Operating on hilly ground. You level land guys are wimps!!

[RobertBrown]

My neighbor cuts this going up and down. Steeper than the 2d photo shows.
I live in Appalacian hill country and I have seen guys mow and BALE hills steeper than this.

I'm not making this up. One guy bales round bales and they all roll down to the bottom of the hill as they come out of the baler.

Appalacian hill country..gotta love it.

A little too much pucker factor for me. I would be standing on the foot rest on the up hill side with one hand on the throttle and one hand on the wheel.
Even mowing up hill would make me nervous, you couldn't see where you are going without leaning over.

 

[5030]

I have a couple fields that I contract mow and bale that have slopes and when I'm not level, I'm uneasy. Must be I'm a flatland wimp.....

 

[Scooby074]

Hills, hills and more hills. Where can I get a tilt meter that goes over 25 degrees? I use a builder digital meter and a spirit level, no use when you are moving.

You have the machine for the slopes for sure!!:thumbsup:

While were talking about machines and slopes, have a look at the AEBI and Reform tractors from Switzerland
Products & Business areas - ASH Aebi Schmidt Holding

REFORM ｻ Reform

One of those things where "If you have to ask..." Even well used theyre over $45,000

Heres a very nice slidshow showing their machines in Switzerland. Beautiful countryside. Watch in HD Fullscreen. Their walking tractors are awesome! AEBI - SWISS QUALITY - Landtechnik - YouTube

Another Brilliantly shot HD slideshow

http://youtu.be/SZVWgV_3B08

How about going on a 75% slope?
AEBI Terratrac TT270 climbing a 75% slope - YouTube


reform - YouTube

This is probably my favorite ROW clearing video, A Reform on steep hills running a front mount flail. Love how the 4WS keeps the tractor on the hill and heading the right direction.

Noremat-XP Reform-Mounty - YouTube

Of course there are north american products like the Kut Kwick and Dew EZE
but they're mowers only. Better not forget about the Ventrac/Steiner and Power trac Either but they arent in the same power class as the machines listed.
KutKwick ..." Hey, watch that pond!":thumbsup:
Kut Kwick, Corporation: Heavy Duty Commercial Slope Mower, The SuperSlopeMaster - YouTube

DewEze
Deweze ATM 162 Slope Mower - YouTube

I guess you could say living on a hill side makes me a bit of a fan of how others work on their slopes and what tools they use

 

[Bill 55]

Sweep what part of the Ohio Hill Country are you in? I grew up in Northwestern Guernsey County and now live in Southeastern Coshocton County.

 

[D7E]

Since the trees in the background (upper right of the pic) are on a bit of an angle (5 degrees or a bit more), I'd say the camera was held on an angle too.

The fence posts are upright though !

 

[Runner]

This is one of my 20 degree slopes. When I mow this with my 72 inch RFM, I have to dial in about a 10 degree "crab angle" to keep the tractor moving straight.

The belly mower doesn't tend to drag the machine downhill like the rear mower does. Fortunately, it is smooth ground, so I have not encountered any problems so far....

As mentioned previously, pictures do tend to flatten out the appearance of sloped ground.

 

[RoyJackson]

The fence posts are upright though !

I couldn't see them well enough...and they don't appar to be in line of sight.

 

[scoutcub]

Well this is too funny.....I was going to start a thread on this, but sweeps beat me to it. Even took a few pics recently for the thread. Oddly enuff, I'm also in Ohio, I think I'm in "hill country"??!
I HATE slopes. I have the 1.4 acres in the pic and some acreage closeby, both with slopes. I get very nervous operating heavy equipment on them, especially the excavator when swinging the carriage around.....feels like you're gonna fall outta your seat!
The pics are of one of the steeper parts of my lot....and doing loader work sideslope is very nerve-wracking. Can't always go uphill/downhill. Any guesses on this slope? I'd be interested to know, I'm overseas now and can't put it to the test. Fortunately, I've finished the dirt work with no issues. When I first started mowing, I was going up/downhill.....now I go sideslope with no reservation, using a zero turn tractor. It's wide stance and lo CG really work well.

Sweeps - what part of the hill country? I'm just south of Canton.....

 

[jake98]

Nobody beats our slopes.. even the trees grow crooked.. :laughing:

 

[RoyJackson]

Any guesses on this slope? I'd be interested to know, I'm overseas now and can't put it to the test.

Using the buildings in the background as reference, my estimate is 20 to 22 degrees. Pretty steep...