Flail Mower Let's talk flail mowers

[bucmeister]

Iron Horse,

Thanks for the input. I was not clear with the way I stated the original question, I did not mean to swap positions of the current pulleys, but rather to put a somewhat larger one on the gearbox end and a smaller one on the rotor end. Of course all of this would be to overcome and compensate for the fact that I only have a single speed PTO. Trying to get the benefit of a higher speed without having to buy a new tractor.

 

[Eagleview]

Iron Horse,

Thanks for the input. I was not clear with the way I stated the original question, I did not mean to swap positions of the current pulleys, but rather to put a somewhat larger one on the gearbox end and a smaller one on the rotor end. Of course all of this would be to overcome and compensate for the fact that I only have a single speed PTO. Trying to get the benefit of a higher speed without having to buy a new tractor.

If you can find a TaperLock pulley to fit your top shaft and also the housing (you can modify the pulley cover)you can speed up the rotor and lower the engine revs accordingly . Do'nt go smaller on the bottom pully as you will find it is allready at the belts diametre limit . If you exceed this limit the belts will fail ie. if they are cog type belts you will see the cogs are nearly touching each other as they wrap around the bottom pulley .

 

[Eagleview]

Well all you guys with your new flails , what has been the results ? Are you happy with your new toys ? Do they perform as expected ? Where are the photos ?

 

[sunspot]

Okay, I'll try a report. To summarize, I give the Caroni good marks. Although the flail is bigger than the Rotary Mower it replaced, it uses less HP. So far, it has not bogged down.
On fire ant mounds, the RM would strain a bit. With the flail, I only hear a different pitch of sound. It rips right through them.
There have been very few scalps compared to a RM. Because it rides on a 6' roller, it doesn't jounce around on every little hole or dip.
What else? It's quieter than a RM but hearing protection is still needed, at least for me.
It will cut 1" saplings but sometimes you will need to back up for a second pass to get it fully chopped up.
It also helps to cut into a windrow because of the offset.
I used it on the front yard grass and at a slow speed, it cuts nice and smooth. Not as good as a lawn mower with sharp blades but quite acceptable.

On the downside, I hear a slight thump on each revolution of the PTO shaft. I can only hear it when I have earmuffs on.
When mowing Argentina Bahia grass, the flail will miss a fair amount of the seed stalk. It does cut all the seed head but leaves some "stubble" of stalks. I have to go at a slow speed for better cutting of the stalks.

That's all that comes to mind right now and I'll load a picture this weekend.

 

[davitk]

Well all you guys with your new flails , what has been the results ? Are you happy with your new toys ? Do they perform as expected ? Where are the photos ?

My chinese Hanmey (BETST) has been very satisfactory, smooth and quiet, doesn't finish mow like I had hoped (grass is too thick) but handles light brush and field grass with ease. Best 800.00 I've spent on the farm.

 

[Nuru]

My chinese Hanmey (BETST) has been very satisfactory, smooth and quiet, doesn't finish mow like I had hoped (grass is too thick) but handles light brush and field grass with ease. Best 800.00 I've spent on the farm.

I am still looking to go round two with mine. After I get my big unit back! LOL!

 

[texbaylea]

I alternate mowing directions when mowing lawn grass to get those stalks that are left and that which springs back up from wheel pressure. The coarser grasses and light brush cut clean.

Vernon

 

[sunspot]

It also helps to cut into a windrow because of the offset

I meant Under a hedgerow.

 

[Eagleview]

Thank's chaps , just remember there is a learning curve involved with flail mowing . It took me quite a while to learn all the idiosyncrasies of setup , speed , RPM'S , which gear to use to keep the engine on song etc . But you do have a lot of information posted in these pages by IslandTractor and others to help you that you wont find in the manual .

 

[Nuru]

Thank's chaps , just remember there is a learning curve involved with flail mowing . It took me quite a while to learn all the idiosyncrasies of setup , speed , RPM'S , which gear to use to keep the engine on song etc . But you do have a lot of information posted in these pages by IslandTractor and others to help you that you wont find in the manual .

No kidding that is why I keep coming back to this thread, good info. i plan to try my flail out on increasing my mowing areas. - brush work

 

[RobinGB]

Excellent thread. Being in the UK I would add (if it helps) that flails are widely available and used hear. They are seen as an excellent tool to get a good mulched material finish on lawn and brush as already stated by others.

In the UK "forged hammer" flails are generally seen as the best type of flail in most circumstances (except rocks) as they are aerodynamic (low HP requirement), give a very even finish on lawn (noticeably better than Y type flails) similar to finishing mowers, and are very tough for mulching anything woody they come accross.

For anyones info, in the UK Market the following makes are widely available and have a very good range for compact tractor owners...

"Kuhn" (german build) is possibly the premier brand in the UK and reasonably priced compared to all but the chineese makes. But getting hold of one is difficult towards the end of the season as the factory produces "once yearly" batches of each product, so once they are sold out you have to wait to the next batch is produced!

"Major" (UK built) a very good reputation

"Wessex" (UK Built) another with a very good reputation

"RYETEC" very expensive but good reputation

"Teagle" (Italian) a good reputation

Others makes not so widely available in the UK are...

"Orsi" (Italian) a reasonable reputation, Y type flails only (no hammer type).

"Rotomec" (USA build) these are low spec units (unusuall for a USA product, normally USA products like JD are high spec), not well known

"Hymari" (Chineese build) low spec, not well known

Sadly Caroni I have not heard of in the UK but I will have a look.

I read the first 20 pages of this thread and then the last five only as that alone took over an hour. Hope I didn't miss any gems in the middle?

RobinGB

 

[IslandTractor]

Excellent thread. Being in the UK I would add (if it helps) that flails are widely available and used hear. They are seen as an excellent tool to get a good mulched material finish on lawn and brush as already stated by others.......RobinGB

Welcome aboard. Nice to have input from across the pond. I'm surprised that the brands don't overlap more as they do with tractors. I don't think we get any German or UK flails imported to the US. As noted in the thread, flails have mostly been used here for highway maintenance and crop mulching. Until recently there have not been many low or medium cost/duty flails available and as it has been a low volume item not much inthe way of discounts either. I think we use more rear finish mowers and "bush hogs" than are used in Europe. Still, it looks like Caroni has made an impact and that people here are discovering the virtues of flail mowers.

 

[greg_g]

"Rotomec" (USA build) these are low spec units (unusuall for a USA product, normally USA products like JD are high spec), not well known

For USA members who've not heard of Rotomec before, it appears to be the Italian trade name for BEFCO exports. See
BEFCO - Products
then
ROTOMEC - Products

//greg//

 

[texbaylea]

I picked up a 25' length of barbed wire with my TM1900B this week. I caught it near one end so it unwound easily. No damage to the mower was apparent except for some polishing where the end hit. Noisy though.

I really like this mower. It stays on the tractor 90% of the time since it does not get in the way back there.

Vernon

 

[IslandTractor]

I had a similar experience with a 8ft section of rusty angle iron that was half buried in a field I was mowing. The flail pulled it out of the ground and wrapped around the rotor. Stalled the tractor. I cringed but then simply unwound the mess and went back to mowing with no ill effect.

 

[DirtHauler]

Found and wound this up in my flail ........ 20' + of temp power line that was hiding in the weeds, thankfully it wasn't connected! It was wound so tight, I couldn't pull it out. Had to quit for the day, take it home and spent an hour cutting it out. Went back the next day and finished the job.

 

[Builder]

They're so simple & tough looking. No blades to worry about resharpening when you hit something like that. Guy near me pulls one behind a big McCormick 4x4 cab tractor. Really does a nice job.

 

[davitk]

I wrapped this canary reed grass around mine, stopped it cold. Anybody have a technique for 6' tall grass??

 

[IslandTractor]

I wrapped this canary reed grass around mine, stopped it cold. Anybody have a technique for 6' tall grass??

Go slow???

 

[DavesTractor]

I wrapped this canary reed grass around mine, stopped it cold. Anybody have a technique for 6' tall grass??

Seems you have made yourself a nice three-point power broom. Once you wear down the "bristles" you just mow a little bit to replace them.