Anonymous-0

Well-known Member
Hi I was wondering about a drum mower does anyone have any experience useing one on hill side. I have a super 88 Oliver I am wanting to run it with. It has wide front loader after market 3 pt hitch back tires are loaded... I cut bout twenty acres twice a year... Well try to on a normal year... Been using neighbors tractor and disc mower but have to work around his schedual... Any help would be appreciated... Also I cut mainly grass hay orchard grass and clover
 
I cut grass hay with a Reese drum mower. All my fields are hillsides, but most are not too steep. I used to have a disc mower and I use the drum mower exactly as I did the disc mower. I pull it with a 65 HP JD. Real heavy mature and downed grass can slow it down, but it gets the job done.

I know nothing about an Oliver 88, so I can not help you there. Drum mowers are heavy in transport mode.
 
I have owned a few drum mowers and all have been simple and reliable machines. Your Super 88 is plenty of tractor HP and weight wise to handle a 6 foot drum mower. As far as working in the hills, I know a lot of drum mowers are sold in Kentucky and Tennesee.
 
I have had a SFI drum mower for three years now and use it in ditches and water ways, so very little level ground and it does a good job. It is a 6' model and I use it on a 1655 oliver which handles it well. I have taken it out of the shed in transport position with my 770 and it was a little light on the front end. I have the optional hydraulic lift which is nice for going through narrow gates and sometimes in the ditch. The only thing I don't like about it is that when you lift it with the 3 point the pivot point on the mower causes the inside drum to dig in the dirt sometimes in the ditch. I was also surprised how fast the knives ware out.
 
Oliverman,

One of my neighbors has a drum mower that she uses with her John Deere tractor that is about 50 HP. She likes it.

One of things you don't ever want to do is detach the mower from your three point while the mower is in the operate position.

I have no idea why or how she did it, but she did it. She came over and got me try to help her get it back attached. It was a nightmare trying to jack it up and get the three point hooked back up.

It would have been easy to do in the transport position, but it was impossible for me to swing the mower back to the transport position when it wasn't hooked up to the three point hitch on the tractor.

Good luck with your decision. If I had a tractor that was big enough, I'd go for a drum mower.

Tom in TN
 
Thanks everyone for the info and experiences. I am looking at maybe a galfree drum mower bc I have a supplier dealer with in 30 minates of my farm.... My plan is to use the super 88 for first year or so and maybe find a 1550,1555, 1650, or 1655 my place isn't all that steep I do run my narrow front 77 on all my hay ground.... I jus don't want to get something overkill for super 88.... It runs strong.... Jus want to have back up tractor to run mower if I find a larger tractor. My biggest concern would be the after market 3pt it does not have float since it is hooked up to the factory hydrlaics jus worried bout how well it would contour
 
If you are using the blades with the hump in the middle they tend to dig into the ground. I use straight blades that are the same length, they don't dig in and you can also flip them over and use both edges.
 
should be able to pull a pin out of the hitch and it will float.
OR unhook the hose to the top side of the cylinder converting it to a one way ram then the hitch will float
good luck
Ron
 
I have a 5 1/2' Galfre that I use on my Massey 255. Bought it new last year and I really wouldn't want to mow with anything else. I can mow about as fast as My rear will allow but I really prefer to mow in 1st high range.
even tho I've mowed these fields for a while, I still never know what I will encounter in the grass. As long as you make SURE you have it level back to front and side to side it mows great. Just my thoughts, Keith
 
I use the straight double edged blades, get them from the local JD dealer. They would probably last longer but the road gravel and the occasional cement culvert are hard on them :).
 
Absolutely right about park and detach/attach ONLY in the straight out behind (transport) position. If in the work position, 3pt hitch will be cocked aside and difficult to attach. I drop my wishbone on a bench built of 6x8 logs. Attaches quick and easy. Lift machine a few inches, and pivot to operating position. Be careful of PTO shaft not to kink or bend it too far.
 
I have a Minosagri 190 (same as CCM 190) - 7 footer. Run with a MF 180 60hp class. Works real well. Adequate tractor for the purpose. Would think an 88 would be Ok with that machine. Drum mower mounts are quite flexible and will follow uneven land fairly well. Use all on cautions on sidehills. That said, when in operation, the machine is sliding (riding) on the disks under the rotating disks, and most of the weight is not carried by tractor. So tractor stability is not a issue because of the machine.
 
I use my 3 PT in a fixed position. Mower mounts are basically a parollelogram so they provide for necessary up and down movement. 3 pt Doesn't need to float.
 
I have the 6' SFI drum. I use his blades which he sells 100 for $25....that's not a misprint. They are double sided and can be installed on the opposite drum to get double duty from them.

I used to store mine in the transport position too but got tired of fooling with the rotation. So one day I decided to store it in the mow position. Have had zero problems hooking up my Branson alone. I do have to readjust the height of the lift arms as one lift arm has to be higher than the other for the mower frame at the 3pt to be level. No biggie. All 3 pts have the adjuster.

I can easily cut my pool banks with this mower since it is made to follow the terrain. As stated it rides on it's bottom disc so when the 3 pt is lowered, most of the weight is on the ground.
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