Mulching equipment

[Raul5452]

Hello Gentlemen, I'm brand new on tractor by net. I have been anxious to participate in the land clearing business.
I've been mowing lots,pastures brush and spreading dirt for 17 years with a John Deere 970 , rhino tw60, and now a 260. Great shredders . Mowing brush 1"/3" in diameter. I have a loader on tractor which I use to push the brush down and the shredder does the rest. I'm hoping to upgrade to a JD 5075 with 60 HP at pro and right now the seppi 175 or 200 are my main interest. I hope to get a 12 forward 12 power reverse transmission. Any advice. This will be a big investment for me. I hope to run the tractor forward allowing the mulcher to cut the brush. Any brush thicker than 4" I will back up on the trees as I've seen on many videos.Will this work ? Thank you all for any help.

 

[tonyoz]

A hydrostatic trany on your tractor is a real good option and well worth the extra dollars IMHO.Without it you could be paying for it in clutch repairs and a sore knee. I use an old Ford Versatile bidirectional tractor and push the mower. I don't get punctures that way. ;-)

 

[yellowdogsvc]

Welcome to Tractorbynet. Is that JD5075 a bi directional? If not, I think you will be frustrated going backwards with a mulcher. I'd get out of the tractor unless you want to spend really big bucks setting it up for mulching.

Look into a CTL which would work perfect in Corpus and will run and lift circles around the tractor. You won't go back, I promise, to a tractor for mowing or mulching. I just finished a 40 acre tract with plenty of brush like you describe, rocks, rough terrain and 6' tall johnson grass and I did it with my Bobcat and a Virnig mower (I can't say enough good things about Virnig after mowing 70 acres since i got it last fall).

If you want to go into dedicated mulching and keep your other tractor for dirt work or mowing, look at what Tony has. I started off 20 years ago doing things with a tractor and switched to skid steers. I would never go back and if I had a tractor I would use it for support work or mowing where it's okay to mow a little higher and I want to save on fuel.

 

[AKfish]

Hello Gentlemen, I'm brand new on tractor by net. I have been anxious to participate in the land clearing business.
I've been mowing lots,pastures brush and spreading dirt for 17 years with a John Deere 970 , rhino tw60, and now a 260. Great shredders . Mowing brush 1"/3" in diameter. I have a loader on tractor which I use to push the brush down and the shredder does the rest. I'm hoping to upgrade to a JD 5075 with 60 HP at pro and right now the seppi 175 or 200 are my main interest. I hope to get a 12 forward 12 power reverse transmission. Any advice. This will be a big investment for me. I hope to run the tractor forward allowing the mulcher to cut the brush. Any brush thicker than 4" I will back up on the trees as I've seen on many videos.Will this work ? Thank you all for any help.

I read your earlier post on the JD forum regarding the M versus E model question @75hp.

I have been clearing timber and brush in Alaska for the past 12 years. I have used everything from a bulldozer - excavator to a brush hog type mower.

A very similar implement to the Seppi that I have used extensively is a Hak-Met implement called a Meri-Crusher. Made in Finland, if I recall.

PTO rear or front mount. Very heavy; the 59" model weighs ~2,000lbs. Rotary drum with carbide mulching/cutting teeth. Similar to a Fecon type implement. Very expensive as well. The model I rented cost just over $25,000 approx.

For what it's worth; the real decision that you should consider is - are you planning to work as a land clearing/brush removal business or something less than that; i.e. pasture remediation, etc.

If you're really gonna go all out for land clearing - follow the lead here from these guys that are doing that for a living. Big skidsteer and HD hydraulic Fecon header, etc.

The JD5075E will not be an adequate platform - in my honest opinion. Running the HakMet Meri-Crusher with my JD5075M (16x16) transmission was at the tractor's maximum. I would not recommend working the tractor full-time using an implement of that type.

Best of luck.

 

[tonyoz]

You can see the old Ford on Facebook ( CTC Mulching) to give you an idea. The reason it got it is, doing areas of small scrub becomes more cost effective (for me and client) using it compaired to a forestry mulcher. Another thing to consider is that this game is all about horsepower and how its used. More is better. ;-)

 

[Raul5452]

AKFISH, YEIIOWDOG AND TONY thanks again for your input. If you don't mind I'd like to pick your brains a bit more. Something I left out..... I've been wheelchair bound for 26 years now due to an on the job accident. Use to be a welder. I've been able to stand a bit and take a couple of steps if I can hold on to something sturdy. Which is how I get on my tractor. Step up on a wooden box and lift my self up onto tractor with upper body. Not looking for sympathy but understanding of how to upgrade to equipment. Therefore skidsteer is out .... Can't get in the darn things.bigger tractors .... To darn high. Maybe 5085. I've seen some for sale that are low profile by changing rims and using industrial tires (shorter lugs). All this to allow me to get up in the tractor. And I am now 63. I hope to do this another 10 years. Mowing lots / pastures , spreading dirt is probably 60 % of my work. Brush clearing 40% but hope to pick it up. So please reconsider your experience is invaluable. AKFISH your 5075 using the mulcher what gear could you run in mulching 1"to 3" brush? Could you run it in forward gears ? Anyone else please give me your input. Thanks again

 

[aczlan]

Perhaps something like a JCB 330? It is a single arm skidsteer with a side entry door: Skid Steer Loaders | Skid Steers | JCB 33


Aaron Z

 

[tonyoz]

Well Raul, have a look at Antonio Carraro tractors, also bidirectional, low profile so you could just about chuck your box away. Without the use of your legs IMO makes hydrostatic drive a much better option as it would give you far better control of your tractor, just one lever for speed and direction control.I have often thought of how good my ole tractor would be with no steering wheel, just 2 levers setup the same as a skid steer, steering and direction on left, 3 point linkage on the right.
Wishing you the very best of luck in your choices. I love to see a battler have a go.

PS, I don't know how to post links so if someone can send a link for Antonio Carraro tractors would be appricated. Cheers

 

[yellowdogsvc]

The antonio carraro is good advice because they are low to the ground. The problem with mulching equipment is getting out to clean stuff off the machine and grease. I grease every 4-5 hours on the rotor.

The JCB might be one option. Have you looked at the Rayco 100 size machine?

 

[AKfish]

AKFISH, YEIIOWDOG AND TONY thanks again for your input. If you don't mind I'd like to pick your brains a bit more. Something I left out..... I've been wheelchair bound for 26 years now due to an on the job accident. Use to be a welder. I've been able to stand a bit and take a couple of steps if I can hold on to something sturdy. Which is how I get on my tractor. Step up on a wooden box and lift my self up onto tractor with upper body. Not looking for sympathy but understanding of how to upgrade to equipment. Therefore skidsteer is out .... Can't get in the darn things.bigger tractors .... To darn high. Maybe 5085. I've seen some for sale that are low profile by changing rims and using industrial tires (shorter lugs). All this to allow me to get up in the tractor. And I am now 63. I hope to do this another 10 years. Mowing lots / pastures , spreading dirt is probably 60 % of my work. Brush clearing 40% but hope to pick it up. So please reconsider your experience is invaluable. AKFISH your 5075 using the mulcher what gear could you run in mulching 1"to 3" brush? Could you run it in forward gears ? Anyone else please give me your input. Thanks again

I applaud yur grit, sir. You sic 'em - for as long as you can!

Yes, I ran the mulcher in forward and reverse gears. Usually in the first (2) lowest gears - A1 and A2.

My experience in really thick brush was... I wished I'd bought the creeper transmission option! You really want those teeth to grind and grind. Even at 1.1-1.2mph the tractor would bog down and not do a good job mulching. Required 4-5 passes to really grind things up and bury the woody material into the soil.

Couple of observations - JD makes a low profile cab tractor for tree farms, nut farms and vineyards. You can get them with lower profile R4 tires that are heavier duty (puncture resistant) with higher ply rating than the R1 tires. Getting in and out of the cab on those machines would be easier than my 5075M with 30 inch tires. (It's a step up to just reach the 2-step rail - I'm 65...)

However, the powReverser transmission requires using the clutch to start the tractor and place/remove the machine from park. And, to change ranges and forward gears, you need the clutch.

I also own a cab model, JD 4720 (66hp) that is eHydro. It will run my MX-8 brush hog mower that will tackle 1"-3" brush. I leave the loader and bucket on with that mower....LOL! Smaller cab, don't like the AC nearly as good as my 75M, though. The 400CX loader will pick 2,000lb bags of fertilizer but you better watch the rear-end... And go slow. That said, just mowing the brush doesn't really "clear" the ground. There's the left-over stumps and woody slash. That's where the Meri-Crusher would really shine cause it would incorporate the leftover slash, etc. down into the soil leaving a mostly smooth seed bed.

It might be worth investigating a "hand clutch" option with your dealer. Lot's of folk's that have been in the "wrong place at the right time" and had their life forever changed!

So, the manufacturer's have made adjustments based on that reality.

Best of luck.