new here, lots of questions...

[5Minpins]

Hi All
I am new and this is my first post. I have some questions if ya'll dont mind giving some advice. I have a TC33 and pull an ATH900 finish mower with it to mow my 8 or so acres in weeds. my property is half flat and half hills. I know its a finish mower but the blackberries are relentless and it does a good job of annhilating them. But I just read on bush hogs site that an ATH900 weighs over 1100 pounds, is that to much for my tc33?? and it also says, minimum 35 hp to run it...I dont have a problem mowing with it, of course it bogs in tall thick stuff but otherwise its a monster and whips thru most anything...cept rocks...I have lots of those too.
my other question is, can someone please tell me how the top link is supposed to be adjusted? I really dont think I have it adjusted right on that big mower.
I also just bought a PHD (learned that abbreviation here) and tomorrow am going to attempt to auger out a post hole...ground is rocky, from what I have been reading here it might take me a while to get all 120 holes drilled. where does one buy teeth for rocky ground at? I live in washington state and the Dels here only carry the auger not any parts, they were just bought by tractor supply and its now full of foo foo clothes and plastic fence parts...none of the stuff they used to have.

 

[TedLaRue]

A front end loader or weights hanging on the front will help keep your front wheels on the ground when you've got that heavy mower on the back.

Pulling an 1100 lb. 7'-6" mower is pushing the limit of your 33HP tractor. If you're often getting bogged down, I fear you'll be posting here in the near future with attached photos of something that's bent, broken, or burned up. Cutting blackberry shoots that are 10" tall should be no problem, but I'm not sure it's a good idea to be "whipping through" 6' blackberry canes and all of the rocks hidden within (even though I know it's a bit of a rush to look back at the tunnel you've just created through the briar patch).

If you need to clear briars/brush on rough ground fairly often, look into buying a used brush hog, something like a 5' Woods, for example. That'll cost less than the repairs you're going to have to make if you keep using your finish mower for brush and rocks.

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When the top-link is too short, the tail wheels of the mower will be picked up off the ground when you mow across the top of a rise in the ground, thus leaving the grass (or blackberry briars) too tall on one side of the rise.

But if the top-link is too long, you won't be able to lift the mower very high, which can be a problem when transporting it, especially over rough ground and/or ditches. Worse yet, you might not be able to pick it up high enough to clear that ant hill or big rock you didn't see in the middle of the briar patch.

Make it as short as you can with the mower still tracking the contour with the tail wheels on the ground.

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Does the auger you have for your post hole digger have a provision for changing the teeth to rock teeth? If it does, you should be able to find the teeth on-line. If not, you're looking at a lot of money for a rock-tooth auger.

Either way, I think you'll find that the rock teeth don't help much unless you have a means to apply a lot of downward force to the digger. In dirt, the auger is somewhat aggressive as it screws itself into the dirt. But on rock, it'll be only the weight of the digger that makes it progress through the rock. You'd need to add a bunch of extra weight to the 3 pt hitch or get a downward-force hydraulic top link or something.

Let us know how the hole digging goes. Maybe the rocks won't be as much of a problem as you're imagining. When you start feeling like the digging isn't going fast enough, get out your hand held post hole diggers and dig one by hand.

 

[MarkV]

Make sure you pull the auger up frequently to clear it as you drill. If you go too deep without clearing and it hangs on a rock unscrewing it by hand makes for a bad day. PHD like to grab stuff so don’t let anyone get near while it is turning.

MarkV

 

[5Minpins]

Let us know how the hole digging goes. Maybe the rocks won't be as much of a problem as you're imagining. When you start feeling like the digging isn't going fast enough, get out your hand held post hole diggers and dig one by hand.

Thankyou TedLarue! I do have a front end loader on so its pretty balanced, it doesnt really bog down much, just when hitting really tall and thick grass, the kind that grows in bunches. the ATH has the 4 wheels on it and it is a 7 footer. I have been on the lookout for a smaller brush mower for the brush but so far, nothing I thought was heavy duty enough in the classifieds here.
and you are right, it is fun to to mow down 6 foot high canes!! but I do run the ATH pretty high so that any hidden rocks are missed. of course dont miss them all but have had pretty good luck so far.
I will mess with the toplink and try to take some pics of it and how I have it adjusted. If I am adjusting it wrong feel free to point that out.

I have hand dug a few gate posts and my entire back yard fence by hand. I have had a stack of fence posts to put all the pastures in for almost 2 years now because I know about digging them by hand!! not fun!! the PHD is a Spee'co with a 12 inch auger, the teeth are bolt on so I can change them. My ground is varied, dirt to pit run to green diorite mineral rock, the diorite is soft and crumbles but in some places its thick. I didnt know if the rock teeth would cut that or not. sounds like not. I will let you know how it goes, my brothers are supposed to come over and help me with the auger. I will make sure everyone stays clear of the auger like everyone has said. its good advice and appreciated.

 

[5Minpins]

Make sure you pull the auger up frequently to clear it as you drill. If you go too deep without clearing and it hangs on a rock unscrewing it by hand makes for a bad day. PHD like to grab stuff so don’t let anyone get near while it is turning.

MarkV

thanks Mark, I want to go 2 1/2 feet on each post. will be sure to pull it up every now and then. I read how to unscrew one by hand and it did not sound like fun at all. when you are putting the Auger in the ground, do you have the bucket of the loader down to support the tractor? I assume you would. some of the posts will be going in on a slope too, tractor should be pointing down hill to drill right? I of course know that it should never be sideways on a slope. thanks again!

 

[5Minpins]

well, I have gotten the PHD mounted and adjusted on the 3 point, drilled some holes too! works awesome in the straight sand!! lol but down below where its kind of rocky, it does just fine, but need to know, how do you keep the auger from jumping over while digging? it seems to want to move sideways a lot and of course it wants to move over against the big rock that isnt gonna move. is this normal? is it because the ground isnt so good? rocks, sticky loose dirt and some clay? or is something loose?