Yes, I know that 5' is the max recommended, but right now I have a 4' hog, left over from my smaller tractor days, that I feel free to abuse on sage brush and other tough jobs, but it severely underworks the 3301 when cutting field grass (not a lawn.) Short of charging into very tall and tough growth at too high a speed, it would seem the tractor could handle a 6' mower just fine. I'd be interested to hear of anyone with specific usage.
72" brush hog on a L3301
- Thread starter flyidaho
- Start date
I ran a VERY heavy MUCH too large 72” Rhino shredder behind my little 9N tractor for a decade mowing 27 acres with no trouble at all...even tho the little tractor could not lift it on the 3-point. Simple solution.... don’t use the toplink...and used it as a “pull behind” mower. Did great.
I actually haven’t used mine, but my dealer recommended a 72 with a slip clutch. I have a L2501. It probably wouldn’t do well if I had heavy grass, but it should be fine in L on hills and dryland like I am.
Btw, I have a Swisher pull behind roughcut for sagebrush/UTV use which is why I haven’t used my 72.
Btw, I have a Swisher pull behind roughcut for sagebrush/UTV use which is why I haven’t used my 72.
Code
Active member
Equipment
l3301, fel, lp boxblade, 12" lp auger, lp bush hog, z421 zt, lawnvac leaf vac
I have a 72' on mine. I use mostly for field grass, not harsh. The ONLY time i have an issue is on a decent slope, And even then if i keep it slow and a little extra rpm and no issue. The majority of my 12-15 acres im rebuilding is flatish. No issues there
My tractor is the previous model to yours, no emissions but specs out pretty much the same. 5 ft bush hog is all it wants in brush, and even tall thick grass. But with that, having an hst trans and keeping the grass mowed a 6 ft would probably be fine.
Too big unless conditions are absolutely ideal. Even then, too heavy.
I use a Woods BB720X on my L6060 and it's often all it wants.
No, there is nothing wrong with the 6060.
SDT
My first real tractor was an old Ford 1500. I bought it 9 years ago. 19 Hp . A guy nearby had it on craigslist. When he started it I thought it was going to explode. If you have ever heard a Shibaura diesel you never forget it. Sounds like steel balls being rattled around in a can x100. No power steering and a loader, a bad combination. Anyhow it came with a 5 ft pull behind finish mower. I cut trails while the thorn bushes and brush were over my head on that little rig. It was a joyous experience. Even the poison ivy that plagued me afterward for sometime seemed worth it. It might have been about a mile of trails cut like that. The only way to make it work was to go very slowly on the initial cut. To extrapolate an l3301 is probably 60% more tractor than what I had. I would bet if you put an 8ft cutter on the back it would get the job done if you went very slowly on the initial pass. Its not what I would buy but it would probably work well at a reduced speed. I was never in a big hurry in my attempts to tame nature. I try to enjoy it and usually do. I am not a real farmer, just an impersonator.
How is it too heavy? Tractor rated at 1400 pounds at 24” on 3pt. Google specs show your mower at 1200 pounds? Seems high but possible, the land pride 2072 cutter at 745 pounds. OP never mentioned what mower he looking at but neither is too heavy.
Ive read here my tractor won’t do such and such from folks that don’t own it. If I had listened I wouldn’t have gotten much done
That Woods is a Cadillac mower! For my use, I'd go cheaper and lighter. My bare bones 4' hog has lasted me for 30 years. I'm on a lot of slopes, far from what many would call ideal, but since I bumped out my rear wheels with spacers (so I could the use the chains I had already bought when winter conditions get icy), my small mower bugs me, relative to my tractor's span. I also have a 5' Jacobson Kubota powered flail mower, which I use on my runway and around the house, but it looses traction fairly easily. I could just keep the 4'er and live with it, but if I was going to buy new, just gaining a foot cutting width doesn't seem worth it, thus the jump up to 6'. You (SDT) don't mention what you're cutting, or how big of a hurry you're in to do it. I will think on it a bit, no hurry, as the only reason I want bigger is to mow where I haven't before, a larger area, my current mowing needs are handled.
I'm running a 4 footer on my 15 hp L1500. It's certainly underpowered on tall brush but it's about right for grass and weeds. I don't have weight on the front so steering is sketchy in high range anyway.
so what is in this area? When I bought my place there was maybe 1/2 acre cleared around the house I could mow with the zero turn, rest was grass and brush taller then the rops on the L. I now mow about 6 acres regularly. Summer months I wouldn’t see 6 ft being an issue with regular mowing, but winter and spring limit my time with the tractor so 5ft is about all it wants with thick grass over a foot tall. Mind you I use mine like a finish mower and have it set as low as it will go
It was in CRP (conservation resource program, I got a stipend from the FEDS for doing nothing with the ground, go figure) for years, now out, mowing it once a year would cut down (pun intended) the fire risk. The area I currently keep mowed is a good example, couldn't burn it if you tried, the unmowed part is full of already tinder dry long grass from last year. About 25 acres total, but not sure I'd mow all of it, just more than I do now. Last year for the first time I made one circuit around the entire 40 acres by the fence line with the 4' hog, catching the grass about mid growth (12-16") and it showed me how it could reduce my fire risk big time, it's green now not full of dry fuel like the rest of the place.
Bmyers
Well-known member
Lifetime Member
Equipment
Grand L3560 with LA805 loader, EA 55" Wicked Grapple, SBX72 BB, LP 1272 mower
I checked on the Kubota website and the L3301 is rated for 72" rotary mower.
Performance Matched Land Pride Implements for Standard L Series (kubotausa.com)
Performance Matched Land Pride Implements for Standard L Series (kubotausa.com)
Yes, the BB720X is a HD cutter, and it is heavy. Pushing 1,400 Lbs. with F & R chains. I need at least 4 front weights to use it on some of my ground with my L6060.
I no longer cut brush, saplings, etc., only grass, but heavy grass cuts much harder than does brush and I am often power limited even with lawn mower sharp blades. Yes, I do cut close, but the 720X has lots of grass clearance and clears well. Inexpensive mowers usually do not.
Until recently, I pulled my 5' cutter with a very good, late model 8N with Sherman combination transmission. The 8N produces almost identical PTO HP as the 3301 but with the Sherman in UD as I routinely kept it, considerably more PTO torque. It was a good match but I would never have considered a 6' cutter with 27 PTO HP, Sherman or otherwise.
Note: Never have I said that it cannot be done, only that a 6' rough cut mower is too big for a 3301 in nearly all conditions. A 5' cutter is a better match and is 25% wider than your 4' cutter.
Of course, it depends upon what one intends to cut and how quickly one wishes to do so.
SDT
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I have a Kubota MX5400HSD and use a 72''. My tractor does not even know it is there when going through tall thick grass. You should have zero problems running one that same size as long as you take your time.
Tall grass cuts easily. Thick heavy grass cuts much harder.
Get into some Brome grass that is laying down sometime and you'll think you're pulling a snow blower.
SDT
Bmyers
Well-known member
Lifetime Member
Equipment
Grand L3560 with LA805 loader, EA 55" Wicked Grapple, SBX72 BB, LP 1272 mower
I have the 72" mower on my L3560. When we first started mowing, here are some pictures of what I was mowing through.
Obviously, you are not cutting this at 5mph, but more like 2mph and the grapple low feeling for hazards. Yet, the tractor and mower did it just fine.
Obviously, you are not cutting this at 5mph, but more like 2mph and the grapple low feeling for hazards. Yet, the tractor and mower did it just fine.