DelMorino Flail Mower Power Stall/Clutch?

[ds10]

I've got a DelMorino Funny Super 132M flail mower with hammer cutters on my Kubota LX2610. This attachment has hydraulic side shift and tilt. It's been really great to work with. My concern is it has started to develop a pattern where the power from the PTO is interrupted then resumes. I'm guessing there's a clutch in the PTO shaft or the mower itself, and it's kicking in due to load. What's odd is this happens mostly in tall grass and such and not when the mower is eating its way through brush and woody material.

I've uploaded a short video to my YouTube account in which you can hear the sound difference as this occurs. The mower does keep cutting through this, as the hammers and drum have plenty of momentum to keep it spinning. I'm concerned there may be an issue I need to resolve, and am looking for ideas on what I should be looking at to address it. It didn't do this when I got the attachment earlier in the year. I have lubricated the mower, but haven't taken apart the drive shaft yet. The attachment was fitted to the tractor by my Kubota dealer. Given this is my first time owning a flail mower, I'm not even sure if this is just normal, but it doesn't seem like it. Any thoughts or advice?

 

[ptsg]

I think the flail mower is fine and working great, however it looks to me that there is something fishy going on with the PTO clutch on the tractor.

It's almost like the PTO is disconnecting and reconnecting right away, for some reason.

Are the engine RPM dropping down or it's just the PTO?

 

[LouNY]

I could hear the short change in noise but I wouldn't want too guess what the cause is.
If in your tractor it's going to be rough.
You say it's mostly an issue in taller grass and such,
do you think it's slipping your belts?
Also those seem to have some recutters on them are yours adjustable?
if so I'd remove or retract them and see if it changes.

 

[ds10]

I think the flail mower is fine and working great, however it looks to me that there is something fishy going on with the PTO clutch on the tractor.

It's almost like the PTO is disconnecting and reconnecting right away, for some reason.

Are the engine RPM dropping down or it's just the PTO?

PTO RPM stays steady. I have the dash display PTO revs when using the rear PTO. My expectation is there is a clutch in the drive line that’s releasing and engaging. But whether it is doing so because the mower is presenting too much resistance is a concern.

 

[ds10]

I could hear the short change in noise but I wouldn't want too guess what the cause is.
If in your tractor it's going to be rough.
You say it's mostly an issue in taller grass and such,
do you think it's slipping your belts?
Also those seem to have some recutters on them are yours adjustable?
if so I'd remove or retract them and see if it changes.

Tractor is 7 months old, so if it’s in the machine, it’ll be warrantee.

Not sure what reciters are. This mower has hammers on the drum that do the cutting. No other cutting parts in this flail.

 

[K5lwq]

From what I saw in the video the mower was not in a heavy load when it sounded like the PTO was momentarily disengaging. I think it is on the tractor side of things. Do you have another PTO driven implement that you could test?

If not, I would ask the dealer if they have a PTO dynamometer they could use to test the tractor. That would be the safest way to diagnose and fix the issue.

 

[LouNY]

recutters are fixed knives that set in the material flow path to aid in recutting the material,
usually in the upper section of the housing.

 

[ROUSTABOUT]

I've got a DelMorino Funny Super 132M flail mower with hammer cutters on my Kubota LX2610. This attachment has hydraulic side shift and tilt. It's been really great to work with. My concern is it has started to develop a pattern where the power from the PTO is interrupted then resumes. I'm guessing there's a clutch in the PTO shaft or the mower itself, and it's kicking in due to load. What's odd is this happens mostly in tall grass and such and not when the mower is eating its way through brush and woody material.

I've uploaded a short video to my YouTube account in which you can hear the sound difference as this occurs. The mower does keep cutting through this, as the hammers and drum have plenty of momentum to keep it spinning. I'm concerned there may be an issue I need to resolve, and am looking for ideas on what I should be looking at to address it. It didn't do this when I got the attachment earlier in the year. I have lubricated the mower, but haven't taken apart the drive shaft yet. The attachment was fitted to the tractor by my Kubota dealer. Given this is my first time owning a flail mower, I'm not even sure if this is just normal, but it doesn't seem like it. Any thoughts or advice?

You need to slow your travel speed. Thick grass is way tougher than any brush will ever be. My dad and brother run everything past maximum potential and then wonder why it dont do better. Just took a new Kuhn hay cutter apart. Had to chunk pieces and buy new parts. Bearings wore and burnt through the housing. Turned the drive shaft blue from the heat. Burnt the belts up. But, he got that pasture cut real fast... At least it was kinda easy to take apart since it was so new.

 

[ds10]

Tractor speed doesn’t affect the issue significantly. It will happen when in L and barely moving. Also, I’d expect when it’s cutting through trees and other debris and making a ton of noise hitting roots, it would also cut out. It doesn’t.

The tractor just got picked up by the dealer and will get a dynamometer test of the PTO to see what’s happening.

 

[ds10]

recutters are fixed knives that set in the material flow path to aid in recutting the material,
usually in the upper section of the housing.

No such devices. The only cutting components are the hammers on the drum. Since this unit has hydraulic tilt, I can easily tilt it up on its side (useful for power washing, too). No other components for cutting.