Finishing Mower?

[HerTractor]

I have been putting $400+ each yr into my riding lawn mower bc I treat it like a tractor. The 3 acres I mow with the lawnmower does not require a bush hog, it's just rural land. I usually do not let the grass get too tall, its mostly fescue and wild flowers. It does have rocks, sticks, tree debris, walnuts, etc. I am thinking about buying a rear mounted finishing mower to do most of the acreage mowing, and saving my lawn mower for the immediate area around the house. Question: the local farm equipment place has a 4 ft KingKutter I am thinking about buying. I've never had a finsihing mower before so I am asking you folks if I am thinking correctly that this is a viable option (my mower repair guy will miss me).
Thanks for your feedback.

 

[nikdfish]

Personal opinion is yes. Been using a 59" Caroni finishing mower (about $1300 @ Agri-Supply) behind a 3038e to do the "lawn" areas & the in-laws' yard near our acreage for about 3 years now and it does a fine job of mowing. Only repairs to date have been replacing two wheels (tread wear/chipping from turnarounds on asphault) & one wheel fork (bent from carelessness). At Agri-Supply, that wasn't too pricey (totaled about $75...).

Nick

 

[mikehaugen]

Does it have to be new? What are you putting it behind (sorry if it's in your profile, I can't see it)? I have a woods rm90 finish mower that is kind of a hybrid finish/ rotary cutter. Very robust, with swinging blades and heavy deck. I have mowed 6' tall pastures with it. It doesn't leave a real manicured lawn, but much better than a rotary cutter and nearly riding mower quality. They made a smaller version rm59 if you need smaller. They can be found pretty cheap used.

 

[HerTractor]

The one I am looking at is used, 4 ft is about as wide as I would want with my little tractor. I will be loking at the finishing mower this weekend, so hopefully can get a better idea of the type. It will be pulled by a Kubota B6200 4wd.

 

[HerTractor]

That sounds much better than what I have been putting into my lawn mower!
Thanks.

 

[antlers125]

As long as you don't have a lot of obstacles to work around the finish mower works great. My Woods cuts as good as my riding mower.

 

[DHD]

I have been putting $400+ each yr into my riding lawn mower bc I treat it like a tractor. The 3 acres I mow with the lawnmower does not require a bush hog, it's just rural land. I usually do not let the grass get too tall, its mostly fescue and wild flowers. It does have rocks, sticks, tree debris, walnuts, etc. I am thinking about buying a rear mounted finishing mower to do most of the acreage mowing, and saving my lawn mower for the immediate area around the house. Question: the local farm equipment place has a 4 ft KingKutter I am thinking about buying. I've never had a finsihing mower before so I am asking you folks if I am thinking correctly that this is a viable option (my mower repair guy will miss me).
Thanks for your feedback.

If you decide on a finish mower I would suggest a rear discharge model rather than a side discharge.
I use a rear discharge Sitrex 6 foot finish mower and the clipping come out the back in a nice wide thin layer.
It is really heavy duty (Made in Italy) and has given me trouble free service for the past 10 years.

 

[HerTractor]

Thanks Antlers, I will be mowing around a few trees but nothing major. I do appreciate the feedback.

 

[HerTractor]

I will certainly look at whether this is a rear discharge, DHD. I will probably do a drive by today to look at the mower. The guy said to come by even if he was closed.

 

[Hirascomo]

I think if you will have both, a rider and a finishing mower, you will be set. I use a 72" king kutter finishing mower to cut about 4 acres with a number of trees, and it cuts almost as nicely as my JD 355D. With the trees and other obstacles, you will leave uncut areas with a finish mower compared to your rider. I simply run my rider around and clean up what the finishing mower could not cut, so I find myself on the rider for about 15 minutes, compared to the 3 hours it used to take me to cut the lawn with the rider, so much less wear and tear on the rider if you are having repair issues.
And I agree with everyone, I purchased my finish mower used for $500, and it has worked great for 3 years without even having to change a belt.