Flail Mower Let's talk flail mowers
- Thread starter TNhobbyfarmer
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Here's how I welded my Titan uprights to the top link.
The Woodmaax is still made in China, but it is vastly better. The bearings are Japanese, the belt has a spring tensioner, the roller is larger, the grease zerks are protected, the chain mesh deflector is solidly mounted, the driveshaft has a slip clutch. There are multiple lift points.
I hate buying Chinese crap but Woodmaax is a reputable company and can supply parts at least.
mangler
Gold Member
It may turn into 2-3 acres, with some trails, maybe another 1/2 acres worth. I do own a garden tractor with a 54" deck, but some areas are a bit too woody and uneven for it. I feel bad using the mower for that (overgrown areas, edge of the laneway). Plus I have a bumper crop of poison ivy in those areas, so it would be nice to have a dedicated brush mower to keep contamination to a minimum.
Here's both the Titan and new Woodmaax together a month ago mowing. You can actually see the Titan mower housing warped. You can't see it, but the roller is ready to fall off and the roller won't turn, so I just dragged it. It did mow OK; the gearbox / drum / hammer knives have been fine. The one thing with the hammers is that when the cutting edge strikes a rock or other obstacle, it sort of forms a lip. Doesn't prevent cutting but it does cause grass to build up and cake on the flail, which eventually causes vibration and very poor cut quality. Every so often, I'd have to stop and shut down, and clean the grass buildup off the knives. Other hammer knives have a ridge down the middle that prevents this buildup, but not Titan.
mangler
Gold Member
Nice , you just doubled up at the weak points. Wonder if welding flat bar across to form a space frame (similar to what is stock on the woodmax) would do the same thing. You are basically trying to avoid bending at the weak point.
Good points on the improvement found on the Woodmax, this is quite the list. Don't know who would sell a belt driven implement without a spring tensioner. Larger roller is nice. Protected zerks are nice. Bearings I can change out. Slip clutch is nice, but more maintenance. Probably worth 1k more, especially if they well established and you can reasonably expect to get parts for 10 years or so. It will all depend how much I can get a chinesium landed here at my door direct from china. If I can get ia 60" for less than 1k I can fix a lot of things on it, especially since i won't be wearing it out
mangler
Gold Member
Great comparison, and highlights the weakness in the Titan "base" model. I assume both flails have similar hours? Looks like the Chinesium would be more of a project than I thought.
No, the Titan flail has 146 more hours on it than the Woodmaax.
If I was to buy another Titan brand new again, I'd do several things before I used it: weld additional bracing at the weak point of the uprights, possibly weld the brace across the back as you mentioned, and weld 3/8" bar stock in tow places across the back of the mower housing, much like a rotary cutter. This would strengthen it and prevent the warping of the housing, which also leads to the roller falling out. Further, I'd change the angles on the grease fittings of the roller. So far, the extra grand seems well spent. I would love a new Vrismo (I have a 1990 model but its only 48" and has been incredibly reliable) or an Alamo, but the price tag is 3x the Woodmaax.
mred2
Platinum Member
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I think he may want to look at what type and size will he pull with his tractor. I assume his tractor ck2610 is 25hp with less than 19 at the pto. Anyone here pull a flail with a 25hp tractor?
Sure, I pulled my Vrismo MightyMax flail with my Kubota L2501...but the flail mower was only 48" wide. I suspect it could run a 5-foot flail fairly well, so long as the grass wasn't dense and the ground was flat.
HarryVanderpool
Gold Member
Just bought a new Pac-Flail, model SPF made in Eugene Oregon by Rears MFG.
SPF flail -- Rear's Manufacturing
It is really built well and works GREAT!
The entire unit is of 1/4" steel.
I ordered it with the heavy duty, dual position mast because I don't have remotes.
VERY happy with this mower.
If you like Made In America and like the aspect of all parts available in the US, consider paying a little more and getting A LOT more.
SPF flail -- Rear's Manufacturing
It is really built well and works GREAT!
The entire unit is of 1/4" steel.
I ordered it with the heavy duty, dual position mast because I don't have remotes.
VERY happy with this mower.
If you like Made In America and like the aspect of all parts available in the US, consider paying a little more and getting A LOT more.
DavesTractor
Elite Member
Those are really well built. If you keep it greased and cared for, you can use one of those 8 hours a day, every day, and it will last and last. I am guessing it is double or triple the price of a Chinese mower though.
That does look like a nice flail, but judging by the listed weights they aren't necessarily any heavier duty than say the Woodmaax I bought. That 6 foot unit lists as 710lbs; the SPF is 755lbs. Mine doesn't have the rakes or any hydraulics.
That said, if you could take some pics and post them I'd be interested to see them. SPF doesn't have very good images on their site.
That said, if you could take some pics and post them I'd be interested to see them. SPF doesn't have very good images on their site.
DavesTractor
Elite Member
Sounds like the Woodmax is a heavy beast. That is generally a good thing. I've not personally run a Woodmax, but it sounds like they do a good job. The mowers made to run commercially will often run larger shafts, larger bearings, etc. Not sure if that is true across the board...just a general observation.
I do not think the Woodmaax is comparable to an Alamo or Vrismo. That said, I do run my flail mowers commercially - I couldn't justify the $8k for an Alamo 6-footer, and not much less for a Vrismo. So I tried the other route, which were the cheap Chinese ones. The Titans (this is my third [and final] one) last about one season, and that's with you making some repairs. The Woodmaax seems to be better from my experience...I'm thinking I might be able to get 3-4 seasons out of it, maybe more. Or maybe I'm just being cheap.
DavesTractor
Elite Member
Titan Implement out of Tennessee brings in an Italian looking (probably a copy) heavy duty flail made in India. They are grey. Totally different from Titan Attachments orangish one. It is unfortunate that they use essentially the same name as they are different companies, different mowers, etc. If you have a dealer nearby that sells the (Tennessee) Titan, you should check it out. We added the Titan (grey) flails to our product line close to a year ago and they have been great. They are not a Vrisimo/Rears Pak Flail/Alamo, but about as close as you can get for something that costs half or less. We have sold several into commercial orchards and so far nobody has broke one...and that's saying something. I'm not trying to sell you one, I'm on the other coast, but you should check them out if available in your area.
Thanks Dave - I will check availability. I'm putting about 200 hours per flail per year on mine, so we'll see how the Woodmaax does. However, if it starts to fail I'll look in to the other Titan...I have heard of it, but never checked into it too much.
def38
Platinum Member
Well, my replacement Chicomm flail top link brackets just failed so, I'm going to follow your advice and weld these. I may have my welder make some support straps so if the welds break, the support straps will keep the mower attached to the 3 point. May attach the supports to the gearbox. There are several unused threaded holes in the gearcase. We'll see.
Chinses crap....
no more of it for me.
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mangler
Gold Member
Well to my great dismay, it looks like the Woodmax may be worth the 2700 usd they are asking for. The titan implement grey flail looks good, but it's not on their website? Found some online brochures with 3 grades of flails, but there is no pricing. Also looks like the smallest one they make is 6'. I am thinking 5' would be a better match for me.
HarryVanderpool
Gold Member
Can you clarify what you mean by getting 3 or 4 years?
What do you expect to happen that would cause you to need to buy a new one?
My welds are ugly and I took no pains to clean them up and paint, but they are holding up fine even with rough use. This is just a poor design. The uprights themselves are heavy and the metal is fairly thick, but its a poor design to try to support over 600lbs. The steel may be inferior as Chinese steel tends to have a lot of impurities, who knows. I used a plate and bent it to match; then pierced the holes with a torch...then welded top and bottom, and the key is to weld up the sides. Makes it much stronger. Also welded the tear in the seam.
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