Confused with mower choice

[Sparky67]

My apologies as I don't want to repeat so many other threads about mower choice but I have read hundred's of post's and am as confused as I was when I first began. Here is my scenario, I hope someone can point me in the right direction. Here I go... I have 5-6 Acres of grass to mow on the property. The rest is forested or part of the escarpment and does not require any maintenance. My property has a huge driveway and we are in a snow, belt so I picked up a Kubota L6060 HST with a Cab. Love the machine. Also have a Kubota B7100 HST with a 62" belly mount mower. The small tractor does a decent job, but I would like to sell it and just keep the new Kubota do all the work. My property is fairly hilly, but not too difficult and the back of the home has huge 28' high glass panels approximately 90' wide. I am terrified of spitting a rock out of the back of a rotary finish mower, however I do want a manicured lawn. Some suggest a flail with a finish set-up. Just not sure which way to go. Can a flail provide a golf course quality finish cut? I have seen a video of a Kubota L6060 with a front mounted flail and I was amazed at how the front flail countered to the elevation changes. Looking for an approximate 72" wide unit. Any recommendations on brands?

Has anyone had any experience or knowledge with the Kubota Quick Attach 72" Front Flail? Thanks in advance for your input.
Brad

 

[IslandTractor]

Caroni 75" flail mower TM1900. AgriSupply.com

Long thread on flail mowers here on TBN. It will take you a couple of days to read it all but it should answer all questions.

Leonz is the flail guru here so sent him a PM with other questions.

Flails don't shoot rocks and do a much better job of mowing than bush hogs. Trade off is more maintenance with regular greasing and occasional belt and blade replacement. I've had mine for seven years. Great mower for about $2000.

 

[amaxwell]

Have you considered a 72"zero turn. Mow with the grass exiting away from the windows ,when you are near them.

 

[Sparky67]

Thanks IslandTractor, I am and will continue reading further. Any advise on new Kubota front Flail for the L6060?

 

[Sparky67]

Have you considered a 72"zero turn. Mow with the grass exiting away from the windows ,when you are near them.

Also have a TORO Zero Turn, but am also planning on selling this as I would like to do everything with the new unit.

 

[leonz]

Hello Sparky67,

Found your post at this late hour and I wanted to welcome you to the forum.
I take it you work for Ontario Hydro and live near the Niagara Escarpment??
If not no worries.

As far as forward mounted flails: They are sold in Europe as a rule and you would
need a three point hitch mount kit for the front and a Mid PTO or a Crankshaft PTO
adapter for your mule and that will run into some money as a front mounted PTO
implement requires a reversing gearbox if a mid mount PTO is used.

You can run a wider flail mower with your mule so think about that for a while before
you jump in and become a member of the Canadian branch of the "Flail Mower Nations"

We ran a seven foot JD25A finish flail mower with Ford Jubilee tractor(-35 HP)so no issues there
even with your mule and a seven foot or eight foot finish flail mower is not a problem.

You have plenty of time to look and drool at flail mowers and we can help you.

Adding a foot or two of mowing width (7-8 feet) will reduce your mowing time 25 to fifty
percent on good turf you should have loaded tires.

A finish flail mower with side slicers will provide you with a great cut and the grass blades will
respond quicker with much less mowing shock.

You will not get a putting green cut as they use push reel mowers for that but you will be amazed how well
the turf will look after mowing and the clippings will be very small and decompose quickly AND you can recut
and shred the clippings a second time if desired(you cannot do that with a rotary mower).

You could probably trade the Toro zero turn mower in on a flail mower and get the rears loaded with
windshield washer fluid for ballast as a trade. Having loaded tires is a most when working on slopes.

A rear mounted flail will work just as well as a front mounted flail when it is set up to mow with the
proper height of cut and properly adjusted three point hitch link arms and top link.


Its late and I need to go to bed SO......

 

[IslandTractor]

Thanks IslandTractor, I am and will continue reading further. Any advise on new Kubota front Flail for the L6060?

I wasn't aware Kubota brought out a front flail. I imagine it would be a pricey setup but I love the idea of a front flail. The disadvantage would be loss of the FEL and hassle changing back and forth unless this new tractor is a dedicated mowing machine.

 

[LD1]

Keep the rocks out of the yard.

HAve you looked into a rear discharge finish mower? OR ZTR with a bagger?

I would not want to mow a lawn with a L6060. Too big and heavy IMO

 

[Sparky67]

Thanks very much leone, very helpful response. You obviously know your stuff. No, I don't work for Hydro and am approximately 2hrs north of Niagara Falls. The Niagara Escarpment runs from Niagara Falls to Collingwood. It is a beautiful location with a view of the Toronto skyline.

Yes the L6060 has a Quick Attachment and a Mid PTO and sells a front mounted 72" Flail for this unit. Not cheap, but would be real simple to drop and pick up the blower in the fall. I am also planning on selling my existing AG Tires and getting new Loaded Turf tires so thanks for the advice on the windshield washer fluid. I will take the time to read the posts on Flails and thank you very much for your input and advise. Much appreciated.

 

[Sparky67]

IslandTractor, yes it looks real nice. Kubota has also done this in conjunction with their Quick Attach feature which my unit has so dropping and picking up new attachment is real quick and simple. Thanks for your input, much appreciated.