Finish mower size

[dclymer]

I have a NewHolland tc21 and would like to go to a larger finish mower, I now have a 50 inch rear mower and would like to go as big as can . Any advice ?
Dee

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Dee,
I have a TC18 and I use a 60'' rear finish mower with no problems at all. As long as you are going to use a finish mower and not a rotary cutter, you should be able to go a little bigger then my 60''. You should check New Holland's web page to see what they reccomend.
-Dave

 

[Cdash]

I run a 60" on my JD 4100 (~20 pto hp), with no problems. It takes some real forgotten lawn conditions to make it even grunt. I wouldn't be suprised if it would run a 72".

I would guess that you'd be fine with a 60", but I'd borrow or test a 72" before buying.

 

[chim]

I have a Ford 1210 (16HP) and a Kubota B7500 (21HP), and both are equipped with 60" RFM's. The Ford has a Caroni, and the Kubota has a Landpride, which is a good bit heavier. The Ford would be a bit light for the Landpride - tried it and didn't like it. The mowing was OK, but handling was like hitching a 30 travel trailer to an S10 Blazer................chim

 

[DVerbarg]

I would think your 21hp unit would be fine to power a 72" finish mower for typical lawn mowing. When I bought my Douglas 72" finish mower 15 years ago there was a strange sentence in the owner's manual that stated the warranty would be void if used with a tractor with greater than 25 PTO hp. Obviously the mfg thought that 25 PTO hp could damage the unit.

At that point in time the mower was being used with a Ford 9N and it handled it just fine. Now the mower is used behind the TC40D which is way too much power, the mower can slow down in grass and the belts slip long before the engine even thinks about grunting. If you keep the blades sharp and you don't try to cut a 1ft tall thick lawn then you should be ok.

 

[hazmat]

Per New Holland Implement Chart max recommended size is 60". I've used 60" Land Pride on my TC18 & the 60" MMM. I think 72 is too big for 21HP.

 

[agcomike]

I wouldn't consider anything under a 60" if you consider the amount of torque the diesel engine has vs a gas it's obvious there will be no trouble pulling it.. a 23hp kohler will pull a 62" mid-mount deck...considering yours has ~19hp I'd hope it would pull that it probaly has a good 7-10LB of torque more..

Just make sure you get a rear discharge to help keep from bogging it down and don't bush-hog with it.. 6-8" max.. or if it bogs it down too much just raise the height a little..

My hinomoto throws a 72" around and I think new holland says you need 29hp .. although it is the only implement i need a lot of frontend weight..#250..

 

[looch]

Do you have anything on the front of your tractor?

My B7500 does wheelies with my 60" mower (~525lbs) raised (I don't raise it unless I must and I'm going real slow in a straight line).

 

[Mosey]

There are 2 things to consider, PTO HP and weight. If you have flat ground and mow often so the grass doesn't get too tall and/or thick, you could probably get by with a 6' mower. But, if the grass gets tall and thick and/or you have to go up any significant hills (15 degrees or more), you'll run out of HP. My 6' rear finish mower weighs about 650 lbs. So, that extra weight and the weight of the tractor, combined with mowing the grass will eat up HP going up a hill. You'll also need a fair amount of weight on the front to keep your front wheels on the ground, even on flat ground. My TC29D, which is close to 1000 lbs heavier than a TC21, doesn't need any weight on flat ground, but I need 65 lbs of weight on the front to be able to keep the front end on the ground if I go up hill. I'd go by the NH book and go with a 5' mower.

 

[djradz]

I'd stop at a 60" mower. I had a 72" on my 25 hp Ford 1720 and occasionally bog it down. If you're cutting every week or two and the grass is being kept relatively short, you might be OK to step up even further, but I'd think that size deck is getting a little large physically for your tractor.

 

[FamilyFarm]

off topic as to the tractor in question - on topic of finish mower size:

Do you think a Kubota L3130 will match up with an 84" rear finish mower for use on mostly level property and grass that is mowed at least every 2 weeks?

Thanks,
Terry

 

[Rick_Taylor]

I just bought a BEFCO H-40 flail mower. It's rated HP is 15-40 so you should be able to power it just fine. Weight is 548 lbs, can you safely lift that? I have been VERY impressed with the cut. I ran test strips on fine grass and the cut was indistinguishable from our commercial ZTR's cut. Today I mowed a field with native grasses and wildflowers (aka weeds) that were 8-10 " tall. The mow was fast and it never even grunted. The ZTR would have clogged up under the deck very early on which is why I didn't buy a rotary finish mower. Our Bush Hog SQ-84 would have left a rather ragged cut. It's tough but just not a finish type mower.

 

[HayDR]

There are 3 different blades available for that flail mower. Two of them do a good job on grass and the other blade is designed for brush. Any flail mower is very safe because all objects are thrown downward toward the ground.

 

[Moon]

<font color="blue"> Do you think a Kubota L3130 will match up with an 84" rear finish mower for use on mostly level property </font>

I would guess that it would do fine. I pull a 72" RFM with my 3010. No problems at all. My property not even close to mostly level. On the steepest hills I have to use low gear to make it up em pulling the RFM. But, on fairly level ground I don't think you'd have a problem. 84" would be more prone to scalping though, for little rolling hills. I have a couple areas I've learned to manuver around a little so as not to scalp.
Moon of Ohio

 

[BrettW]

Can a flail mower cut a yard as well as a finish mower? Does it cost more? thanks, bw

 

[tdenny]

Brett,

Rumor has it that a flail mower can cut equally as well as a finish mower. I'm not convinced but I'm sure it would cut much nicer than any rotary hog or such. Flail mowers are very expensive though.