Flail vs rotary

[RobertN]

What are the pros/cons of a flail mower vs rotary mower?

My rotary mower broke(stump jumper), and parts are no longer available for this Ford/NH 951B. Wondering if it is worth considering a flail mower.

 

[lungdoc]

Rotary cutters tend to be much more rugged - can cut over some rough terrain/rocks etc. and by design the blade can take an impact and move, possibly getting dinged up but not usually breaking. We use ours (Deere 6 foot Mx6) on quite rough trails (something you'd drive an ATV down but never a regular SUV for example) and rough clearings. Cut isn't as smooth as it is on our Caroni TM flail. Flails vary in terms of finish level of cut and abuse they can take depending on the type of flail blade/hammer mounted. We use our flail offset mounted for cutting the sides of gravel roads or smooth clearings. Rotary can cut through thicker brush on average (saplings etc). Flail needs more maintenance in terms of changing or reversing blades and if you hit rocks you often lose a blade or shackle. Flail is a lot smaller on the rear end for maneuvering or parking in buildings.

So depends a lot on what you need to cut. I'd say if you can drive (at least in your mind) a non-modified SUV/pickup through places you are cutting then I'd be happy using a flail.

 

[RickB]

Here we go again.

 

[Utopia Texas]

I am going to buck the conventional wisdom here on the forum using my experience.....
I have both a Caroni flail and Rhino rotary that I use on a 75 HP. NH and for some reason on my mostly coastal bermuda in warm weather and native winter oats in cold weather the Rhino stump jumper has a better, cleaner cut. Both units are a year old and I run them both at 540 RPM. After having read the multi hundred posts on the flail mowers previous to buying I am somewhat dissapointed in the flail and use the Rhino rotary and a Caroni 5 blade finishing mower all the time. I will exclusively use the flail on some really viney property I have in the East Texas Piney Woods this next Winter but as it is now I do not use it at all here at home.

 

[Thomabear]

It really depends on which level of flail or rotary mower you are comparing. Personally I prefer a flail mower as there are knife/hammer options that cover a wide range of needs from finish cutting to taking out 3" trees. Rotary mowers on the other hand will handle almost as much as a flail regarding trees but they are less suited for finish cutting and distributing cuttings evenly.

 

[RobertN]

The stump jumper/"Pan Dish" n my 951B 72" is really beat up. Local independent tractor shop said unrepairable - check NH. Checked NH; they said no longer available.

If I need to get another mower, then what...?

Here we go again.

 

[lungdoc]

I think you'll only get a good answer if you let people know your intended usage. What are you cutting and how does it need to look? My personal guess is that if you really beat up the stump jumper yourself you'd be better off with a rotary cutter, medium to heavy duty. Lots of brands and info around, fairly basic machines so made in lots of places. If previous owner/other location did it then I have no idea.

 

[jwmorris]

We have 3 rotary and one flail. The rotary style would be what you want if your "shredding", I wouldn't drive the flail mower I have (Ford 917) over anything larger than half the diameter of my pinky finger.

Rotary mowers leave a lot of grass "spoils" behind vs the flail, the taller the grass is the more you notice the difference.

Personally I prefer a flail mower as there are knife/hammer options that cover a wide range of needs from finish cutting to taking out 3" trees.

I would be interested in the construction of a flail mower that would take out 3" diameter trees, do you have any links?

That sounds like a forestry cutter job.

 

[LD1]

Flails are more expensive to buy and maintain normally. And typically require more HP to run. In other words, a 6' flail you will have to go slower than a 6' rotary on the same machine. But they do spread clippings and are "safer"

With the TC40, you want a 6' and possibly an 8' twin spindle mower. Just depends on what you are cutting. 6' mowers can range from cheap and 600# to expensive and 1500# and everything in between. If just maintaining a pasture and cutting grass, a light duty one will be just fine. IF doing mowing for hire or forging trails through dense brush in the woods, get a heavy unit

 

[Thomabear]

We have 3 rotary and one flail. The rotary style would be what you want if your "shredding", I wouldn't drive the flail mower I have (Ford 917) over anything larger than half the diameter of my pinky finger. I would be interested in the construction of a flail mower that would take out 3" diameter trees, do you have any links? That sounds like a forestry cutter job.

A hydraulic forestry flail will actually take out trees much larger than 3". There aren't many videos of heavy duty flail mowers taking on 3" trees but here is one I posted earlier. It's just a heavy duty flail mower with hammers. I don't think there are ANY rotary mowers that would be up to this task at equal ground speed. I'd also be interested in why your flail mower can't handle anything over 1/2 the width of your pinky finger. No pun intended but I'm thinking there is something seriously wrong with your mower.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=2BG74dzP5S8

 

[LD1]

Maybe he has really big pinkeys:laughing:

 

[4570Man]

I have seen a forestry flail take out trees as large as 8", but it is probably cheaper&faster to use a chainsaw. Comparing for forestry flails to a regular flail mower is like comparing a 22 rifle to the deck gun on a ship. I would way rather have a flail mower for my mowing choirs even a light duty one. I use a finish mower for most of my mowing, but it is hard on it. The stuff I have to use a rotary cutter for gets mowed once yearly, and doesn't have saplings bigger than 3/4 of an inch.

 

[IslandTractor]

I have both flail and rotary. I use them for different purposes and am glad I have both. Primary reason for the flail is that it is WAY safer when used around people or dwellings. Almost zero risk of throwing a serious chunk of wood or rock at high speed. Secondary reason for the flail is that the cut is significantly better than a bush hog type rotary cutter especially in high grass (not better than a finish rotary cutter). Third reason is that it is physically smaller so easier to store and maneuver. Advantages for the rotary are that ultimately it is tougher (I have a medium duty Woods BrushBull 600 that I am more confident backing into unexplored territory than I am with my medium duty Caroni TM1900 flail). I use the BrushBull for initial clearing of heavy brush and sometimes just in unknown fields where lots of debris is expected. I'll use the BrushBull on 2" material and the flail on 1" regularly. That said, I've hit cut firewood and metal scrap with the flail without damage. I do lose flail blades with solid hits on rocks frequently so I end up replacing a knife set (two Y blades plus clevis and bolt) every so often. I have broken a blade on the bush hog too (big rock) but there is little doubt that the bush hog is the tougher of the two. The other big advantage of the rotary bush hog is that there is virtually no maintenance required while the flail requires regular greasing and occasional belt and blade replacements.

 

[RobertN]

I could not find a new stump jumper. Took mine to a welding shop and had it repaired. Used it a couple days ago; worked well. The main arm that the blades bolt to was fine; it was just the pan that makes up the stump jumper that was messed up. Got it welded, and put a new set of blades on. Should get a few more years out of it.

 

[BoylermanCT]

I think the welding job hit the spot - $2,000 saved! Ka-ching!
:thumbsup: