Anyone With an L3901 or L4701 Running a Ditch/Bank Flail Mower

[welyell]

After much reading, rereading and procrastinating, I'm getting close to purchasing my first tractor. Looking at the L3901 or the L4701. One of my last questions (Ha Ha) before purchase is if anyone here is running a Ditch/Bank Flail Mower on either of those models? I'm concerned about PTO horse power to drive it and the stability of the tractor when deployed as an outrigger away from the tractor. Hopefully someone here has first hand experience? TIA

 

[diesel85]

What kind are you talking about? Side shift or boom style?

Ain't no way an optimal sized boom style is going to work on a L series. Maybe a small 26 incher... but that is practically useless.

Some of the county and town mowers that run boom flail mowers are insane. Makes me question why they need such a large machine... especially when I was a kid, they used to use a sickle bar mower on a beat up John Deer open cab. Now they need to be air conditioned, heated, radios, etc. They probably got GPS in them and a laptop. Ahh, wait... it's just people's tax dollars... who cares about that....

Side shifts will be OK, but it limits what you can do with it if you want to mow ditches and banks.

Last thing you want to do is roll your machine...

Also price... a boom style is going to be some serious cash.

As far as turning it, my little BX2200 lifts and turns a ~650# Woodmaxx 62" flail just fine. I even tested it in heavy brush with the rear door closed to optimize mulching... no issues and no complaints. Did a great job and didn't flinch one bit. Mind you, at the end of the day, the engine in a BX2200 is 22HP, after the HST to the PTO it's maybe 15-16hp on a good day. So I can only imagine an L3901 or a L4701... it'd be like a little toy back there.

 

[welyell]

I've been looking at what I "think" you are referring to as "side-shift". Hooks to the 3pt hitch and can be hydraulically shifted out from the tractor, then tilted either up (up to 90 degrees) or down (up to 60 degrees). Being able to use something like this would literally save me hours of string trimmer (weed wacker) work.

 

[diesel85]

Yes, it's a side-shift with optional tilt control.

With that being said, yes, that would easily work on your (future) machine. You may just need to do some plumbing for the hydraulics.

Just be careful... don't roll your machine. It's so tempting to get right on the edge, but all it does is take for the ground to be loose.

Also, wear your seat belt if you plan on doing this type of work!

 

[RjCorazza]

Those mowers are usually called verge flails. I have been wanting one for quite some time for my steam bank, but have yet to pull the trigger. With my 6300 lb L4060 I believe I am good for a 60-65" Verge mower but no more. Definitely limited by tractor weight as opposed to horsepower.

 

[welyell]

The MX5200 was on my short list as the price difference isn't much from the L4701 and I figured "more weight" was a good thing for this specific application, but I just can't justify it (yet)

 

[ericm979]

5hp per foot of mower is the rule of thumb. Many people do ok with less hp. It depends on what you're mowing, how tall and thick it is. It's tractor weight that will be the issue, especially if you want to run the mower vertically to trim hedges, or lift the mower when it is fully offset. Wheel weights and/or loaded tires will help some.

How large a mower do you want to run and how much does it weigh?

The L01s especially the 3901 are light for their power and price. If the L60s and MXs are too expensive you might consider other brands.

 

[welyell]

5hp per foot of mower is the rule of thumb. Many people do ok with less hp. It depends on what you're mowing, how tall and thick it is. It's tractor weight that will be the issue, especially if you want to run the mower vertically to trim hedges, or lift the mower when it is fully offset. Wheel weights and/or loaded tires will help some.

How large a mower do you want to run and how much does it weigh?

The L01s especially the 3901 are light for their power and price. If the L60s and MXs are too expensive you might consider other brands.

That is why I'm hoping to hear from someone who is actually running the described mower type on the tractor(s) listed. I would like to hear "how large of a mower" and "how much does it weigh" from them Lots of different brands and sizes out there.

 

[vvanders]

It's not a bank mower but I run a 5' caroni flail(shifted to the side) on our L4760, I could probably run 7' or 8' with no issues. The L4701 is pretty light for it's HP and the cost jump is significant for just 8hp which is why we went with the L4760. Started with a 18hp PTO Ford which is why the flail is shorter than I'd like.

Love the flail mower, good at cutting down tall stuff, I've done 3-4' grass, 2-3' high blackberries. It leaves a nice enough cut that it mostly replaces our riding mower except where our septic is. The adjacent field is bushhogged and you can really see the difference.

 

[ericm979]

There's not a lot of people here with ditch bank flails. You might try searching for their threads and seeing what tractor they're running them on, maybe asking.

 

[diesel85]

One thing I forgot to mention, anytime you add hydraulic cylinders you add weight. Also, the offset can dramatically impact the tractor going in a straight line or not.

Only reason my little BX can muster the Woodmaxx, even though it's slightly offset, is because I'm mowing on a relatively flat surface. Which is what a majority of flail mowers are designed to do.

The dynamics are a lot different when the mower is sticking out 3/4 of the way out hitting ruts and uneven surfaces at a downward angle. Too light of a machine will have the mower drag the front end towards the ditch, which isn't good.

So one of those shift/tilt flails are different than most folks flail mower setups.

Another thing you may want to consider are the flails themselves. I got the Y grass blades, mostly because I'm mowing my lawn with it and will leave a nicer cut. You might want the grass blades too... since it sounds like you weedwhack it anyways. It will leave a much nicer appearance than flat hammer blades.

 

[welyell]

It's not a bank mower but I run a 5' caroni flail(shifted to the side) on our L4760, I could probably run 7' or 8' with no issues. The L4701 is pretty light for it's HP and the cost jump is significant for just 8hp which is why we went with the L4760. Started with a 18hp PTO Ford which is why the flail is shorter than I'd like.

Love the flail mower, good at cutting down tall stuff, I've done 3-4' grass, 2-3' high blackberries. It leaves a nice enough cut that it mostly replaces our riding mower except where our septic is. The adjacent field is bushhogged and you can really see the difference.

My "worst case" mowing would be 12"-16" high grass with some blackberry shoots (same height) and other weeds mixed in. This would be the first mowing in the spring. Have you had any issues with the blackberries wrapping around the rotor of the flail? I often end up having to cut them (strings) off the rotors of my Husqvarna riding mower

 

[vvanders]

No problem with blackberries, the shaft rotates forward and up relative to direction of travel. As long as you keep a reasonable groundspeed(~5mph on grass, 1-2mph in tough brush) you should have a nice clean cut.

 

[Fallon]

Power wise, no problem. My L3200 ran a 7' flail ok. I have a side shift 1,700lbs 8' Pruzo Brush Bull on my L4060 now. It puts a good side load when offset & it only goes to the belts even with the tire, not even close to half the mower past the edge of the machine.

I'd think twice about much of a offset mower behind my L4060.