Finish Mowers

[alan40]

Hi, I'm looking for a finish mower to go behind my NH 1720. (23hp PTO). A friend of mine has a 6ft mower of unknown origin and gets alot of scalping. Thats why I'm thinking of going with a 5 ft. cut Do they make a finish mower with anti-scalping rollers on the front? The Woods model has shimmy dampners on them is this along the same principles as a roller? I heard about the roller from a friend but I have never seen one. I mow a lawn (old hay field/pasture) of about 3 acres so I'm looking to save a little time and also my back. I get a much better ride on Old Blue then my lawn tractor. I'd also appreciate any comments on the different brands and prices. As everyone else I'm looking for the best equipment to doller ratio. The Woods seem expensive ($2000)but you also get what you pay for.
Thanks,
Al

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Check out these posts on finish mowers & value

 

[Bird]

Al, I don't have the anti-scalp roller on my Bush Hog RDTH60 mower, but the holes are there to just bolt the "optional" roller on; don't know what it costs. And two years ago, the mower cost me $1,695.

Bird

 

[Von]

Alan,
I had the same problem with the rear finish mower I had on my old B8200. It was a 72" Ford that was made by Woods. I found the rollers at Central tractor this past winter for $32.00 and I was going to add it this past spring, but I ended up getting a new tractor with a MMM and that solved all my scalping problems. The rollers were made by KingKutter and looked like the one in the photo of JMIII's post. Just had to weld on some tabs to hold it in the front of the mower. I think it would have made a big difference with the deck being as wide as it was, and my yard as rough as it is. Let us know how you make out.

 

[ddl]

I have a Woods rear discharge 3p mower and I installed a anti scalping roller in the front and it works great. It cost about $50.00. I have rolling hills and since I put the roller on I do not dig dirt, well worth the money.

Dan L

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Like I do with most things, I beat the subject to death when I went shopping for a finish mower. I have about 3.5 acres of yard and wanted to get the biggest mower I could afford. I have a 2 acres section that's wide open and fairly smooth, but the rest is scattered with trees, ditch, humps, etc. One of the things I looked at was the spacing of the wheels. If you look at the picture of the King Kutter in an earlier post, you can see that the wheels are close to the outside edge of the mower, which is going to give you trouble when mowing on non-flat ground. The closer together the wheels are, the less trouble you'll have with scalping. Plus, the extra overhang from the wheels is great for mowing the edge of a ditch, etc. That's why I choose the LandPride FDR2572.

The rear discharge saves time because I can trim on either side and go in a circle in either direction, so there's less turning around. I have the anti-scalping roller also and have very little trouble with scalping. Where it does scalp, I used to have trouble with my 42" cut riding lawnmower also. It's expensive ($1700), but it's very heavy duty and I expect it will last the rest of my life. I've had it for over a year now and it's lived up to all of my expectations - and I'm hard to please!

 

[glennmac]

Danny, I agree with you about wheel placement. That's why I would strongly consider a Landpride if I go to a 3ph mower.

 

[ddl]

My woods mower, the wheels can be changed to position out or in close, do not everyones mower work this way!!!

Dan l

 

[alan40]

Thanks for all the great inputs. I've narrowed it down to Landpride and Woods mowers. Working the price angle now. Once again Thanks!!!!/w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif
Al

 

[RichZ]

Al, I'll give you another vote for a Land Pride. I've got a Land Pride FD1560, which is a 60' rear discharge. it's supposedly the 'economy model" Land Pride, because it's not an air tunnel model. The air tunnel is supposed to prevent rows of grass clippings, but the only time I have trouble (and the rows are tiny anyway) is when I allow the grass to get too high, and I'm cutting off more than 3 inches. I don't have the anti-scalp rollers, and I only have had any scalping on very high bumps, which I don't think the rollers would prevent anyway. I'm really happy with this mower. My neighbors all comment on what a good cut I get from it.

Rich

 

[looch]

Check out the Farm King, also - I love mine. It was $1700.00 Canadian (about $1100.00 US) for the 60" rear discharge.

 

[Anonymous Poster]

I just purchased a rear discharge 72" woods. I have a jd 850 so I have 22 pto hp. It is one heavy piece looked at it next to the 25 series landpride and it looked much heavier. The landpride I think is spec'ed with higher blade speeds, but the woods did an excellent job of lifting the grass. I probably need some front weights now when I am in transport.

 

[West]

Alan, I am about to purchase a Farm King 60" mower. I have called two dealers and my cheapest price is 1,250. I live just north of Atlanta, GA. When did you buy and what part of the country are U. Just wondering if I should check some more.

 

[looch]

West,

I think you meant to reply to me, Paul. I'm in Quebec, Canada. The 1250.00 sounds reasonable, that's only 150.00 more. My exchange rate of 1.55 is what I get when I change CDN to US, you usually suffer at least a 10% hit when exchanging back (ie. 1.45 for you, but more likely 1.4).

 

[PBMAX]

West,I priced a 60" finish mower her in bama at Lowerys for 1k I think they have an outlet in GA...May not be much difference in price for you there though they are made or put together here in a small town called BOAZ. I bought a 3pt trailer hitch from them for $30 it's seems well made...I watched a special on APTv about them so I checked them out...Still I priced a few differrent finish mowers while I was looking for a tractor for future ref.The average price here in AL was between $1300- $1500...

Laziness is the Father of invention.../w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif
Lil' Paul
Proud owner of TC21D

 

[Anonymous Poster]

I have a new Woods RM360 for $985.00 if you're interested email your zip code to agwholesaler@hotmail.com for a freight quote.

 

[djradz]

Alan, unless you are planning on mowing grass higher than 1 foot or really thick weeds, the 1720 can power a 6 foot mower with no problem. In really thick stuff you might need to shift down. I was always able to mow in mid-range and 4th gear with mine equipped with the 12x12 shuttle shift. You'll cut remarkeably faster with the 6'/72" mower because you'll be cutting outside the tractor wheels and not smashing down the edges of where you're mowing. I always thought I got a better cut also because of this.