Flail Mower Let's talk flail mowers

[Weedy Fields]

Thanks all, a dumb question, what are the 2 large "U" shaped brackets on the back top of the mower for?

I've downloaded, printed out and read the manual.

I don't think that this one was used much at all. The cutting height was never adjusted. Also it looked like it was kept well greased. Not a spec of rust on it.

Got a great deal on it.

Oh and the PTO shaft came with it!

 

[whirly]

Thanks all, a dumb question, what are the 2 large "U" shaped brackets on the back top of the mower for?

Maybe it was for the PTO in shipping.

 

[IslandTractor]

Thanks all, a dumb question, what are the 2 large "U" shaped brackets on the back top of the mower for? I've downloaded, printed out and read the manual. I don't think that this one was used much at all. The cutting height was never adjusted. Also it looked like it was kept well greased. Not a spec of rust on it. Got a great deal on it. Oh and the PTO shaft came with it!

I was wondering the same question.

 

[leonz]

Hello Weedy Fields,

The twin yokes are for storing the PTO shaft when you are not mowing with
your new to you flail mower.

In most cases each mounted implement has its own complete shaft
as numerous tractors have a higher or lower PTO stub center line and the
same shaft cannot be used for all implements.

Also with the available adjustable left and right lower links for most of the
sub compact and compact mule market its easier to just leave the complete
shaft on the implement and avoid the issues with having "just one and hope it fits"
for all the implements.

This leaves the operator to remind him or herself that the mower cannot be lifted "too high"
and following this a nasty, nasty,nasty!!!!!!!$$$$$$$$$$ repair bill is to quickly follow for
the damage caused by the PTO shafts compression and the resulting downward pressure on
the gears, stub shaft,intermediate PTO shaft,stub shaft mounting plate,stub shaft seals, bearing sets, etc.

 

[tem00]

Can anyone advise on how a flail handles Spanish moss? I have lots and it often requires removal from my finish mower spindles. I'm hoping it won't get wrapped around the flail rotor and cause imbalance.

 

[IslandTractor]

Can anyone advise on how a flail handles Spanish moss? I have lots and it often requires removal from my finish mower spindles. I'm hoping it won't get wrapped around the flail rotor and cause imbalance.

I run over briar all the time with my flail. Don't know how different that is from Spanish moss but a flail spins at many thousand RPM and chews up pretty much anything I have fed mine short of logs, old car parts and garden hose.

 

[KenB2920]

I run over briar all the time with my flail. Don't know how different that is from Spanish moss but a flail spins at many thousand RPM and chews up pretty much anything I have fed mine short of logs, old car parts and garden hose.

Wow, just wow.

Did you say any mommy daddy words when the hose happened?

I had some nice black nylon debris fence wrap in mine..... That was exciting!!! **** the old tractor off like a light switch.

Did this hose cause you to stall?

 

[hunt4570]

I run over briar all the time with my flail. Don't know how different that is from Spanish moss but a flail spins at many thousand RPM and chews up pretty much anything I have fed mine short of logs, old car parts and garden hose.

Well I always wanted one of those automatic hose reels!

How much damage did that piece of steel do?

 

[IslandTractor]

Well I always wanted one of those automatic hose reels! How much damage did that piece of steel do?

None. Just took about twenty minutes to get it all out. Turned out the field I was reclaiming had been an auto junk yard in the 1930's to 1970.

I didn't find a photo of the firewood I ran over but that jammed up the rotor so belts started smoking. Finally got it out. No damage.

I now carry a three foot pry bar on the tractor to extricate foreign objects. Pry bar fits nicely in the torque tube and is held there by a bungee cord.

 

[Code54]

I run over briar all the time with my flail. Don't know how different that is from Spanish moss but a flail spins at many thousand RPM and chews up pretty much anything I have fed mine short of logs, old car parts and garden hose.

That did a nice job on your field!!

 

[Weedy Fields]

Just be sure to read the manual, ask questions, adjust properly, ask more questions, operate the engine at the speed @ 540 rpm and have spare parts like belts(kevlar) and knives on hand.

The slower you mow the finer the cut, and the sooner the clippings dissolve. Take That ROTARY CUTTERS AND BUSH HOGS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Leonz,
any particular brand or source better for blades and belts?

my mower has knives like this now



They seem on the flexible wimpy side.

I managed to mow about 1 1/2 acres of field this morning. I had the mower set up high, about 5 1/2 for first pass thru. I'm going to lower it and go over it again.

I checked the blades after my first run thru. there are maybe 1/2 dozen blades that are bent out of whack. The field was a over grown farm field. I cleared it of larger trees last summer. The biggest trees were maybe 4-5 inches in dia at the base. There are still stumps sticking up maybe 2 inches. Lots of smaller saplings approx 1/2-1 in dia. The mower did fine on the small stuff. It never hit any of the stumps. But on some of them the roller does "hop" up when it goes over them. I can see the stumps so I slow way down and ease the roller up and over them to avoid any unnecessary jolts.

One other question, how sharp of a turn should I be doing when mowing? Does it matter? It seems that if I cut a turn as sharp as the tractor can do the mower will be swinging/skidding pretty fast to the outside of the turn. Does that make sense?

Thanks for all the help.

 

[jmh1783]

I managed to get bird netting into the auger of my snowblower one winter. I never could get it all out and I wasn't about to take the entire thing apart to do it. Hose looks a lot easier.

 

[Cataclysm]

The idler pulley seems to be out of alignment with the other two. Is this normal? If not, the way to adjust it isn't obvious to me. Thanks for your help.

View attachment 466053

I'm pretty sure that mount should go on the outside of the bearing housing. Move that mount to the outside and I bet you will be back in alignment. I'll check mine tomorrow to make sure.

 

[Cataclysm]

Leonz,

One other question, how sharp of a turn should I be doing when mowing? Does it matter? It seems that if I cut a turn as sharp as the tractor can do the mower will be swinging/skidding pretty fast to the outside of the turn. Does that make sense?

Thanks for all the help.

Swinging/skidding around sharp turns can put a lot of stress on your lift arm ect. I have an 8' flail. I take the weight off the mower with the lift when I turn. How much I raise the lift depends on how sharp I'm turning plus I slow down so I don't whip the mower around and bang it all the way to the outside of the turn.

 

[leonz]

Leonz,
any particular brand or source better for blades and belts?

my mower has knives like this now

View attachment 466756

They seem on the flexible wimpy side.

I managed to mow about 1 1/2 acres of field this morning. I had the mower set up high, about 5 1/2 for first pass thru. I'm going to lower it and go over it again.

I checked the blades after my first run thru. there are maybe 1/2 dozen blades that are bent out of whack. The field was a over grown farm field. I cleared it of larger trees last summer. The biggest trees were maybe 4-5 inches in dia at the base. There are still stumps sticking up maybe 2 inches. Lots of smaller saplings approx 1/2-1 in dia. The mower did fine on the small stuff. It never hit any of the stumps. But on some of them the roller does "hop" up when it goes over them. I can see the stumps so I slow way down and ease the roller up and over them to avoid any unnecessary jolts.

One other question, how sharp of a turn should I be doing when mowing? Does it matter? It seems that if I cut a turn as sharp as the tractor can do the mower will be swinging/skidding pretty fast to the outside of the turn. Does that make sense?

Thanks for all the help.

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Whats happening is your mower is a fine grass mower the side slicers are too thin for the job of brush mowing and you can replace these knives with heavier ones. you need to replace all of them at once if you do this and be sure to have spares.

BUT you can continue to mow with this style of knife and you will have to replace them more often as they will bend more easily and break. the plus is they are not very expensive per knife in the scheme of things.

1. Depending on which side of the continental divide you live on you can and should order catalogs from clean cutter and flail master; actually you need(should have) both catalogs and a replacement knive list from your alamo dealer.

Order these parts catalogs quickly as the grass and brush monsters are going to be very very nasty this year.

Ask the local alamo dealer for a knife list for your flail mower then compare prices for the replacements from all three sources. You will need a heavier side slicer and they are available.

As long as you mow slowly you will have no problems turning(provided you have the mower set up correctly and is level at the top of the gearbox. as long as the skids are above the ground it will not dig in to the sod.

You have to remember at all times that the rear roller is what regulates the flail mowers cutting height" as long as its adjusted correctly.








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I managed to get bird netting into the auger of my snowblower one winter. I never could get it all out and I wasn't about to take the entire thing apart to do it. Hose looks a lot easier.

I'm pretty sure that mount should go on the outside of the bearing housing. Move that mount to the outside and I bet you will be back in alignment. I'll check mine tomorrow to make sure.

Swinging/skidding around sharp turns can put a lot of stress on your lift arm ect. I have an 8' flail. I take the weight off the mower with the lift when I turn. How much I raise the lift depends on how sharp I'm turning plus I slow down so I don't whip the mower around and bang it all the way to the outside of the turn.

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Bird netting is time consuming to remove been there done that lots of time cutting it with a locking pocket knife.



Hose snakes and extension cord snakes are not as bad a barbed wire snakes (don't ask how many barbed wire snake bites I have or have received in 17 plus years).

 

[powerscol]

Hellllllllllllllpppp!!!!. I just finished reading through all the posts yesterday and this morning, and TMI. Wow what a thread. I have learned a lot, I think.

I am wanting a small, OFFSET flail mower to do ditches, that I can also do my field with, so it needs to be on a swing arm of some sort or like the bigger Kuhn offset outside the tire like my drum mower, that can angle down. It needs to be small and able to run on say 30 HP max (I have 26.5 PTO and my tractor weighs 3600lbs) In 2835 posts I did not see much on this type. I can go slow as I have hydro-static drive and I am used to operating at the upper limits of my tractor. From what I read I want hammer knives although the pictures of hammer knives are not equal. I know quality costs money, but want something decent I can get parts for. After searching the internet I got even more confused.

Can you kind folks point me in the right direction - brand names, options. dealers. Used is OK too if I know what to look for.

Thanks Keith

 

[Xfaxman]

Lots of possibilities: offset flail mower - Google Search

http://www.value-leader.com/48-ditch-bank-flail-mower-agl125/

 

[IslandTractor]

Hellllllllllllllpppp!!!!. I just finished reading through all the posts yesterday and this morning, and TMI. Wow what a thread. I have learned a lot, I think.

I am wanting a small, OFFSET flail mower to do ditches, that I can also do my field with, so it needs to be on a swing arm of some sort or like the bigger Kuhn offset outside the tire like my drum mower, that can angle down. It needs to be small and able to run on say 30 HP max (I have 26.5 PTO and my tractor weighs 3600lbs) In 2835 posts I did not see much on this type. I can go slow as I have hydro-static drive and I am used to operating at the upper limits of my tractor. From what I read I want hammer knives although the pictures of hammer knives are not equal. I know quality costs money, but want something decent I can get parts for. After searching the internet I got even more confused.

Can you kind folks point me in the right direction - brand names, options. dealers. Used is OK too if I know what to look for.

Thanks Keith

Xfaxman has given you a lead. Prepare yourself for sticker shock. Flails on a boom that are capable of mowing ditches while you drive along above the ditch are quite expensive.

 

[KenB2920]

Yes they are.

 

[powerscol]

Thanks
I looked up the one mentioned but cant figure out who makes it. Left a message with the folks for more information. I understand the added cost, but I believe the flail would be better than a rotary cutter/ brush hog and my sickle mower just gets snagged on the bigger stuff.

Are there any good brands to look at. The ones I am used to like Kuhn just make the bigger stuff, or are there brands to stay away from due to lack of parts/durability. Appreciate any help.