Flail Mower Let's talk flail mowers

[Menagerie-Manor]

Maybe, maybe not - depends on type of flails, I think hammer VS. side slicer quite a different power usage.

Ford 1310 has 19 hp engine and is very capable running 5 ft Ford 917L flail mower with the 96 x side slicer flails it was designed for.

This mower was designed as a light duty model, to be used with side slicers only and it works well as intended.



May 2021 - pretty tall stuff due to wet spring.
Obviously need to mow more often for sure, but the ground had been way too wet previously.

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Cheers

My thinking as a side business it's hard to control what and when you cut and that little extra to power thru makes a difference.

 

[arto98607]

Yes running tractor & flail mower for business changes everything and you should be ready for all conditions....

 

[JWR]

Yes and I feel the 60 inch flail is as wide as you ought to go with a 25 horse tractor, esp if you are using it in the widely varying business circumstances.

 

[ronjhall]

Flail Nation - I have a few questions: is there a flail that could solve my problems. My tractor is 25HP, which may be modifiable, but we'll start bone stock. I cut small fields as a side business, and have had issues with cutting:
- The tractor handles a 5ft bush hog OK, but thick grass slows me WAY down.
- The dust and chaff thats kicked up clogs my lungs. Poison Ivy is a bumper crop up here in NH and each summer I'm covered in the rashes. A cab machine is what I want and need, but won't happen for a while at least.

So - will a 5ft flail take less power, potentially cut faster and will it create less dust/chaff?

I have 30 hp HST tractor. 22 PTO hp. For years I cut my field with a rotary cutter. Required low range (3.2 mph) and always left a window. A few years ago I bought a Woodmaxx FM62H. Came a set of Y and Hammer blades. I can now cut in mid range (5.5 mph) with Y blades. No more windrow. Cuttings are now behind and evenly spread across cut width. If weeds were high I may need to cut again where tires of tractor ran a few days later. Had to do this with rotary cutter also. My FM62H allows me to shift mower to one side so there is only set of wheels running over uncut weeds.
When using Hammer blades I may need to run in Low range when cutting very heavy weeds. But most is done in mid range.
Will your tractor be able to run a 60” flail mower will depend on how much Horsepower makes to PTO on your tractor. Also what type of field you are cutting.

 

[Fallon]

I upgraded from a 5' Land Pride Rotary cutter behind a 32hp Kubota L3200 HST. I got a $100 beat to hell 7' Ford 917. It was in rough shape, but when patched together did some work. I had to go way slower, but my hours per acre was roughly the same. My back was happy to be bouncing over fields at a lower speed.

My general thought is if you can lift it, you can spin it.

I currently have a Kubota L4060hstc. Much heavier & cabbed, but only 40hp. I'm now running a little over 7' Peruzzo flail that probably weighs double what the old Ford weighs. Minumum HP according to Peruzzo is 60 or so. No idea if thats engine or PTO, but at best im 2/3 of their recomendation. When hitting some 2" scrub oak at crawling speeds I'm hurting on HP but the flail is fine. Interestingly, heavy tall grass makes me go even slower. I should upgrade to more HP, but it does the job fine for my side hustle & is paid off. Again, going slow gets the job done. Much easier to do with a HST than geared machine, especially in varied conditions. It's drier here in Colorado, so less vegetation than places with rain. I'd bet I'd be gard pressed to run this setup in Oregon.

 

[saxtonhill]

I use a Caroni TM1900BSC with my Kubota L4600. I haven't used my 6' rotary cutter since I got this years ago. Power wise I can't even tell that that the flail is running. I use it in my orchards, paths and mowing down cover crops. Great machine. My only complaint is that there is always a scraggly row leftover from the tire in higher weeds (although if I go slower it's very minor).

 

[JethroB]

I use a Caroni TM1900BSC with my Kubota L4600. I haven't used my 6' rotary cutter since I got this years ago. Power wise I can't even tell that that the flail is running. I use it in my orchards, paths and mowing down cover crops. Great machine. My only complaint is that there is always a scraggly row leftover from the tire in higher weeds (although if I go slower it's very minor).

My setup and observations are identical. The flail just loudly hums along except for the annoying rattling of the scraper blade. Rarely use the RC.

 

[crashz]

My thinking as a side business it's hard to control what and when you cut and that little extra to power thru makes a difference.

Thanks guys - great advice. Seriously thinking about upgrading to the flail, not only for the cut quality but for the power too. I wish I decided on a flail vs the finish mower when I bought.

In tall grass I have to crawl so slow that I'm barely moving. I have 2 customers that have fields that stay wet in some areas and that gets to be a little precarious. Don't want to stop.

As to the quote above, this is absolutely the truth. The fields I cut are typically maintained once or twice a year, have heavy grass growth and plenty of obstacles / rocks. I cut when the request comes in and schedule allows for dry weather. The hog is rugged enough for the terrain but makes a lousy cut, the finish mower gets beat to heck, but does a much nicer job. Both stir up a cloud of chaff/dust/particulate and since I can't go very fast, it surrounds the tractor. I look like Pigpen.

 

[Fallon]

I get the raised tire tracks behind both the beat to hell Ford with side slicers & the Peruzzo with hammers.

The Ford sounds like a train wreck or a metal trash can rolling down a hill. That's mostly due to a slightly bent rotor & a hood that is nearly cracked in half. It's still a good backup though. With every penny of the $100 I paid for it & the $400 of parts I've put into it over the past 8+ years for my yard & side gig. Not worth fixing anymore, but good enough to keep as a backup.

The Peruzzo isn't silent or anything, but it's better than the Ford. Not hugely different than a rotary.

 

[Menagerie-Manor]

Thanks guys - great advice. Seriously thinking about upgrading to the flail, not only for the cut quality but for the power too. I wish I decided on a flail vs the finish mower when I bought.

In tall grass I have to crawl so slow that I'm barely moving. I have 2 customers that have fields that stay wet in some areas and that gets to be a little precarious. Don't want to stop.

As to the quote above, this is absolutely the truth. The fields I cut are typically maintained once or twice a year, have heavy grass growth and plenty of obstacles / rocks. I cut when the request comes in and schedule allows for dry weather. The hog is rugged enough for the terrain but makes a lousy cut, the finish mower gets beat to heck, but does a much nicer job. Both stir up a cloud of chaff/dust/particulate and since I can't go very fast, it surrounds the tractor. I look like Pigpen.

I've been running a 48" HD flail with hammers on my Yanmar with 23Hp at the pto (just past 1/2 throttle) mostly on brush up to about 2" and it chews the hell out of it laying down a beautiful carpet of mulch in it's wake.