Brush Hog mods

scootr · Jul 12, 2023

Lineman North Florida said:
Yeah, couldn't say for sure about the price, what I can say is most of the things I see like the Italian made 3 point hitch fertilize spreaders and finish mowers are very competitively priced and from what I have seen are of pretty good quality.

Please post some links to these mowers for sale in the USA

Lineman North Florida · Jul 12, 2023

scootr said:
Please post some links to these mowers for sale in the USA

I don't even know how to post a link, but if you will google Caroni finish mower or Caroni flail mower you will find them in the USA for sale, Agri-Supply being one place that I have seen them at when I went to one of their stores in person , as well as the 3 point hitch fertilizer spreaders I mentioned earlier.

scootr · Jul 12, 2023

I tried. I only found blade mowers under that name.

Lineman North Florida · Jul 12, 2023

scootr said:
I tried. I only found blade mowers under that name.

Yeah, I never said that they advertised chain mowers only that they imported a lot of Italian equipment into this country and probably with a request you should be able to get one if you really wanted one. So when you google you don't see the Caroni flail mowers? Only the finish mowers?

2manyrocks · Jul 12, 2023

I haven't seen any brush mowers in the USA like the ones ptsg posted in posts 4 and 5. Even the brush cutters for skid steers in the USA seem to mostly rely on swinging blade designs with only a very few using disc mulching head assemblies and none using chain as cutters from the factory that I know of.

Still, the idea of modifying a brush cutter blade to put a chain at the end is a bit terrifying to me both for the forces exerted on the chain and for how the chain is secured to the cutter blade, as modified.

D&D · Jul 18, 2023

scootr said:
Things I'm still wanting to do to it. Add skid plates 2x2 angle to the skirts.
Add chain to the front opening. Can anybody recommend a size and spacing for the chain? Replace broken grease fittings and grease. After testing - if warranted... paint
PICS TOMORROW

it’s been 6+ days. What’s the holdup?

scootr · Jul 18, 2023

D&D said:
it’s been 6+ days. What’s the holdup?

Lol. Life and work are getting in the way.
Also gathering materials to improve on the deck. Extending the front edge 4" so the blades don't stick out past the front of the deck anymore and adding a chain guard. I'd like to make this experimental mower conversion as safe as I can. Will post progress when it is made.
Went from making my own chain guard to buying a manufactured 5 ft curtain. Meanwhile we can extend and patch the deck so it completely covers the blades...something this 1950s beast never did

Thanks for asking

2manyrocks · Jul 18, 2023

Need robotic controls

scootr · Jul 18, 2023

2manyrocks said:
Need robotic controls

Remote controls, scatter blanket, underground bunker - lol
And a helmet

Lineman North Florida · Jul 18, 2023

I was in a place today that would have been a good test for it, to see if it could work circles around a skidsteer

I posted a couple of pictures in the other thread, good luck and keep us posted.

ptsg · Jul 19, 2023

Lineman North Florida said:
I was in a place today that would have been a good test for it, to see if it could work circles around a skidsteer I posted a couple of pictures in the other thread, good luck and keep us posted.

It would.

That right there is the perfect place for these cutters. A simple 75HP tractor and a medium duty cutter would've taken care of it easily.

rdewey · Jul 20, 2023

scootr said:
In the skid steer mowing thread the topic of rotary chain mowers came up.
I got to looking around and found a couple of videos from guys who had cut their blades back and added chains.
Found an old model 12 BH 5 ft and went at this mod. Nothing pictured here is pretty. We just wanted to experiment with the chains or cables.
We mow rocks at times and it plays heck with the steel blades.
This picture here what we saw in our initial (fact or fiction) search

The company I work for has done safety testing on using chains in place of blades on rotary cutters. There is an impact test ASABE S483
that a rotary cutter blade must pass. The chains explode in many small pieces (bullets) when you hit the 2" diameter stake. Using chains on a rotary cutter is dangerous, use caution.

ptsg · Jul 20, 2023

rdewey said:
The company I work for has done safety testing on using chains in place of blades on rotary cutters. There is an impact test ASABE S483
that a rotary cutter blade must pass. The chains explode in many small pieces (bullets) when you hit the 2" diameter stake. Using chains on a rotary cutter is dangerous, use caution.

I find that a little bit hard to believe considering the amount of rocks, logs, pieces of steel, etc I've hit with mine.

I'm interested to hear what kind of chain you tested with. I've heard more cases of broken blades (even though not many people use them here) than I've heard of chains broken and throw stuff everywhere. I've even heard cases and seen pictures where the broken blade landed right on the inside sidewall of the tire.

People over here have been using chains for over 40 years. Yes, chains can break, usually the first link that sees all the beating will wear out thin and then crack one side. Eventually crack the other side. Both halves will land where it breaks. Not the entire chain breaks and definitely won't throw small pieces like bullets.

Some folks seem to think these cutters are some kind of redneck mod. They're not. They meet all the safety standards they need to meet. They're for sure not any more dangerous than a regular brush cutter is.

scootr · Jul 20, 2023

I wonder what grade chain they used in their experiments too.

ArlyA · Jul 20, 2023

No matter the grade, I'd guess the folks running chains are not replacing them when they wear.....

John0829 · Jul 20, 2023

Same thing can be said for blades, how many think to inspect blades after encountering something significant or just check them annually for normal wear? Of the people I know who own a rotary cutter, it's hook it up and go, only looking under it if something has tangled up like fence wire.

IMHO blades or chains are both dangerous if maintenance and simple inspections are part of it.

ptsg · Jul 20, 2023

Here is a picture of mine back in 2019. Around 200-ish hours on this set of chain. I run mine very close to the ground, so it tends to dig a lot and wear out faster. I would say 400 to 500 hours per set of chains is a good time frame, but depends on a lot things.

You can see how thin the chain gets on the end that see all the work. You can also see the cracked link I keep talking about. This how these chains wear out. The link gets so thin that eventually it breaks. People will often run them till they get 1 to 2 links shorter before they get a new set, basically reducing the cutting width till it's a bit too much.

I still haven't bought a new set, even though it's less than €30.

LouNY · Jul 20, 2023

Well here is a company with a few Canadian dealers, some very nice looking pieces of equipment;
This first one is my favorite in a quick look,

https://www.youtube.com/@TokvamAS

LouNY · Jul 20, 2023

And another,

charlessenf · Jul 20, 2023

ptsg said:
What size of chain did you end up going with? Looks small in that mower. Cables won't work very well because they don't really have much weight at all.

For anyone interested, here is one of these cutters working:

Also, how one of these mowers look underneath and on the top:

View attachment 809784 View attachment 809785

Those little chains 'round the edges are 'new to me' and an interesting feature. I also noticed the lack of a wheel on the back. I'd assumed 'they all had one.' Live and learn. Thanks for sharing the video