ATV tow behind mower

[lilyperch]

Hi, looking for advice. I have hilly property and have been looking at DR. Power and Kunz rough brush tow mowers behind atv. Numerous cautions about Z turn mower on hills 20-30 degree.
Any one with experience with this type?

 

[KiotiKowboy]

I have a Swisher tow behind rough cut mower that I pull with my Cub Cadet UTV. I use this mainly to trim along fence lines and areas that are not routinely hayed. My only complaint is the control cables are not quite long enough to reach the driver seat. I have to engage the mower, then get into the UTV.

The thing about operating the unit on an incline is not so much about stability, as it's probably less likely to flip than the UTV itself. The manual cautions about inclines due to the engine oil not being picked up properly. I try to minimize severe "lean" time by adjusting my approach to those areas.

 

[lilyperch]

Thank you, sound advice about slopes. I have read about the control cable not long enough.
How is the quality of machine?

 

[bier1064]

I have used my Swisher 44" rough cut mower for four years without any quality or mechanical issues.
I think the control cable length just depends on what you are towing it with. I mount mine on the rear rack of my Polaris ATV and it works fine.

 

[KiotiKowboy]

I have used my Swisher 44" rough cut mower for four years without any quality or mechanical issues.
I think the control cable length just depends on what you are towing it with. I mount mine on the rear rack of my Polaris ATV and it works fine.

True. The UTV driver seat would require and additional 3 or 4 feet.

Quality of the mower is fine, although belt changing could have been given at least token thought in the design. Also, adjusting cut height requires moving fixed bolts and this should also have been better designed.

 

[Gordon Gould]

I have a Fuerst (no longer in business) tow behind rough mower I use on road sides and miles of woods trails. It has a plain old BS motor and is 16 years old. It does a lot of side hill work with one wheel in the ditch and the other on the road. I have not had any trouble with it. No control cables to worry about. Start it up get on the wheeler and mow.



gg

 

[jrm21]

Another swisher owner here. I picked up the 44" rough cut a few years back. Pulling with my ATV. Really put it to the test cutting some trails.

Last year I purchased a SCUT with a rotary cutter. Planned to sell the Swisher, but never did. While I love the rotary cutter for most work, the swisher can go to many places (inclines) that the tractor cannot.

The Swisher is a very good unit and the support the company provides is excellent.

If you are cutting through very rough stuff, you will go through belts. As someone has already pointed out, changing the belt could be much easier. Learning to make adjustments to create proper belt tension will increase the life of your belts.

Initial setup does require bolts to get the initial height set for the hitch. After that, cut height can be adjusted by turning a crank (unless they changed the design in the past few years).

I run my on inclines without a problem. Mine is set up with a slight offset, which allows me to get into some hard to reach places. For example, I can cut along the edge of my pond without driving the vehicle precariously close to the edge.

Using this on an ATV, I am able to reach back (while seated) to engage/disengage the blade. ATV size and arm length factor into this.


No experience here with other brands.

 

[KiotiKowboy]

Using this on an ATV, I am able to reach back (while seated) to engage/disengage the blade. ATV size and arm length factor into this.


No experience here with other brands.

I must have alligator arms

 

[lilyperch]

Thank you all. I was concerned about swisher quality after reading several reviews but it seems common sense and an understanding machine capability win out.

 

[Greenland South]

I have a 54" rough cut, it's red. It has been nothing but trouble since I got it. First problem happened when I first tried to use it, they didn't torque the shaft nut properly,and it made a mess. They covered that under warranty. Cracked welds, cheap shaft bearings and front wheels that break off regularly. And when a front wheel breaks off it always ends up under the mower. You can imagine what that does.
Some of you are probably thinking I abused this machine. Nothing could be further from the truth. Before I bought it I talked with the manufacture and was very specific about what I was going to do. Small poplar an inch and under with heavy grass in a rough field. It will handle that no problem they said. For the price of one of these pieces of junk you could buy yourself a pull behind flail mower.

 

[Gordon Gould]

Yes Greenland - I know a Swisher would not stand up very long to the way I use mine. They are very spindly in my opinion. But our woods trails are pretty rough.

 

[1bush2hog]

I have an Acrease rough cut with Kohler engine. I bought mine to use on hilly areas on my property thus the reason I went with the Kohler due to pressurized oiling.

It is a beast - sometimes too much of one. The mower weighs 600lbs - no problem pulling behind a UTV but if you pull behind an ATV, it is a lot of weight, especially going up steeper hills. If you don't hit a hill with enough speed, and ATV wheels start spinning you will have to back it down the hill. My son jack knifed our 660 Grizzly and ended up flipping the Grizz. The mower didn't flip, as the rear hitch sheared when the ATV flipped.

Also, If you are going to be using this mower in tight places, that require a lot of backing up, I would NOT recommend it. It is not very compact the way the wheels are laid out, but it is very stable going over ditches and I've cut some really tall and thick stuff with mine. If really tall and thick I will have to make another pass over these areas. I don't ever recall hitting any grass or weeds that were too tall or thick enough to stall it.

Mine is a very well built machine. Looks like the price has gone up a good bit too since I bought mine

 

[Stubee]

I've had two Swishers. First was an old used 'trail mower' which I proceeded to abuse horribly, cutting everything imaginable on my 330A hunting property. I then found a used 44" rough cutter and did the same with that puppy. The ONLY problems I had in about 6 years use were a) two belts breaking b) a short in the wiring of the trail mower that--seemingly inexplicably--caused it to try to start all by itself while I was in camp eating lunch. That one mystified me til I tracked down a wire that had rubbed bare after an old grommet fell out where the wire passed thru the frame.

I beat those things up. Both were very good machines & I sold each for more than I had in it once I got a tractor with rotary cutter.

A friend up there has a big DR tow behind and has had countless wheels fall off, an apparent design flaw.

 

[KennK]

I have the Kunz MR55B Rough Cut Mower. I pull it with a Honda Rincon 680cc ATV, which has PLENTY of power to pull the Kunz mower (the mower's big wheels roll easily on gravel - I block a wheel to make sure it doesn't start rolling unexpectedly - for safety). Actually, the very first time I used it I hadn't move the ATV to the property yet and pulled it using my Chevy Tahoe - that must have been quite a sight. I couldn't see it in the rear view mirrors so my kids were in the back telling if I was too far right or left. I have several acres of unused pastures that eventually will beome horse pasture (in a different state - when I retire - which is why I can't use my JD 3320 to mow). Since I bought the property in 2009 and subsequently bought the Kunz mower I've used it to mow the pastures a several times per year to prevent growth of trees and brush. Sometimes the field is 3+ feet tall. The mower is a beast - built more like heavy agricultural equipment sold at a tractor supplier than backyard equipment sold at a big box store.

Kunz helped me select the model. Originally I planned to buy the Kohler engine, but Kunz recommended the Briggs & Stratton engine. They said that the Kohler was intended for very heavy commercial use and that the B&S engine would do me very well. Indeed they were correct. It has starts well and has plenty of power. I have no problems with post-winter startup too (I religiously use fresh Stabilize gas - keeping it less than 1 year old). The Kunz 23 hp B&S INTEK engine is VERY similar to the 20 hp B&S engine in my John Deere 125 riding mower (which is also stunningly reliable). One more small thing - the Kunz mower has a fairly large 3+ gallon fuel tank which I appreciate. There is nothing worse than having to stop in the middle of mowing to add fuel. Oh, and for changing oil the engine has a simple hose that drops down for draining - makes it real easy to do.

I actually picked up the mower from where Kunz manufactures the mowers and they gave me a tour of their facility. Its a typical small business that is family run. They take it seriously and are very proud of their product. They specifically told me that their mowers are designed for steep ground - they use a higher end battery that can better tolerate extreme angles and bouncing.

I was a little worried at first that the mower blades were manually engaged (my tractors are all electrically engaged) and that there is no on-atv control, but this has been a non-issue. I engage the blades at lower RPM and it seems smooth. I simply engage the blades, climb on the ATV, mow, hop off the ATV, disengage the blades, and lower the RPM to give the engine time to cool down. Its really pretty simple and straight forward.

The other post that mentions turning space and backing up ... I have backed mine up with the ATV - it works but the hitch connection is clunky (built to withstand tilting) and I have to do it slowly. It turns as sharp as I can turn the ATV - it can pivot completely in place when hand moved, so the ATV is really the limiting factor for me. Still the mower is big. Also, as I mow near my pole barn I have to be real careful not to it the building - its not nearly as easy to be accurate as with the belly mower on my SCUT.

I did have one odd thing happen a few years back. I was mowing with the mower off to one side (it can be set for right, left, or behind the ATV) to better cut raspberries and somehow a vine or something apparently caught just right on the oil dipstick to twist it, pull it out, and drop it on the top of the mower deck. There was no damage but some oil splashed on the top of the mower and deck. I was kind of surprised so I just cooled it down and cleaned off the oil with paper towels. In the end there wasn't even enough oil loss to notice with the dipstick. I was pulling it through brush and tree limbs that I wouldn't be able to walk through - I was kind of busting through them (maybe lucky I didn't bend the dipstick tube!!), so I wasn't surprised and it hasn't happened again, so I don't worry about it.

If you have any specific questions just ask. Happy to answer them if I can. Don't hesitate to call Kunz if you have questions for them. They were happy to talk to me when I called them.