New to Tractors, New to ToolCat

[keeney]

CRJ Captain,

In regards to:

"...all previously expressed concerns by others regarding the Toolcat's mowing capabilities can be disregarded."

What about finish mowing? Do you see a lot of compaction and/or wheel marks? I would be concerned that mowing a lawn with a Toolcat would be like mowing the lawn with a pickup truck in terms of compaction and wheel marks.

- Rick

 

[CRJCaptain]

Rick,

The Bobcat 72 inch mowing deck is sort of a cross between a finish mower and a brush cutter. I'm mostly mowing pasture grass growing in good ol' Kentucky clay...the quality of the cut is actually very nice. I can honestly say I've never seen any compaction or tire rut issues. My property is very hilly, however, so I don't mow right after it's rained with the ground saturated...if I did I'd end up in the bottom of a ravine somewhere /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif

Seriously though, the Toolcat mows very well, and pushing a six foot mowing deck really cuts down on the time required to complete large acreage mowing jobs.

 

[keeney]

CRJCaptain,

I was thinking more in terms of irrigated, manicured turf-grass lawn areas cut 2 to 2.5" high at most. Something that is going to be soft all the time.

Anybody using their Toolcat for that type of mowing?

- Rick

 

[BrianSouthernMD]

Keeney, my Toolcat and I cut woodsy brush with a 60" Ammbusher stump-jumping rotary cutter, and both lawn and taller grass with the 72" Bobcat Mower, a 3-spindle rear-discharge unit that comes with fairly heavy finish blades. Cutting height is adjustable from 2" to 5.5" in half-inch intervals. Deck wheels float independently of the Toolcat and the self-adjusting mounting frame allows cutting with significant changes in elevation. /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif

But my large "lawn" areas so far have not been maintained with your "irrigated, manicured" and "2 to 2.5-inch high at most" rigor. I'll usually cut my turf-grass/weed mix to 2.5" or 3" and not attempt it right after it rains. As a result of timing, 4-wheel-steer & balanced weight I see minimal compaction and few tire-wheel marks. But there would be more if you have very soft, lightly-compacted soil that is watered daily.

Climate, soil and turf conditions, along with your lawn desires, will determine whether or not to use the Toolcat almost-finish mower on your lawn. But it works for 90 percent of my lawn and grass areas. There are many projects for my Toolcat to do on our farm, and having an irrigated golf-course-like putting green lawn is not the top priority. Just getting acres of grass cut quickly and looking real nice is. /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif

Perhaps the smaller Toolcat coming along in 2006 will be light enough to address soil compaction concerns you may have in soft, wet soil.

 

[keeney]

Right now, I use a John Deere 4100 to cut my grass and I am not exactly happy with the wheel marks and compaction. Its around 1800 lbs configured for mowing with the 60" MMM. The JD 4100 has larger rear tires than the Toolcat and about the same in the front. Going up to nearly 2.5x the weight with the same size tires sounds like I would have worse results, not better.

Everything about the Toolcat is really cool and exactly what I would want except for the weight (and the price). I am most interested to see what the smaller version specs out at.

- Rick

 

[odleefs]

Keeney,
have you considered "Toolcat-like" machines like the MultiOne? These have front mounted hydraulic accessories. Gehl makes a similiar unit.Link
You can get many accessories including a heated cab and HP range from 14 to 50 in gas and diesel models...just a thought.
Steve

 

[BrianSouthernMD]

(Keeney, have you considered "Toolcat-like" machines like the MultiOne? These have front mounted hydraulic accessories. Gehl makes a similiar unit.LinkYou can get many accessories including a heated cab and HP range from 14 to 50 in gas and diesel models...just a thought. Steve)
I looked at these interesting options before buying my Toolcat. But the Italian CSF SRL's MultiOne appears to only have a few USA dealers (now in New York), although they are actively looking to add a limited number of regional dealers throughout USA who would carry the entire CSF MultiOne line).

Many USA Gehl dealers market an Avantage 700 lb. ROC articulated mini loader unit similar to one of the CSF-MultiOne models (but made in Finland by Avant), However Gehl in USA doesn't sell an entire product line like those made by Avant or CSF.

Many USA Gehl and Mustang dealers also sell 4-wheel-steer loaders with SOME Toolcat similarities, but their lightest model is over 2,000 pounds heavier than the Bobcat Toolcat 5600!