Rotary Cutter Which rotary cutter would you buy?

[JCS_in_KY]

I'm looking at 6' rotary cutters. I'll mainly be cutting weeds and tall grass. The three rotary cutters that seem to be available in my area are Howse, King Kutter and Tennessee River. They all seem to be within $100 in price. Which of the three would you buy? John

 

[KiotiJohn]

I like the Howse over the KK, and can't comment on the TR.
I've used my Howse 48" econonmy model a lot, and have cut a lot of 1-3" (backing into it very slowly, allowing slow cuts) material with it, and it has held up well so far.

I think you'll pretty much find the gear boxes on economy models to be from the same OEM maker within reason, so the overall construction of the individual machines may be the biggest differences.

I'm in my 3rd season with this mower and it shows no signs of problems so far.

There have been many many postive posts from members on Howse mowers, and also KK.

John

 

[Highbeam]

That's light duty for an RC. Any of those brands will work. I would also consider deck thickness, blade width, and overall weight of the machine. Thicker and heavier are better. If the RCs are still pretty equal then reward the dealer with the best service and tell him that's why you bought it from them.

Slip clutch, slip clutch, slip clutch.

 

[LeadPoison]

I bought a Woods BB720 which is a medium duty. I would buy the BB72 which is rated to 1.5" if I were buying light duty though.

 

[kossetx]

Out of those 3, I would buy the KK. It has 3/16" "I" beam sides that goes all the way back to the discharge shoot, VS the Howse rolled under sides. I see this as a tremendous strength advantage. They both have similar smallish gearboxes. I can't comment on the Tennessee brand.

I have an older Howse that has a skidplate welded underneath down each side. Where that plate isn't, the sides are bent and torn. I see that happening to the rolled under side, that took the place of the welded side. That being said, I've mowed 3" saplings of oak, cedar and mesquite with mine with no problems, other than the torn up sides. The gearbox oil seal went out quite quickly but I filled the box with grease and 300 hours later has no problems.

I'm looking for a 6'er too. I think I'm going to go with the Rhino SE. It is sturdier built and has a much bigger gearbox for 1250.00 here in my area. That is 350.00 more than the KK I saw. It also has a front deflector which I feel is very important. The KK has no where to mount one and would need to be modified to install one. Not much of a big deal, but extra work.

Just my .02, MP

 

[BB_TX]

I have had a 6' Howse for 6 yrs and no problems at all. Most of my work is mowing pasture and ditches but I have also done quite a bit of brush clearing with it along the creek and fence rows. Takes it all in stride.

 

[JCS_in_KY]

I went today and looked at rotary cutters at TSC and the local farm supply store. A few months ago when I looked the farm supply store had the Tennessee River and Howse. The only 6' he carries now is a light duty one made by a company called Rowland or Roland made by a company in Tennessee. I didn't get to get a real close look at the cutter but I could see that the top rolls over and forms the sides similar to the Howse design. The weight of the cutter is about 640 lbs. After looking there I went over to TSC and looked at the King Kutters again. The King Kutter seems to be a little better built and is about 60 lbs heavier. The prices are $675 for the Roland and $800 for the King Kutter. I know we could spend more and get a Bush Hog brand or another more expensive brand but the cutter will only see light use 3 - 4 times a year on about 3 acres each time and will be stored inside so I don't think we need to spend as much as some of the more expensive cutters cost. Does anyone here have any experience with the Roland brand cutter? John

 

[Soundguy]

No exp with roland. However.. I have used Howse and KK mowers.. they are a decent light/medium duty cutter. i've had no problems cutting brush with them.

Soundguy

 

[JoeF]

JCS
Some models of the howse is really too light and would do only as a pasture clipper. I have lived less than 10 miles from the factory for the past 30 years. Send me the model number and maybe I can help. No I don't work for them. Yes I have a howse cutter.