3 Pt Finish Mower Vs. Belly Mower

[bcarter]

This is great! You ask a question and you come back in a couple of days to find a bunch of great responses! Thanks to all for your input... and Bird, I have to ask... When do you sleep? /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

It seems that the 3pt mowers have more votes.

There were several comments about discharge of the clippings...a point which I hadn't even considered... Do the rear discharge mowers tend leave the clippings in "windrows"? My guess is that they would based on the comments made, but I've never actually seen a rear discharge mower before... Do any of the 3 pt mowers have a provision for picking up the clipppings? What about the belly mowers?

I currently either bag or mulch the clippings with the LawnBoy... I don't mind leaving the clippings if they're spread out but windrows might mean raking if the boss doesn't like them. /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

 

[Bird]

bcarter, I think you'll find much less windrowing with a rear discharge mower than with a side discharge. At least that's the case with my Bush Hog with the chain guard across the back. And I've never seen a provision for catching and bagging the grass with a 3-point mower (although I won't be surprised if someone tells me such exists)./w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

And I usually get 6 or 7 hours sleep a night, but don't live by the clock anymore, and sure like that. Just go to bed when I get sleepy and get up when I wake up./w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

Bird

 

[Kelvin]

All things considered, I believe that most people will go for the 3pt hitch finish mower. When I posted the advantages of the mid-mower earlier, I left off one advantage: If you usually store the tractor with the mower attached, having the mid-mower attached takes up a lot less storage space than having a 3pt mounted mower.

The descion of "mid-mower vs 3pt mower" also depends upon the tractor on which it will be used. I have a B2150 that I would never buy a mid-mower for (unless it was a really good price) because of (1) the ground clearance is very poor, and even less because I have a loader installed, and (2) the mid-PTO and the rear-PTO operate simultaneously such that I could never use any rear-PTO driven equipment while the mid-mower was attached (I could see myself ocassionally having a rotary mower and mid-mower attached at the same time).

If I ever decide to upgrade the B2150 to the B2710 or B2910 (or even go down to the B2410), then I would seriously consider the mid-mower since the ground clearance is much better and the mid & rear PTOs operate independently of each other.

On my older B7100 with mid-mower (front PTO with belt drive...Oh boy!). I praise the mower when I am using it and curse it when I am having perform maintenance on it. Fortuneately, I spend a lot more hours in the "use" mode than the "maintenance" mode. The best part is that this B7100 helps me keep putting off the decision of MID vs REAR mower for the B2150 (going on two years now...).

Just in case you weren't confused enough...

 

[W5FL]

Easy for me. My tractor doesn't have a mid PTO and my riding lawnmower doesn't have a rear PTO. /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

 

[jyoutz]

JimB, FYI -You can put a hoe on a JD4100 -this info gets passed around because JD doesn't make one for them. But several implement companies do -Woods is one company that does. I do agree with your assessment about the size and weight tractor needed to mow and work on small acreage. Overbuying will assure that equipment will be seldom used if the weight or manuverability cause problems. I own a mid-mount mower and really like the ease of mowing with it. And the mid-mount that goes to the 4100 is very easy to put on or remove. Provided you can do it on a level surface, I don't think its any more work than hitching a 3 point mower.

 

[Dick]

You might think a little smaller than a 2710 for 1 1/2 acres.

If you are going to only use a mower during the summer rather than a number of ground engaging implements (tiller etc) that use the rear PTO then a mid-mount mower would work fine (actually better since your rig would be shorter for turns).
If you are going to need to get under trees and near stream/pond edges then a rear mount would have more flecability.