Does this mower look to be setup properly?

[garren]

I know I just bugged you guys about the tiller but now I have my first mowing job and had to mount the mower for the first time. It seems to work fine but I wanted you guys to look at the pic and make sure it looked adjusted properly.
I dont want to screw anything up. All of the tractors Ive borrowed in the past were already setup. The first pic is the mower all the way down and second pic is all the way up.

Is there any reason to adjust the rear wheel?
Do I mow with lower arms in float mode? and the mower skids draggin'?

 

[wushaw]

Keep the leading edge of the mower off the ground an inch or so to keep from tearing up the ground. Adjust the tail wheel so the rear of the mower is off the ground but higher than the leading edge a little.

 

[thcri]

Looks ok to me as long as your not digging in the front.


murph

 

[RoyJackson]

You don't want the side skirts digging in.

I suggest you lengthen the toplink until the tail wheel touches the ground. If your Kubota has position control, or a rockshaft adjustable stop, set it when the front of the cutter is about an inch lower then the rear (just eyeball this)

 

[garren]

You guys are quick! Thanks again for the help. My side skirts were digging in when I tested the mower on my pasture so I will set the position control stop so that the the front of the mower stays an inch off of the ground.

 

[George2615]

Usually most rotary mowers I've seen have a swivel bracket for a top link connector. Mine does (attached pic). This allows for movement of the top link while driving on varying terrain. Your setup is a solid 3PT connection with no give to it. When the tractor wheels and the rotary mower wheel are not on the same level ground, the top link needs to be able to move, otherwise it or something else will bend or break.

 

[garren]

Usually most rotary mowers I've seen have a swivel bracket for a top link connector. Mine does (attached pic). This allows for movement of the top link while driving on varying terrain. Your setup is a solid 3PT connection with no give to it. When the tractor wheels and the rotary mower wheel are not on the same level ground, the top link needs to be able to move, otherwise it or something else will bend or break.

Could that be why mine has that piece of flat steel and chain that runs on an angle from the top link back to the wheel? I noticed when I was mowing that as I travel over uneven ground the chain tightens or goes slack. Flat steel has some flex also.

 

[diyDave]

Garren's mower looks OK. It has a swivel, but its the chain at the back of the front to back brace. When the tail wheel hits something, the chain allows the whole machine to pivot up on the lower pins, thus allowing constant traction, and less of a chance of high centering the rig.

 

[George2615]

You are correct. Mine has solid bars going from the 3 PT. bracket to the back of the deck hence the need for my swivel bracket. I looked too quick at your pic and thought I saw a solid bar and never saw the chain before I replied. Of course by the time I replied 3 others beat me to it.

 

[thingy]

Well,seems a bit high don't it,,,the rear wheel has got to be on ground,,course you knowed that I bet,,,anyways,,think about using a length of chain instead of top link,,allows mower to float much better,,the only reason you need top link is to pick it up,,think about that,,they sell pull behind hogs,[no top link,won't raise],,so think about it after you use it a little,,level is alright,,,,thingy

 

[flusher]

I know I just bugged you guys about the tiller but now I have my first mowing job and had to mount the mower for the first time. It seems to work fine but I wanted you guys to look at the pic and make sure it looked adjusted properly.
I dont want to screw anything up. All of the tractors Ive borrowed in the past were already setup. The first pic is the mower all the way down and second pic is all the way up.

Is there any reason to adjust the rear wheel?
Do I mow with lower arms in float mode? and the mower skids draggin'?

View attachment 75028

View attachment 75029

I have a Kubota B7510HST and a 4-ft King Kutter brush hog.
I usually set it up with the rear of the mower about 2" higher than the front. This setup cuts the weeds and blows them right out the rear.

If I want to mulch the clippings I reverse the setup and raise the front of the mower 2" higher than the rear.

Since my 3pt bleeds down slowly, I usually set the mower to the desired height above ground and then close the hydraulics shut off valve to keep the 3pt at constant height. I don't run in 3pt float mode.

 

[thingy]

Finally saw first pic,,you're dragging the ground ain't you,,bring front end up to about 4-6 inches with three point,,,adjust wheel as needed,[probably ain't],,think about chain idea I gave you,,thingy

 

[garren]

Thanks everyone. I have 2.5 acres to mow for a real estate company today so I'll play around with it. When I get some free time I'll let you know how this and the tiller works. If I remember I will take some action pics and post them in the owner/operator forum. I also have some pics of the first landscape job I used the backhoe on.

 

[PSDStu]

Finally saw first pic,,you're dragging the ground ain't you,,bring front end up to about 4-6 inches with three point,,,adjust wheel as needed,[probably ain't],,think about chain idea I gave you,,thingy

Thingy,

You, or anyone else got a picture of how you setup your chain instead of using the toplink?

Stu

 

[greg_g]

I wanted you guys to look at the pic and make sure it looked adjusted properly.

Thingy might have looked at your photos, but I don't believe he saw that you already have a chain in the configuration. Two chains in the same line will just screw things up.

1. With the tractor not running, lower the lift control lever all the way
2. Find a bolt hole in the tail wheel height adjustment that sets the rear of the mower about 1" to 2" higher than you actually want to mow. Set it.
3. Move forward to the lower lift arms on the tractor. Adjust the vertical sidelinks to a height that puts the front of the mower about 1" to 2" higher than you just set the rear. That will be your cutting height. The higher rear will just make it easier for the clippings to escape.
4. Right now the mower's A-frame is pointed towards the tractor. Lengthen the adjustable toplink to where it is pointing away from the tractor. Maybe 3" or 4" aft of vertical. That will permit the mower to ride the contours, instead of lifting the tail wheel when your front tractor tires drop lower than the rears. Lengthening the toplink will also shorten the PTO extension proportionately.
5. When you're done mowing, shorten the adjustable toplink again so the deck will be more level for transport.

Just a couple of observations: your PTO shaft looks like it was cut too short. But rather than go to the expense of replacing it, you can get a 4" extender for about $20. I think you might also benefit from a slightly longer adjustable toplink.

//greg//

 

[thcri]

You guys all have good eyes. I can not see that that back wheel in the first pic is off the ground. But you all are right that wheel does have to be on the ground. I like the swivel in the upper arm the best.

murph

 

[thingy]

Yeah,gregs right,that thing does have a chain kinda,,[not the top link],but that might do the same thing? Don't know,,,
Chain instead of top link setup,,simple,,just get a length of pretty heavy chain and a couple of connectors of some sort,hook it where top link hooks,,set mower up like you would for cutting,[three point,tailwheel],,than adjust the length of chain so's there is slack in it but not much,,[you have to just experiment],,if you get it right,you'll still be able to pick it up although not alot,,but it lets the rear of mower go up and down with conture of ground alot better than the top link and that swivel thing,,,course the hog this guys got,,may have this sort of flex available already,,
You don't even need top link to cut with,try it,,just take top link off and mow a little ,,works real good,,course,you can't pick it up,,and under right conditions,rear could go down to far and drive line come apart,,so when you try this with out any kind of top link or chain,,don't go on real hilly rough ground,,,thingy

 

[EddieWalker]

Looks good to me. I'd rather see some pictures of how it cuts before deciding if it's set up right. Too hard to estimate angles from the picture.

Eddie

 

[garren]

I mowed about 3.5 acres and everything seems to work great with the mower. I adjusted the position control stop to keep the front off the ground about an inch and left the tail wheel alone since it looked to be adjusted properly. I had to use Gregs suggestion and lengthen the top link when I got ready to mow to keep the tail wheel on the ground when mowing the rough stuff.