Rotary Cutters Fling Hazard

[glenk]

Hi all. I bought a rotary cutter for my subcompact to keep the weeds down until I can landscape on my two acre lot. I'd like to get as close to the house as much as possible. I plan to put 4 by 8s in front of windows and patio doors (I have a lot of windows) when cutting by house and then check the area for rocks and objects ahead of cutting.

My question. Do rotary cutters fling in all directions? I've read that the rear should be set higher to allow for material to escape so I was going to avoid driving directly away from the house and do most of the cutting runs in parallel.

My thoughts:

1. Check the area for objects that may fling.
2. Set the cutter high (no need to cut flush to the ground).

 

[DieselBound]

The lower the cutter the more debris is retained within the deck. If you raise it up there's greater spacing to eject material. Of course, the former is likely to find stuff to hit, while the later less. It's kind of a toss-up.

Kind of also depends on what kind of material you're worried about and what kind of deflectors is on the cutter. My larger cutter has chain guards and these do a great job in absorbing material that is looking to eject from under the deck.

Generally stuff is ejected out the front or rear of bush hogs.

Best recourse is to scout for and remove as many potential projectiles in advance of mowing. I do this with my riding mower, not so much to keep stuff from being ejected as it is to keep from dulling the blades (unlike a bush hog, riding mowers' blades really need to be sharp and they're quite fragile comparatively).

If really concerned then get a flail mower and mow parallel to the home. Or pay someone who is bonded to deal with until things seem settled down.

I suppose your plan of action would work. Eventually, if run low, a bush hog will level things out such that you're left with little in the way of ejectable elements.

 

[vvanders]

The key is in the name, rotary means they can fling at any angle. Anything small enough to make the clearance between the deck and the ground.

If you don't want to take out a window you may want to look into a flail mower, more maintenance but much, much safer.

 

[Jerry/MT]

Hi all. I bought a rotary cutter for my subcompact to keep the weeds down until I can landscape on my two acre lot. I'd like to get as close to the house as much as possible. I plan to put 4 by 8s in front of windows and patio doors (I have a lot of windows) when cutting by house and then check the area for rocks and objects ahead of cutting.

My question. Do rotary cutters fling in all directions? I've read that the rear should be set higher to allow for material to escape so I was going to avoid driving directly away from the house and do most of the cutting runs in parallel.

My thoughts:

1. Check the area for objects that may fling.
2. Set the cutter high (no need to cut flush to the ground).

View attachment 564628

Rotary cutters can fling objects in all direction. Generally speaking, the side rails reduce side discharges and you should have deflectors (usually chain like devices) at the front and the rear discharge areas to minimize objects being thrown fore and aft. I agree with your items 1 & 2 but nothing is fool proof. If the picture is what you plan to mow than I doubt you'll need protection at the house with all that shrubbery between the grass and the house.

 

[TripleR]

I have pretty much the same setup as you, BX22002660 and 48" cutter and in the last 10 years haven't damaged anything by mowing fairly low and running parallel to buildings and as mentioned scouting the area. My son did a back yard cleanup this week, no damage, no problem.

It can be nerve wracking and you really have to pay attention. If you are going to do a new yard, I'd consider spraying it or keep it tilled.

 

[glenk]

If the picture is what you plan to mow than I doubt you'll need protection at the house with all that shrubbery between the grass and the house.

Ah, that's my neighbor's house! I'll have to hope those oleanders prevent anything flying over there.

 

[shooterdon]

I used a brush hog for tge first time last week and I was surprised at how large a stone it can toss out and the range.

I am definitely going to go over the area and pick things up. I may try running a landscape rake at an angle to dislodge stones close to the surface and move then to one side

 

[glenk]

Thanks all. I'm new to tractoring. Youtube can only help so much!

 

[hosspuller]

There are a couple of stones at the left of the photo. A bush hog will either throw them whole or shatter them and spit pieces at high velocity. Walk the ground and look for stuff BEFORE running the cutter over it.:thumbdown: Barbed wire is especially nasty to unwind from a cutter. I know from experience. :2cents:

 

[jeff9366]

I have pretty much the same setup as you, BX22002660 and 48" cutter and in the last 10 years haven't damaged anything by mowing fairly low and running parallel to buildings and as mentioned scouting the area.

You can research blade velocity of various width Rotary Cutters. Wider cutters have much higher blade velocity.

A BX will likely have 48" width R/C.

Blades within a BX Rotary Cutter will not be nearly as heavy, therefore will not store nearly as much energy, as thicker, wider blades on wider cutters.

In short, throw damage from a Rotary Cutter behind a BX is minimal.