Flail Mower New Caroni TM1900 Flail Mower

[nunyabinis]

I checked other brands, they sell fior 3X the Caroni, like $6-8,000

JD wanted $4,995 for the one I needed.



GULP!!!

 

[Builder]

Found a used JD flail, looks about a 7.5 out of 10 condition for $2,500.

I think it was a "25A" 80" flail mower.

 

[GreenMtns]

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Bad news.

The 3038e has an electrically operated PTO system that has an internal braking system. It's either on (spinning) or it's off (locked). The dealer recommended adding an overrunning clutch to the PTO shaft of the tractor so that you can spin it one way by hand to line it up.


I think I'll try getting a PTO extension and welding a handle to it so that I can force it to spin by hand first. It won't take much to line up the splines.


JD let me down on this one.

Good Morning nunya

My 3520 has an electrically operated PTO as well. It does not need an over riding clutch and run the Caroni flail mower with ease.

As to the PTO mounting problem...Does your tractor have the mid PTO? If so shift it to he mid position and you will be able to rotate the tractor shaft easily.

 

[jgrreed]

Jer,

Thanks! That's what i had heard, too. Had no idea the Caroni was that reasonably priced.

How do you adjust height?

Can you adjust height on the fly via 3pt adjust or a hydraulic adjust?

Is there a 7' available that will work with 38PTO HP?

Hi,

Height can be adjusted with the 3pt, but the best way is to adjust the rear roller and outer 'skids'. That way you just 'drop' the mower to the preset height and go. If you need to lift it to get over a rock or other obstacle, you can simply pull up on the 3pt lever and drop it again once your past.

There are hydraulic offset kits, which look pretty cool, but I didn't deem necessary. They'd be really nice to getting in corners and around trees.

There are 7' available, but not by Caroni. The Caroni's are pretty special in terms of pricing. A 38hp machine might run a 7', but I'd ask around first. I think a 6' would be fine for your machine to run.

Check eBay. I looked the other night and there were some good options. The flails are such a simple design that even if it looks rough around the edges, it'll still likely work for you.

-Jer.

 

[kthompson]

I tried a Caroni flail mower a few years back and did not like the finish it left my lawn with. Turned out to be the cutters on it and for that model were "Y" shaped and my lawn looked like narrow rows of grass up and down in height. Looked sort of neat looking across the cut but down the cut looked tacky. Did like the cutter very well. The other issue I did not like was the rear roller needed to be lifted for turning sharp turns. But the Caroni carries a good reputation. Think the reason the price jumper with Agri Supply on this was the "Dollar's" value drop. Right sure at least part of the price jump was due to that.

 

[CHDinCT]

Actually, the dollar has strenghtened in the past year, which helps explain the price increase. Since the flail is made in Italy, as the dollar increases vs the Euro, the same number of dollars = fewer Euros which means Caroni needs to increase the price in dollars to get the same number of Euros it was getting when the dollar was cheaper.

Anyway, following this thread for future reference. Maybe some day I'll have both the need for and tractor required to run one of these flails. Before reading up on the flails, I would have opted for a bush hog style cutter without thinking. The flails sound much more practical with the possible exception of cost.

 

[Builder]

Hi,

Height can be adjusted with the 3pt, but the best way is to adjust the rear roller and outer 'skids'. That way you just 'drop' the mower to the preset height and go. If you need to lift it to get over a rock or other obstacle, you can simply pull up on the 3pt lever and drop it again once your past.

There are hydraulic offset kits, which look pretty cool, but I didn't deem necessary. They'd be really nice to getting in corners and around trees.

There are 7' available, but not by Caroni. The Caroni's are pretty special in terms of pricing. A 38hp machine might run a 7', but I'd ask around first. I think a 6' would be fine for your machine to run.

Check eBay. I looked the other night and there were some good options. The flails are such a simple design that even if it looks rough around the edges, it'll still likely work for you.

-Jer.

So you've seen them have hydraulic height adjust or is it a hydraulic angle adjust?

Is it available on the caroni?

 

[nunyabinis]

So you've seen them have hydraulic height adjust or is it a hydraulic angle adjust?

Is it available on the caroni?

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Caroni has a hydraulic side to side adjuster available. Adjusts how far the unit sticks out the right side of your tractor on the fly.


You can use a hydraulic top link to make fine adjustments in cutter height. Lengthen the top link to raise the cut and shorten the top link to lower the cut.

 

[kthompson]

I do like how versatile the flail mower is and how much lighter they are than a rough cut mower. For such as cutting ditches or as a boom mower I think they are tops. Just realize some are more designed for rough cut and others for finish cut and I guess some for both due to the differences in cutters or hammers they have for that model.

 

[jvander]

Glad you are enjoying your mower! I am considering one for our horse pastures, but its not clear to me how adjutable they are. I like to cut the pasture to about 5 inches. Ground is pretty level. Is it possible to do this by adjusting the roller or would I simply lift the entire moer via 3pt hitch? If by the hitch is the unit really heavy? Also does roller interfere on turns, have sort of alot of corners.

 

[nunyabinis]

Glad you are enjoying your mower! I am considering one for our horse pastures, but its not clear to me how adjutable they are. I like to cut the pasture to about 5 inches. Ground is pretty level. Is it possible to do this by adjusting the roller or would I simply lift the entire moer via 3pt hitch? If by the hitch is the unit really heavy? Also does roller interfere on turns, have sort of alot of corners.

Most are adjustable to about 6 inches of cut height. Yes, you can lift the mower with your TPH to any cut height you want. The Caroni is around 700lbs. Some of the high-end units from JD, Woods, Landpride, etc... are almost 1000lbs.

You can make gentle sweeping turns but really sharp turns usually make the outside edge of the roller dig in a little. I usually just lift it off the ground to make a sharp turn then drop it back down when the turn is complete.

 

[Builder]

Glad you are enjoying your mower! I am considering one for our horse pastures, but its not clear to me how adjutable they are. I like to cut the pasture to about 5 inches. Ground is pretty level. Is it possible to do this by adjusting the roller or would I simply lift the entire moer via 3pt hitch? If by the hitch is the unit really heavy? Also does roller interfere on turns, have sort of alot of corners.

Wonder if a top/tilt (just top, not tilt) would work?

 

[jgrreed]

Glad you are enjoying your mower! I am considering one for our horse pastures, but its not clear to me how adjutable they are. I like to cut the pasture to about 5 inches. Ground is pretty level. Is it possible to do this by adjusting the roller or would I simply lift the entire moer via 3pt hitch? If by the hitch is the unit really heavy? Also does roller interfere on turns, have sort of alot of corners.

Hi,

I think the Caroni is adjustable from 1" to 5". You could adjust the roller, or just hang it there with the 3pt hitch. My mower is about 600lbs. The roller should be off the ground to turn sharp corners, or it'll dig up your ground.

It'd be a good choice for pastures, as you can really cruise. I've read that some guys can run at 4 or 5 miles per hour while mowing.

-Jer.

 

[jvander]

Thanks for the input guys. Now to pick the size!

 

[KRBrouwer]

Pictures!!!!

I have the identical mower and am very happy with it. I was looking closely at your pictures, especially the first one, and have one question. On mine, when the mower is set level on the ground, the slot where the toplink attaches is horizontal with the ground. Is it possible that when you moved yours over, the pieces were switched, since your slot appears to be at a 45 degree angle. Also I always attach my toplink in the slot as it gives me a more even cut. (I think that this was also recommended by Island Tractor, but for a different reason).

Ken

 

[nunyabinis]

I have the identical mower and am very happy with it. I was looking closely at your pictures, especially the first one, and have one question. On mine, when the mower is set level on the ground, the slot where the toplink attaches is horizontal with the ground. Is it possible that when you moved yours over, the pieces were switched, since your slot appears to be at a 45 degree angle. Also I always attach my toplink in the slot as it gives me a more even cut. (I think that this was also recommended by Island Tractor, but for a different reason).

Ken

Negative. The slot on mine has been like that since day one. I haven't tried attaching the top link to the slot yet.

 

[FarmGeek]

Another new flail owner here....

Picked mine up two weeks ago from Agri-Supply and so far only used it once for the eight acres I mow. The greatest advantages for me are no windrows left behind from the bush hog, quality of cut and the shorter overall length. I was hoping it would cut (pun intended) my mowing time down but the flail won't take fourth gear like the old hog did.

It was a bit of effort to make it Quick-hitch compatible but a little welding took care of that. The top link I made fit into the upper slot and offered a bit of float but I have since replaced it with a length of chain. That seems to work much better.

So far I'm satisfied with the Caroni at the price I paid. The next closest choice for me cost over twice as much and some quoted over five times the Caroni's cost!!!! Hmmm. I wonder what a Gold Plated Flail would have looked like

Jeff

**edited to fix MS-Word conversion issues **

 

[sunspot]

Welcome to the Caroni club. We will take over the world one flail at a time.

I looked for the oil tube extension mentioned earlier in this thread but I think the web site is gone.

 

[Builder]

Is this the right mower for what I would call a transition lawn? Like a stretch of grass between the finish lawn and an all-out field of tall grass?

I need something to cut along a long driveway where the grass is more "rough" than a finished lawn.

Do the skids leave skid paths and pull the grass out? I was concerned they would eventually become permanent bald tracks in the lawn.

 

[FarmGeek]

Is this the right mower for what I would call a transition lawn? Like a stretch of grass between the finish lawn and an all-out field of tall grass?

I need something to cut along a long driveway where the grass is more "rough" than a finished lawn.

Do the skids leave skid paths and pull the grass out? I was concerned they would eventually become permanent bald tracks in the lawn.

Hi Builder,

I use it on fields and a small lawn area over the septic field. Since the height is set to cut around 4 inches, I am not the best judge of what it can do on a finished lawn but it does look much better than the rotary shredder I used to use on the pastures. I would not hesitate to recommend the Caroni to use beside your driveway. This type of mowing is exactly why I bought a flail.

The side skids never touch the ground unless I do something stupid or the land is very uneven. All ground contact is from the rear roller, or at least it is supposed to be.

Jeff