BX2200 Mower and Blower

[Anonymous Poster]

Tons of good info on this site! I am in the process of buying a BX2200. I will be using it mainly for keeping 4-5 acres cut to 6 inchs high or so (no need for golf course cut here) and snowblowing a 350 driveway.
I live in Vermont and get lots of snow, and my driveway is steep in a couple of spots.

I am not sure what to buy.....a front blower or rear, a mid mount mower or rear. I will also have an FEL which I would need to remove if I go with the front blower, but that doesnt bother me so much if the front blower is compatable, and I only have to change it twice a year (spring and fall). Any thoughts on a front blower versus rear?

I feel that a rear mower may do the trick if I can use it for light bush hogging (grass and weeds only....no small trees) as well as mowing. Only thing is the mid mount is 60", and I understand the rear mounts for the BX are 48".

Any thoughts? Thanks !!!!!!! If I can answer these two questions I will be able to buy!

Pat

 

[r0GuE]

Get the front blower. That's a long way to have to back up. The blower has a quick attach that comes off easy if you find that as few times in the winter you need the loader.

Rogue

 

[RPM]

Pat,

With regard to the mower - the mid mount on the BX is built like a tank. I continue to be amazed that it's construction is heavier than any of the 'brush-hogs' I've seen available for the tractor. e.g it has a 9 gauge deck vs the 12 gauge deck that seems to be standard on the small brush-hogs. The mid-mount does NOT have a stump-jumper though. Depends on how rough your property is - if the bulk of it is rough (rose-bushes, old stumps, rocks on the surface etc.) then you may be better off with the brush-hog. Just examine the specs carefully and compare with the mid-mount before you buy.

With regard to the snow-blower - this seems to be age related (I'll take some heat for that one). Honestly though - if you don't mind backing up to the job then the rear-PTO models are cheaper (you also have more of a choice of manufacturer, better chance of resale / use on another tractor in future). Just remember on the steep parts of your drive to keep the heaviest part of the tractor downhill from you.

If you live at the bottom of a steep hill (and keep your tractor there) - you may be better off with a rear-PTO mounted snow-blower. You would not be safe trying to blow snow and try to to drive uphill. Think about what would happen if you hit a nice chunk of ice on the hill while driving up it with a front mounted blower ...

Patrick

 

[woodstock]

Forget the rear mount blower.
If you don't beleive me just try backing your car the length of your driveway, first out then back and then out again.
Now thry to imagine this when it's blow snow and -10.

With the front mount you'll get the job done in half the time and without a sore neck or kinked back from the freezing bouncing workout.
The only good thing about a rear mount blower is it is cheaper.
I try not to make important purchasing decisions based on something being cheaper.

Besides that the tractor will be worth more with the Kubota front mount.

One other thing you can probably even gets the wife and kids to operate the front mount.

If your wife is like mine, she couldn't back up to save her life.

Winnipeg, Manitoba

2001 BX2200 (20 hrs) All Kubota FEL,Tiller, box blade, blower w/elec shute, 60 mid mt deck, Ag tires.
Grey market B7000 w/Tiller (120 hrs)

 

[foz]

Go with the front blower & mid mount mower, I use my BX for commercial mowing & snow removal. Front blower went through 20" of wet snow in a steep uphill drive last March without any trouble at all. A far as the 60" mid mower, i have used mine to cut a 3/4 - 1 acre field from 3 feet down to 6" high, slow going but worked very well. Just keep in mind that at 6" tall, the gauge wheels don't touch, you would be mowing with the deck in the lifted position.

 

[PatnJ]

Thanks for the advice so far. I am convinced that a front mount snowblower is the way to go for me. I understand their is a special valve that I will need for the FEL so the blower will be compatible, but the dealer will figure that out.

I am leaning towards the rear mounted 3pt cutter rather than the midmount mower. I think that will solve the issue of one implement for mowing and brush hogging the grass and field. However, I hear conflicting opinions on the size of the implement.

Some dealers tell me that a 4 foot is max for the BX2200, others seem to think that a 5' is OK, given I dont have any steep terrain (which I dont) and I have a FEL for even weight distribution (which I will). Any thoughts on the cutter?

Thanks again !

Pat

 

[woodstock]

Foz,
I'm sure you got mixed up there.
The guage wheels as you cakk them are not suppose to touch the ground. This is a common misconception with a floating deck these wheels are only suppose to touch when the tractor wheels fall in a hallow the deck wheels prevent scalping.
With a floating deck you use the height adjustment knob to set the cutting height and you set the deck wheels to float above the turf. This allows quick mowing with tight turns and now plowing furrows with the deck wheels. This is one of the big advantages of the floating deck on the BX
BX rules.
Any moment the BX High Priest should appear.

Winnipeg, Manitoba

2001 BX2200 (20 hrs) All Kubota FEL,Tiller, box blade, blower w/elec shute, 60 mid mt deck, Ag tires.
Grey market B7000 w/Tiller (120 hrs)

 

[glennmac]

Using a rear mount mower on a BX would negate one of the BX's biggest attributes: super maneuverability.

Furthermore, a rear mount finish mower is not going to be any better or worse at what you are calling light brush hogging than a mid mount finish mower. The mowers are constructed exactly the same. If what you are trying to hog is too high or too hard for a midmount mower, it will be too high or too hard for a rear mower. In either case, the answer is a separate rotary (brush) mower.

I dont have a snowblower. I keep the fel on and use a backblade. Most of the time I drive backwards. It's not bad at all. One of the advantages of a rear blower would be that you could keep your fel on as an additional way to move and stack the snow.

If you have loose gravel, a blower may spray the gravel all over the neighborhood. Not a problem if your driveway is paved.

 

[PatnJ]

It seems that a lot of you think the midmount mower is the way to go. It appears that Foz and others have used the midmount to cut down high grass. I was thinking that I needed a rotary cutter for that purpose , hence the thought that a 3pt rotary cutter is the way to go rather than the midmount (my apologies, I think I was not very clear on my prior posts when discussing the "rear mower". I was thinking rotary cutter not finishing mower).

Any thoughts though on the 4' vs 5' question for rotary cutters (brush hogs) for the BX2200?

Pat


<P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1>Edited by PatnJ on 07/30/01 09:29 PM (server time).</FONT></P>

 

[woodstock]

Glenn,
Loose gravel driveway is no problem with a blower.
The first few light snow falls you I just pack the suff down
The blower has guide shoes that you set up so the blade to just off the ground.
After two or three snowfalls its like blowing a paved drive way.
Of course if you gravel drive is rutted it should be graded prior to snow flying.

Winnipeg, Manitoba

2001 BX2200 (20 hrs) All Kubota FEL,Tiller, box blade, blower w/elec shute, 60 mid mt deck, Ag tires.
Grey market B7000 w/Tiller (120 hrs)