Rotary Mower

[Tennessee Cattleman]

Been looking at some Bush Hog (model 327) & Rhino (models 284 & 484) 7 foot pull rotary mowers. Anybody got opinions on these?

 

[John SD]

No experience with those models. Do I understand correctly that you would prefer a pull type mower vs a 3pt model?

I can't think of any reason I would want a pull type unless the mower tractor does not have a 3pt hitch. I mow in some pretty tight places and do some mowing in reverse gear. Doesn't seem reverse operation would be too handy with a pull type mower.

Local place sells Rhino and they look like a good mower. I have considered upgrading to an 8' 3pt mower for my 105HP Kubota.

Don't want to spend the $$$ so I'll probably stick with my 6' JD 606 mower. ;-)

A neighbor recently purchased a large wing type pull type mower at the county surplus auction. It was a "mechanic special" and took a little TLC to get it in shape. Neighbor really likes the mower, and doesn't have much tied up in it.

 

[Tennessee Cattleman]

I have experience with both 3 point & pickup mowers. I have found the pull models work better for me on the hills of east Tennessee. Pull models seem to make the tractor more stable on the steeper hills. About the only reason for me to have a 3 point mower would be to save money since the 3 point is less expensive.

 

[skyhightree1]

I have no experience with either of the models. The only pull unit I have is a deere batwing but I have heard alot of good about rhino and all the guys that clean up and cut the roadways and powerline right of ways here use rhino.

 

[dun]

Based on how stout my 8' Bushhog brand is (3 pt) I wouldn;t hesitate to get another. My pull is a 15' batwing and gives up a lot for manueverability around tight objects or backing up.

 

[skyhightree1]

My pull is a 15' batwing and gives up a lot for manueverability around tight objects or backing up.[/quote]

same here... but its a beast in open areas though :lol:

 

[bigbull338]

you cant beat bushhog mowers.they are twice the mower that rhino is.i would get the 8ft pull type mower.i would never get the 8ft 3pt mower no matter the hp.because of the weight thatll always be on the 3pt lift.if you have small tight places then get a 6ft 3pt shredder as well.

 

[ALACOWMAN]

My pull is a 15' batwing and gives up a lot for manueverability around tight objects or backing up.

same here... but its a beast in open areas though :lol:[/quote]
ive only has a batwing for about 4 years, but those dam things will spoil you.. a couple rounds with it , and i feel like ive done a half a days work already

 

[dun]

My pull is a 15' batwing and gives up a lot for manueverability around tight objects or backing up.

same here... but its a beast in open areas though :lol:

ive only has a batwing for about 4 years, but those dam things will spoil you.. a couple rounds with it , and i feel like ive done a half a days work already[/quote]
You must not have trees to avoid or strange shaped fields to mow. Lately I
ve got the big areas with the batwing and put on the 8' 3pt for the odd areas.

 

[skyhightree1]

you cant beat bushhog mowers.they are twice the mower that rhino is.i would get the 8ft pull type mower.i would never get the 8ft 3pt mower no matter the hp.because of the weight thatll always be on the 3pt lift.if you have small tight places then get a 6ft 3pt shredder as well.

I have a 3pt john deere mx10 which is behind a JD 4055 ive been using to bushhog lately and I use it to mow between the crop fields and hunting trails. Its alot easier to maneuver than a tow behind.

My pull is a 15' batwing and gives up a lot for manueverability around tight objects or backing up.

same here... but its a beast in open areas though :lol:

ive only has a batwing for about 4 years, but those dam things will spoil you.. a couple rounds with it , and i feel like ive done a half a days work already[/quote]

You got that right :clap:

 

[skyhightree1]

My pull is a 15' batwing and gives up a lot for manueverability around tight objects or backing up.

same here... but its a beast in open areas though :lol:

ive only has a batwing for about 4 years, but those dam things will spoil you.. a couple rounds with it , and i feel like ive done a half a days work already

You must not have trees to avoid or strange shaped fields to mow. Lately I
ve got the big areas with the batwing and put on the 8' 3pt for the odd areas.[/quote]

dun you are right 98% of the time the batwing is only used to cut corn stalks or my cousin borrows it to cut cotton stems down after he picks it and or large open fields. I use my 10' for mostly everything else and my 6' for the major obstacles

 

[ALACOWMAN]

My pull is a 15' batwing and gives up a lot for manueverability around tight objects or backing up.

same here... but its a beast in open areas though :lol:

ive only has a batwing for about 4 years, but those dam things will spoil you.. a couple rounds with it , and i feel like ive done a half a days work already

You must not have trees to avoid or strange shaped fields to mow. Lately I
ve got the big areas with the batwing and put on the 8' 3pt for the odd areas.[/quote] ive got a six ft thats on my smaller tractor for those areas..

 

[dun]

ive got a six ft thats on my smaller tractor for those areas..

That's how I do it too. I prefer the 8' though since it has 2 tail wheels and the 6' only has one.

 

[skyhightree1]

I have a friend that bought a farm 2 years ago that had grass and weeds tall as the hood on his 8n tractor.. the 8n tractor was his first tractor and i taught him how to drive it and use it. He had a field that was almost 20 acres to cut I asked him did he want me to come help him he said no this will be a good start for me to learn to brushhog.. I laughed said ok go for it buddy let me know how it works out for you. I left one morning came back after lunch time he hadnt probably got 3-5 acres done. He said this is rough but I will get it done. I laughed said ok came back by an hour later he hadnt got much further so I laughed and turned around went home told my wife and we both laughed then I went out and hooked up to the batwing went over there and told him to jump in the cab with me while I cut it for him. He did cut it the 2nd time that year with the 8n but the following year... I was planting beans on it LOL I forgot to mention the brushhog he has is a 4' brushhog.

 

[ALACOWMAN]

I have a friend that bought a farm 2 years ago that had grass and weeds tall as the hood on his 8n tractor.. the 8n tractor was his first tractor and i taught him how to drive it and use it. He had a field that was almost 20 acres to cut I asked him did he want me to come help him he said no this will be a good start for me to learn to brushhog.. I laughed said ok go for it buddy let me know how it works out for you. I left one morning came back after lunch time he hadnt probably got 3-5 acres done. He said this is rough but I will get it done. I laughed said ok came back by an hour later he hadnt got much further so I laughed and turned around went home told my wife and we both laughed then I went out and hooked up to the batwing went over there and told him to jump in the cab with me while I cut it for him. He did cut it the 2nd time that year with the 8n but the following year... I was planting beans on it LOL I forgot to mention the brushhog he has is a 4' brushhog.

and the big thing with the smaller cutters is you actually loose another ft by having to mow out your tracks . with my six footer im acutally making about a five ft swath

 

[John SD]

i would never get the 8ft 3pt mower no matter the hp.because of the weight thatll always be on the 3pt lift.

Curious why you would never get a 8' 3pt mower? Can't see that it would be all that much heavier than a 6'. I think I would like a 8' mower for the simple fact that it should cover the tractor wheel tracks that a 6' can't.

My 6' JD mower was a heck of a load at times for my Ford Major (45HP) and at times I felt unsafe mowing roadditch.

I've also used the same mower on my Ford 9600 (130HP) and my new Kubota M126GX (108HP) The big Ford or the Kubota don't even know the mower is back there.

The irritating thing to me about using a 6' mower is that I always have smashed down vs mowed grass on both sides because the mower is not wide enough to cover the tractor wheel tracks. And even if I wasn't lazy, I don't consider narrowing the tractor wheels just to mow road ditch to be a viable option.

Mowing felt like I had been in the middle of a 30's dust storm at times with both the Major and the 9600. :yuck: :yuck: :yuck:

This fall was the first time I used the Kubota to mow with. Felt like I had died and gone to heaven!
:banana: :banana: :banana:

 

[skyhightree1]

my 4055 with the mx10 10' 3 point cutter I don't know its back there however I do not have many hills to climb or anything that it would make a difference. My ford 4610 is what I use on tight spots has a 6 foot and yes i hate it not covering the tire tracks as well.

 

[John SD]

my 4055 with the mx10 10' 3 point cutter I don't know its back there however I do not have many hills to climb or anything that it would make a difference. My ford 4610 is what I use on tight spots has a 6 foot and yes i hate it not covering the tire tracks as well.

More thoughts about tractor vs mower size concerning road ditch and other steep grade mowing:

I pretty much steered with brakes ALL the time with the Major/6' mower. And I only mowed on the RH side ditch because only the left brake worked on the tractor. :shock:

The 9600 has a 9' Waldon dozer permanently mounted. Even with the weight of the dozer out front, I still had to use brakes a lot to steer the 9600. But I could mow either side of ditch any way I wanted to, because both brakes worked good . ;-)

I mowed the road ditch this year with the Kubota after I I put the loader back on the Kubota. I don't even have to use brakes on the Kubota. I have mfwd but didn't use it. Might have had to use mfwd in leiu of brakes if I didn't have the weight of the loader out front. The GX cab cinches the deal that the Kubota will be my mowing tractor from now on. :nod:

A couple weeks ago I even took the Kubota to church and mowed the cemetary and church grounds. Another benefit I see of an 8' mower would be I could safely mow closer to headstones. 8)

 

[Tennessee Cattleman]

One thing that concerns me on the Bush Hog 320 series is that most of the frame is actually under the deck. You gotta wonder what happens to the frame if the blades get pushed up.

 

[highgrit]

All of the mowers will do a good job. A good 7' mower with dual tail wheels is a lot less trouble than a 8' mower with 3 spindles.
Brown makes as good or better rotary mower than Rhino or Bush hog IMO.