Towable Mowing Decks

[apexlocator]

Kunz makes a nice professional tow behind mower. Has anyone used these? I'm thinking of replacing my Tank M-60 with 60in deck with a smaller unit and towing a 60in deck behind on my open stretches. But I'm not sure if it's worth the trouble. I do like the idea of a separate mower apart from the tow vehicle, which could be anything you choose to use.

 

[adirondackmtnman]

I had a Swisher 48" tow behind. I used a 4 wheeler to tow it. Worked well enough, but I traded it in towards a rider and used less than half the fuel that I previously had.

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[KennK]

I have the wider Kunz Rough Cut Mower with the Briggs & Stratten engine. It works like a dream and tough as nails. I use it to cut a pasture - not for finish mowing. I assume it could do finish mowing as well as ... well ... their finish mower.

Since its towed it tends to cut corners. Pulled with an ATV I just do 1-width wide corners to stay on track. I try to cut near a building, but being towed it is MUCH tougher being accurate than with a riding mower - I can comfortably get within 1-2 feet.

Its long enough - with the extended from hitch bar - that backing up is not very accurate. But then again I find it tough to back up short trailers too.

By the way, I picked the mower up from their small factory in rural Illinois. They gave me a tour. In fact they are an excellent example of a family business. The factory is a moderate sized building with very neatly kept stock of the components. They take their products seriously and are very proud of what they do.

 

[adirondackmtnman]

I have the wider Kunz Rough Cut Mower with the Briggs & Stratten engine. It works like a dream and tough as nails. I use it to cut a pasture - not for finish mowing. I assume it could do finish mowing as well as ... well ... their finish mower.

Since its towed it tends to cut corners. Pulled with an ATV I just do 1-width wide corners to stay on track. I try to cut near a building, but being towed it is MUCH tougher being accurate than with a riding mower - I can comfortably get within 1-2 feet.

Its long enough - with the extended from hitch bar - that backing up is not very accurate. But then again I find it tough to back up short trailers too.

By the way, I picked the mower up from their small factory in rural Illinois. They gave me a tour. In fact they are an excellent example of a family business. The factory is a moderate sized building with very neatly kept stock of the components. They take their products seriously and are very proud of what they do.

Does it have an ability to offset the drawbar? My swisher allowed the drawbar to be angled allowing the mower to jut out to the side, which allowed me to get closer in to the corners of my fields and closer to buildings...also saved me a lot of craning my neck to see it behind me.

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[1bush2hog]

Does it have an ability to offset the drawbar? My swisher allowed the drawbar to be angled allowing the mower to jut out to the side, which allowed me to get closer in to the corners of my fields and closer to buildings...also saved me a lot of craning my neck to see it behind me.

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I have the 60" Acrease rough cut mower, and yes the mower can be offset to either side of the towing vehicle. It takes a pretty good sized ATV/UTV to pull this unit when working on hills, and due to the weight of the mower you typically have to pull it using low gear. This can create some heat issues on the ATV/UTV if you are operating continuously for long periods of time, so you may want to put a temp gauge on your ATV/UTV to monitor this.

It does take a little practice to back the mower up, but it is a beast of a mower. The offset wheels keep the mower on the ground, and work great to keep the mower level when traversing ditches and uneven terrain.

 

[KennK]

I have the 60" Acrease rough cut mower, and yes the mower can be offset to either side of the towing vehicle. It takes a pretty good sized ATV/UTV to pull this unit when working on hills, and due to the weight of the mower you typically have to pull it using low gear. This can create some heat issues on the ATV/UTV if you are operating continuously for long periods of time, so you may want to put a temp gauge on your ATV/UTV to monitor this.

It does take a little practice to back the mower up, but it is a beast of a mower. The offset wheels keep the mower on the ground, and work great to keep the mower level when traversing ditches and uneven terrain.

I agree. I use a Honda Rincon 680 cc ATV on fairly flat land so pulling is no problem at all - quite easy actually. Be brought the mower to the property before we could get the ATV there so for the first use we actually pulled the mower with my Chevy Tahoe - radio playing, AC on (it was hot out), and my daughter in back guiding me left & right. It was pretty funny, but worked great.

It can be tough to push by hand on uneven ground. Pulling it by hand is much easier.

I do have some concern about the lift towers on each side of the deck catching on branches & vines at the edge of woods - fear that they could get bent. No problem so far after several years of use though. I actually had a branch or vine catch and twist off the oil cap at one point. The cap dropped onto the deck lid (not lost) and oil splashed out a bit, but no harm at all after a bit of cleanup and an oil level check.

 

[Gordon Gould]

I have a 42" unit I also pull behind the wheeler. I run it in the woods on some pretty rough trails. I looked at the Swisher mowers and that spindley offsetable shaft would never survive my usage but would be very nice in open flat going. Mine is 14 years old and was made by Fuerst but they are out of buisness now.
For flat field work I would rather use a standard bush hog and the pull behind seems better for trails.

 

[KennK]

Here are a few pics of my Kunz Rough Cut Mower in use (ATV driven by my daughter). You can see the silver lift towers on each side - those are the ones I worry about catching on branches and vines. Its a beefy mower.