Flail Mower Let's talk flail mowers

[leonz]

Hello and good morning Hill Billy Bob,

I will assume you also greased the rear roller bearings.

You can either use the product called Mow Deck or
Fluid Film to coat the rear roller to reduce the sticking.

The scraper is just that, a scraper to keep the rear roller
clean of fine turf clippings.


There are also large spray cans of cooking spray that can be used
as well as WD-40 BUT the no stick cooking spray and Fluid Film
will not damage the lawn from contact.


if you have it or can obtain Fluid Film from the local JD dealer
you can coat the roller several times before mowing with a
paint brush full of fluid film which also can be used inside
the mower shroud.


Mowing when it is hotter is an option as there is a bit less moisture
But if worse comes to worse the scraper can be removed.

Hope this helps.

 

[IslandTractor]

I have never needed to use the sort of surface lubrication that leonz mentioned. If the scraper is hitting at just one point, is it slightly bent? Also, the position of the roller can be adjusted up and down which may not fix the rubbing but might allow some change in position that helps. My scraper doesn't make contact at all if I recall correctly.

 

[Hill Billy Bob]

Hello all, I did a little closer inspection of my roller and scraper yesterday, and found my problem to be caused by someone not bothering to clean up after welding the end caps to the roller tube. Scraper actually rides on welds, not on roller.

Spent some time with a file in hand, (welds at both ends of roller needed work) and now binding is gone, roller rolls.

Think maybe my mower was a Friday afternoon production, before I used it, I drained 32oz. of oil from gear box.... 16oz. of new oil put level at 1/8" below full mark.

All in all, I like the mower and qualily of the cut, my CK30 doesn't seem to know it's back there, and it is quieter than a rotory cutter....Bob

 

[IslandTractor]

Hello all, I did a little closer inspection of my roller and scraper yesterday, and found my problem to be caused by someone not bothering to clean up after welding the end caps to the roller tube. Scraper actually rides on welds, not on roller.

Spent some time with a file in hand, (welds at both ends of roller needed work) and now binding is gone, roller rolls.

Think maybe my mower was a Friday afternoon production, before I used it, I drained 32oz. of oil from gear box.... 16oz. of new oil put level at 1/8" below full mark.

All in all, I like the mower and qualily of the cut, my CK30 doesn't seem to know it's back there, and it is quieter than a rotory cutter....Bob

Glad you've got the teething problems sorted out. Quality has actually been pretty good with these Caroni TM1900 units and yours is the first I've heard about sloppy welds. Friday afternoon might be a good explanation.

The oil will bubble out and leave a mess covered with grass clippings. Happens to all of us. A Caroni gearbox "feature". You can fix it by adding an extension to the dip stick filler hole. Metric part. Search this thread for the specs and where to source. Grab a set of Gates belts too (again, search here for the correct size ???B23 or B43????). The first set seems to last only a year or so but after replacement most folks have had much longer life with the Gates belts.

Good luck and happy mowing.

 

[leonz]

Hello all, I did a little closer inspection of my roller and scraper yesterday, and found my problem to be caused by someone not bothering to clean up after welding the end caps to the roller tube. Scraper actually rides on welds, not on roller.

Spent some time with a file in hand, (welds at both ends of roller needed work) and now binding is gone, roller rolls.

Think maybe my mower was a Friday afternoon production, before I used it, I drained 32oz. of oil from gear box.... 16oz. of new oil put level at 1/8" below full mark.

All in all, I like the mower and qualily of the cut, my CK30 doesn't seem to know it's back there, and it is quieter than a rotory cutter....Bob

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Hello Bob,

I am glad the problem was a minor one in any case.

I want to welcome you as the newest member of the Flail Mower Nation.

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Once you go flail you never go back!!!
Pronovost or not at all!!!

 

[JustBob]

Thanks to this thread, I purchased a flail mower. I am hoping you can help me with a couple of problems I am having.

This is what I have, a Mott 88 flail mower. When I purchased the mower it had tail wheels instead of a rear roller. I purchased the rear roller assembly, rear deflector, bearing for the drive pulley(extension housing), idler pulley, belts, belt guard, and idler spring. It had a new set of knives on it.







First problem is, it does not cut very well. It lays the grass over more than it cuts it, but does ok cutting other than grass. The blades are only .093 thick and 3 inches long, could they be the problem? I had planned on ordering some new ones at the end of summer anyway, I am just not sure which ones to get... is thicker or heavier better?

This thing is annoyingly noisy... I have seen videos and other flails in person, I believe it may be the cuttershaft bearings. It is almost unbearable with ear plugs, is that normal for these Mott's?



Thanks,
Bob

 

[whirly]

Can you give us a pic of the blades as they sit on the ground? The cutting problem is probably adjustable.

Also by "lays the grass over more than it cuts it" do you mean that the grass id just bent and not cut?

 

[JustBob]

Can you give us a pic of the blades as they sit on the ground? The cutting problem is probably adjustable.

Also by "lays the grass over more than it cuts it" do you mean that the grass id just bent and not cut?

The grass is cut, but only part of the total height. The blades during use are 2 1/2 inches from the ground, but it cuts the grass leaving it 4 to 6 tall. It cuts less and bends it over more in thick grass. The picture here is in the grass it just cut 2 days ago.

 

[whirly]

The blades look good and th4 height is good so the other two parameters are RPM & ground speed. RPM need to be at 540 and ground speed needs to be less than 3mph (brisk walk).... IMHO.

As for the noise it should be a loud hummmm ... about 80db, but that also depends on how far you are from the flail - mine is about 6ft from my ears. Anything noise other than the hum is a mechanical issue. AGAIN IMHO.

 

[whirly]

The blades look good and th4 height is good so the other two parameters are RPM & ground speed. RPM need to be at 540 and ground speed needs to be less than 3mph (brisk walk).... IMHO.

As for the noise it should be a loud hummmm ... about 80db, but that also depends on how far you are from the flail - mine is about 6ft from my ears. Anything noise other than the hum is a mechanical issue. AGAIN IMHO.