Caroni TM1900 with Smooth-Cut Blades

[IslandTractor]

I believe that blade is a medium duty blade. Yes it will cut grass very well, and weeds and rough stuff. I have the fine cut blades on mine, and I try to stay away from heavy weeds, small trees, etc, as it will beat up the cutting edges taster. I replaced 176 blades on mine. 88 stations 2 blades each. Sharpened on both sides. Someone was asking about the overlap, and you can see the overlap in this picture.

On your one blade, does that single blade overlap any , or is it just as wide as the double blades?

JJ, I'm not sure if this is correct. I know that the lighter weight blades seem like they would be the fine cut blades but I recall from an earlier thread that IronHorse pointed out that these single piece "heavier" blades are really more fine cut while the light weight blades are for the heavier brush work. The point is that the lighter weight knives can bounce out the way of obstacles and then just hit them again and again to cut while the heavier one piece blades would be more likely to be damaged when hitting an object they do not immediately cut through.

I admit to some confusion on this as "hammers" are also available that can mow through cinderblocks etc for roadside maintenance and also there are clearly finish flail mowers that have lots of light weight knives. The Caroni finish flails have twice the number of knives as the TM1900 all purpose version.

 

[swampvol]

So the 'y' blades are not the blades I want for a finish cut?

 

[IslandTractor]

So the 'y' blades are not the blades I want for a finish cut?

Tricky question. If you look at the Caroni "finish" flail mowers, they use Y blades but use twice as many on a rotor as with the "all purpose" flail such as the TM1900. However, nunyabinis has retrofitted his TM1900 with a one piece blade (not a solid hammer but a blade....look closely at the photo he linked). That one piece blade is designed for finish cutting too. So, you can finish but with Y blades but perhaps need more of them on a rotor, or you can finish cut with the scoop one piece blades.

The other difference betweent the TM (all purpose) and the TL (finish) Caroni flails is that the TM has the blades attached via a shackle which gives it more flexibility when it hits and object. The TL blades are directly pinned to the shaft.

 

[J_J]

The Y shape blades on my flail are finish blades, light weight and thin, and lots of them.

IMHO, the thin blades, .106 in thick are used for finish cut, and uses lots of them. I would suggest that anyone interested in blades, read the data contained in the link below, and make your own decisions. It is just not smart to use thin blades for heavy stuff, Some of the blades are forged. some are sharpen all the way to the top of the blade. Some are longer, and the tip velocity increases with a longer blade. When you are selecting blades, look how they hang, length of the slot, how many blades per hanger. width of the set up. Is there sufficient overlap. what will you be cutting, etc.

Select sub categories, blades, and scan through all the blades. If you want details, go to the right and select details. The prices vary quite a bit.

Mower Parts

 

[IslandTractor]

The Y shape blades on my flail are finish blades, light weight and thin, and lots of them.

JJ I understand your point. Especially about thin vs thick blades which may be more to the point than whether they are Y shaped or one piece chisel shaped etc. I suppose it may be obvious if you held some of these in your hand but the photos are a little hard to interpret.

Wish I had a set of "axes" for my mower.

 

[J_J]

JJ I understand your point. Especially about thin vs thick blades which may be more to the point than whether they are Y shaped or one piece chisel shaped etc. I suppose it may be obvious if you held some of these in your hand but the photos are a little hard to interpret.

Wish I had a set of "axes" for my mower.

Did you click on detail, it gives the thickness of the metal?

I called the people at Flail Masters, and ask if they would send me a sample. She said how many, so I named off a few, about 5, and they sent me a sample of each of the five. I still have that box full somewhere. After figuring out which one I needed, I ordered a bunch from them with shackles and bolts. When I obtained the flail, it had slicing blades for renovator/de-thatching work, and I believe that some smart guy made them out of edger blades.

 

[IslandTractor]

Did you click on detail, it gives the thickness of the metal?

I have now. Thanks

 

[nunyabinis]

Actually, if you download their catalog it gives DETAILED measurements of the blades:


http://www.flailmaster.com/images/pdf/2008Catalog.pdf



That's what I used to order the Smooth Cut blades after I took several measurements from the blades that came installed on the Caroni.




.

 

[Charlesaf3]

you guys are going to have me buying a flail at this rate...

I'd love to see pictures of the finish cut on any grass patches you have - or even the weeds!

 

[IslandTractor]

you guys are going to have me buying a flail at this rate...

I'd love to see pictures of the finish cut on any grass patches you have - or even the weeds!

I am shocked, simply shocked, that you don't have one yet. Your girlfriend is having a bad influence on you.