B2601 Brush Attachment

[Oliver]

I'm like Don in that the flail mower is maybe my favorite implement. I seldom get into trees much bigger than saplings but I have 4 small meadows which I leave grow Spring through Summer for ground nesting birds etc. then cut it down in early Fall so the weeds and brush gets pretty tall and thick in some places. The 25hp L2501 I have is about the same as a lot of your machines and it has no problem with the 60" Woodmax. https://www.woodmaxx.com/FM_62_Flail_Mower_p/fm-62.htm For my kind of use Woodmax recommended Y cutters which supposedly give a little better cut, in addition they are reversible, so that's what I went with.
Anyway I'm very pleased with the quality of cut and how well it mulches up most of the material compared to my rotary cutter. I would say I could probably cut through tall, heavy, weeds a bit faster with the rotary cutter but in reality my cutting speed is governed more by the rough ground and just watching what I'm going over. My RC hasn't been on since I got the flail.

 

[dirtydeed]

This one has hammers on it.
I have not figured out how to offset it yet, i was scratching my head on that one. Do you change the lift arm position?

Kevin,

Looking at your picture you're already in the offset position. If you wanted to center it, you'd move the mower frame uprights (for lack of a better term) over to the right side. Look where the gray brackets that connect the top link are bolted to the mower deck. I'm using the rightmost mounting bracket. See here:

 

[B737]

ah ha, that makes more sense, picture really helps, thanks Steve
It looks like you forewent the cover over the input, I might just leave it off. Did you raise the skids and roller? im about to put them on the tallest setting

 

[B737]

Steve thanks for pointing all that out. The thing was cocked because I was using the wrong lower hook ups while the top frame was offset. Once I got it sorted, its offset just a little to the right. I checked the cutting height and as shipped, was a little under 2 inches, I raised everything to the max and got it to about 3.25", which should work out good for around here. I also installed the input cover. Ready to take it in the woods now.

better picture of the lower links
my next attachment needs to be a B2601

 

[dirtydeed]

Kevin,

It looks like the position of your right lower 3pt hitch arm is still incorrect. I think the 3 pt hitch arm should be located between the two pin brackets (like on your left side). Maybe I'm mistaken.

I have mine set up to cut at the highest position (lowered roller) and raised the skid shoes as well.

Yes, the put cover was a PITA and split at a bolt hole.

 

[BigG]

Steve thanks for pointing all that out. The thing was cocked because I was using the wrong lower hook ups while the top frame was offset. Once I got it sorted, its offset just a little to the right. I checked the cutting height and as shipped, was a little under 2 inches, I raised everything to the max and got it to about 3.25", which should work out good for around here. I also installed the input cover. Ready to take it in the woods now.

better picture of the lower links
my next attachment needs to be a B2601

If you are pulling straight behind I would run the left arm to the inside like the right arm is located. If you are going to off set it move the left arm to the outside of were it is now. Keeping the right arm at it's present location. Then adjust the stabilizers to the right as far as you can without the PTO or the right tire causing any interference. That would allow you to change from straight behind to offset with the movement of only 1 pin and the adjustment of the stabilizers. MHO

 

[B737]

@dirtydeed I had tried that before but the whole unit didnt look square to the machine.
@BigG I think you are on the right track, I will make that adjustment and see how it falls out.

Gear oil; manual says to fill halfway. Another part says "fill to the top". I did a test run and found some fluid coming out of the fill port. I called betstco, they said to fill the case up to the top of the gear when you look inside. I will have to take some fluid out.

I ran it through some new saplings in the woods, didnt bat an eye. Then ran it through thick grass. I am really happy with how this handles grass. The cut isn't a finish cut, but its 200x better than the brush hog. It could almost pass as finish mower with dull blades. It did not create huge plumes of dust either. I could maneuver it tighter to trees with the offset. The way it rides on its back roller is really great for cutting on uneven ground. The tractor feels good without the big brush hog hanging off the back. I'm really happy so far, looking forward to more seat time, and putting it to the test at the other property with thicker brush.

 

[Russell King]

I was looking at the offsets available on the website for Betstco between light, medium and heavy duty. For some reason the light and heavy duty state offsets around 20 inches while the medium duty is only 3-5 inches.

On the heavy duty pictures it looks like there are a set of additional holes to attach the vertical attachment to.

The other two don’t show anything about how to offset the mower. I assume that on the medium duty one the arms would move over onto the other sides of the vertical wall where the lower arms are pinned.

Do you see the ability to move the grey section to the side?

 

[BigG]

I was looking at the offsets available on the website for Betstco between light, medium and heavy duty. For some reason the light and heavy duty state offsets around 20 inches while the medium duty is only 3-5 inches.

On the heavy duty pictures it looks like there are a set of additional holes to attach the vertical attachment to.

The other two don’t show anything about how to offset the mower. I assume that on the medium duty one the arms would move over onto the other sides of the vertical wall where the lower arms are pinned.

Do you see the ability to move the grey section to the side?

From the picture it looks like he already has it offset except the left side gray piece in the picture could go on the outside of the orange upright but that would not gain very much.

Without being there to see it I would guess the offset offered by the stabilizer is about all you will get.

I agree with you there is not a whole lot of adjustment there.

 

[B737]

Where did you guys find this on the website? I’m going to take another look at it tomorrow in the garage. Yes I believe the medium duty max offset Is only around 6” or so.

I (probably mistakenly so) adjusted the linkages to be the same distance, and equal, it seemed like that’s where they wanted to fall out with the upper linkage assembly in the offset position. There is nothing in the documentation about how to set it up for either.

 

[bird dogger]

A couple of weeks ago the wife and female relatives decided to have a girl’s only get together at a cabin in the Minnesota north woods. They all headed out that Sunday morning. The very next day I get a call to pick up a package at the FedEx depot and this is what showed up. I’m not sure how the timing turned
out like this. Honestly!!

This is the Betstco, 48 inch heavy duty flail mower to go behind my Kubota B2650. With it mounted in the offset position the cut width covers the right tire tracks and the belt drive housing cover is just within the left side tire tracks. For mowing brush in close quarters behind the B2650 it works great. Here’s a few pics of its first use. I had trimmed the low hanging dead pine tree branches off and removed them to allow close cutting next to the tree trunks. The rest of the wooded area was covered in small brush thick and thin. The flail mower waltzed through it quite easily. Hearing protection definitely required. Here’s some pics of the cut quality with the heavy duty hammers.

My thoughts are its a quality built mower. delivery and service from Betstco was excellent. I first signed up to get their email promotions and received an $80 coupon for the first purchase. So $80 off the website price on top of the included shipping sure worked for me!

 

[Russell King]

Where did you guys find this on the website? I’m going to take another look at it tomorrow in the garage. Yes I believe the medium duty max offset Is

On the website it is under the ordering section and then under a tab named additional information
This link hopefully will get you to one example:

41" Standard Duty Flail Mower, FH-EF105 | Betstco Sales, Parts, and Service:

The EF Series (Light Duty)Flail Mower is an option if you are looking for a better finished cut than with the brush mower. The EF Series is a Weed and Grass Field Mower. Provides a smooth and better finish than a brush mower but not quite the finish of a rotary mower. This model is great for...

betstco.com

 

[B737]

@Russell King that worked, there is a video for the medium duty one that was helpful. I think once I make the adjustments @BigG mentioned I should be squared away.
@bird dogger Dave that is great!! Property is looking good too, perfect fit for your machine.

=====edit=====
Ok I adjusted the lower linkages and I think this is where it needs to be for medium duty model, it is offset 6" to right, the linkages are the same length, and its square to the machine, here is how it looks. If you put the left linkage (viewed from rear) outside the geometry gets skewed.

Also took about 1/4 of a cup of fluid out of the gear box so the level is just about to the top of the vertical gear.

 

[dirtydeed]

looks great bird dogger.

Do you guys remover your loader when using your flail? I find that its MUCH easier to maneuver without the loader. Tractor feels much more like a lawnmower without it.

 

[B737]

I remove the loader, much more maneuverable. I put 200 pounds of weights on the front bracket, and the machine feels well balanced.

 

[bird dogger]

I have the skidster quick-tach option on my loader so I can just drop the bucket off when brushing or working in tight quarters. Same for mowing. I've never had any real reason yet to completely remove the loader but should do it sometime just to figure it out.

Regarding the different offset options: The instructions sure could use some better descriptions and pictures. It took some serious thinking and comparing different pics in the manual to see what I needed to do to offset it to the right. One nice bonus though, the PTO shaft needed no cutting and fit perfectly behind the B2650.

My unit arrived missing the gearbox PTO guard and the parking stand that mounts to the front. I called Betstco and was pleased with their response. They had the missing parts shipped out that day and the parts arrived 3 days later. Great customer service!!

 

[BigDon]

Glad to hear and see everyone is enjoying their Flail Mowers. I plan on getting a lot of seat time again in the next week and half and will post more pics. I'm really looking forward to what all this flail is going to do for me this fall. Keep sending the pics in everyone!!

 

[B737]

im in a pickle... I have the B2601 coming, and a 41" flail im thinking it might be best to sell my unused flail for 900-1000 and order medium 48" or HD 48" version. Im not sure pulling a 41" wide unit behind a machine that is 49" wide makes much sense, esp with only a 6" offset....

 

[dirtydeed]

im in a pickle... I have the B2601 coming, and a 41" flail im thinking it might be best to sell my unused flail for 900-1000 and order medium 48" or HD 48" version. Im not sure pulling a 41" wide unit behind a machine that is 49" wide makes much sense, esp with only a 6" offset....

ugh...I saw that BETSTCO had a sale recently (probably still on-going) with about 10% off. They also have a 48" medium duty unit (EFG 125) for $1150. Notes said that the paint is faded.

If you're going to step up in size, your new tractor would handle the 53" without any trouble.

 

[B737]

i saw the faded paint one, its gone unfortunately
Without having any experience, im thinking (guessing here) the 41" is too small for 2601, that the correct size would be 48" or larger... 53" may be too big for my tight woods... with the BX i tried to keep my implements the same width as the rear tires. The heavy duty versions allow for greater offset to stick it out outside the tire width of 2601. I think even if i offset the 41" it will still be inside the rear track.