John Deere MX15 vs. Woods BW180 (15' Batwing) Opinions needed

Davidsan · Jun 16, 2012

Hello,
In the market for a 15' cutter. Have narrowed it down to the cutters above. Anyone have any opinions regarding which way I should be going?

The JD looks to be a little heavier built. The MX has no rear spring suspension on the axle which is a negative to me. The Woods has 1 spring on the end of the cylinder. Not sure that should be deal breaker on the JD though. The woods only has 1 leveling rod while the JD has 2 leveling rods.

I like how the JD has a smooth deck underside while the Woods has several channels and beams underneath. Looks like that could obstruct and collect clippings, debris, etc.

The usage will be mowing thick grass but no brush or anything. Hills and several ditches. Total of about 150 acres a year.

Thanks!

Zebrafive · Jun 17, 2012

Why no Bush Hogs in the choices?
I like Woods' blade mounting system, much easier to change than a nut torqued 450lb-ft.
I've heard paint does not hold up well on Woods.
How do the gear boxes compare? Might not matter for only grass.
For just grass cutting I think cost might be the determing factor, both initial purchase then replacement parts

Davidsan · Jun 17, 2012

Zebrafive said:
Why no Bush Hogs in the choices?
I like Woods' blade mounting system, much easier to change than a nut torqued 450lb-ft.
I've heard paint does not hold up well on Woods.
How do the gear boxes compare? Might not matter for only grass.
For just grass cutting I think cost might be the determing factor, both initial purchase then replacement parts

Well, although Bush Hogs are great cutters the BH 2515 was considerable more expensive than the Woods and JD we were looking at. The Woods has a 2.5" cut capacity vs. 2" for the BH. The gearboxes on the wings of the BH were rated 10 less HP (110 vs 120). The BH only comes standard with 4 laminate tires while the Woods and JD we are looking at both come with 6 of the 16PR airplane type tires. Since I may be roading the cutter some, that's important. The deck height of the Woods is 13" vs. 9" for the BH. The JD is 11". The higher the deck height, the more room for grass and air flow under the deck which is nice when you are cutting waist high growth. Of course the BH did have some advantages too.

The JD and Woods cutters are same price. However, replacement parts for the Woods will likely be less expensive than JD in the long run.

Am really leaning towards the Woods. We have a 8' Woods cutter and we really like it. Paint is same as the day we bought it so far. It's only about 4 years old though and it stays in the shed when not in use...

Mrfarmertrees · Jun 17, 2012

A couple of my friends have Woods mowers and have had problems with the gear boxes. There have been several threads about the quality differences of the batwing mowers you might want to read. Of course any equipment can and probably will breakdown at some point. I have a BH 2615 that I bought used 10 years ago, haven't had any problems besides normal maintenance, and it goes over some tough terrain. I'm mowing close to 200 acres a month. I learned to get heavier equipment so you don't have as many breakdowns. I would rather pay up front than have down time later.

Batwing mowers aren't cheap any way you look at it. Good luck with your decision.

millstreaminn · Jun 19, 2012

I have a Woods BW 180HD that I bought new last summer. Maybe 40 hours total run time on it now. No real complaints at all with it. It is a heavy duty cutter. A few observations... The PTO shaft is HEAVY. Darn near need 2 people to hook it up. Keep it well greased or you will cuss up a storm trying to hold it up and get it slid on to your tractor PTO. I run it with a Kubota 8540 and an International 966. The 85 HP Kubota really only has enough power to mow pasture. If you get into unmowed hay fields, even my 100 HP 966 could be bigger. The way my mower came plumbed, you need 3 remotes for the mower. One for each wing and one for main lift. You could easily use it on a tractor with only 2 remotes by plumbing the 2 wings together. Just my 2 cents, but I am happy with the Woods.