Mid mount mowers

[CMV]

I overheard part of a conversation at local tractor dealer this weekend. Salesman was talking to a young couple looking into smaller tractors and about 5 AC. Note: I didn't hear entire conversation and wasn't trying to - just heard a small bit that caught my attention. They were talking about buying a MMM option with the tractor. Sales guy was saying that many people buy them thinking that's a great way to mow but end up leaving them unused and also buying a zero turn or something else for general yard mowing.

That was pretty much all I overheard. But I don't know much about them and don't have one. I would think that would be a little better for mowing vs trailing a finishing mower or bush hog but have never owned one so no idea. Also, after putting $$$ into a new tractor - even a smallish 25-30hp one - why would it then be preferable to then spend even more $$$ on a zero turn or some other machine for mowing?

Are those not a good method for general mowing? Too much hassle installing and removing? Poor cut quality? A lot of maintenance/upkeep? I'm not implying the salesman was giving poor advice or trying to trick someone into spending extra $$$, just wondering why it would be common for people to buy a MMM with a tractor and then discover they dislike it and opt for something else instead after sinking $$$ into it.

I would assume that is a real issue because I do frequently see new/nearly new MMM decks on local CL very frequently - which supports the claim that people buy them then opt for something else afterward. Curious because I'm very casually looking for a used one at a good price thinking that would be even easier/faster to mow with?

 

[mddorange]

I have never owned a MMM but I would think it is because a different mower would be much more maneuverable and easier to use.

 

[RalphVa]

I overheard part of a conversation at local tractor dealer this weekend. Salesman was talking to a young couple looking into smaller tractors and about 5 AC. Note: I didn't hear entire conversation and wasn't trying to - just heard a small bit that caught my attention. They were talking about buying a MMM option with the tractor. Sales guy was saying that many people buy them thinking that's a great way to mow but end up leaving them unused and also buying a zero turn or something else for general yard mowing.

That was pretty much all I overheard. But I don't know much about them and don't have one. I would think that would be a little better for mowing vs trailing a finishing mower or bush hog but have never owned one so no idea. Also, after putting $$$ into a new tractor - even a smallish 25-30hp one - why would it then be preferable to then spend even more $$$ on a zero turn or some other machine for mowing?

Are those not a good method for general mowing? Too much hassle installing and removing? Poor cut quality? A lot of maintenance/upkeep? I'm not implying the salesman was giving poor advice or trying to trick someone into spending extra $$$, just wondering why it would be common for people to buy a MMM with a tractor and then discover they dislike it and opt for something else instead after sinking $$$ into it.

I would assume that is a real issue because I do frequently see new/nearly new MMM decks on local CL very frequently - which supports the claim that people buy them then opt for something else afterward. Curious because I'm very casually looking for a used one at a good price thinking that would be even easier/faster to mow with?

Yeah. Lots of people buying $10k tractors with MMMs. It's about $7k more than an el cheapo that takes mucho hours work to even sharpen the blades. However, you can likely get a ZTR for somewhere in between that'll allow one to more easily sharpen the blades easier. This is if you don't use the tractor for anything else.

Don't know why anyone is mowing 5 AC. Mow a 1/2 acre with a walkbehind mower. Hire a bush hogger to do the other 4 1/2 about once every 2 years to take down the crap. Just mow some trails with the walkbehind through the 4 1/2 to enjoy it the way it wants to grow naturally. Avoid the bush hogging by stepping into the tall stuff with your pruners and brush with glyphosate on it to cut and paint saplings and briers.

Think most people buy mowers and mow big acreage because they just like to sit and mow.

Ralph

 

[leonz]

If and when you walk into many dealerships unfortunately they will sell you anything rather than lose a sale.
A zero turn mower is simply another means to an end to the lawn mower market.

Many buyers including me fell into the trap of buying a lawn mower that can do snow removal and that is a huge mistake.

If you need to remove snow buy a good walk behind like a Yamaha or Ariens and just buy the lawn mower to do one job which is mowing as it will last much longer.

The use of a 2 wheel drive mower with hydraulic wheel motors provides the user more flexibility when mowing around trees, flower beds, vegetable gardens, fence lines etc.
The negative for any rotary mower without a recycling deck with four high speed blades that shreds the material as it mows is that anything discharged to the front or rear will not be clipped to its smallest bit to allow the clippings to rot quickly and dissolve back into the ground.

A flail mower with side slicer knives will shread the material to its smallest bit and if there are visible clippings the person mowing can recut them the shred them even finer to prevent them from clumping up and killing good grass.

The Ferris Mower people in Europe sell walk behind zero turn mowers with flail mowers that are mounted in the front and
you can purchase Caroni and other flail mowers for front mounting providing you have a mule of any size with a front mount three point hitch.

Any belly mower that does not have a welded deck that sees many many hours of use will suffer from stress fractures due simply to the stamped design of the mower deck and many if not most welded mower decks will suffer from broken welds that hold the anti scalp gauge wheels or the actual mowing height gauge wheels used by some brands.

A flail mower does not have to deal with gauge wheels as it uses the rear roller to create the cutting height of the side slicers or scoop knives(Note that cast and formed(stamped/sheared and formed scoop/knives will not recut material on the second pass.

Towed Motorized Flail Mowers have worm gear adjusted wheel sets to control the mowing height of the flail mower rotor at the hanging knife bottom edge.

I have a belly mounted 42 inch rotary mower and like the tractor it is mated to it is a less costly mower to buy and own but the spare parts and V belts for the mower and the snow blower are very expensive as the user is stuck with buying the expensive wear parts.

I passed on buying parts and belts for my JDLA115's 44 inch snow blower because I did not have the extra money and they are almost $300.00 just to replace 2 V belts and the small parts that were needed and never included when the snow blower was shipped from RAD in Canada.

 

[KennyG]

There are different mowers out there because people are different and use them differently. I really like my 62D MMM. The drive over deck is really easy to remove and install and stores vertically in a small space. It's almost indestructible. After 8 years of heavy use, I've replaced the belt once and am about to install the third set of blades.

On the other hand my brother has a New Holland deck hanging on his barn wall. He used it one year and bought a zero turn. Just didn't like using it.

I think I would have been OK with a 3 point finish mower also, but just got the MMM as part of the package.

 

[truetractoring]

My reasoning for purchasing mid mower on bx is to have one motorized unit do multiple tasks. Quality of mow is good, and leave the mower on. Front loader is always removed when mowing. Not as manuverable as a Zero turn, but (my opinion) not worth having two separate motorized vehicles requiring maintenance and storage. I mow 3 acres, and the mower decks on all the subcompacts are frickn bullet proof.

 

[ruffdog]

I have a 72" mmm on the new Holland and it is easy to use. If you are mowing lots of area, you don't have to turn around and the weight is carried right where you want it.

 

[RSKY]

Zero turn mowers are designed to mow grass. They are maneuverable and efficient.

A CUT with a mid mount mower is heavy, ruts your yard if the ground is damp, they are not maneuverable, and they are the most inefficient way I can imagine to mow. For the cost of a mid mount mower you can get a cheap consumer zero turn.

For ground engaging implements or bush hogging use a tractor that is designed for those jobs.

For mowing a yard, get a zero turn that is designed to mow yards.

RSKY

 

[rustyshakelford]

Sounds like you came across a salesman that is being honest and wanting the customer to but what would fit their needs the best. About the only time I’d say a mmm is superior to a zero turn would be if your shop only had room for one piece of equipment

Brett

 

[dieselscout80]

Sounds like you came across a salesman that is being honest and wanting the customer to but what would fit their needs the best. About the only time I壇 say a mmm is superior to a zero turn would be if your shop only had room for one piece of equipment

Brett

I can think of another hills and especially hills that end at a water feature (ponds).

 

[CMV]

Are they fairly universal or tractor make/model specific? I assume any would attach to my mid PTO, but only one designed for my specific tractor model would actually mount? i.e. I couldn't get one that someone bought with a Kubota L2501 and it "just work" on my machine correct?

Even so...would probably just choose a 3pt finishing mower instead. And that's if I decide I'm not satisfied with what my bush hog does...so probably moot point as I don't predict I'll be buying any additional mowing implements. But you never know...I like to check clist farm & garden section frequently just to see if a good deal pops up. If I saw a great shape MMM pop up for <$500, I'd seriously consider it.

 

[mykleh]

I use my 72"MMM on my New Holland.. biggest thing was then I could mow and use FEL.. take 10 minutes to put deck on/off with the FEL just pull the pins and shaft lift up front and roll out the side plus I had some major hills so 4x4 was nice.. biggest advantage to zero turn is the speed! you can mow at like 9 miles an hour.. so if mowing is the main deal get the zero turn if you want a front end loader, box scraper, snowblower get the tractor..

 

[oldballs]

Well, there is mowing "lawns" and mowing "fields". Some small acreages get pretty high growth and can be rough or hilly. Kubota ( e.g.) MMM decks are tough and last for lots of hours with ordinary maintenance. Sometimes I mow ,MMM, the neighbors' overgrown acres. In those cases an RFM or brush hog would probably work better if I had one. I guess, if I had lots of trees and smaller areas to mow I'd like a zero turn just for that.

I'd say that for smaller acreages a CUT/SCUT with MMM is the way to go....for a single machine that has PTO, 3 point and FEL to do it all. :2cents:

 

[PhysAssist]

I can think of another hills and especially hills that end at a water feature (ponds).

... and a lot of trees with reasonable spacing between them.

Exactly why our B2320 w/ 60" MMM works great for 90% of our property, and my old DR Brush mower w/ 27" deck takes up the slack in the other 10%.

 

[PhysAssist]

I use my 72"MMM on my New Holland.. biggest thing was then I could mow and use FEL.. take 10 minutes to put deck on/off with the FEL just pull the pins and shaft lift up front and roll out the side plus I had some major hills so 4x4 was nice.. biggest advantage to zero turn is the speed! you can mow at like 9 miles an hour.. so if mowing is the main deal get the zero turn if you want a front end loader, box scraper, snowblower get the tractor..

Same here- I NEVER take the FEL off, and usually mow with the ballast box [or now my homemade 3-pt yard rake] in place.

 

[coolreinfarm]

I towed a mower for 30 years, on my new tractor I got a 6’ mmm, I should’ve done it years ago. I take the fel off since it takes less than 5 minuets, no sense carrying all that weight around and it allows me to get close to the fences. I do have a zero turn for around the house but for pasture mowing I use the tractor. My 2 cents

 

[ruffdog]

^^same here....it sure is nice not having the loader on if you don't need it.

 

[mykleh]

I made a quick disconnect from help on here so I just leave the FEL frame on and pop off the bucket.. the visibility and shorter length is handy..

 

[PhysAssist]

I made a quick disconnect from help on here so I just leave the FEL frame on and pop off the bucket.. the visibility and shorter length is handy..View attachment 546310

That's actually my goal eventually- mainly for better use of fork w/ logging/fire wood, but I'll take any benefit I can get...

Can you/would you mind putting up more pictures of the other half of your mount, and how they work?

I'd appreciate it a lot.

Thanks,
PA

 

[mykleh]

my little 1620 doesn't have a ton of lift capacity plus I'm cheap so basically just leave the top cross pin in bucket, forks what have you and roll open end of tractor attachment up into it and put lower cross pin in through the holes on each side.. I don't have the bar across keeping both FEL arms tied together but I've never had an issue bending or getting them in sync to get into buckets, forks..