Rotary Cutter Rotary Cutter

webbmeister · Feb 12, 2002

Hi Everyone:I went to Farm and Fleet last weekend to look at rotary cutters. I specifically wanted to see a King Kutter because I get the sense that most everybody here thinks they're at least a good value, if not the best brand around. All they had were Wallaces, and the salesman said that they were moving from King Cutter to Wallace and other brands for all of their implements. He said they were having a devil of a time getting parts for the King Kutters and that the lag time had forced them to make the shift. Anyone care to share thoughts on Wallace rotary cutters? Anyone having a hard time getting parts for King Kutter?

Thanks,Jim

TresCrows · Feb 12, 2002

The reason they are making the shift to Wallace is because Wallace is a cheaper brand with a higher profit margin and they can sell them for less than the KK. Wallace is an inferior product usually priced a bit below KK thus the higher profit margin for a retailer.
J

cowboydoc · Feb 12, 2002

I agree with TresCrow on this. I've seen the wallace brand and bluntly, IT'S JUNK. Stay away from it. I really hate to see F&F doing this. I do alot of business there and I was told they are only bringing it in as a lower cost item and they were still going to be selling KK so who knows. I do think the KK is a good brand. It's not Woods quality but it's not too far below it.

crown · Feb 12, 2002

You may want to consider Howse it is a low cost option, mine has served me well. I'm sure others will have there perception of the brand.
Crown

EdKing · Feb 12, 2002

I just picked up a Rhino LT 5, got home to late to try it. Very reasonably priced.

Ed King

Anonymous Poster · Feb 13, 2002

Help!
I am looking at a 5' King Kutter w/40 hp gearbox at Agri- Supply ($499.00). Is the King Kutter superior to the Howse brand? What about this parts availability issue?

cowboydoc · Feb 13, 2002

I think they are a little better. The Howse isn't bad but KK makes a pretty good unit, esp. when you consider their prices. Personally I'd take the KK over the Howse.

RichZ · Feb 13, 2002

I've got a 5 ft King Kutter that I got at Farm and Family. It's a great cutter, I highly recommend it! I used it to clear about 50 acres this fall, and had no problems. The area was alot of brush and saplings up to about 1-2 inch diameter.

Rich
"What a long strange trip it's been."

truejourney · Feb 13, 2002

I recently bought a 72" KingKutter finish mower at Quality Farm and Fleet. It was the last one they had and didn't have the swivels with it. I contacted KingKutter via email and received a prompt reply on how to order. After one phone call, the parts were on the way and arrived within just a couple days.

From my contact with the company, I am quite impressed and satisfied - very friendly, helpful and prompt.
I have several KingKutter products: 5' box blade, 6' landscape rake, 5' rotary tiller and 6' finish mower. Nothing negative to report and appreciate their combination of quality and value.

Hillbilly · Feb 13, 2002

From my contact with the company, I am quite impressed and satisfied - very friendly, helpful and prompt.

I have the same feelings about KING KUTTER./w3tcompact/icons/king.gif Seems like a down to earth bunch that makes a decent product for a decent price./w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

webbmeister · Feb 13, 2002

Thanks guys. By hook or crook, King Kutter it shall be. Jim

Anonymous Poster · Feb 13, 2002

...their combination of quality and value. ..

That pretty well sums it up as stated by Art...

Or do a search on TBN for "KingKutter" etc. and I think you'd be hard pressed to find anything negative about any of their products and certainly "alot of bang for the buck"...

Hillbilly · Feb 13, 2002

John,
That is one of the reasons I like this forum...you get lots of good feedback etc on a wide range of subjects.....where else can a person converse daily with geniuses/w3tcompact/icons/clever.gif like you and bird for free?/w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

Anonymous Poster · Feb 13, 2002

...where else can a person converse daily with geniuses...

Hillbilly... I don't want you to fall down and bump your head anymore... /w3tcompact/icons/grin.gif

Now if Thomas Edison or the like was on TBN... I'd probably agree... /w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif

Hillbilly · Feb 13, 2002

I could not help myself..../w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif

rancar · Feb 13, 2002

Gentlemen,

How does KK and Howse compare with Woods and JD. Price and quality please.

Anonymous Poster · Feb 13, 2002

The price of Howse or KK is much less than the corresponding Woods or JD implements (or Bush Hog, Land Pride, etc.). So is the quality of the paint job, fit and finish, etc. King Kutter rotary cutters seem to be heavier built than Howse at the same price tier, but this may not be true for all implements. If you buy implements made with similar materials as the top brands (e.g. same gauge metal on rotary cutter deck) and the welds are good on the particular unit you buy (make sure you look over your implement) then you should have little trouble with Howse or KK, and will come out many dollars ahead. If you are going to use the implement every day, or if you will lose money while an implement is down, then you should probably buy a better grade of implement.

john_bud · Feb 13, 2002

Rancar,

The reply from "rubintrophen" was pretty good, but (ain't there always a but?), there is more to the story.

The engineering of a Woods, JD, or Landpride is going to be a cut above KK or Howse. Some may doubt it, but think about this, my Woods Brush bull 600 cutter was engineered to allow the blades to be changed with hand tools. I did mine after a season in about 30 min, including jacking it up. And I only used one hand wrench, 5/8th if memory serves. KK (and others) require a LOT of torque that only a top of the line 1/2 impact or 3/4 impact wrench can provide. My neighbor sells blades and for KK he almost allways sells new bolts/nuts with the blades as they typically are torched off. The highway departments that have the BB go 3 sets of blades per set of attaching hardware .

Want more? Measure the size (diameter, thickness and weight) of the stump jumpers on a Brush Bull and a KK or Howse. My 60" BB has about 2x the diameter of my buddies 72" KK. He gets stuck on stumps with some reguarity, I have not gotten stuck (yet). He also grabs a pocket full of shear bolts every time he goes out, the BB has a slip clutch. You can get a slip clutch on KK, but it raises the price and quites the bang you get for your buck. A larger stump jumper also means shorter blades. Because stiffness goes up with the square of length, a short blade is much much less likley to bend when you whack a solid object.

Now for reality, the BB 600 medium duty it about 50% more than the KK medium duty unit. And it is about 3x the price of the KK light duty kutter. Is it "worth it"? For me, yes. If you only use your's casually, on smaller material, the KK may last a lifetime. They are good solid units, but they don't have all the bells and whistles, not to mention paint and weld quality you will find on a JD MX or LP 25xx or Woods BB series.

Like my daddy used to say, "You only buy the best once".

Best of luck,

John Bud

rancar · Feb 13, 2002

Rubintrofen --

How big is the price disparity? I'm soon purchasing a JD4710 and am looking at hitching it to an MX6. I want a bush hog that's tough, will cut 1-2" saplings, and last a long time (in other words minimal problems). Do you suggest I stick with the JD or should I look at KK, Howse, etc. Will they hold up chopping at tough 1-2" saplings?