Bush Hog Squealer

[AndyMA]

I've run 2 Squealer 60's since 1987. One was replaced by an insurance company because of a barn fire. I sold it to another TBNer. I've beat the heck out of them behind my Ford 2120 and never had a bit of trouble other than breaking a few blades.

Andy

 

[MiniOaksMocha]

That's a good price as I paid $1640 in Dec 99 for my BH RDTH72" unit. It's a great mower. I cut my 17 acre hay pasture last weekend in about 8 hours with it. I have a 60" Modern Bushhog and almost never use it because the finish mower does such a better job plus it cuts a foot wider. Wish I had gotten a 72" bushhog myself. Have a TC29D. /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif

 

[TMAC]

So, given what has been said in the last few posts; do you guys think I would be better off just getting the RDTH72 finish mower now and rent a bush hog to do my first cut. My main concern right now is being able to get the field under control. About 6 acres is what I'm concerned with for the time being. The field is about 3-3.5 feet tall right now. Mainly hay and some other wild grasses along with a few briars here and there but nothing real thick.

I still would like to have a rotary cutter eventually but wonder if I should just go ahead and get the finishing mower and include it with the financing of the tractor. /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif Hmmm decision, decision, they never end. /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

 

[Gatorboy]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( do you guys think I would be better off just getting the RDTH72 finish mower now and rent a bush hog to do my first cut. )</font>

What are you going to be doing in that field? Is it just to have it look good, or will you be using it for some activity that will need to have a nice finish cut?

I am very impressed with the results my rotarty cutter can do. Plus, if I don't have time and the field gets too long, I don't have to worry. With a finish mower, you will have to keep the grass from getting too long.

 

[dieseldoc]

tmac,i have a 72" new international i bought in jan. i paid 725.00 with slip clutch(this was a discount price as i also bought a new mahindra 4500,trailer,disc plow,ect.) i am not sure if this is considered a light duty or med. duty but i have cut everything from head high briers to 3" trees(slowly of course)the money you save buying a "lesser" brand can be used to buy more toys!

 

[OkieG]

<font color="blue"> finish mower now and rent a bush hog to do my first cut. My main concern right now is being able to get the field under control. </font>

When I bought my BushHog Squealer, the dealer said that with sharp blades, he could cut my yard to look as nice with a brush hog as with a finish mower. Wow, was I impressed with that comment.

My reality is that the brush hog doesn't come close to a finish mower in quality of cut, especially if you want the grass short. On the other hand, Gatorboy's field looks pretty nice.
If you don't need your field to look "perfect", a brush hog might offer you more versatility when tougher jobs come up. Otherwise, your idea sounds like a good one.

By the way, the light duty Squealer has held up real well for me. It ocassionally shaves rocks and digs dirt (not on purpose) and cuts small saplings to the point it almost stalls my little tractor. Haven't had to change a shear pin so far.

OkieG

 

[Bird]

Greg, I really liked the RDTH60 behind a Kubota B2710. I much preferred that to a belly mower personally. A lot of people say if you have a lot of maneuvering to do, the belly mower is better and I can understand that, but when you're accustomed to rear implements . . . well . . . I mowed an estimated 3 acres with it and had to maneuver around the house, barn, shop building, at least 18 trees, 4 utility poles, three flower beds, 8,000+ sq. ft. of garden, barbed wire fences, and 400+ ft. of road frontage that included a shallow borrow ditch, mail box, and 3 culverts. I did have one problem with it. A pulley came off one spindle once and destroyed the woodruff key. I'm guessing it was because the nut holding the pulley on was not properly tightened when it was assembled, and I never removed the covers and checked any of them before using it. And it happened after using it a year or so. Wasn't really any big deal to fix it. I was very pleased with the job it did, but I'll admit I just had a "yard" instead of a manicured "lawn" like I maintain in town.

 

[TMAC]

I'll probably ramble a little here but here goes anyway. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

I just recently bought this land in Dec. 2003, 44 acres. It is mostly wooded acreage, 180ft of road frontage. About 32-34 acres of timber with rolling hills coming from the back of the property to the field and from there to the road the remaining is field that is also rolling terrain with a small wood line that runs parallel with the road and splits the field in half. The field is nothing real steep, just a gradual incline with a fairly level 2-3 acre area at the peak/top of the field.

Right now I have a guy coming in to do a little excavating work to install my driveway (530ft). My driveway will be fairly straight, but not so level, running down off the road into a small valley of the field gradually rising back up through the wood line and then opening up into the other part of the field where I will be building a home.

So right in the beginning stages of construction I'm not particularly worried about making it all look Grade A. I just want to keep the field looking halfway decent for the next year or so and keep it knocked down along with some other light brush clearing.

So I'm convinced now that I'm probably going to go for the rotary cutter. I like the fact of not worrying if it gets to tall on me. So will see what I can find.

I'm still open for others experiences though so shoot away. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Thanks for all the replies everyone. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif
Again sorry if I rambled too much. /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif

 

[TMAC]

David, nice looking job on the field./forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif I read the other post about your dad's business. Those Rhino Flexwings must be something else. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[twabscs]

Here's another 5' vs. 6' experience. When I bought my TC40 I decided on a Rhino SE 5 with a shear pin. After having trouble with replacing shear pins and not being able to "get close" to fence rows and other obstacles with the 5', I traded the nearly new SE5 for a new SE6 with a slip clutch. I'm much more happy with this size/combination, and of course I had to pay a bit more because of the "swap", but the dealer was very fair.

The SEs are medium duty cutters and my TC40 has no difficulty with the 6' mower.