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Ford 4000 Bush Hog/rotary cutter size

M

M-Farm

Member
I have a later model Ford 4000 diesel. As far as I can determine, the recommended cutter size is 8'. These are scarce as hen's teeth in the used market, which is all I can afford. I mean, I can't find ANY for sale within 2-3 hours drive.

How taxing is it to run a 10' on this 55hp tractor? There are tons of these for sale.

I only use it for clipping weeds, NO brush clearing. When the cattle get done on a pasture it needs weeds cut (ragweed etc.), that means it needs to be cut fairly high so as not to get the grass leaves down low.

Pulling a 6' has been taking forever, but if I need to wait and keep searching for an 8 footer I will. Thanks!
 
Might consider using a disc mower...seem to be fairly common in the 8 to 10 foot sizes.Might need to properly weight your tractor though.10 footer can get heavy.Plus the
time you save can be spent drinking more beer.
 
I looked at a couple of reference sites, as a general rule,

5 hp per foot of cutter is the general rule of thumb

That is for normal rotary cutter use

I would say you are good to go on a 10 footer, keeping the blades sharper when cutting grass helps, duller if cutting brush,
 

I use a 10' rotary cutter behind my 4000 all the time with no problems clipping pastures and light brush, it keeps the tractor planted to the ground on steep hill sides. For pastures and light clipping I wish I could afford one of the newer 12' bat wing cutters.
I have clipped the tops out of weeds in smooth pastures with my 9' trailed disc mower (no conditioner) because I can cut in a faster gear but in rougher fields I don't want to beat up my disc mower.
My 4000 will pull my Kuhn 2850 9' trailed mower in heavy hay in 6th gear with no problems. I don't like three point hitch disc mowers, too heavy and hard to hook up.

I recommend getting a Bush Hog or Rhino brand cutter, the cheaper brands don't hold up well, been there tore them up.
 
I assume that you are speaking of pull type mowers. If three point, nothing bigger than 7', 6' if on steep ground.

HP wise, it depends upon what you plan to cut, how close you plan to cut it and how fast you plan to travel.

I use a 7' cutter behind a 60 PTO HP MF 2635 and would like to have more HP. I sometimes find myself in low range third gear.

I cut only grass but do cut close. Heavy grass takes MUCH more HP than does tall weeds.

Dean
 

I cut with my 10' pull behind in third or fourth gear on my 4000, anything faster and the mower doesn't do a good job. I pull the disc mower in fifth or sixth depending on field conditions.
 
They have all been 3 point, but I don't plan on lifting it, this is strictly pasture management. Thanks for all the input, I appreciate it!
 
60 HP is 60 HP.

It all depends upon what one is cutting and how close one is cutting it.

Dean
 
We have the heavy duty LandPride 8 foot duel spindle pull type, supposed to handle 3 inch stuff. Our 4000 handles it OK as long as you take it
easy. I wouldn't put anything bigger than a 6 foot on the 3 point hitch. 4000 would handle a 10 foot pull type if you were just clipping, cutting
8 inches high, and kept the speed down, 3rd or 4th gear. Be sure to keep the radiator clean and watch the temperature.
 
(quoted from post at 04:55:37 05/02/16)I wouldn't put anything bigger than a 6 foot on the 3 point hitch.
Click to expand...
One more question, I don't understand the problem if I don't run the top link? Is lifting the only reason you guys don't recommend a 3 point hookup or is it something else like the stress during turning? thanks
 

10 ft cutter is a lot of weight on the back making the front end light and uncontrollable during transport and when it needs to be lifted in the field. you'll need to redo the lift arms so that they float independent of each other or on uneven ground one side will be in the ground while the other side is off the ground a foot or more.
Running with out a top link or chain link if you raise the lift to high you'll destroy the pto shaft when it binds against the deck or break the pto shaft off the tractor.

If you want a 8-10 ft cutter I highly recommend a pull type.
 
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