John Deere 2440 too small?

storytyme · Jan 19, 2017

Hello everyone. I recently purchased a used flail shredder/mower. It did not have a manual, but the owner said my tractor should be fine to handle it. Well I use a JD 2440 with a HP rated at 60. I found a manual online for the shredder and it says minimum HP required is 65. So am I out of luck? Just go slower? Not sure what to do and I don't want to destroy the tractor....its a good one. Help please and thank you!

CADplans · Jan 20, 2017

My IH 584 is pretty much identical to a JD 2440,,,
I can power the JD 390 through pretty much anything,,,

How wide is the flail??

jeff9366 · Jan 20, 2017

You will be fine.

When you begin to have difficulty cutting tall grass, take time to sharpen the blades to reduce load on tractor PTO.

storytyme · Jan 20, 2017

CADplans said:
My IH 584 is pretty much identical to a JD 2440,,,
I can power the JD 390 through pretty much anything,,,

How wide is the flail??

The shredder is 8 foot. I will be chopping/shredding brush in my orchard.

joeu235 · Jan 20, 2017

The tractor might start to overheat in the middle of the summer, at least here in Texas. My dad pulled his round baler that the manual states 85 HP minimum with a 65 HP tractor a couple times in a pinch. It was no big deal as long as he kept an eye on the temp gauge. It's probably actually good for the tractor every once in a while to work the snot out of it. Get all the carbon build up out of the engine.

I say don't worry about it.

Fallon · Jan 20, 2017

I ran a 7' old Ford 917 flail behind my L3200hst (25hp PTO) & it ran fine. Had to go a bit slower than with my 5' rotary but covered more ground while being easier on me & the machine. I'm a fan of going wide & going slow.