Flail Mower Tractor HP to Flail Mower size Ratio... (Mahindra 4110 & SHD88)

GriffinOnTheRun · Jan 6, 2015

GreenheadRecyle,
Thanks for the specs and yeah, those are they type of the specs that have been scaring me a little bit. It took me a little bit but those specs are for a Vrisimo flail mower vs. an Alamo SHD88 or JD correct??? I did look at Vrisimo till I saw a price tag. Those are way out of my ball park for my little 6-10 acres of mowing that I will do 4-6 times a year. However, in reading through the posts about flail mowers (and with most things) manufactures do provide specs to ensure their equipment can run optimal. With that said it always seems that real world experience is slightly different. Meaning in this case you might be able to get away with a smaller tractor pending what your mowing and how you mow. I am usually the type of person that would spend a little bit more $$$ to buy a little bit heavier duty piece of equipment providing it will meet my needs and perform up to "my expectations". In my case running a smaller tractor might require me to mow slower and or not tackle the larger, thicker, and brushier stuff. Which could be a good thing as it will keep me from tearing things up. However, if it can perform basic field maintenance/trimming then I am totally screwing myself by buying a larger/heavier piece of equipment. Which is why I wanted to hear about some real world experience. I also understand that these are for the most part opinions and I am not planning on holding anybody accountable :drink: Just looking for information/thoughts.

jimmysisson,
Thanks for your input. That's pretty much what I was thinking I would be able to do buy going with the larger size flail. Go big or go home right

I also appreciate the input about dealing with used equipment from an auction. All good points to us rookies buying farm attachments.

leonz,

Again thanks for the advise. Your advise and concerns are exactly the same ones I have at the moment. However, I don't think I am going to be able to swing for a new JD25A as I have priced them and again as you flail guys know... the one down side to flail mowers is the cost...

Oh if money was truly not a concern... :cloud9: I also get a little anxious when dealing with auctions... I think it's the excitement/thrill of winning something as time expires. In this case it's also coupled with not seeing very many flail mowers this close to me (and of course the current price tag). I have been periodically searching for the past 4-5 months and haven't found one this close combined with the current price tag (again, not saying it will stay there but you never know). I view this auction as a potential several hundred dollar gamble. If I was able to win it at a "low price" it works, and it works up to my expectations on our tractor then it was a good gamble. If I win the action and it doesn't work or doesn't meet my expectations then that's several hundred dollars down the drain and that I won't be able to put towards a "good/newer" used JD25A or new Caroni BSC1900 :duh: Last thing I want to do is buy something that doesn't work and or something that I have to have assistance on fixing. As I said before "Speaking of cost I am pretty much a firm believer in paying for what you get." I think you guys have me leaning towards passing on this auction.

With all of that said I might as well pass along the info about the auction as it might be a better fit for some of the other flail searches on here. I won't post the exact link but will provide enough information to find it and what I currently know. The auction is on govdeals for a public works division near St. Louis MO; 1999 Alamo SHD88; 4oz course knives; hasn't been used in 3 years; was working when taken out of service; and if your the winner of the auction and talk nice with them I believe they will even help load it on a trailer

BTW... If somebody does decide this is exactly what they are looking for let me know and I will be sure not to bid against you... There's still a chance my betting side will win out tomorrow and convince me to gamble

Thanks,
Scott

Thomabear · Jan 6, 2015

The specs that GreenheadRecycle posted are for the Vrisimo brush shredders. Their flail mowers require much less HP. Still an 8' mower would tax a 33.6 PTO tractor pretty good in tall grass. I run a Vrisimo Super Series SC160 and my 27 PTO HP tractor doesn't miss a beat in short or tall grass. I would think you could turn a 7' unit of any brand without a problem. I would just take it slow on the 1st pass in taller grass. One thing I like about my mower is that it doesn't have metric bearings and hardware. You can source reasonably priced parts just about anywhere. It's also roughly 300 lbs heavier than my previous Caroni of equal size and much quieter and smoother running. They are built to last and hold their value if taken care of. I may have over killed for my needs but I figured it would be best to cry once than pay again down the road

http://vrisimo.com/userfiles/files/09 Super.pdf.

GriffinOnTheRun · Jan 7, 2015

Hello Thomabear,

Thanks for the additional details about Vrisimo flails. I originally saw some posts from folks who had them and took a quick gander at them till I stumbled across a price tag. However, I couldn't agree more about your statement " ...I figured it would be best to cry once than pay again down the road" I will take another look at them today and maybe I will remain in my chair when I see the price :laughing: I might have been looking at the heavier duty series when I first looked at them :confused2:

Thanks for the info and link.

Cheers,
Scott

GriffinOnTheRun · Jan 8, 2015

Hello guys,

Well just thought I finish out the story about the auction. My gambling side did get the best of me and I had to throw out a bid in the last minute just because the price was so low. However, I was outbid within the last 20 seconds. I will take that as a sign it wasn't meant to be. So the search continues for a good JD25A, maybe a new Caroni, and if I go off the deep end maybe a Vrisimo SC188 :cloud9:

Hello Thomabear,

You mentioned that you had a Caroni before your Vrisimo. Just wondering, why did you decide to make the switch to the Vrisimo? Did you have any major issues with the Caroni or was it just time to upgrade?

I also looked at the specs for the Vrisimo in a little more detail and I don't think I would have any fear about running the SC188 as the recommended HP is 30-50 which would fit perfect for us. Now if I could just find a good used one that won't totally break the bank

Thanks,
Scott

Thomabear · Jan 8, 2015

The only issues I had with the Caroni was the infamous gearbox blowing of oil through the vent (easily resolved with an extention tube) & low belt life due to slippage which I'm told is easily reduced with Kelvar belts. I never tried the Kelvar belts but I read that they helped. I had a set that I wound up selling to Island Tractor when I went the Vrisimo route so maybe he can chime in on how they worked out. Another issue I came to realize is that replacement parts like shackles and pins are very expensive. Other than that Caroni is a great bang for your buck and it's definitely a good mower. I'll also add that Agrisuppy has excellent customer service when it comes to obtaining parts.

My main reason for switching to Vrisimo is that I wanted to upgrade to a heavier duty unit that would be more versatile for my needs. The knives are easily changed by pulling a clip and 4 rods and can be accomplished in just a few minutes with a box-in wrench and a pair of pliers. I now rotate between scoop knives for finish cutting and de-thatching knives to improve ground contact for my seeds when overseeding in the fall. At my age I need to keep things simple. Other things I like about the Vrisimo is the availability of hardware and the bearings. They are commonly stocked and easy to replace should it become necessary. Vrisimo is also USA made which is my preference and nothing is metric which can be an issue if you need parts in a hurry. Also the rotor drive system includes a "huge" 90 HP reversible gearbox with a high quality belt tentioning system along with a very wide single belt (guessing around 2 to 3" wide) that you literally cant make slip.

Concerning the Caroni, if I was on a budget I wouldn't hesitate to purchase another one and just live with the very minor inconveniences. They are very nice and and a great value for the $$. Hope this helps!

leonz · Jan 8, 2015

Whoopsie,

Don't yell Thomabear,

all bearings are metric and all V belts are metric they just cross reference
the nearest SAE sizes since we refuse to change to the metric system.

:groundhog::drink:

Thomabear · Jan 9, 2015

leonz said:
Whoopsie, Don't yell Thomabear, all bearings are metric and all V belts are metric they just cross reference the nearest SAE sizes since we refuse to change to the metric system. :groundhog::drink:

The roller bearing part description is 1-7/16" and the drum bearing is listed as 1-15/16". The belt description is 2"x 53". My local bearing distributor stocks metric and SAE including the two mentioned. Before contacting them a quick check with my calipers indicated the same. If they are crossed over from metric I'd have to say they deal with fractional mm differences as these are right on the money SAE, unless I'm missing something... Either way I'm pleased that they are widely available.

KenB2920 · May 25, 2015

I'm now curious as to what the OP went with.

Post some pics along with your experience with what you purchased.

GriffinOnTheRun · May 26, 2015

Hello KenB2920,

I guess I should finish out the story... So I continued searching for used flail mowers in my area and was pretty much ready to pull the trigger on a "used" JD25A that was only a year old and about 12 hours (round trip) away from me. Till low and behold I stumbled across a used Vrisimo C184 that was just under 5 hours (round trip) from my house. After doing a little more product research, price negotiating, and confirming a few details we worked out a deal and I am now the proud owner of a Vrisimo C184 flail mower. To date I have mowed my field twice with it and I must say "I LOVE IT". I am still playing with the settings and figuring out how to use it to get the best results but so far it performs great behind our mule.

As I was told and discovered for myself it performs great at a lower mower setting vs. higher. My initial mowing of my field (field that hadn't been mowed in 2+ years) was cut at the highest setting (approximately 8") and I thought it did ok. I wasn't jumping up and down for joy but did like the look better than a rotary mower and was able to cut through some saplings without skipping a beat. I waited about 2-3 weeks and decided to cut the field a second time at much lower mower setting (approximately 2") and this time I was ecstatic at the results. I was so happy that I then tackled a little bit rougher terrain next to our lagoon that hadn't mowed or burned in 3+ years. AMAZING... This thing can leave a beautiful finish on the field then go and tear up saplings/small brush like it's nothing. An added bonus that I haven’t really seen mentioned much in the Flail threads is that I really like how the mower hugs the land and leaves a nice even cut without scalping sections. Our field is rolling and after mowing at the lower setting we had zero scalping and could really see how the land curves.

The Vrisimo C184 behind our mule seems to be a great match as neither side seems to be bogged down/slowed down by the other which was a huge fear for me with this purchase. I will admit that I ended up spending the max amount of my budget for the Vrisimo but all in all I am very happy with the results and believe I made a sound purchase. Plus the good news is that the wife is still allowing me to sleep in the house vs. the shop with the mower. ;-) I will try to take some before and after pictures and gather a few more actual stats during my next round of mowing which won’t be till the end of June.

Thanks to everybody who provided comments and suggestions. Special thanks Leonz. He took the time to answer questions, respond to multiple e-mails, and provided great advice throughout the entire process. Cheers to Leonz!!!

Cheers,
Scott

leonz · May 26, 2015

Thomabear said:
The specs that GreenheadRecycle posted are for the Vrisimo brush shredders. Their flail mowers require much less HP. Still an 8' mower would tax a 33.6 PTO tractor pretty good in tall grass. I run a Vrisimo Super Series SC160 and my 27 PTO HP tractor doesn't miss a beat in short or tall grass. I would think you could turn a 7' unit of any brand without a problem. I would just take it slow on the 1st pass in taller grass. One thing I like about my mower is that it doesn't have metric bearings and hardware. You can source reasonably priced parts just about anywhere. It's also roughly 300 lbs heavier than my previous Caroni of equal size and much quieter and smoother running. They are built to last and hold their value if taken care of. I may have over killed for my needs but I figured it would be best to cry once than pay again down the road

http://vrisimo.com/userfiles/files/09 Super.pdf.

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Just to clarify: ALL bearings and V belts are metric in actual size- its not a problem.