RancherGuy
Gold Member
- Joined
- Feb 2, 2010
- Messages
- 301
- Location
- Rosenberg, TX
- Tractor
- Kubota L3710; JD 5425, 6105R, 7130-P; IH 1086
I know this is an old thread, but I thought I could provide some experience. I have a super tough 15 foot batwing and have shredded many acres, ranging from grass to 6" trees. Attacking larger trees requires a specific technique, but I also have spare blades on hand 
Recently I was shredding acres of heavy brush/small trees. If it is anything but grass and weeds, I always mow driving backwards. The strongest tip I can give is to look at your results. Before you drive any tires over them, you want to ensure the wood is short and tops are shredded like a broccoli stalk. That is, the top must frayed and not be sharp. If they are trees, I always drive backwards 15 feet or so, then forwards, then backwards because on the first pass the tree trunk will lie flat and miss the blades. I rarely see success if cut height is more than 4 inches. In fact my neighbor leased his land for cattle and I watched the lessor drive a tractor and batwing in forward direction along the fenceline, cutting 1" diameter trees 6-8" high. He did a second lap, then I watched him back up to turn around. The next day I noticed that the tractor had a rear flat, 100 feet from where he turned around. The cut trees were acting like small spikes. My experience shows that newer tires are less resistant to puncture, but that may because my 25 year old tires were being punctured once a month, while the new tires I replaced them with have never punctured (same tires, just newer).
Recently I was shredding acres of heavy brush/small trees. If it is anything but grass and weeds, I always mow driving backwards. The strongest tip I can give is to look at your results. Before you drive any tires over them, you want to ensure the wood is short and tops are shredded like a broccoli stalk. That is, the top must frayed and not be sharp. If they are trees, I always drive backwards 15 feet or so, then forwards, then backwards because on the first pass the tree trunk will lie flat and miss the blades. I rarely see success if cut height is more than 4 inches. In fact my neighbor leased his land for cattle and I watched the lessor drive a tractor and batwing in forward direction along the fenceline, cutting 1" diameter trees 6-8" high. He did a second lap, then I watched him back up to turn around. The next day I noticed that the tractor had a rear flat, 100 feet from where he turned around. The cut trees were acting like small spikes. My experience shows that newer tires are less resistant to puncture, but that may because my 25 year old tires were being punctured once a month, while the new tires I replaced them with have never punctured (same tires, just newer).
