Best Flail Mower for my L 3560 HSTC? - under $3000

[Foggy1111]

Been reading threads on flail mowers.....and so far like the Caroni or Woodmaxx brands......as they seem to meet my price criteria. Never owned a flail before.

Kinda like the Hydraulic shift on that Woodmaxx......and I am leaning that direction. MY QUESTION: can my tractor 28 PTO HP handle the 78" version of this brand?

^ that size would seem ideal for my purposes. Just dont want to stub my toes. . I do have the hydraulics installed on my tracor for the side shifting.

 

[Digger Dager]

We have the FM78 without the side-shift. As stated in a previous post, it was bought to be used on our Kubota M59. I put it on our B3200 last year. It's spec'd at 23hp at the PTO. The little beast of a tractor had plenty of power and handled it no problem.

Since we are mowing prairie grass, clover and weeds, the biggest issue is keeping the grill and radiator cleared of seeds, dirt and debris. I did use it to grind up some brush and small trees in a clearing last fall. Chewed through 2 to 3 inch trees and their limbs with little issue. Just go slow and let the engine keep up with the work.

The flail is a little heavy on the back end of our B, so I mounted around 175# of weight on the front quick attach that we have for the snowblower. Your bigger tractor shouldn't have to much of an issue.

If I were to do it again, I would go with the FM 96 with side-shift for our M59.

Digger

 

[Foggy1111]

^ Thanks Digger. Sounds like the FM 78H would do a nice job with my new tractor. I also think their FM 62H would work quite nicely.

I'm still a bit torn on what size to get. One side of me tells me to stay within the wheel width (66" wide to outside of tires) and use the side shift to get outside the right tire when space allows - for wide trail mowing. Then shift back to the center for narrow woodland trails (and I have quite a number of both). The other side of me says to get wider so you can cover a bigger swath.

Either way......I need to slow down a bit.....and get some experience with my current 5' Rotary Cutter to gain a feel for things. As it sounds like the flail mowers are hard to get......it may wait till next year anyway.

I think my new tractor is going to find the "sweet spot" for size on my land.....and give me the comforts of a cab to operate. Still I will need to trim back a few branches here and there to get through some tight spots with the cab and mirrors and all. Lots of comparing and spec's to review.

 

[flyidaho]

Been reading threads on flail mowers.....and so far like the Caroni or Woodmaxx brands......as they seem to meet my price criteria. Never owned a flail before.

Kinda like the Hydraulic shift on that Woodmaxx......and I am leaning that direction. MY QUESTION: can my tractor 28 PTO HP handle the 78" version of this brand?

^ that size would seem ideal for my purposes. Just dont want to stub my toes. . I do have the hydraulics installed on my tracor for the side shifting.

I have a brand new, used maybe 2 hours anyway, WoodMaxx FM 62H. Kept inside between uses, no rocks hit, like new! I have decided for my needs, a flail mower is not for me. I bought it along with my WoodMaxx chipper, and the quality of both is top notch, it's just that I need to mow whuile backing up, a lot, and the flail is not at all good for that. It was for my L3301. I can crate it on a pallet and ship it via Fastenal, I will sell it cheap, I'd have to look up what I paid for it..... I got it for less then list as I bought two implements at once, 5% discount I think it was. So, I'd sell it for that discounted price, less $500.00, which I'll "eat." Back to a brush hog for me......I can ship early this week if you're interested!

 

[Foggy1111]

I have a brand new, used maybe 2 hours anyway, WoodMaxx FM 62H. Kept inside between uses, no rocks hit, like new! I have decided for my needs, a flail mower is not for me. I bought it along with my WoodMaxx chipper, and the quality of both is top notch, it's just that I need to mow whuile backing up, a lot, and the flail is not at all good for that. It was for my L3301. I can crate it on a pallet and ship it via Fastenal, I will sell it cheap, I'd have to look up what I paid for it..... I got it for less then list as I bought two implements at once, 5% discount I think it was. So, I'd sell it for that discounted price, less $500.00, which I'll "eat." Back to a brush hog for me......I can ship early this week if you're interested!

I believe I am interested. So shoot me a PM with a price (shipping to MN via fastenal? Not familiar with that?? Shipping cost???) and perhaps we can make a deal. What knives do you have on it?.....duckfoot or Y-type?

 

[D2Cat]

Pick the flail up a bit when you back up, then put it down and go forward.