Flail Mower Let's talk flail mowers

[Jack Yuan]

The bushings on my Caroni appear to be nylon.

Thanks!

On the market, there are good expensive nylon and cheap lousy nylon, the price difference could be 10 : 1.

Do you know what nylon they are?

It's a question related to experience. Good nylon has better outlooking than cheap nylon, also different smell when you burn it. It's really difficult for me to tell you how to identify them by words here. So, you can search more on internet and watch more nylon by your eye close. Or talk with nylon manufacturer vendors, they will tell you more.

 

[Jack Yuan]

Both two side shift rails should be lubricated. Because although the shift rails have to be gavalized or chromed when manufactured, its surface will be worn out soon during working, then the shift rails surface will start oxidation(like rust), then this will wear the nylon of the shift rails faster.

The old style side shift flail mower doesn't need to lubricate the rails, they were like this:

After I got some feedback about nylon defect, so since two years ago, I produced my offset flail mower to be with the rails which need lubrication. It is easy, use the two tubes on the rails and drill holes for grease, just increase some production cost.
As the result, I got few nylon worn out feedback on the new model mowers in last two years.

First I have a question for those of you with side shift flails. Do you put any grease on the shift rails? I feel like I should be putting some type of lubricant on them, but there was nothing in the (terrible) caroni instructions.

 

[lagreex1]

thanks for the input Jack, fallon and all. I'll use some chain lube and see how that goes.

 

[bkrgi]

So my Woodmaxx FM62H got dropped off by the shipping Co last Tues and now Sunday got back home to finally get it mounted to the B26.
Stupid me after reading what StuartDK45SE posted about shearing off the grease nipples when adjusting the roller height, I go and do the same dang thing DUHhhh... oh well easy fix.
Shortened up the drive shaft by 3" (using a quick hitch as well), grease, oil into the gear box and add the ends for the hydraulic hoses to plug into the remote and a quick nip at some grass and I'm going to Love this thing. Goes to work Monday cutting a lawn that is in full overgrowth and lots of damdelions.
Going to say the B with 19pto hp is going to have no issues handling this flail short of trying to cut a jungle down.

Kitimat-Stikine B-20180527-04732 by richardktm300, on Flickr

 

[Ricn]

Having the same mower, I can tell ya you will love it! Mine came with grease already in so just cut the pto and went mowing. Oh ya, I too broke a nipple when lowering the roller. 19 pto HP will run that mower easily, mine sure does. Great photo!

Ricn

 

[Jerik]

As far adjusting the skids and the rear roller you can always leave it attached to the top link and the lower links and use a sandwich of 2 by 12's from the front of the mower to the rear edge of the shroud to raise it above the ground making 3 stacks of 2 by 12's or other lumber essentially a pad for it to rest on. It will shuffle around a little until the knife sets and shackles roll forward or back to allow the mower to rest on the dimensional wood sandwich.

Once you have the entire weight on the 2 by 12 sandwich while its still attached to the draft links you will have no problems adjusting the toy, er mowing implement, er flail mower, er forever mower in your stable.

Better to just glue and screw the wood together unless you have thick hardwood blocking to use otherwise

So leonz wrote this to Roy last July. I'd like to get this set up before the Caroni comes, so wondering what is the length of the "sandwich"? I'm assuming there is one "sandwich" that runs the width of the mower, but I could easily be wrong.

Second question -- StuartDK45SE and bkrgi had posted about the WoodMaxx design flaw that caused them to shear off the grease nipples when adjusting the roller height. Do I need to be careful about this with a Caroni?

Third question -- I'm planning on using it to mow both my fields and the lawn around my house. I'm thinking that I raise the roller for a shorter lawn cut and lower it for the less frequent field mowing. Suggestions on which roller hole I use for each situation?

 

[diesel85]

I run a Woodmaxx FM-62 on my BX2200. I use it to mow my lawn. I alternate between the MMM and the flail. Best investment I ever made.

The little BX2200 has more than enough power to run it mowing a lawn.

Also, the folks at Woodmaxx are awesome! I went there myself to pick it up. I was there, in and out in like 20 minutes.

 

[Fallon]

With both my old Ford 917 (rear roller height adjustment welded solid years ago) & my new Peruzzo (havent messed with roller adjustment yet) I just put my hydraulic toplink in float & adjust mowing height with the 3pt. Generally you don't want the toplink doing anything support wise when mowing. That goes for a rotary and a flail. A toplink is only needed when lifting the mower. I'll occasionally lift & back or drive over heavy stuff while the mower is running, but generally the only time you need that toplink is transport. If it's supporting the mower while mowing its taking a lot of stress it doesn't need to & preventing the mower from articulating & following the contours of the ground.

Lots of old timers replaced their toplinks with chain. Still not a bad idea today.

 

[bkrgi]

Running the Woodmaxx for 2 hrs today....awesome awesome job
Felt so so good to be on the B mowing grass weeds branches hahaha... been way to long for me not having tractor time per the farm days.

IMG-20180528-04733 by richardktm300, on Flickr

IMG-20180528-04734 by richardktm300, on Flickr

Bulkley-Nechako A-20180528-04735 by richardktm300, on Flickr

 

[Ricn]

Looks good: had two hrs myself yesterday. So how does that quick hitch work for you? I want one! Same mower but on my L2501 and about the same hook up as yours.

Ricn

 

[bkrgi]

Looks good: had two hrs myself yesterday. So how does that quick hitch work for you? I want one! Same mower but on my L2501 and about the same hook up as yours.

Ricn

Get the Quickhitch....makes life so so easy....worth every penny. I do need to get some bushings fabbed up for each implement and for the top link.
I got the Speeco QH which came with one bushing set.....had to chop the end off to make it work

 

[Fallon]

Get the Quickhitch....makes life so so easy....worth every penny. I do need to get some bushings fabbed up for each implement and for the top link.
I got the Speeco QH which came with one bushing set.....had to chop the end off to make it work

I'm on my 5th QH. 3 Harbor freight, 1 Speeco & 1 Northern Tool. 1 ran off with my old L3200 (same as a L2501 minus emissions tweaks), 1 was welded to a SSQA plate to mount the snow plow (ran off with the L3200), 1 went to a friend with a L3200, one on my new L4060. Last one is laying around spare & might get welded to another SSQA plate. 1 or 2 were new, the rest not very used.

All needed an extended top hook (hard to impossible to hitch some impliments otherwise). I welded a 1.5-2" extension to the back of all the hooks & drilled more holes. I replace the bolts holding the top hook on with pins. I had to ream a few of the holes, but that's probably on me for the mods.

I had to grind out the lift hooks on 2ish of them as a cat3 pin wouldnt quite fit. Really all of them have been about the same quality. I've seen some JD iMatch ones & they are better quality, but not better quality enough to justify double the price. I'm assuming the Land Pride QH is similar quality to iMatch as I've never seen one. But I know LP is about the same price as iMatch at least.

I had TnT on my old L3200 & my new L4060. TnT + QH means hitching up without getting off the machine. Need to get off to hook up PTO or hydraulics. You can hitch up with a really un-level impliment too. Not sure how well the QH works without TnT though, not nearly as easy I bet. Probably need a reasonably level spot for the impliment.

I hear the extendable links on the 3pt on my L4060 are great. But I only used them once... when putting on my QH before I ever hitched up an impliment. I'd imagine they would be on par or better than a QH without TnT.

The QH does add 4" or so yo the 3pt & lower your lift capacity. That made my 3pt forklift no better than the loader for lift capacity , but wont be an issue for a flail. My L3200 had no issues lifting or handling my old 7' Ford 917 flail even handicapped with the extra QH length.

Northern Tool has the bushings with the knob on the end that go over 1 ended pins. Technically you dont need the knob as the QH frame keeps things from sliding side to side. The clevis type pins are stronger & just need a simple bushing. I ended up with nested CAT2 & CAT3 bushings a I couldn't find any handy CAT1-CAT3 bushings.

 

[ronjhall]

Running the Woodmaxx for 2 hrs today....awesome awesome job
Felt so so good to be on the B mowing grass weeds branches hahaha... been way to long for me not having tractor time per the farm days.

I now have about 10 hours on my FM62H. Sure beats using my Rotary Cutter.
I store all my equipment in barns that have concrete floor. Added caster wheels to bottom of crate that mower was shipped in. Makes a great dolly.
View attachment 554910

 

[TerryCC]

I just traded for a tractor with more pto hp and are considering buying a Woodmaxx 96H. I have a Caroni 1900 for the last 2.5 years and am well pleased with it, but I want to mow quicker thus the larger flail. The website states that this model is not in stock so I will check to see what delivery I can expect. No reason to buy now if delivery is late summer.

 

[StuartDK45SE]

So my Woodmaxx FM62H got dropped off by the shipping Co last Tues and now Sunday got back home to finally get it mounted to the B26.
Stupid me after reading what StuartDK45SE posted about shearing off the grease nipples when adjusting the roller height, I go and do the same dang thing DUHhhh... oh well easy fix.
Shortened up the drive shaft by 3" (using a quick hitch as well),

I replaced my sheared-off ones with a 10mm x 1 zerk. It threaded in, but just didn't feel right. Do you remember what size you went back with?

I didn't shorten my pto shaft, but I need to. There isn't much wiggle room in mine.

 

[Jerik]

Caroni TL1500 belts -- people have posted that the Gates kevlar ones are around $15, but I haven't yet found a source. I found belts from both GPR Industries (21/32" B Kevlar - Aramid Belt B43K Length 4.3 in) or VBelt Supply (B43K Wrapped Kevlar Aramid V-Belt - $8.38), at around $8. Anyone see any problem with getting either of these, or point me where I can get Gates? (there is a thread for Caroni belts, but the last posting is from 2016, so I'm asking on this thread)

 

[Ricn]

got the HF QH on order as of last Monday, now the wait for delivery. Right now, the Woodmaxx will just stay attached as is until august when the grass gets dry and not much mowing required. I totally expect to have some mounting issues or fab work, maybe need another PTO shaft cut to size and looks like top hook will be an issue as well.

Ricn

 

[Fallon]

got the HF QH on order as of last Monday, now the wait for delivery. Right now, the Woodmaxx will just stay attached as is until august when the grass gets dry and not much mowing required. I totally expect to have some mounting issues or fab work, maybe need another PTO shaft cut to size and looks like top hook will be an issue as well.

Ricn

If you can weld & have a drill press it's easy to extend the top hook yourself. I hear there is a commercial option for $15-20. But when I looked at the link somebody posted a while back it was out of stock.

Be REALLY careful if your PTO shaft doesnt have the proper clearance. If you cross a ditch or any number of common things, the shaft gets jammed into the back of your tractor. The likely outcome of that is wrecking the transmission case on the tractor & the gearbox on your impliment.

Dont screw around with a top long or to short PTO shaft, the results are catastrophic. And even an experienced operator may not be able to notice or react in time. It only takes 15-20 minutes & a hacksaw to fix things properly.

A QH makes the hitch 4" longer & the PTO shaft needs to be able to support that. But dont try to skimp by not shortening it now.

Ya, fab work to make thing QH compatible is needed on older impliments a fair bit. Sometimes needed on new ones as well, but not as much. It's worth it in my book though.

 

[Industrial Toys]

I know someone that did a ridiculous amount of damage to a hydraulic finishing wing mower by having a shaft too short. Ruined the pump to the tune of thousands!

I bought a junky quick hitch at Ritchie. Then made it wider with some square tubing. Junky and cheap, but it has not broken, even with an eight foot Harley rake hanging on it. Plus, it's nice and light for carrying and attaching to the tractor. It does make attaching the Harley, a dream. I wish manufacturers would throw away the Ferguson Hitch and go with a series of standard Quick Hitches.

 

[DavesTractor]

Be REALLY careful if your PTO shaft doesnt have the proper clearance. If you cross a ditch or any number of common things, the shaft gets jammed into the back of your tractor. The likely outcome of that is wrecking the transmission case on the tractor & the gearbox on your impliment.

Dont screw around with a top long or to short PTO shaft, the results are catastrophic. And even an experienced operator may not be able to notice or react in time. It only takes 15-20 minutes & a hacksaw to fix things properly.

This is prudent advice. We have sold literally thousands of tractors and thousands of mowers. But when we first started out selling 17 years ago, I put a rotary mower on a tractor for a customer and the driveshaft was too long. I got it on, but it was out of slip. It seemed to work and I left the customers house and all was good. A day later I got a call. She went through a dip and the mower came up some and put a ton of pressure on the PTO shaft coming out of the back of the tractor. It snapped the shaft off clean. Fortunately for me it did not break the housing, but that $100 I made on that $500 mower was quickly lost as I pulled her tractor apart and replaced the broken shaft. Never again, I learned my lesson. Make sure you have some slip remaining at all points in the mower's range of motion. Learn from my mistake!