Flail Mower Let's talk flail mowers

[Fallon]

I'm getting ready to jump on a flail I've found online. It's a Ford 917. The website says it has a 88" cut which seems common however, Flailmaster says there are only 5, 6, and 7 foot models. I assume that should be considered a 7 foot?

The unit is missing some knives so I figured I will replace them all, but I can't order the correct parts without know what is what

I assume you measured outside? Flails are typically measured for working width. You loose or gain 6-8" for the pulleys & what not. If you look at the name plate, there is a different model in addition to 97 listed that relates to width & knife type. Mine was painted over on the frame. I think Flailmaster has a reference for some or most of those other model numbers.

I mis-ordered knives for my old beatup 917. Ended up maybe a dozen short although they were the correct type. So a mismeasurement issue or looked at the wrong line in the Flailmaster catalog for number needed. It was missing knives when I got it so couldnt get an accurate count easily. I just reused the best of the old ones & never gave it a 2nd thought. It worked fine. And by fine I mean fine for a $100 flail with bent mounting tabs & a cracked hood. A bit of vibration but ran for years like that.

 

[thoner7]

I assume you measured outside? Flails are typically measured for working width. You loose or gain 6-8" for the pulleys & what not. If you look at the name plate, there is a different model in addition to 97 listed that relates to width & knife type. Mine was painted over on the frame. I think Flailmaster has a reference for some or most of those other model numbers.

I mis-ordered knives for my old beatup 917. Ended up maybe a dozen short although they were the correct type. So a mismeasurement issue or looked at the wrong line in the Flailmaster catalog for number needed. It was missing knives when I got it so couldnt get an accurate count easily. I just reused the best of the old ones & never gave it a 2nd thought. It worked fine. And by fine I mean fine for a $100 flail with bent mounting tabs & a cracked hood. A bit of vibration but ran for years like that.View attachment 622035

22-185? Is that the rest of the code?

Online it says 88" cutting width. Maybe that just the width between the guide rails?

 

[TheFarmerInAdell]

I'm getting ready to jump on a flail I've found online. It's a Ford 917. The website says it has a 88" cut which seems common however, Flailmaster says there are only 5, 6, and 7 foot models. I assume that should be considered a 7 foot?

The unit is missing some knives so I figured I will replace them all, but I can't order the correct parts without know what is what

88" would be the 7 foot. The 5 foot is 62" and the 6 foot I believe is 74" or 76". What knives does it have? The 917 came factory with either fine cut side slicers or course cut airplane wings. When I had my 917 I switched it over to course cut side slicers and was happy with the results. But you would have to commit to replacing all of the blades.

 

[TheFarmerInAdell]

I assume you measured outside? Flails are typically measured for working width. You loose or gain 6-8" for the pulleys & what not. If you look at the name plate, there is a different model in addition to 97 listed that relates to width & knife type. Mine was painted over on the frame. I think Flailmaster has a reference for some or most of those other model numbers.

I mis-ordered knives for my old beatup 917. Ended up maybe a dozen short although they were the correct type. So a mismeasurement issue or looked at the wrong line in the Flailmaster catalog for number needed. It was missing knives when I got it so couldnt get an accurate count easily. I just reused the best of the old ones & never gave it a 2nd thought. It worked fine. And by fine I mean fine for a $100 flail with bent mounting tabs & a cracked hood. A bit of vibration but ran for years like that.View attachment 622035

Fallon,

I believe that when I looked at a picture of your flail someone had put too many blades on it. IIRC you had a blade in ever other hole when it should have been every 3rd hole. That is likely why you came up short.

 

[Fallon]

Fallon,

I believe that when I looked at a picture of your flail someone had put too many blades on it. IIRC you had a blade in ever other hole when it should have been every 3rd hole. That is likely why you came up short.

Entirely possible. But it mowed well until I retired it to my backup mower after several years, so a bit moot at this point. I was 10 stations short if I recall, which was about 1' worth. I suppose thats around 1/3 short as well. I was somewhat matching what had been on previously. Probably not the smartest idea given they removed some bands of knives because they were hitting the dented & warped hood rather than fix things properly. If so hopefully somebody else learns from my mistakes.

Think that photo was when I replaced the rotor bearings after a few years.

 

[TheFarmerInAdell]

View attachment 587224View attachment 587225

This is the picture I was thinking of. I see blades in every other hole. They should be in every 3rd hole. As you said, moot point. It probably cut better this way because of the increased overlap.

 

[Fallon]

This is the picture I was thinking of. I see blades in every other hole. They should be in every 3rd hole. As you said, moot point. It probably cut better this way because of the increased overlap.

You can see some of the D rings there missing knives. Those were from when I got it & the missing knives were hitting the hood. Had to cut out & patch a section.

7' of flail, apparently with extra knives ran ok behind a 32hp L3200 for several years. Vibrated a bit, but you can see how straight the mounting tabs are. The hood was cracked all the way along one of the braces too. It worked well enough & would have been a pain to weld up that rusty mess. If I was motivated enough I might try to remove knives & reshuffle things to try it & see if it balanced/vibrated or cut any better or worse. But I'm not, way to many other projects & it's mostly retired. No plans to sell it or scrap it though. Keep it around as a backup if the new Peruzzo goes down on me.

 

[thoner7]

So why would one use Y blades for grass over hammer flails? I see that Y blades are recommend for grass, but how are they better than hammer flails? The hammer flails seem like they would be much sturdier, and I don't see why they couldn't cut grass just as well.

 

[def38]

So why would one use Y blades for grass over hammer flails? I see that Y blades are recommend for grass, but how are they better than hammer flails? The hammer flails seem like they would be much sturdier, and I don't see why they couldn't cut grass just as well.

My hammer equipped flail devours branches, tree limbs, woody growth and Buick hubcaps while leaving a manicured look in my Bermuda lawn. The only disadvantage might be replacement cost.

 

[TheFarmerInAdell]

So why would one use Y blades for grass over hammer flails? I see that Y blades are recommend for grass, but how are they better than hammer flails? The hammer flails seem like they would be much sturdier, and I don't see why they couldn't cut grass just as well.

From what I understand, hammer flails take more HP to run due to the extra weight. They will cut heavier stuff, but will also chip when hitting rocks. The Y blades will be more inclined to deflect when coming in contact with something hard like a rock. They will slowly chew away at tree branches, but they won't take them out as quickly as the hammers. It's a matter of what you are planning on doing with the mower. My preference for grass is still Y blades or scoops/airplane wings. If you hit something, bottom out, or bog down the tractor recovers the speed faster or the blades will deflect to the side instead of losing pieces. If I were to reclaim an area covered in brush I would likely use the hammers.

My mower has heavy duty Y blades on it and it seems to do decent with light brush but will also cruise along quite well in grass. I actually mow my lawn with my flail. I don't really care about the look of my lawn. The tractor mows it quicker than the riding mower, and it's a more comfortable ride. Plus it will mow just the same when the grass is tall or short, wet or dry. My mower is a course cut so you can see the shape of the cutters in the lawn for a day or so after I cut. In the future I may look for a fine cut flail for mowing the lawn, or just buy a grasshopper and get a fine cut flail for it.