Flail Mower Let's talk flail mowers

[Fallon]

My 32hp HST (25 PTO) runs my 7' old 719 surprisingly well. If you can't spin the mower at PTO speed, just slow down until you don't drop the RPMs. If you go slow you can usually be pretty underpowered & still use the mower just fine.

 

[sodamo]

Sold my old flail. Less than 2 hours on Craigslist. Priced right or maybe too low LOL

David Sent from my iPad Air using TractorByNet

 

[Kiotidriver]

Although I got delivery of my new flail a couple weeks ago, I just got it assembled:
Hydraulic Offset 78" FlailMower EFGCH+195 HD



View attachment 457132

Tomorrow I'll get some gear oil, grease it and probably a new top link.
In the AM I have a buyer coming for my old flail. Thinking a good use of the funds will be a 2nd function switch.

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Hello David,
I am very happy to see your post and hoping for more feedback when you start using your new EFGCH+195HD flail mower. Today I just placed an order for a 68 hydraulic Offset Flail EFGCH-175.
I have the same Kioti 30HST as you have, however Roger at Value Leader Implements recommended the 68 Flail considering my tractor specs. I should be receiving it early next week. Since my tractor is equipped with a backhoe, I have an Auxiliary control valve mounted at the back of the tractor. The valve is controlled by a 3-position lever A, N, B located on the right side of the seat.
My Kioti dealer advised me to connect one of the hydraulic lines to port A and the other to port B. Port A will be used to extend and B to retract the mower. However the lever should immediately be returned on N (neutral) when the mower is in the desired position. Keeping the valve selector on either A or B for an extended time will cause damage to the system due to overheated hydraulic oil (Don稚 ask how I know that!).
On your picture you show the machine resting on cinder blocks. How did you lift it? And is it necessary to do that? Can I just uncrate it on a flat surface and attach the mower to the tractor痴 3-point hitch?
I was told the hydraulic lines are not fitted with quick disconnects. When you buy some for your machine can you let us know what brand and model you used? I have not made a decision yet to purchase the 2-year extended warranty ($200) for parts, I have 30 days to do so. The machine comes with a normal 2-year warranty for (non-consumable) parts only. I am not sure what could go wrong with such a simple machine like that; their gear box is only $195, which is relatively cheap when compared to the other guys who are asking almost 1 grand for a replacement gear box! I would like to hear from some long time users of this particular 杜ade in China brand.
On another subject, my wife and I just came back from the big Island. We were staying in a beautiful house on a cliff overlooking the ocean ~ 28 miles north of Hilo on Hwy 19. We saw several whales from our windows. Also we experienced your famous KoKee (very noisy tiny frogs). While it was not the first time we visited your Island (and the others), we were very impressed how clean it was. I never saw so many flail mowers while driving around the island. I would not mind coming back, be please turn on these Volcanoes! We need some adventure!
Malaho,
Andre

 

[sodamo]

Hello David, I am very happy to see your post and hoping for more feedback when you start using your new EFGCH+195HD flail mower. Today I just placed an order for a 68 hydraulic Offset Flail EFGCH-175. I have the same Kioti 30HST as you have, however Roger at Value Leader Implements recommended the 68 Flail considering my tractor specs. I should be receiving it early next week. Since my tractor is equipped with a backhoe, I have an Auxiliary control valve mounted at the back of the tractor. The valve is controlled by a 3-position lever A, N, B located on the right side of the seat. My Kioti dealer advised me to connect one of the hydraulic lines to port A and the other to port B. Port A will be used to extend and B to retract the mower. However the lever should immediately be returned on N (neutral) when the mower is in the desired position. Keeping the valve selector on either A or B for an extended time will cause damage to the system due to overheated hydraulic oil (Don稚 ask how I know that!). On your picture you show the machine resting on cinder blocks. How did you lift it? And is it necessary to do that? Can I just uncrate it on a flat surface and attach the mower to the tractor痴 3-point hitch? I was told the hydraulic lines are not fitted with quick disconnects. When you buy some for your machine can you let us know what brand and model you used? I have not made a decision yet to purchase the 2-year extended warranty ($200) for parts, I have 30 days to do so. The machine comes with a normal 2-year warranty for (non-consumable) parts only. I am not sure what could go wrong with such a simple machine like that; their gear box is only $195, which is relatively cheap when compared to the other guys who are asking almost 1 grand for a replacement gear box! I would like to hear from some long time users of this particular 杜ade in China brand. On another subject, my wife and I just came back from the big Island. We were staying in a beautiful house on a cliff overlooking the ocean ~ 28 miles north of Hilo on Hwy 19. We saw several whales from our windows. Also we experienced your famous KoKee (very noisy tiny frogs). While it was not the first time we visited your Island (and the others), we were very impressed how clean it was. I never saw so many flail mowers while driving around the island. I would not mind coming back, be please turn on these Volcanoes! We need some adventure! Malaho, Andre

Aloha Andre,
Curious where you stayed, we are Mauka mm19, Ninole. Contact me when you come back, I give TBN guys a discount.

Your 175machine is what I just sold. A real work horse. My only problem was the bearings on rear roller did not have a zerk, eventually rusted and I replaced.Sounds like you have different hydraulics than my Kioti. Unfortunately, I never used the shift function on my 175, had it permanently positioned to cover tires.by the time I switched it to my DX35, I had managed to mangle the hydro lines. For me, it was more useful to have a hydraulic toplink. This time I'm hooking up the offset shifter and will be adding a 2nd function diverter at some point
My 195 did come with couplers. I lifted it with a chain and my FEL, minus the bucket. I placed it on the blocks for ease of assembly, several bolts went in from underneath in the front. I haven't cut with it yet, rained all day today, but did mount it and run a bit.

David Sent from my iPad Air using TractorByNet

 

[PRCWI]

Weedy, I've got an SHD88 that I run with my Oliver 550 gas and 770 diesel both are sub 50 hp and both handle the mower fine except in the heaviest weeds, you'll be fine and very happy with the match for your tractor

 

[Kiotidriver]

David,
In your preceding post, you mentioned the use of a hydraulic top link, and you aroused my curiosity. Just to position myself, I am a recent Gentleman Farmer or stated differently a city slicker who just moved to the country side without having realized how much work it is to take care of a 12-acre estate. That’s why I had to buy a tractor and a mower, and now comes the learning curve. I’m glad I found this web site where I can read very useful information from the posts of so many members. Thank you to all of you.
Now my question/comment.
Does having a hydraulic top link in conjunction with your flail mower let you adjust the angle at which the bottom of the mower rides over the ground, without having to stop the tractor and dismount, and manually extending or retracting the length of the mechanical top link to change this angle? Is this something that needs to be done often during the mowing process? My acres are not flat but have some slight elevation differences; will I have to regularly adjust the top link to adapt to the terrain topography? Or adjust the top link in such a way the bottom of the mower is parallel to a level surface, and run with that? If I was to get a hydraulic top link, my tractor will need an extra pair of hydraulic ports and a control valve, beside the ones already used for the deck offset system (or backhoe). This may be pricey to install. Is a hydraulic top link a must have, nice to have, or if you have money to burn is it just one more gadget in your collection? Should I mention a side hydraulic link? I better not!
Andre

 

[IslandTractor]

David,
In your preceding post, you mentioned the use of a hydraulic top link, and you aroused my curiosity. Just to position myself, I am a recent Gentleman Farmer or stated differently a city slicker who just moved to the country side without having realized how much work it is to take care of a 12-acre estate. That’s why I had to buy a tractor and a mower, and now comes the learning curve. I’m glad I found this web site where I can read very useful information from the posts of so many members. Thank you to all of you.
Now my question/comment.
Does having a hydraulic top link in conjunction with your flail mower let you adjust the angle at which the bottom of the mower rides over the ground, without having to stop the tractor and dismount, and manually extending or retracting the length of the mechanical top link to change this angle? Is this something that needs to be done often during the mowing process? My acres are not flat but have some slight elevation differences; will I have to regularly adjust the top link to adapt to the terrain topography? Or adjust the top link in such a way the bottom of the mower is parallel to a level surface, and run with that? If I was to get a hydraulic top link, my tractor will need an extra pair of hydraulic ports and a control valve, beside the ones already used for the deck offset system (or backhoe). This may be pricey to install. Is a hydraulic top link a must have, nice to have, or if you have money to burn is it just one more gadget in your collection? Should I mention a side hydraulic link? I better not!
Andre

Yes, you can adjust the "attack" angle with a hydraulic topping lift but it's generally not needed. While a hydraulic topping lift is very useful for implements such as a box blade or rake, it isn't critical for a flail mower. For the most part you will want to allow the mower to simply ride on the rear roller. Most flails have a slot to mount the topping lift so it is not a single point of contact and the topping lift pin can slide back or forwards as dictated by the ground.

Now while having extra rear remotes is not critical for running a flail, you will soon learn that there are multiple other uses for at least one and preferably two sets of rear remotes. Hydraulic topping lift and side links are very very helpful for box blade management when maintaining a dirt road for example. Wood splitters run off the remote. Snow blower attachments use rear remotes to control shoot direction etc. Additionally, you can actually run a grapple on your FEL by using rear remotes and avoid the expense of installing a diverter valve. Rear remotes are also where you would power a backhoe from if you ever add such an attachment.

I'd say hydraulic topping lift is in the nice to have category unless you are maintaining a road in which case it is a must have. Side link is a slightly lower priority. From my perspective, having a couple sets of rear remotes is a "must have" unless you are simply mowing with your tractor.

 

[whirly]

David,
In your preceding post, you mentioned the use of a hydraulic top link, and you aroused my curiosity. Just to position myself, I am a recent Gentleman Farmer or stated differently a city slicker who just moved to the country side without having realized how much work it is to take care of a 12-acre estate. That’s why I had to buy a tractor and a mower, and now comes the learning curve. I’m glad I found this web site where I can read very useful information from the posts of so many members. Thank you to all of you.
Now my question/comment.
Does having a hydraulic top link in conjunction with your flail mower let you adjust the angle at which the bottom of the mower rides over the ground, without having to stop the tractor and dismount, and manually extending or retracting the length of the mechanical top link to change this angle? Is this something that needs to be done often during the mowing process? My acres are not flat but have some slight elevation differences; will I have to regularly adjust the top link to adapt to the terrain topography? Or adjust the top link in such a way the bottom of the mower is parallel to a level surface, and run with that? If I was to get a hydraulic top link, my tractor will need an extra pair of hydraulic ports and a control valve, beside the ones already used for the deck offset system (or backhoe). This may be pricey to install. Is a hydraulic top link a must have, nice to have, or if you have money to burn is it just one more gadget in your collection? Should I mention a side hydraulic link? I better not!
Andre

Ditto .... nice to have but not required for flail mowing.

 

[Alien]

I don't have a hydraulic top link but I noticed when going over little mounds or going down into a hollow the mower tended to lift as the nose of the tractor went down.
I overcame it by lengthening the top link so that the mower could drop lower as needed. It now floats nicely behind my tractor but it took me a few setting changes on all links to get it to what I regard as perfect now. A hydraulic link would have been nice, but now I have it set correctly I won't need to touch it again anyway. Maybe a short length of chain like some use on a Rotary mower could be useful. I don't have a slotted top link but it works fine as is.

 

[sodamo]

Aloha Andre

Have to pretty much agree with the previous posters. I found the hydraulic toplink most useful early on when mowing areas that likely had never been mowed before. With my new flail I don't anticipate needing as much unless I start mowing virgin areas again. I did get a couple hours in today and the fixed link in the slot did well. I did note that the new mower hangs differently on my tractor and noticed the balance was different on the slopes. Probably good in that I will pay attention, adjust my operation rather than be complacent. Given my terrain, I'm feeling that the 78inch is likely the max I can use, still possible one skid or the other might be a bit lower and make a cut if I'm not careful. I could avoid some of that with the hydraulic toplink, easy to adjust in those certain spots rather than lifting with the 3point. I did find the hydraulic offset interesting to use. Quite helpful in some area, like getting closer under tree branches, but a bit challenging at full offset along my fence line due to the variations in the fence and the various plantings. I have a few areas where the thought of a tilt cylinder are enticing, but not enough to overcome my budget. I am looking at the possibility of a 2nd function diverter. I have the double remotes on my CK30 but not my DX35. I don't envision mounting this flail on the Kioti, but keep it on the DX.