Flail Mower Let's talk flail mowers

[texbaylea]

Yeah, it DOES come on two pallets nailed together.
&
Yeah, the pallet fork entry is at the end (not side), so it probably gets a bit tippy on 4 ft or 4 1/2 ft forks.
(-:

When mine was delivered I had the driver turn it around so that the drive end of the mower was toward the tractor. I did not find it to be tippy with my 4' forks. I did lower it almost to the ground to move it however.

Vernon

 

[SPYDERLK]

The set up went well enough.
I ran into a slight problem with the PTO shaft. It's about 6" too long.
What's with that?
I went back to do more reading and the Caroni manual said not to shorten the shaft. However, the manufacturers manual gives detailed instructions on how to shorten the shaft. I will take off about 4" from each side of the shaft, to give me some play.
Any opinions or comments?

4" from each side will leave it about 2" too long. Subtractions from collapsed length do not add. The change will be the smaller of the 2 cuts, if different.
larry

 

[Foozle]

The set up went well enough. I spent about 30 minuted reading the paperwork before I put it together.
I ran into a slight problem with the PTO shaft. It's about 6" too long.
What's with that?
I went back to do more reading and the Caroni manual said not to shorten the shaft. However, the manufacturers manual gives detailed instructions on how to shorten the shaft. I will take off about 4" from each side of the shaft, to give me some play.
BTW, my setup area is level ground and the top link is set correctly.

Any opinions or comments?

I also received my new Caroni TM1900 this week. I had my Kubota dealer install it so can't speak to the shaft length issue but can maybe ask them if they had to shorten. Have you tried adjusting the shoe/skid yet? I tried today and when I removed the bolts and slid the skid down to the next position, the bolt holes didn't line up quite right. I replaced the way they were originally, but even those were not aligned perfectly and had to get all 4 bolts started and kind of use the wrench to draw them into alignment. If you get a chance I'd be interested to see if your unit has the same issue since it probably arrived in the same shipment as mine did.

I tried mine out a bit today on some tall hay field grass and it seemed to work well. I did have the oil bubble out a bit as many have reported. My lawn grass isn't long enough yet to judge how it does on finish mowing - maybe in a week I can report back on that. I did have to lower the roller from the factory setting to keep it from scraping the ground when in the down position.

Thanks,

Dave

 

[Eagleview]

Just a thing to look out for , check that the PTO shaft has been pulled apart and greased . The dealer delivered my tractor and mower already hooked up but did not grease the shaft . It broke the gearbox mounting bolts off in 20 minutes . As the mower was articulating over some uneven ground while i was trying it out the shaft could not telescope fast enough without the grease , resulting in the broken bolts . Do'nt trust anyone......

 

[Eagleview]

The set up went well enough. I spent about 30 minuted reading the paperwork before I put it together.
I ran into a slight problem with the PTO shaft. It's about 6" too long.
What's with that?
I went back to do more reading and the Caroni manual said not to shorten the shaft. However, the manufacturers manual gives detailed instructions on how to shorten the shaft. I will take off about 4" from each side of the shaft, to give me some play.
BTW, my setup area is level ground and the top link is set correctly.

Any opinions or comments?

You must make it short enough so it can not only be raised full height with the linkage but also so that it can articulate fully forward when going over dips etc but not too short that it will come apart when completely lowered over an embankment .

 

[scuvnut]

Ok all, I've been reading this thread through and through and took the plunge. Today, I picked up a 2003 New Holland 91 inch 918H Flail Mower. The unit was purchased in 2003, used 5 hours and then placed in a barn. It basically new. I was able to get it for $2500.

They loaded it with a skid steer onto my 14 trailer, and off I went. When I got home, I pulled my NH TC40DA to the side, lowered the bucket into the trailer, chained it to the Flail Mower, lifted it off the bed of the trailer and pulled the truck/trailer forward, then, gently lowered it to the ground. All systems go so far. I hooked it up to the 3 point hitch and backed it to my garage bay and greased it up. I leveled the unit from side to side and then used the top link to be sure the front was slightly higher than the rear.

Figured I'd start in the back field, so if I did any damage to the lawn, it would be less likely to be seen. I lowered the three point hitch and put it within the float range. So far, so good.

I was immediately very impressed with the cut but realized I had to adjust the height so I pulled back to the garage. Air tools made the job go rather quickly. Back to the field. Cutting went well and my better half said it looked like a golf course after a few passes. Was having so much fun, I kept going and felt braver so I moved up toward the house and starting taking out large section of the lawn.

So now, I have questions. I read through the first 20 pages of this thread again, and feel it appropriate to pose the following so those who have used Flails for a while can provide some input:

1. Skid Shoes - what is the correct height of these relative to the rear roller? I have changing terrain in the the field and when going up hill, the skid shoes seem to slightly dig into the ground. Should the roller be lower than the skid shoes? Can I simply remove the skid shoes? Any input is appreciated.

2. The unit is currently set to be pretty much centered. This means the driveshaft is a bit offset. It seems I should move the setup so that the unit is offset - the driveshaft would be straight and it would make mowing under trees, along the properly line, easier. Feedback?

3. Even in float, when I come to the top of the a hill and then over it (not a huge hill, but changing terrain), seem the mower losses contact with the ground and leaves some uncut grass. Am I doing something wrong here? Seems this did not happen with my rotary mower. Contrary to this, when I come to the low point and start to head up, some scalping occurs. Do I have something set wrong?

4. There is a metal piece on the back of the mower, just above the roller. I believe it may be called a scalper, but now sure. Irregardless of the name, there is some adjustment that I can make to it. I can lower it to virtually touch the roller, or raise it to leave a slight gap. What is this adjustment for and what is your experiences in where it should be set?

Thank you for taking the time to review this post and I appreciate the information any of you experienced flail mower users can provide.

 

[Nuru]

Actually, I am gonna go for it today, so I will be highly interested in the responses you get I am also Starting in the back.

OBTW, great price on what i hear is actually a good flail.

 

[Eagleview]

1/ The skid shoes are mainly to help stop scalping when the mower goes over a bump which would normaly see the knives hit the ground until the roller starts to climb the bump and take the weight .

2/ This is your choice but check to make sure it is still covering your wheel tracks . While it is covering your tracks it is mowing the long grass that the left wheel is pushing down as it goes . When the left wheel is uncovered it pushes the grass down and sideways . When you come around again that grass is on your right and laying over the cut grass . You then need to go further over pre cut grass just to get the long grass heads laying on it . I also like to have the shaft running out of line about 3 degrees as it makes the universals work as they should . When a shaft is running dead straight the rollers in the cups are near static and create grooves in the bearing faces of the crosses and fail faster . But it is fine to send the mower out to the right to mow under low trees . Just be aware that it displaces a lot of weight on one side of the tractor which you must keep in mind when traversing slopes . Also keep a watch on universal joints heating up as they do'nt like angles of 15 degrees or more for extended periods .

3/ You must use the slotted hole in the mowers top link . Once you set the mower height , adjust the top link so that the pin is at the halfway mark in the slotted hole . This alows the mower to articulate up and down without scalping or coming off the ground . This is why i said before that flails do'nt like being carried ie not using the roller . As when the tractor front wheels go down a dip the mower comes off the ground . And then when the tractors rear wheels go into the dip the mower gets slammed into the ground . You must also use the slotted holes in the bottom of the 3pl link arms , if you do'nt the mower can be damaged as it tries to carry the tractor through dips .

4/ The "scraper" is to remove mud and grass clippings that stick to the roller . Leave it about an 1/8" above the roller to keep the roller clean .

Go back in the thread to where i posted the page from my Berti catalogue on correct height settings .

 

[texbaylea]

I also received my new Caroni TM1900 this week. I had my Kubota dealer install it so can't speak to the shaft length issue but can maybe ask them if they had to shorten. Have you tried adjusting the shoe/skid yet? I tried today and when I removed the bolts and slid the skid down to the next position, the bolt holes didn't line up quite right. I replaced the way they were originally, but even those were not aligned perfectly and had to get all 4 bolts started and kind of use the wrench to draw them into alignment. If you get a chance I'd be interested to see if your unit has the same issue since it probably arrived in the same shipment as mine did.
Thanks,

Dave

I found the Caroni skids to have a fair amount of flex in them. When I adjust them, I fasten finger tight the bolts on one upright and then use a tapered drift to bring the holes in the other upright in to alignment and bolt it up. I expect welded up assemblies to some times have some distortion. As long as I can easily adjust for it no big deal.

Vernon

 

[scuvnut]

Ironhorse,

Thank you for all of your replies.

In regard to skid shoes, it sounds like as I can have them as high as I would like relative to the roller as long as they would avoid the knives hitting the ground.

In regard to the offset, all points well taken. However, the point about the weight displacement was the best information for me as I do a bunch of slopes and the benefit of the offset is markedly outweighed (literally) by the displacement issue. Based on your information and my application, I will leave it centered.

Now, my big question pertains to the comments regarding the use of the slotted hole in the mowers top link and in the bottom of the 3pl link arms. I simply don't see any options here - unless I am being a bit dense (strong possiblity) - there only appears to be one choice. Can you either explain this a bit further or, if you have time, give me a picture so I can get this working correctly.

I really appreciate your time in responding and assisting me.

P