Basic disc mower questions

[Tx Jim]

Many around here use a small baler and wagons. 90 degree turns are a pain in the neck with that set up.
Some of our fields from the air look like figure eight's due to natural issues like creeks, ponds, woods, hills etc.

Actually you have less corners doing strips..

I'll never understand how people think a 180 degree corner is easier/faster to negotiate than a 90 degree corner. Cutting in multiple strips/lands takes longer than going round & round. I rake 3 nine ft swaths at a time with my H&S Hi-cap rake and have no problem raking around corners.

 

[Farmer495]

I'll never understand how people think a 180 degree corner is easier/faster to negotiate than a 90 degree corner. Cutting in multiple strips/lands takes longer than going round & round. I rake 3 nine ft swaths at a time with my H&S Hi-cap rake and have no problem raking around corners.

It is true that round and round, in theory, you never stop, while strips/lands you have travel time on headland that is the machine is not "working"

Baling while towing a wagon and stacking squares is a pain with 90s, chute always has a bale coming off when turned from the wagon = bale on ground.

I think it's also dependent on equipment size and field size. I run smaller gear in smaller fields, so for me it's way more trips around the field than if I ran larger gear. I find making 90's all the time takes more time and concentration than simply clearing the swath/windrow and making a gentle arc. I also mow with a 3pt disc mower, higher speed perfect 90 degree corners I loose speed on and risk the cutter bar break away snapping from sudden change in direction. I do round and round on one large field that is a near perfect rectangle. Irregular small fields strip mow wins every time.

 

[Tx Jim]

It is true that round and round, in theory, you never stop, while strips/lands you have travel time on headland that is the machine is not "working"
I find making 90's all the time takes more time and concentration than simply clearing the swath/windrow and making a gentle arc. I also mow with a 3pt disc mower, higher speed perfect 90 degree corners I loose speed on and risk the cutter bar break away snapping from sudden change in direction.

On strip cutting,raking & baling I see no "gentle arc" but I do see 180 degree turns required. My disc mower only breaks back when an obstruction is hit but definitely doesn't break back in turns. There is no way I see to strip cut with a cutter that will only cut on 1 side of a tractor without a lot of wasted time.

 

[Farmer495]

On strip cutting,raking & baling I see no "gentle arc" but I do see 180 degree turns required. My disc mower only breaks back when an obstruction is hit but definitely doesn't break back in turns. There is no way I see to strip cut with a cutter that will only cut on 1 side of a tractor without a lot of wasted time.

You are turning 180 degrees, but it's not like you are locking the brake and spinning around 180 at once.

Turn wheels about 45 degrees you go in a somewhat rainbow shape arc (yes it's flat at the top if your land is wide)

The only time the mower snaps on a 90 degree turn for me is at 5 MPH + and I'm turning uphill in heavy hay on rougher ground and the mower is at the point it stops swinging backwards and starts moving forward again (My perfect 90 degree turns at speed I am locking the right brake and pivoting the tractor on right tire)

If I wanted to do sharp turns all the time I'd make 90s. 90's are also harder on PTO joints on pull type machines. My round baler doesn't like 90 degree turns and I don't like running the windrow over with the tractor tires. Also don't like bouncing across dead furrows. I run a 3pt tedder that doesn't turn corners in the hay, you have to lift it, so to ted properly (tedder takes 2 mower swaths) you have to turn in a 270 degree loop after lifting tedder to follow the 90 degree turns. If I raked in a circle (yes rake would always stay in the hay and make "one" window) it's not easy to double up windrows (NH side rake, 17' two passes, don't run a nice V rake) and in the middle you are driving around until you are "trapped" and then either ruin the windrows pulling the rake back out (pull type) or leave the rake in the middle and drive the tractor over the raked hay.

I still say it depends on field size and layout and equipment set up. I use both methods, but strip mow fits the bulk of what I do. I don't see round and round assaving me any time when you factor in all four passes (mow/ted/rake/bale) and having to go slower crossing the field in the bulk of the fields I hay.

 

[JasG]

As Farmer495 explained and I'll add even with thrower 90 degrees is a pain. Yet I can do a 180 and hit every 3rd or 4th row and it's a simple turn and I don't have to worry about following a row around a corner and angling the kicker. If I had a round baler or larger square that I could just drive, that would be a different story.

Another thing that I didn't touch on is around here it's all rolling hills. Much of it is strip planted to limit erosion. So you might have a side hill that is 1200' wide and 1500' long. Your not going to have it one large field. You will have probably 6 field's 200' wide. One will be corn, the next hay, and so on. You also don't want to be turning very sharp going down hill to go back across the hill. Small square balers and forage choppers get pushed by the wagon and would be just asking for problems going round and round. A couple passes around the outside with an empty wagon, no problem. Get 1/2 a load or more and the baler or chopper is going to get pushed around when turning.

Around here finger wheel rakes have never been in favor since rotary have been around. We have very poor drying conditions, with only 2-4 day windows. Rollabar and finger wheels that rope the hay don't allow as fast a drying as rotary. The larger tandem units again are a pain with 90 degree turns. As I already said the triple mowers the larger guys use and mergers don't seem to like turns either.

I can see the round and round working on flat land with round balers and larger square balers. It just doesn't work well with small square and due to the hills forage harvesters. Even with round balers, on the hills you can't dump a bale going up or down the hill. So you either have to back up or back down the hill some to get the baler across slope so they down roll down the hill.

 

[Tx Jim]

OK and that rainbow turn takes extra time. I don't know what speed you're turning around at but I never touch my brake pedal in a turn @ 6 MPH or under. Gopher & fire ant mounds limit how fast one can run on hay fields where I live. I guess it boils down to "each to their own way of accomplishing a task"

 

[Farmer495]

OK and that rainbow turn takes extra time. I don't know what speed you're turning around at but I never touch my brake pedal in a turn @ 6 MPH or under. Gopher & fire ant mounds limit how fast one can run on hay fields where I live. I guess it boils down to "each to their own way of accomplishing a task"

I do agree that anytime the mower isn't cutting (such as on the headland) it is taking longer to do the job assuming you can always do the same speed. The acreage I do at one time is small.

I am mowing with a 2wd utility tractor/5 disk and I can cut a perfect square 90 at slower speeds without the brakes (3 MPH), but at the normal 5.2 MPH I cut at, the front tires slide a bit on the cut hay and the narrower mower doesn't "reach" as far, so brakes for me. Fields too rough to go faster, and I run out of power as next gear up is 7 MPH....

I'd love to have a nice perfectly square and smooth 40 acre field, and yes I probably would mow that round and round.

 

[JasG]

OK and that rainbow turn takes extra time. I don't know what speed you're turning around at but I never touch my brake pedal in a turn @ 6 MPH or under. Gopher & fire ant mounds limit how fast one can run on hay fields where I live. I guess it boils down to "each to their own way of accomplishing a task"

At no time did I disagree with you. You just said you had no idea why. All I did (with others) was explain their really is a "method to our madness" and reasons for it.

Take care.

 

[F3506]

OK and that rainbow turn takes extra time. I don't know what speed you're turning around at but I never touch my brake pedal in a turn @ 6 MPH or under. Gopher & fire ant mounds limit how fast one can run on hay fields where I live. I guess it boils down to "each to their own way of accomplishing a task"

If you figure out how to keep wet fire ant mounds from clogging the cutter please let me know. The only method I've found so far is called a drought, but I don't really care much for that method.

 

[foreman Etexas]

If you figure out how to keep wet fire ant mounds from clogging the cutter please let me know. The only method I've found so far is called a drought, but I don't really care much for that method.

Try cutting some black land with damp ants mounds. I haven't ever been in around it but helped out a friend last year and dang it was something to get that pasture done. It clogged my blades and every 100yrds had to clean the bottum of mower off and get to the nuts to change the blades was a night mare.