Finish mower vs brush hog?

[Steve1300]

I have to mow in an area where there are lots of tight turns because of trees. That is easier with a flail mower as they don't stick out as far behind the tractor. Also, instead of having to pick up the small sticks that fell out of the trees, the flail will just shred them for me while the bush hog may not touch them. The flail mower can be set pretty low while the bush hog is limited in that respect.

If your area is wide open field or the trees are more than, say, 10 feet apart, go with whatever pleases you.

 

[IslandTractor]

I have to mow in an area where there are lots of tight turns because of trees. That is easier with a flail mower as they don't stick out as far behind the tractor. Also, instead of having to pick up the small sticks that fell out of the trees, the flail will just shred them for me while the bush hog may not touch them. The flail mower can be set pretty low while the bush hog is limited in that respect. If your area is wide open field or the trees are more than, say, 10 feet apart, go with whatever pleases you.

Good points.

 

[kthompson]

I have used both also and have ended up with the bush hog for such as between trees and grass in the edge of our woods and even on farm road. Use flail mower on boom for following reasons, weight, compact size for cutting width compare to rotary mower and it to me is better for cutting limbs and such I cut with the boom mower. It leaves to me a better cut off stump or limb as it slices the wood rather than just hack it. I have never damaged a tire with flail mower cut off tree but have with rough cut mower.

As to the advantages of one over the other for hire you need to know your customers and their wants before you decide and if price is only issue then rotary but if trailer length or the looks of the field after cutting matter may find flail has advantage. If you are doing smaller cutting jobs the travel speed of the mower may make little difference for your trailing time may be bigger time than the cutting time is.

If the land has a few trees I may be very willing to pay more to have it free of the stumps a rotary cutter likes to leave. If they want to put animals or say atv on it they can have damage by those pointed stumps. Now some of you are much more efficient than I am with a rotary cutter and never leave a pointed stump but cutting at speed I find happens with me.

 

[Fallon]

Sharp blades leave sharp stumps. Dull blades leave shattered fuzzy stumps. You sharpen lawnmower blades not rotary cutter blades.