Berta Flail Mower stops running in high thick grass

[anastasie]

Hello everybody!

I have a problem with my Berta Shark 85 flail mower (the 32 inch one) powered by a Grillo G110D with 13HP Honda engine. Lately it rained alot (almost daily for 2 months) and the grass and weeds reached for the sky...

I noticed that i have on my property areas with thick grass, its almost strong as string... it twines/twists (i don't know the English word for this) on the cylinder that has the blades and it stops the rotary movement... including the tractor wheels.

I checked the rubber pulleys, greased the machine... but still this issue.

Do you have any recommendations?

Help a pour soul fighting the weeds

Thanks!

 

[Ford850]

Does it stall the engine, or does the engine continue to run while the mower and wheels stop turning? If mower and wheels stop while engine continues it sounds like your clutch might be slipping and maybe the cable can be adjusted.

 

[WesKootenay]

Our Berta 26" also does not like fresh grass over a meter tall I have to use the lowest gear and proceed VERY slowly.
I am guessing that you have already checked the flail blades to make sure they are sharp?

 

[leonz]

Hello everybody!

I have a problem with my Berta Shark 85 flail mower (the 32 inch one) powered by a Grillo G110D with 13HP Honda engine. Lately it rained alot (almost daily for 2 months) and the grass and weeds reached for the sky...

I noticed that i have on my property areas with thick grass, its almost strong as string... it twines/twists (i don't know the English word for this) on the cylinder that has the blades and it stops the rotary movement... including the tractor wheels.

I checked the rubber pulleys, greased the machine... but still this issue.

Do you have any recommendations?

Help a poor soul fighting the weeds

Thanks!

==========================================================================================================

Hello and good morning Anastasie,


AH the old grass wrapping around the flail mower rotor strikes again! NO WORRIES we can help you.

The first thing you need to do is raise the cutting height by lowering the roller to raise the mowing height and make a full mowing circuit of the sod you need to mow as I am sure your clutch is slipping. By slowing down and raising the cutting height by lowering the roller to increase the height of the side slicer knives above the sod.
If you mow in a spiral from the center if the area is easy to maneuver in you can overlap slightly and recut the material a bit until you have it all knocked down and then you can lower the cutting height one hole to mow again.
You will save fuel too.



OK, Now to review

1. check to make sure the tires are fully inflated.

2. lower the cutting height adjustment roller to its lowest mounting position-this raises the total mowing height.

3. if possible mow in spiral pattern from the center of the plot until the job is done as this will save you fuel and you will not have to spend valuable time backing up and
turning around to mow linearly- don't worry your lawn will be fine after you are finished as the clippings will dissolve into the sod quickly when you are done mowing and
recutting the clippings.

4. after the first pass raise the roller one position and repeat the mowing process in spiral pattern once more to recut the clippings.

5. after you are finished mowing you will need to lower the cutting height one position again by raising the rear roller one position to recut the clippings and mow again.


6. repeat 4, 5 and 6 until you have knocked down the grass to the point where you have your lowest desired cutting height and hopefully the rain will stop for a while to dry out the clippings and let them dissolve into the sod.

NO worries Anastasie, you are a resident member of the flail mower nations and we are here to help you.

 

[Industrial Toys]

No mower except a sickle ever likes lush tall grass. When I cut fields with my flail, I waited for the grass to dry out in the fall, and cut the fields then. Or, I would have had to cut it bi-weekly at worst and weekly at best, to stay on top of it, which wasn't an option.

Few mowers work well when you raise them too high.

 

[anastasie]

Hi Guys and thank you very much for your help!!!

Yes, the wheels & rotor stop, but the engine goes... and sometimes there is a high pitch sound... i will tighten the cable. And will do the rest of the things you have suggested!

Thank you dear citizens of flail mowing nation!

God bless you!!!

 

[CodeMonkey]

Hi Guys and thank you very much for your help!!!

Yes, the wheels & rotor stop, but the engine goes... and sometimes there is a high pitch sound... i will tighten the cable. And will do the rest of the things you have suggested!

Thank you dear citizens of flail mowing nation!

God bless you!!!

I have very tall grass - some of it taller than I am (6'6").



I also have small trees and a lot of brush.

My Berta handles it all, but I don't mow if it is obviously wet. I do mow in first gear - I am old and I have a bad back, so I can't keep up with the mower in the rough terrain in second gear.

Now the previous property owners put down some grown cover cloth and plastic and other crap in a few places and occasionally I hit some and it tangles up the mower and stops it. Which is a huge hassle as I then have to spend an hour or two pulling it out of the flail mower. Sometimes I hit other crap.



When that happens, the flail mower usually stops, slows down the engine and the belt on the mower may squeal - which means it is slipping. Sometimes it kills the engine. I usually am able to stop it right then - don't want to burn up that belt.

 

[CodeMonkey]

Oh, and yes, I lowered the roller down as far as possible to get the cut height up - with my ground I was cutting way too short much of the time due to how rough the ground is.

I also removed the baffle so the mower makes a rougher cut and doesn't hold the material in the mower longer - this uses less power, but doesn't cut up the material as fine.

 

[anastasie]

Hi guys,

Did all the you said and the machine is working smooth and cutting really high grass (about 2 meters tall) and nasty thistles... Now the weather is becoming really hot, so i hope i wont have to mow again pretty soon!

 

[anastasie]

Another question: I have the Grillo with 5.12 wheels, should i lower the main shaft of the Berta flail mower?