leonz
Super Member
They work but 99% of your question depends on what your three point hitch can
lift as a hydraulic power pack will be required to run a high flow attachment.
To overcome the lift issue you can have a power pack mounted on heavy
solid bush hog caster wheels.
Skid steer attachments are powered by the high flow axial piston hydraulic
motor that powers all the functions of the skid steer before an attachment
is mounted on the skid steer.
The high flow attachments may need up to 45 gallons per minute of oil flow
to power them and you need a large volume power pack to do this and an
oil cooler.
These hydraulic power packs use a gear pump connected to the rear power
take off directly using a chain to prevent it from moving or they use a short
PTO shaft to the gear pump that is permanently mounted under the oil tank
frame.
The other issue are the 3 hydraulic oil hoses; 2 hoses are used for oil flow and
the third hose is the case drain hose that allows the oil that is behind the shaft
seal to return to tank at 15 PSIG or less and prevents the shaft seal from blowing
out. The three hydraulic hoses must have the high pressure 2 wire braid hydraulic
hoses.
A properly designed hydraulic circuit for a hydraulic power pack or any hydraulic system
also includes a case drain line for the hydraulic pump and the hydraulic motor or motors
as well.
Do not let anyone tell you case drains are not needed for hydraulic pumps or hydraulic motors
and do not buy a power pack or attachment that does not have the case drain hose.
Skid steer attachments require 2 or more open center double acting oil spool valves and
one of these valves is a detent operated double acting oil spool valve that allow the oil
flow to be diverted in forward or reverse.
The other major thing you need to understand is the three very long oil hoses it requires
will have either male/female quick connectors or flat face connectors and when the machine
is shut off they will have full system pressure in the hoses and they can cause an oil penetration
injury that will be fatal.
To prevent this from happening a Stucci hydraulic coupler safely allows you disconnect the three hoses
by using a pressure release valve that drains the system pressure back to the tank allowing you to
disconnect the three hoses and reconnect them as well.
www.stucciusa.com/product-category/skid-steer/hydraulic-couplers/
These systems typically use a manually operated oil flow connecting block using a lever
connection with how ever many hose connections the attachment in the machined block
requires to lock the hose connections in place or to unlock the hose connections to safely
connect or disconnect the hoses.
For the money spent on a hydraulic drive flail mower, hydraulic hoses and a hydraulic power
pack your money would be better spent on a RAMMY ATV/RTV motorized flail mower that
would be mounted on your front loader using an RTV attachment plate and a 12 volt winch
to raise and lower it OR a Del Morino or MASCHIO rear mounted flail mower.
lift as a hydraulic power pack will be required to run a high flow attachment.
To overcome the lift issue you can have a power pack mounted on heavy
solid bush hog caster wheels.
Skid steer attachments are powered by the high flow axial piston hydraulic
motor that powers all the functions of the skid steer before an attachment
is mounted on the skid steer.
The high flow attachments may need up to 45 gallons per minute of oil flow
to power them and you need a large volume power pack to do this and an
oil cooler.
These hydraulic power packs use a gear pump connected to the rear power
take off directly using a chain to prevent it from moving or they use a short
PTO shaft to the gear pump that is permanently mounted under the oil tank
frame.
The other issue are the 3 hydraulic oil hoses; 2 hoses are used for oil flow and
the third hose is the case drain hose that allows the oil that is behind the shaft
seal to return to tank at 15 PSIG or less and prevents the shaft seal from blowing
out. The three hydraulic hoses must have the high pressure 2 wire braid hydraulic
hoses.
A properly designed hydraulic circuit for a hydraulic power pack or any hydraulic system
also includes a case drain line for the hydraulic pump and the hydraulic motor or motors
as well.
Do not let anyone tell you case drains are not needed for hydraulic pumps or hydraulic motors
and do not buy a power pack or attachment that does not have the case drain hose.
Skid steer attachments require 2 or more open center double acting oil spool valves and
one of these valves is a detent operated double acting oil spool valve that allow the oil
flow to be diverted in forward or reverse.
The other major thing you need to understand is the three very long oil hoses it requires
will have either male/female quick connectors or flat face connectors and when the machine
is shut off they will have full system pressure in the hoses and they can cause an oil penetration
injury that will be fatal.
To prevent this from happening a Stucci hydraulic coupler safely allows you disconnect the three hoses
by using a pressure release valve that drains the system pressure back to the tank allowing you to
disconnect the three hoses and reconnect them as well.
www.stucciusa.com/product-category/skid-steer/hydraulic-couplers/
These systems typically use a manually operated oil flow connecting block using a lever
connection with how ever many hose connections the attachment in the machined block
requires to lock the hose connections in place or to unlock the hose connections to safely
connect or disconnect the hoses.
For the money spent on a hydraulic drive flail mower, hydraulic hoses and a hydraulic power
pack your money would be better spent on a RAMMY ATV/RTV motorized flail mower that
would be mounted on your front loader using an RTV attachment plate and a 12 volt winch
to raise and lower it OR a Del Morino or MASCHIO rear mounted flail mower.
Last edited:
Thanks for the reply. I've already got a rear mount flail mower as well as an old rear mount rotary. I was just trying to get a mower out front in order to avoid laying down the grass/weeks with my tractor tires. I had been under the impression that most had low flow requirements. Oh well...
hayden
Veteran Member
Leonz captured the issues pretty well. I took this approach to mount an hydraulic powered snow blower to my front loader. The blower and 3PH hydraulic power pack are both from Erskine. Compact tractors tend to have pretty low hydraulic flow available, probably in the 5-10 gpm range. My snow blower needs 26 gpm. To get that straight from a tractor, you need something in the Deere 6M range which is a pretty big machine. And even then you will just barely get the required 26 gpm. Although they are excavator mounted, I have two other hydraulically powered cutters that will give you a further idea of the flow required. One is a 4' rotary mower, and it required 16 gpm. The other is a 1 meter mulcher and it requires 26 gpm.
The only thing I would add to Leonz's comments is that depending on the type of motor(s) used in the attachment, a case drain isn't always required. A case drain is definitely needed for piston motors, and I think also for vane motors. But they aren't needed for gear motors. My Erskine power pack and snow blower do not have case drains because the pump and all the motors are gear pumps. The same is true for the 4' rotary mower. But the mulcher uses a variable displacement piston pump and that does have a case drain.
The only thing I would add to Leonz's comments is that depending on the type of motor(s) used in the attachment, a case drain isn't always required. A case drain is definitely needed for piston motors, and I think also for vane motors. But they aren't needed for gear motors. My Erskine power pack and snow blower do not have case drains because the pump and all the motors are gear pumps. The same is true for the 4' rotary mower. But the mulcher uses a variable displacement piston pump and that does have a case drain.
