Sickle Boom Cutter?

[mculik5]

I have a Kubota B2650 with a FEL (w/ third function) and a BH. I also have about 1000 feet of fence. Inside the fence is my lawn. Outside the fence is very, very dense brush and small trees. In most places, it's to the point that I'm not able to walk through it. Additionally, the brush is overgrowing the fence, making it difficult (impossible in some areas) to mow with my ZTR right along the fence. I could trim the low stuff with a chainsaw/handsaw/pruners, but that would take forever and look incomplete. I'd have to use my pole saw to get the high stuff and make the job look right, which would take even longer.

I'm thinking that an articulating sickle bar would be the perfect tool for this job. Something I could mount to the FEL or BH, offset far enough that I could drive along the inside of the fence and cut brush on the outside of it, with the sickle bar able to pivot 180 degrees from pointing at the ground to pointing at the sky.

Does anyone know of such an implement? Ventrac makes a VERY fancy version of what I'm looking for, but it's $13K (as I understand) and I don't have a Ventrac. Betstco makes something similar for far less $$$, but based on this video, it doesn't seem like the most robust thing in the world....https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pr4WpQRnq9w.

Anyone ever fabricated a sickle bar before? I could fabricate a FEL mount no problem, but not sure about the sickle bar (would need to be hydraulically powered), and not sure about what kind of offset loads my loader can take.

Thanks in advance!

 

[newbury]

Have you looked at the Lane Shark?

 

[Have tractor did travel]

regarding Betstco - check out their reviews. Too many people with too many problems

Betst, LLC | Reviews | Better Business Bureau® Profile

View customer reviews of Betst, LLC. Leave a review and share your experience with the BBB and Betst, LLC.

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I called them to discuss a potential purchase. After my experience, and without reading the reviews, I decided not to deal with them.
Sickle bar mowers generally not good for cutting saplings, etc. Theirs seems to be capable of cutting twigs. We saw nothing more being cut. I don't think Betstco or that mower, are right for you and your job at hand, nor are they right for me.

 

[the old grind]

I'd consider a Lane Shark because in my case it could maneuver well and do a lot. Love the their $4k 38" might do ok there with 5 gpm. (might want to upgrade any 3/8" 3rd function lines/fittings to 1/2") Meanwhile I can do a lot with the flail mower on the 3PH. 1" saplings are easily leveled up, disappear after a second pass. (blackberries, olive, oak, locust, etc) Quite happy with my 'med-duty' 53"-cut Betstco and just < 30 PTO hp after 3 yrs.

btw, I'd spray where I mowed with TCP as scrub re-sprouts, after a good rain as always. Might do it every other year, but a ZTR or flail could keep that outer margin tidy and make trimming along the fence easier. Oh, and if I had fence posts to mow along and trim around I'd already have one of these:

DR PRO XLP 3-Point Hitch Trimmer Mower | DR Power Equipment

DR factory direct sale. 3-Point Hitch DR Trimmer Mower. PTO driven fence mower and grass trimmer. Safely deflects around obstacles. 6 month trial. 2 yr warr

www.drpower.com

 

[mculik5]

Thanks for all the replies and help!

Had no idea about the Lane Shark, and although it's not exactly perfect, the fact that it doubles as an ordinary brush mower more than makes up for that. Definitely going to give those guys a call on Monday.

Great forum! Appreciate the help!

 

[KubotaToy]

I bought one of the boom sickle cutters from Bestco earlier this year, other than the hydraulics being hard to control with fine movements, it functions as I thought it would. It cuts stuff up to 1" easily and up to 2" if you go slow. I bought to keep the fence line trimmed, overgrowth on my trails around my pond clear and to mow around my pond which had too steep of banks to mow otherwise. I like the fact I can reach up about 15' to trim along the trails.

I will eventually add flow control valves to the input of the cylinders to slow the movements that make the operation a bit jerky at times.

 

[Taylortractornut]

An old pitmanless sickle mower will work verticle