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Bush hogging question for MF35 tractor

C

Chip812

Member
I keep the RPM @ 540 like you're supposed to...

My question is what is the fastest gear I can use without 'outrunning' my cutting edge... Right now about the fastest I go is H-1 and I'm not too excited about the cutting quality.

Another question: Do I need to sharpen the blades on my bushhog? I've seen opinions going both ways on the forum...

Thanks....
 
You sharpen your lawn mower blades when it quits cutting don't you? Same thing on that machine. They get dull from rocks and grass. Easiest way to sharpen them is with a four and one half or five inch angle grinder. Block the machine up so it don't fall on you and crawl under it and sharpen them. Wear eye protection! If you are going to fast you will notice it is not cutting the grass. Heavy grass is generally pretty slow going.
 
I agree with everything Retired Farmer said, and I will add that high
1 is a pretty good speed to make with a bush hog in my opinion
except in dry or short grass. Some spots I have to slow down to
low 2 in wet spots in ditches where a wiry grass grows. If you are
cutting fields I find that a good sicklebar or haybine cuts more
acres in a day for me, but if there are unknown objects or woody
plants you'd need the bush hog.
Zach
 
Bushhog is the correct tool for what I'm cutting... Maybe in a few years/seasons I'll be able to hay, but not now... Just not sure I'm using it correctly... There are two components to getting good results from a job... Using the correct tool AND using it correctly...

Thanks.
8)
 
It's not just a mater of going too fast for the blades, there is junk in the weeds, lumps, holes, dangerous job in the best of conditions. Someone on tractor talk ran over 2 irrigation heads last week. Go slow. 540 pto rpm in a low range 2nd or 3rd is all I want to deal with, same tractor and cutter as yours.
 
"Lumps" is the worse thing I have to deal with... gotta be quick on the lift or clutch... Not really much 'trash' to speak off... I've bushhogged most of it at least once before (trash is in about 4 piles spread across the property)... Can't go that slow, I'll never get done... about 40-50 acres... Takes too long as it is... I may be forced to let some of it 'go back'... :(
 
Both ground speed and cutting edge depend upon what you are cutting.

Dull blades for saplings and sharp blades for just about everything else. Cutting quality will improve markedly with sharp blades.

H/1 is rather fast for most bush hog work and cutting quality will suffer a bit. L/3 is better in most cases.

Dean
 
That's what I'm finding... In H-1, the grass is just getting knocked over (some of it)... in L-3, most of the grass is cut...

But it takes ssssssssoooooooooooooooooo long to cut in L-3... :(

I guess I'll sharpen the blades and see if that makes it better...
 
50 acres! That should be baled or plowed under and something etable planted there. Get something with feet to graze it down- anything! That is a weeks worth of brushogging no matter what what gear you're in!!!!
 
H-1 is too fast! If you want to cut it faster, get a
bigger tractor with a wider mower or you're just
going to wreck either your tractor, the bush hog or
both. If you cut the grass and cleaned up all the
cuttings and mowed it every week, you might be able
to go a little faster but H-1 is still pretty fast.
 
If you want to go faster, cut out the left side panel of the bush hog, with a torch, or plasma cutter. Leave the front depth guard or shoe, as a safety to keep you from digging in. Bush hog actually made a mower, with a removable side panel, for making hay.
 
I'll take a stab at your first question, but I will have to do some
guessing.

IF your mower has two blades and IF each blade has six inches
of cutting edge length, you could travel at a speed of one foot
per revolution of the blade shaft.

IF your mower gearbox is geared 1:1 and the blade shaft is
also turning 540 R.P.M., your ground speed COULD be 540
feet per minute without outrunning the cutting edges.

I believe 540 ft./min. equates to 6.136 m.p.h.

The link below is to a post I started about lawnmower blade
speed.
Lawn mower reading
 
Tips of all mower blades do 90% of the cutting, if the tip is sharpened to 1/2" back from the tip, you would not notice any difference, in finish of the cut. You know your blades are dull, when the ends of the grass are frayed, not cleanly cut. The main reason for sharpening, is that a sharp blade uses less fuel!!!
 
Tips of all mower blades do 90% of the cutting, if the tip is sharpened to 1/2" back from the tip, you would not notice any difference, in finish of the cut. You know your blades are dull, when the ends of the grass are frayed, not cleanly cut. The main reason for sharpening, is that a sharp blade uses less fuel!!!
 
If you just want to knock the tops off and not worried about a lawn look then play with your draft control and get it set so it will lower itself in light stuff and pick itself up in heavy. Put her in 1st, crank up the rpms and hold on tight.

I assume you are using a 5' bushhog. My opinion-A 6' is too much for a 35 unless you are only clipping pastures

The brand of bushhog has a lot to do with how much power it takes to cut. A Bushhog brand is best I have personally used. There is a world of difference between rotary cutters. The cheap ones do not cut as well, distribute the trimmings as well and take more hp.
 
(quoted from post at 16:34:20 05/11/12) 50 acres! That should be baled or plowed under and something etable planted there. Get something with feet to graze it down- anything! That is a weeks worth of brushogging no matter what what gear you're in!!!!
Click to expand...
Land belongs to FIL and he just wants it kept cut... no planting of anything and he got burned out on 4-legged herbivores years ago...
8)
 
(quoted from post at 10:11:44 05/14/12) If you just want to knock the tops off and not worried about a lawn look then play with your draft control and get it set so it will lower itself in light stuff and pick itself up in heavy. Put her in 1st, crank up the rpms and hold on tight.

I assume you are using a 5' bushhog. My opinion-A 6' is too much for a 35 unless you are only clipping pastures

The brand of bushhog has a lot to do with how much power it takes to cut. A Bushhog brand is best I have personally used. There is a world of difference between rotary cutters. The cheap ones do not cut as well, distribute the trimmings as well and take more hp.
Click to expand...

It is, indeed, a 5' bushhog... Big B brand to be specific... I think the gear ratio is 1:1 so blades are 540 rpm...
 
(quoted from post at 05:53:11 05/12/12) If you want to go faster, cut out the left side panel of the bush hog, with a torch, or plasma cutter. Leave the front depth guard or shoe, as a safety to keep you from digging in. Bush hog actually made a mower, with a removable side panel, for making hay.
Click to expand...
Not really seeing a bunch of build up after the second mowing... (first cutting was pretty bad, though, because I was delayed in starting this year due to the tractor getting a new clutch [because of a transmission seal gone bad, not because of bushhogging)...
 
There is not a lot of 'thickness' to the grass in the majority of the land... just really lumpy/bumpy...

P.S. Any way to 'smooth' it out? harrow of some kind (have no ideas, just repeating words that I've heard - much like a parrot)?
 
Chip,

I was doing a little bushhogging last night and thought about you.

In one aspect I am like your Father-in-Law. I have 42 acres of rough land and do not want cattle.
In other aspects your FIL and I have nothing in common.

I have 4 grown daughters(no sons),2 son-in-laws, one daughter is engaged so I have 1 fiance.
I get pretty much no help bushhoggin' or about anything else.
What is your FIL's secret?
I ain't got it figured out like he does.
The best I can come up with is that your wife is either filthy rich, super super hot or knows something on you that could lead to a long jail sentence--- maybe even 2 out of 3.

I would sure like for your FIL to let me know how the heck to get a SIL to bushhog 50 acres of rough ground with a MF35 and 5' bushog.

Any help would be appreciated.
Greg
 
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