Finish Mowers/Flail Mowers/???

[Anonymous Poster]

I am new at this tractor business and although I have a vague idea what "finish mowers" are and what they do I am not sure of the details or if I could use one or not.
I have about 2 1/2 to 4 acres that has or will have lawn type grass, basicly flat with a small "slope", quite a few trees in addition to 2 buildings.
I have been using a 19.5/42" riding lawn mower, 3-4 hr job. I recently bought a Mahindra 5500 w/ a 6' cutter (bush hog) and it seems to do a pretty good job (about 1 hr). I plan to use the riding lawn mower to finish up around the trees, etc. If my wife gets her way (and they generally do) I'll probably have a couple of horse "turn outs" that will have to be kept neat. If the horses don't do it guess who'll get to?
What are the Pros/Cons. What type and size finish mower would suit my needs? What are common brands? What do costs run: new? used? Any pitfalls to be aware of?
Thanks for all the input I know you'll give. As my wife says "I need all the help I can get".
4570Forever
Houston

 

[gerard]

I would consider the pastures and "finish" grass separately. Your bushhog will work fine for the pastures since you don't want them mowed too low anyway - the horses will take care of most of it anyway - you'll cut once in awhile just to even things out and hit the weed patches the horses won't eat. The rest can be done with a rear mount finish or a flail. Flail will cost more and is not necessary for a home. (A flail has a horizontal shaft that has maybe 50-75 small blades that dangle from a loop welded to the shaft. These are what actually cut the grass. Favored by municipalities that cut maedians etc cause if they hit a bottle, can etc they don't throw it like rotary mowers). For a rear mount finish mower new you're looking at $1000-1500 for a 60 inch. I have 10 acres, about 4 are pasture, 2 are finish grass and the rest is field. I use the bushhog for everything but an acre or so of finish grass right around the house. For that I have a 42 inch rider.

 

[Anonymous Poster]

gerard - thanks for the reply it certainly helped. I've seen some mowers that appear to be the bush hog type but have an adjustable wheel on each "corner". Is this a type of finish mower?
You are exactly right about "experience".
Thanks again.
4570 Forever