Mowing Adding front wheels to rotary mower

[nosliw]

hello everyone,

i have a JD 990 and a Woods BB72 rotary mower. it's a bit of a pain to mow my field (20acre) because there's a lot of uneven ground and articulation.

if i don't keep my hand on the rockshaft constantly adjusting the height i'd be scalping in turns and shaving the earth.

a friend recommended adding front castor wheels to my mower, so it sits at the right height on its own, like his bushhog.

is this a good idea? if i just put the 3pt all the way down, it would float pretty freely to adjust to the terrain, right?

any input it appreciated.

thanks guys

 

[RoyJackson]

Some scalping is inevitable. Of course, after a few rounds of scalping, your property would be more even, wouldn't it?

Adding standard casters would probably result in them digging in and either creating ruts or breaking the caster wheels.
If you're going to do this, I suggest you use a wheel/bracket combination similar to what you see on a finishing mower, or perhaps gauge wheels used on landscape rakes. Something larger then caster wheels that can pivot easily.
Attachment of those brackets to your cutter will have to be pretty robust. That means good quality bolts or a solid weld.

You could also just cut higher by adjusting your cutter's tail wheel and setting that 990's rockshaft lever adjustable stop a bit higher.

 

[RobJ]

You can also adjust your mower, higher in the front than in the back, letting the tail wheel set the height. It may not give you the best cut over being flat, but it's just a pasture then it migh t be good enough.

 

[nosliw]

i'm cutting pretty high now as it is.

it's just sort of irritating. sometimes the front of the mower will be too high off the ground, others it will be dragging and digging in.

i'm thinking i got too wide of a mower for having a single rear wheel.

TSC has nice big wheels and tires, but like you said it's all about the mount. i'm surprised noone has a kit!

 

[RobJ]

6 foot? Might be a kit to put 2 wheels on the back, easier than adding them to the front being OEM and all.

Sounds like you need to disk that pasture and drag it smooth again.