Suggest a grass collection system?

[Smokeydog]

Didn’t say your cutting height. Most people cut too short. Need that length for good root structure and recovery.

Finding the right combination of tooling for your circumstances always a challenge.

We are big composters. Leaves, coffee hulls from roasting, old hay, blood, manure, zoo poo by the dump truckload. Productive berry patches, orchards and gardens. Slowed down a lot but still enjoy it. I drive over 20 miles mulching leaves in my driveway every fall. Need to for drainage. Looking for a less physically demanding option as the work force has gotten older…and hopefully smarter?! Picking up just those leaves would help put them where they will do the most good. Turkeys will sure miss the leaf mulch along the driveway. Will it work? Too many trips to empty the hopper? Too much maintenance? Fun experiment to try.

 

[5030]

You can have that stinky mess. Not for me and we always cut it short, that way we don't have to cut it often. Like my philosophy about hay, cut it short because whether you cut it long or short, the cost in fuel and other related. items remains constant and that also applies to your lawnmower as well.

 

[JWR]

How easy are the bags to empty?

Could not be much easier. The bags have a heavy steel square (square opening, round 1/2" rod ) rim with 2 welded slots on the front edge that fit over posts to hang them on. The nylon bags are heavy material with cloth handles on the bottom of the plastic flexible base plates. You just grab the bag by the top rim and the underneath handle and dump them. The 3 bags are all alike so they hang in any of the 3 positions and you can buy a single bag if you tear one up. I've only had to buy one bag in approx 18 years usage. We typically gather 25 to 30 bags per sweeping and do usually 3 sweeps per fall season bagging leaves. By the way the wind from the blower fan is so strong it will blow your hand back some if you test the flow with the lid up. Like ANY bagger it can be clogged but does not clog often and always down at the deck.

 

[Rob 80]

You can have that stinky mess. Not for me and we always cut it short, that way we don't have to cut it often. Like my philosophy about hay, cut it short because whether you cut it long or short, the cost in fuel and other related. items remains constant and that also applies to your lawnmower as well.

I always cut short it does not make any difference. The humidity has been so high and with all the rain it seems like the grass is always wet.

 

[Raul-02]

If i don't pick them up they kill the grass and make it harder to mow next time.

Do you poison your lawn?? I never - ever - collect cuttings, the worms make 'em disappear. Even when it's high grass. By the time I cut again it's all gone.

 

[Rob 80]

Do you poison your lawn?? I never - ever - collect cuttings, the worms make 'em disappear. Even when it's high grass. By the time I cut again it's all gone.

No but i have thought about it so i would not have to mow it! I've been mowing every 3-6 days it's not going to disappear that fast.

 

[Rob 80]

Didn’t say your cutting height. Most people cut too short. Need that length for good root structure and recovery.

Finding the right combination of tooling for your circumstances always a challenge.

We are big composters. Leaves, coffee hulls from roasting, old hay, blood, manure, zoo poo by the dump truckload. Productive berry patches, orchards and gardens. Slowed down a lot but still enjoy it. I drive over 20 miles mulching leaves in my driveway every fall. Need to for drainage. Looking for a less physically demanding option as the work force has gotten older…and hopefully smarter?! Picking up just those leaves would help put them where they will do the most good. Turkeys will sure miss the leaf mulch along the driveway. Will it work? Too many trips to empty the hopper? Too much maintenance? Fun experiment to try.

2" from the bottom of the deck.

 

[Raul-02]

That does not work from what i have read. You would have to do more than simply block off the discharge the deck itself needs inserts to work

Yah without counter-rotating blades spinning at 3600 rpm it's impossible to make a good smoothie. The grass always gets stuck in my teeth.

 

[Raul-02]

No but i have thought about it so i would not have to mow it! I've been mowing every 3-6 days it's not going to disappear that fast.

I meant poison for bugs.
Every 3 - 6 days?? What kind of lawn do you have? Right next to 3-mile island? Nuclear grass? My lawn is lucky if it sees me every couple weeks.
You could take a page from the Italians around Boston. I knew a few who got heavy gravel to kill the grass and painted the rocks green.
Whenever I drove past their houses I'd quote the old Ragu commercial "It's in there."

 

[5030]

In reality, it's not the spindle rpm but the blade tip speed, which is why larger decks cut better than smaller ones. I rarely run my 72" Tank at rated (3600 rpm). Don't need to as my blade tip speed is sufficient at less rpm and it's easier on gas too.

 

[5030]

I knew a few who got heavy gravel to kill the grass and painted the rocks green

Sounds like Las Vegas to me....lol

 

[Raul-02]

Sounds like Las Vegas to me....lol

that'd make good sense in vegas.

 

[Rob 80]

I meant poison for bugs.
Every 3 - 6 days?? What kind of lawn do you have? Right next to 3-mile island? Nuclear grass? My lawn is lucky if it sees me every couple weeks.
You could take a page from the Italians around Boston. I knew a few who got heavy gravel to kill the grass and painted the rocks green.
Whenever I drove past their houses I'd quote the old Ragu commercial "It's in there."

Just a regular old 3 acre lot. Everyone locally is having the same issue. Usually this time of year the grass is dead from no rain.

 

[/pine]

Suggest a grass collection system?

 

[CFar45]

I looked into this 4 or 5 years ago. Seemed they were all pricey. One I didn’t see mentioned here was from Protero. I can’t speak to the virtues of one vs the next as I decided to stick with my collection system on my zero turn.

 

[JWR]

In reality, it's not the spindle rpm but the blade tip speed, which is why larger decks cut better than smaller ones. I rarely run my 72" Tank at rated (3600 rpm). Don't need to as my blade tip speed is sufficient at less rpm and it's easier on gas too.

Most mowers have gear boxes made to achieve reasonable blade tip speeds at the rated input PTO rpm. The starting point is the desired tip speed and work back from that to whatever gearing it may take. Larger decks by and large have about the same tip speed as smaller ones, though there is variation among manufacturers. As I recall 15,000 fpm is fairly typical.

 

[Raul-02]

Protero.

I bought a used Trac Vac #452 https://trac-vac.com/wp-content/uploads/trac-vac_452-D.jpg. It's a lot like that one. The grass can not be needing a mowing or else it clogs it all up, It's good only for dry leaves; anything wet clogs it up little sticks can clog it up.

If I had my druthers I'd have a rotating Brush that would work well on pretty much any litter. I'd have built one of I could find a good used brush about 2 feet in diameter about 50 or so inches long

 

[Smokeydog]

Rear discharge. Lever to switch from hopper to rear discharge easily from operator’s seat. Hopper vacuums up cut grass and clippings from a week ago.

3/4 hopper 400-500#? Little boat winch to open hopper. Quick and easy. Be easy to convert to hydraulic.

 

[JWR]

That is a big investment ,yet limited use flail mower, not a grass picker upper -- though it probably works great.

 

[K_Daulby]

How easy are the bags to empty?

The 3 bags just hang on the bagger frame. No hard conection like a screw or clasp or anything, they are just held in place by the top of the bagger. very easy