Rough cut 10 acres moderately sloped

[sthore]

What is the best way ( including cost, time & hassle) for rough cut maintenance of 10 acres of a moderately sloping field. I have to purchase an UTV so wondered how the pull behind mowers (Swisher, Plotmower,AcrEase etc) would do & what width would be best. I am not mechanically gifted so would prefer few repair problems. Thanks

Steve

 

[1010]

Hire somebody to cut it!!

DAVID,

 

[johnrex62]

Yeah, I agree. If you are looking for the least effort way to do it, pay someone else. Let them handle the equipment maintenance and repairs and do the sweating. It will cost you less money in the long run and give you more free time.

If you cannot find someone to hire, for whatever reason, then get the biggest pull behind rough cutter you can afford and an ATV that can pull it. Most small tractors pull a 5' wide mower, so if you can find something between 4-6' you will be in the same production range as a tractor/brush hog combo and the cutter will only run you a couple thousand new. If you know a good mechanic that can check things out, you might save a few bucks buying used, but the maintenance will likely be higher.

Depending on how "rough" you want it to be, you can get by with a few mowings per year so your investment in time and equipment could be kept fairly low. I expect it will take a good portion of a full day to mow 10 acres even with a wide cutter and a fast ground speed.

 

[MNBobcat]

I have a 15 acre field that I was cutting by pulling 2 rough cut mowers, ganged together with a slight overlap, pulled behind a Farmall H. Let me tell you, it took way more hours to cut (with 2 mowers) than I was willing to spend. I eventually gave up and bought a John Deere 3020 diesel tractor and a 15 foot batwing mower. I can now cut all 15 acres in 3 hours.

And the above was cutting on a flat field.

You can do what you want to do but you're talking a lot of hours of mowing.

The swisher is a great roughcut mower.

 

[MoKelly]

I have an Agri-Fab pull-behind rough cut mower (12.5 h.p. and 60 inch cut). It works well and does a good job.

However, it is not maintenance free (bolts will break, belts need changing, the starter will break and need repair).

Also, it seems to me it is best used for tight spaces, smaller areas and places a regular tractor/bruch hog can't access.

For your needs and acerage, you really should have a tractor and brush hog. It will take forever to cut all that acres with apull behind machine and it will beat that machine up quite a bit.

I think I agree with many of the previous comments about hiring it out if the only option is a pull behind mower.

MoKelly

 

[T_S_S]

where are you located

 

[Thomas]

If I,I would adjust mowing deck at high setting,than after first cutting pass over lap 3/4 of deck new cutting.
Good rpm's w/easy travel speed not to bog down mower it can be done but timely.

 

[Highbeam]

A 12HP gas engine on a 60 inch deck is not equivalent to a 30 HP tractor powering a 60" rotary cutter. Don't waste your money on a pull behind, go PTO.

 

[MrBushhog]

i would hire someone a few times and see how it goes price wise and try different people too.

 

[flusher]

What is the best way ( including cost, time & hassle) for rough cut maintenance of 10 acres of a moderately sloping field. I have to purchase an UTV so wondered how the pull behind mowers (Swisher, Plotmower,AcrEase etc) would do & what width would be best. I am not mechanically gifted so would prefer few repair problems. Thanks

Steve

You could do it with the equipment you mentioned, but it would take a lot of seat time (8-12 hours would be my guess). If you have the time to spend riding your UTV on this job, go for it. Personally, I'd look for a $3000 used tractor like a Ford 8N and buy a 5-ft brush hog for $800. But it you have to buy a UTV then the pull behind mower is what you want.