Flail Mower Let's talk flail mowers

[ovrszd]

Doesn't it still depend on rotation?? My Ford Coarse Cut knives look similar to these and are mounted the same way. My rotor turns the same direction as the tractor tires when cutting. Thus, the cutting edge is on what appears to be the back side.

 

[DocDryden]

Not sure if its true, but I remember reading that the PTO shaft rotates backwards on some gray market tractors.

 

[leonz]

Good morning fellow members of the TBN forum and the esteemed members of The Flail Mower Nations.


After a night of somewhat restfull sleep:

If the previous owners mule was a grey market nag
with a Power Take Off that operates in that way wherein the
scoop knives rotate counter clockwise when looking at
the left side of the flail mower that explains the entire mess/opportunity.

It explains the condition of the existing scoop knives which
could have been or are most likely original equipment to begin with.

When the used in a flail chopper the scoop knifes would also
face forward which scoops the material up and throws it into
the cross auger which carries the green chop to the impeller fan.

When used in a flail harvester the cutting edge of the cup knives also face forward
and cut and throw the chopped hay up the chute and into the silage wagon.



The scoop knifes allow a higher suction to carry the clippings over the flail mower rotor.
there is so much we do not know as yet
.

 

[IslandTractor]

Doesn't it still depend on rotation?? My Ford Coarse Cut knives look similar to these and are mounted the same way. My rotor turns the same direction as the tractor tires when cutting. Thus, the cutting edge is on what appears to be the back side.

Yep. Rotor rotation direction is critical for scoop or hammer knives and easy to confuse. I think the simplest way to describe it is to use the tractor tires as a reference. The rotor either rotates the same direction or counter rotates. Easy to determine if you raise the 3PT and peek underneath (from a safe distance) when the PTO is started or shut off.

 

[DavesTractor]

Not sure if its true, but I remember reading that the PTO shaft rotates backwards on some gray market tractors.

A few did, mostly real small tractors though. Also, some flails were designed to mount on the front of tractors and used a different PTO speed and perhaps a different direction. One of my friends bought a Mott years ago that did not have the typical three-point mount. He fabricated a mount and was pretty proud of his bargain find, only to find that the mower spun the opposite rotation than expected and not at the right speed. He sold it cheap to another handy guy and bought a Vrisimo.

On knives, we sell almost 100% scoop knives in our area. Typical usage is mowing orchard grass and small twigs. For after pruning mowing, the guys are normally using heavy shredder mowers with hammers.

I mow my field and orchard with scoop knives and it gives a nice cut.

 

[IslandTractor]

A few did, mostly real small tractors though. Also, some flails were designed to mount on the front of tractors and used a different PTO speed and perhaps a different direction. One of my friends bought a Mott years ago that did not have the typical three-point mount. He fabricated a mount and was pretty proud of his bargain find, only to find that the mower spun the opposite rotation than expected and not at the right speed. He sold it cheap to another handy guy and bought a Vrisimo. On knives, we sell almost 100% scoop knives in our area. Typical usage is mowing orchard grass and small twigs. For after pruning mowing, the guys are normally using heavy shredder mowers with hammers. I mow my field and orchard with scoop knives and it gives a nice cut.

I've always thought that a front mounted flail would be the cat's pajamas. Easy to see exactly where you will be mowing and great for mowing close to obstacles. I've seen some of those setups in Europe but never here.

 

[DavesTractor]

I've always thought that a front mounted flail would be the cat's pajamas. Easy to see exactly where you will be mowing and great for mowing close to obstacles. I've seen some of those setups in Europe but never here.

The only downside would be managing the debris flow out of the mower so it stayed out of the radiator.

 

[Xfaxman]

I've always thought that a front mounted flail would be the cat's pajamas. Easy to see exactly where you will be mowing and great for mowing close to obstacles. I've seen some of those setups in Europe but never here.

The only downside would be managing the debris flow out of the mower so it stayed out of the radiator.

I have a 5' front mount for my TORO 328D Groundsmaster. The radiator is back far enough that there is no problem with the cuttings.

Rotation is opposite of the tires. When the blades get dull, you can remove the drum and turn it around so the sharp edge will be forward.

I don't have any pictures of it in use. This is what it fits on, after removing the rotary deck of course .

 

[Blade Breaker]

Why do you use the rotary mower instead of the flail? Does the rotary give a better cut?

I have a 5' front mount for my TORO 328D Groundsmaster. The radiator is back far enough that there is no problem with the cuttings.

Rotation is opposite of the tires. When the blades get dull, you can remove the drum and turn it around so the sharp edge will be forward.

I don't have any pictures of it in use. This is what it fits on, after removing the rotary deck of course .

 

[mgraham112]

I'm glad we cleared up the confusion, but I can certainly see why there was some.
Here are the facts known at the moment-
(1) The knives in the picture are scoop knives
(2) They are also mounted backwards
(3) The true cutting edge is completely rounded over to actually give an edge in the opposite direction.
(4) The rotor spins opposite of the tractor tire rotation(moving forward)

I have a box of brand new scoops that I will install on Sunday when I get back in town and the paint is completely dry. I hope to take the mower back to the farm then and give it a shot. I haven't bush hogged in some time, awaiting on the day the flail is up and running.

For whatever reason I have issues getting pictures to upload or else I would show some close up picks of how bad the blades are. I wish I could upload from my phone to the forum... Nevermind it worked this time! The way they were mounted there was an edge that I thought would cut, maybe wind resistance had something to do with the no cut issue on top of the backward blades.