Z-Michigan
Veteran Member
Hello-
I have read various past threads on flail mowers, and I'm not sure these precise questions have come up.
I'm getting a Kioti DK40SE (which replaces a larger utility tractor I had before) and need a new mower (I had a 6' rotary cutter before and I am familiar with them). I had been looking mostly at a new 6' rotary cutter, but the flail is very appealing to me since it's shorter and doesn't throw rocks. The Caroni TM1900 from agri-supply is the only flail in a price range I'm really considering.
My major uses for the flail mower would be pasture mowing, property perimeter (tall grass, weeds, very little shrubs/brush), and possibly shredding hayfields if they get far too mature before being cut for hay. I am not really hard on a mower, but our property has a LOT of small rocks in the 1" to 5" range, which pop out of the ground every spring and are too numerous to pick them all up before mowing season.
So, here are my questions:
1) Will the Caroni flail be damaged from regularly hitting small 1-5" size rocks? I understand that the blades will get dinged up and eventually have to be replaced from such impacts. I am much more concerned with whether the rear roller is going to be damaged, because that is a far more expensive repair. All the rocks I would hit are fairly small and I shouldn't hit anything that's both big and firmly planted, but it will be unavoidable to hit 1-5" rocks up to several times an hour.
2) Does the Caroni flail have any driveline protection like a shear bolt or slip clutch? If not, can you really get away without having such protection?
Apart from those specific questions, is there any reason I shouldn't get the Caroni flail for my uses? A rotary cutter of the quality I want, equipped with a slip clutch and f/r safety chains, is looking to be within $100 of the flail mower. And the much shorter flail mower would make a lot of my mowing easier and let me store the whole thing inside the barn much more easily, which would be a huge plus.
I have read various past threads on flail mowers, and I'm not sure these precise questions have come up.
I'm getting a Kioti DK40SE (which replaces a larger utility tractor I had before) and need a new mower (I had a 6' rotary cutter before and I am familiar with them). I had been looking mostly at a new 6' rotary cutter, but the flail is very appealing to me since it's shorter and doesn't throw rocks. The Caroni TM1900 from agri-supply is the only flail in a price range I'm really considering.
My major uses for the flail mower would be pasture mowing, property perimeter (tall grass, weeds, very little shrubs/brush), and possibly shredding hayfields if they get far too mature before being cut for hay. I am not really hard on a mower, but our property has a LOT of small rocks in the 1" to 5" range, which pop out of the ground every spring and are too numerous to pick them all up before mowing season.
So, here are my questions:
1) Will the Caroni flail be damaged from regularly hitting small 1-5" size rocks? I understand that the blades will get dinged up and eventually have to be replaced from such impacts. I am much more concerned with whether the rear roller is going to be damaged, because that is a far more expensive repair. All the rocks I would hit are fairly small and I shouldn't hit anything that's both big and firmly planted, but it will be unavoidable to hit 1-5" rocks up to several times an hour.
2) Does the Caroni flail have any driveline protection like a shear bolt or slip clutch? If not, can you really get away without having such protection?
Apart from those specific questions, is there any reason I shouldn't get the Caroni flail for my uses? A rotary cutter of the quality I want, equipped with a slip clutch and f/r safety chains, is looking to be within $100 of the flail mower. And the much shorter flail mower would make a lot of my mowing easier and let me store the whole thing inside the barn much more easily, which would be a huge plus.