

Re: 48\" rotary cutter productivity?

You guys are great!

I know what you mean about paying big bucks for a cutter. I hope to do alot of commercial mowing so I do not want something that will quickly fall apart. I don't know how much damage one can do with a 48" deck. I am having a hard time paying nearly the same price for a 48" as I can for a 60". I would like to go for the 60" really, and take smaller swathes but am being advised that the 60 is to heavy for a ck20. It is only 135 pounds heavier then the 48". Does anyone have experience with the 60" on a ck20? I want to be safe and not hurt the machine.

Thanks

sandman2234 · Feb 15, 2006

Re: 48\" rotary cutter productivity?

I have had a used 48" mower on a Ford 1100 4x4, which is 13hp, 11 at the PTO. I used it to cut a friends shop, which had untold numbers of broken up concrete all over it, in it, etc.
The sides are bent and dented, but it still works fine. I would NEVER mow when anyone was around. If somebody came in, I would stop. I have sent chunks of concrete flying across the road. We picked them up, but they just kept showing up in the grass. A flying object will tear up a car, or kill a person. Be careful. I should have installed chains on mine, but never did. I think they would slow down the flying objects at least a little.
David from jax

IslandTractor · Feb 16, 2006

Re: 48\" rotary cutter productivity?

I use a 48" Bush Hog Squealer with my CK20HST. It pulls it just fine though I have a long slope that requires me to use low range coming up. My tractor has loaded tires and the FEL in place so it pretty heavy even without the 440lb mower.

I have to mow around a lot of bushes and trees so I cannot give you a good estimate for how long it would take to do 1/2 acre fields. However, it takes me about 2-2.5 hours to mow a 3 acre area. Lots of backing and manuvering in my mowing however so I would not use that estimate for mowing fields.

Regarding brands: I certainly like the Bush Hog. I agree with Soundguy however and if I were to do it again I'd probably buy a lesser brand for less money.

For what it's worth, I am becoming concerned about using my rotary cutter in the area I mow as it borders both roads and houses. I am worrying about shooting missles of rock or even bits of tree branches towards public spaces. The area is a bit rough for a finish mower and I'm currently investigating getting a relatively inexpensive flail mower for routine mowing. I might switch after I finish a bit more meadow reclaimation with the Bush Hog.

Soundguy · Feb 16, 2006

Re: 48\" rotary cutter productivity?

It's easy and cheap to make guards out of truck mudflaps. i have a set on my 5' mower.. just a few bucks for the flaps and the misc bolt hardware, and the perfed angle iron i used as a frame.

Soundguy

IslandTractor · Feb 16, 2006

Re: 48\" rotary cutter productivity?

Now that you remind me I recall a photo you posted. It still seems a bit dodgy to use a bush hog very close to homes and public streets though I know people do it all the time.

Bob_Skurka · Feb 16, 2006

Re: 48\" rotary cutter productivity?

( It's easy and cheap to make guards out of truck mudflaps. i have a set on my 5' mower.. just a few bucks for the flaps and the misc bolt hardware, and the perfed angle iron i used as a frame.

Soundguy )

Chris, you showed pictures of your mud-flap guards and it was a simple solution that looks like it would work well. But in addition to using guards, I think many people make a HUGE and DANGEROUS mistake with how they set their rotary cutters and are just begging to throw rocks, steel, concrete out the back end.

A rotary cutter should be set nearly level but many people set them so the rear end is much higher than the front. That creates a situation where the rear guards are elevated too high and cannot do the job.

Properly set, a rotary cutter should have a rise to run of about 0.5" per every 12" of deck. So a 6' rotary cutter should have the rear end lifted approximately 3" higher than the front. Manufacturers vary in their recommendations, but 0.5" per foot is typical, some suggest a bit more.

But if you think about it, common sense suggests the higher you set the rear end, the greater your chances of throwing objects dangerious distances. Too bad so many people don't read their manuals and don't use common sense. /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif

EastTexFrank · Feb 16, 2006

Re: 48\" rotary cutter productivity?

I run a 4' mower on my B2400 with 18 PTO hp. On my slopes it will still lug down, even in low range but I can still cut about 3/4 acre an hour of tall grass and small saplings. Your speed will depend on what you are cutting and how flat and smoothe the ground is but an acre an hour should be managable.

I come from the buy cheap and beat it up school. Since I only use it about half a dozen times a year at most to cut about 8 acres, I didn't see that I'd gain anything by buying a more expensive model. Even an el "cheapo" should be able to handle 20 years of mowing at that rate.

As others have said, be careful of what's around you when using it. It can throw stuff a long way, both backwards and forwards.

IslandTractor · Feb 16, 2006

Re: 48\" rotary cutter productivity?

Bob,
Your point is well taken. I doubt you intended to imply that if properly adjusted a bush hog type mower will not eject stones and other objects however. Seems to me it is still the riskiest of the mower types with regard to ejecting dangerous material at high speed and therefore is not the ideal mower to be used around dwellings, roads etc.

Soundguy · Feb 16, 2006

Re: 48\" rotary cutter productivity?

( It still seems a bit dodgy to use a bush hog very close to homes and public streets though )

Uh /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif.. you mean like the city, county and state road crews? They mow all spring & summer... they mow medians and roadsides and water retention areas, utility easements.. etc. Big 15 and 20' mowers ont he roadsides and medians, and smaller 6' cutters int he water retention areas and utility access roads... Hard to go a week during rainy season and -not- see a county mowing tractor next to you!

Soundguy

pennwalk · Feb 16, 2006

Re: 48\" rotary cutter productivity?

The road crews around here are using flail mowers. Your crews probably walked the medians and roadsides and water retention areas and know that there isn't any dangerous debris /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

Chris

IslandTractor · Feb 16, 2006

Re: 48\" rotary cutter productivity?

Would you mow with a bush hog near house or street or pedestrians? The safety warning decals seem to rule that out. I appreciate that road crews etc do it but that doesn't make it a good idea. I thought this was one of the arguments for using flail mowers instead of rotary.