ROTARY CUTTER SPEED

[Soundguy]

No offense.. but you grab that lower gear ( or range ) before you start up that hard hill. I consider that just a part of technique and experience though.. both of which will vary greatly from person to person, etc. In many cases experience can make up for a lack of equipment options.. ( not to say that those options may not be nice to have! ).

Soundguy

Hydro or gears- You gotta be kidding! Gears may be OK for someone with a big flat field of grass but when you wanna cut thick or thin, up or down, its real nice to just let up on your pedal a bit to ease into things instead of trying to slip a clutch or grab a lower gear half way up a hill.
I just wish that my JD had a clutch pedal that would disconnect the PTO like my old Bota did.( It had hydro and a clutch)

 

[john_bud]

Rob,

What the heck did you plant in that food plot? It don't look much like "food" now!

I would plant a selection of plants that will green up early with high protien, then have a second and then a third set of plants that will be able to take the dry conditions for as long as possible.

The local feed mill should be able to steer you in the right direction. I would think that a plant like (little or big) bluestem or yellow blossom sweet clover may have deep enough roots to last for a while. Then again if you can't get anything to stay green, you may want to switch to a drought tollerant clover and small grain mix. The grains would at least still be standing and provide some food and nesting cover.
jb

 

[JerryG]

I have a gear tractor. Anyone what to help me mow.
http://www.tractorbynet.com/photos/showphoto.php/photo/4155

 

[3RRL]

John,
Go to my thread about the food plot in rural living. Don't mean to get off topic.
http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/rural-living/88588-plowing-food-plot-box-blade.html

 

[flINTLOCK]

Had an opportunity to do real world test of my own this weekend. My tractor gives 540 PTO rpm's at 2500 engine rpm's, I was able to get decent weed cutting down to about 1500 engine rpm's. Below that, got some vibration in the cutter. Don't know exact fuel consumption, but I guess it should be better at lower engine speed. I'll probably run about 1700 in the future.

 

[nebuniram]

I have a gear tractor. Anyone what to help me mow.
http://www.tractorbynet.com/photos/showphoto.php/photo/4155

EEK! I bet that gets a little hairy everytime you crawl up that slope!

 

[Farmwithjunk]

Don't know exact fuel consumption, but I guess it should be better at lower engine speed.

It SHOULD be, but there is a point where slowing down the RPM's becomes counter-productive. With a slower engine speed, you get slower ground speed with a gear drive OR need higher speed setting on a hydro to achieve same speed. I'm not EVEN opening that can of worms. Probably a minimum engine speed for efficient use of a hydrostatic tranny. Slower ground speed can mean you burn less fuel per hour and spend more hours cutting. Lower engine speeds will GENERALLY save a few drops of fuel, but that stops at a certain point. Don't go so low that you begin to lug a diesel. That's just about the worst thing you can do to a diesel. It takes a bit of experimenting to find that "sweet spot" where you get good results from the mower, save a little wear and tear on the tractor, save a little fuel, and don't do long term damage to the engine. I'm a staunch advocate of "taking it easy" on a tractor and running at less rpm's when you can, but even with that, don't go overboard with the concept.

 

[jsborn]

OK guys reading this post it seems that everyone is worried about seed and in a hurry. I for one use my mowing time as Physco thearpy and as my wife says I need all that I can get so I try to mow slowly and may even go over the same ground twice if the mood strikes. With that said gear drive and low range is the only way to go.

Try it can can really save money on doctors and shrinks.

 

[JerryG]

EEK! I bet that gets a little hairy everytime you crawl up that slope!

Actually, the only part that bothers me is turning around at the top. There isn't much room to make the U turn. There is about 20' or so where the tractor is at in the picture that a lot of the time, I back up unless I'm in a hurry to get done. If I am in a hurry, I do the U turn thing.

 

[3RRL]

Holy smokes Jerry,
That is one heck of a steep grade you mow! And I thought mine was hairy.