Used 5 Or 6 Foot Rotary Cutter. What brand To Look For.

[RancherGuy]

Instead of asking for brand recommendations, perhaps ask what not to buy.

In general, I have found that the design of these tends to lend them to be very forgiving and long lasting. I have owned 5 and never had an issue with respect to the manufacturer / label.

I'd like to tell you about my first. Caveat: in general I am not an equipment abuser - I like them to last a lifetime. This shredder was a well-used 5' model that came with my used Kubota tractor; no name. I'm sure it had a name at one time but the appearance was as basic as one can get. The deck was thin and nothing was robustly built. The blades were so used that the leading cutting edge was as completely rounded. I replaced those blades then used it for 15 years and treated it extremely harsh. The more abuse I gave, the more confidence I had that it could take more. When I used it, I always used ear plugs because of the limbs and small trees that I cut up made a terrible racket - so much so that my wife complained. Cut trees up to 3 inches by backing up. Finally after about the 10th year, I broke a blade. Replaced the blades again and abused it for another 5 years, then sold it on craigslist for $450, as I recall.

 

[mo1]

I'm going to be looking for a 5 or 6 foot brush hog to run on my John Deere with 30 PTO HP.
Its duties will include over grown field work where the vegetation will consist of briar bushes, saplings and other goodies you may find in these untended pastures and fields.
So looking for something that will do a good job and hold up to the rough conditions. I won't abuse it but the conditions could be tough!

What would be the top 3 brands/models you'd recommend I look for? I don't need the most bad ass - built like a tank one but just something that will be reliable and hold up.

I appreciate any advice, opinion and comments.

I would suspect you would do better with a 5' unit vs. a 6' unit with a tractor with 30 PTO HP with an overgrown field with brambles and brush.

I've used a few cutters and haven't have any issues with them, in general if you keep things properly lubricated, keep fasteners tightened, and don't abuse your equipment (such as cutting down 4" diameter saplings with a light duty cutter, after replacing the regular grade 1 or 2 shear bolt with a grade 8 bolt), a decent rotary cutter ought to last a very long time. My folks have a 5' Bush Hog Razorback that has been around for about 25 years and it has done just fine, I have a Deere MX6 that I've probably got about 75 acres on so far and it's done fine as well.

 

[old and tired]

I'm going to be looking for a 5 or 6 foot brush hog to run on my John Deere with 30 PTO HP.....

I assume you have another tractor besides what you have listed in your profile? "...Tractor: John Deere 756, John Deere X585, John Deere 332"

With 30 PTO, I would only look for a 6 footer. I bought a low end 60" Landpride and now I'm replacing the metal deck on it because it works so well (but it rusted out). I bought it cheap and was planning to just use it to find rocks on our property but it's held up very well and I just put new blades on it. It chops up 1.5" trees very well. It might do larger but I don't want to try doing that!!!

 

[jeff9366]

If you buy a Rotary Cutter too light it will visit the dealer yearly for repair.
NEW Rotary Cutters cut everything at first. As the light blades dull a light cutter undergoes increasing stress.

60" - 72" Rotary Cutters:​

400/500 pounds = light duty = grass only.

600/700 pounds = medium duty = grass and ocasional light brush, perhaps to 1"

1,000 pounds = heavy duty = mostly brush, even dense brush and saplings to 2".

(The manufactures tell you medium-duty will cut 2", heavy-duty 3", which they will, FOR AWHILE.)

Heavy brush inevitably dulls the heavy blades so does not cut grass as nice as a Rotary Cutter used only for grass but will continue to chop brush. Splayed brush cut by rounded blades dies more surely than evenly cut brush cut by sharp blades. Most who cut considerable brush sharpen heavy blades at two to three year intervals.

I cut 3" hardwood saplings like Hickory with a chain saw. I knock down softwood 3" saplings with a Ratchet Rake on the bucket, before mulching them on the ground with a 1,000 pound Land Pride RCR2660 Rotary Cutter.

- - - - - 0 - - - - -​

I know it had been discussed many times on TBN, and the general consensus is 5 PTO hp for 1 foot of bush hog size. Wondering if anyone has real world experience with a L3560 ( 3,700 pounds / 35-horsepower net / 28-horsepower PTO ) with a "2 inch" capacity bush hog. I need a 6' cutter to cover my tracks- tractor is 70" wide- but worry if I'll be underpowered. I do trust my dealer, and he says I'll be fine with a 6' cutter.

You will be find with a RCF2072 behind an open station L3560 if you cut grass and no brush thicker than 1". RCF2072 weighs 745 pounds.
The addition of a 600 pound CAB and liquid filled rear tires to an L3560 would moderate my assessment, especially if you need to mow hills.

Mower duties will include over grown field work where the vegetation will consist of briar bushes, saplings and other goodies you may find in these untended pastures and fields. So looking for something that will do a good job and hold up to rough conditions. I won't abuse it but the conditions could be tough!

Rotary Mowers, like other implements, come in Light Duty, Medium Duty and Heavy Duty models. Generally speaking, there is 150 pounds of weight difference assoicoated with heavier increments. If you carefully study new mower specs, most have Category 3 drive lines. Heavy Duty models have Category 4 drive lines. Dealers often refer to HD Category 4 mowers as "Right-of-Way" Mowers.

L3560 has 37-horsepower gross / 28-horsepower PTO.


25 horsepower will power a Light Duty 5' Rotary Mower
35 horsepower will power a Heavy Duty 5' Rotary Mower

35 horsepower will power a Light Duty 6' Rotary Mower
45 horsepower will power a Heavy Duty 6' Rotary Mower

Using a HD Rotary Cutter of 1,000 - 1,100 pounds you will need an FEL to hold down the front of the tractor on moderate slopes.

I use a Land Pride RCR2660 (60") HD Rotary Cutter with a Class 4 driveline, weighing 1,002 pounds. My 2013 vintage L3560 powers RCR2660 through Florida jungle mowing over flat land with no complaint and no damage/distortion to the implement. I "try" not to cut brush thicker than 1-1/2". $3,120.00 in May 2018.

I had a Land Pride RCF2060 (60") medium-duty Rotary Cuter with a Class 3 driveline, weighing 620 pounds, nominally rated for 2" brush. It required a ~~$600 repair each year when I would get into brush. It would have been reliable cutting grass. $1,600 in February 2014.

Most Rotary Cutter mowing is done in HST/MEDIUM, with HST/PLUS half-step shifts.

If you buy too light a Rotary Cutter, then cut saplings, it will soon visit the shop.

If you decide to buy a medium or heavy duty mower order chain guards for the front and rear, not rubber guards and not plain metal.

 

[old and tired]

"...You are ignoring content by this member.." I know better than to look but I did anyway... Holy crap, this is why he's on my ignore list. Purely made up BS... Oops, Excuse me, His purely made up opinion...

 

[wirlybird]

Thank you everyone for all of the input and advice.
I have purchased a used JD3038E that has 100 hours and it is coming with a JD RC2060 cutter so my focus will be on looking for a 6 foot cutter for general purpose use.
I hope mainly to use the 6 footer to reduce overall time per acre on fields I cut 2-4 times a summer.

 

[rademamj1]

Congrats on the JD tractor and rotary cutter. Sounds like you got everything under control right now. And the forum members gave you alot to think about in their posts. Happy mowing with the new equipment.

 

[mo1]

Thank you everyone for all of the input and advice.
I have purchased a used JD3038E that has 100 hours and it is coming with a JD RC2060 cutter so my focus will be on looking for a 6 foot cutter for general purpose use.
I hope mainly to use the 6 footer to reduce overall time per acre on fields I cut 2-4 times a summer.

I would only look at the 6' cutter in that case if you trade in the RC2060 on a 6' cutter or sell the RC2060 and then use the proceeds to buy a 6' cutter, and you do not have to pay much of a difference to get the larger unit.

The difference between the 5 foot cutter you are getting and a 6 foot cutter is very small, it is roughly a third of an acre per hour difference at typical speeds, assuming that you can go the same speed with a 6' cutter as you can a 5' cutter. If you have to slow down with the 6' cutter compared to the 5' cutter, you may actually end up being slower with the 6' unit than with the 5' unit. If you are mowing a large enough area where the fraction of an acre per hour difference between a 5' and 6' cutter will be actually significant, you probably want to get a much larger cutter such as a 10' double spindle or a 15-20' batwing and get done a whole lot quicker. That will require a significantly larger tractor and particularly if it's a pull type, they will be a LOT less maneuverable, and maneuvering around things with a pull type cutter takes a lot of time compared to using a single spindle 3 point cutter.

 

[wirlybird]

I would only look at the 6' cutter in that case if you trade in the RC2060 on a 6' cutter or sell the RC2060 and then use the proceeds to buy a 6' cutter, and you do not have to pay much of a difference to get the larger unit.

The difference between the 5 foot cutter you are getting and a 6 foot cutter is very small, it is roughly a third of an acre per hour difference at typical speeds, assuming that you can go the same speed with a 6' cutter as you can a 5' cutter. If you have to slow down with the 6' cutter compared to the 5' cutter, you may actually end up being slower with the 6' unit than with the 5' unit. If you are mowing a large enough area where the fraction of an acre per hour difference between a 5' and 6' cutter will be actually significant, you probably want to get a much larger cutter such as a 10' double spindle or a 15-20' batwing and get done a whole lot quicker. That will require a significantly larger tractor and particularly if it's a pull type, they will be a LOT less maneuverable, and maneuvering around things with a pull type cutter takes a lot of time compared to using a single spindle 3 point cutter.

Thank you for the insight.

I had recently bought an RC2060 for a great price I was going to spiff up a bit for use on my 3032E. I had been looking for quite some time for the right deal on a 3038E, wasn't in a hurry.
When I found this deal it came with a basically new RC2060.
My plan now is to get the older, used RC2060 going good and maybe use it. I have a 5 foot Big Bee Agri 5 I use that just won't quit! Great cutter. I have upgraded it to a heavy duty stump jumper and blades and it has surprised me at every turn.
One of these 5 footers will likely get sold when the time is right and I find a deal on a 6 footer. If the deal is good on a 6 footer I can always turn it over when the market is good.
I will be interested to see how a 6 does compared to the 5.
I have a couple 10 acre fields near by that are nice straight up grasses that should be good for testing speeds. The 6 footer would be mostly for that type of mowing to hopefully cut the per acre time down some. As you indicate it may not be the case at this HP level.

We'll see how we do!

 

[wirlybird]

Congrats on the JD tractor and rotary cutter. Sounds like you got everything under control right now. And the forum members gave you alot to think about in their posts. Happy mowing with the new equipment.

Yes, great info! Always learning here!
I know a lot of this flail, rotary cutter what to get stuff gets posted over and over but I hope it can make for some updated and fun conversations with great advice added in.