Grass Cutting Question

whrowley

Member
I have a 1949 8N Tractor. I have approximately 2 acres of grass that is generally flat that I need to cut. My question is, will the 8N tractor generate enough power or to cut the grass with a decent finish mower? I have many trees in the yard so I cannot rip through the yard at full speed. Need your opinions please. Is anyone finishing cutting with an 8N. Are there any problems I need to consider. I will need to buy the finish mower.

I currently have a good zero turn mower but my yard is full of those small round gum balls and they keep popping the belts off my mower. I need to find another way to cut the yard or remove 30 trees of various sizes.
 
yES, YOU WILL HAVE PLENTY OF [Power FOR a 6 ft finish mower--Don't let the
grass get deep or you will be slipping and ruining FM belts..Here is where
u will get differing opinions but I have had em all and will never own
anything but a rear discharge FM-have had a First Choice FM for about 6-7
yrs-rear discharge and it has done a good job-still Has original belt and I
have used it in some heavy grass that should have been bushhogged..
 

i mow a bit more than that with a 5 foot finish mower on my 2N. no problems. i use second gear, which is a wee bit faster than second on an 8N.
 
I've got a Woods 59L belly mower. It mows just as well as my zero turn. One thing I will say - get a rear mount. The 8N is a short utility tractor
and with a belly mower you can't raise it up very high (like if you need to cross a draw or something). Those small blades make a non-live PTO
a non-issue. They don't have much momentum built up to push you when you push in the clutch.
 
An 8N will run a 6 foot finish mower just fine.
One thing to remember is that it doesn't have live PTO or live
hydraulics, so it can't mow any time the clutch is depressed and
the hydraulics don't work then either. So no lifting the mower deck
with the clutch depressed. Transport means disconnecting the
PTO shaft or blocking the 3 PT up and turning the PTO off.

Not a big deal when just mowing grass, but that makes
it a little bit harder to run around obstacles.
It can be done. I did it for a long time.
Which reminds me, watch the swing on that rear mount mower.
Every time you want to turn away from a building, etc. the
mower swings INTO it. No need to ask me how I know...

A GOOD zero turn will do it in half the time.
A good zero turn doesn't come from a box store.
Used, they can be bought for the price of a good 8N.
 
Here's my 8n with a 6'mower. I mow a few acres with it, no problem. Won't be a fast as a zero turn but I'm not in a hurry. I wouls suggest on with 4 wheels instead
of 2 wheels and limiter chains.

Kirk
100_4301_zps7gube3cm.jpg
 
Another thumbs up for an N and finish
mower.
I mowed about 2 acres with a 2N and then
8N with 6' King Kutter for several years.
Lots of trees, stumps and rocks to mow
around.
I would suggest a 6' not a 5' 3 point
mower.
I liked the King Kutter too. The lift
links are flexible and let the mower float
better than other brands of FMs I've
used/owned.
I did not like using sway bars with that
combo. Sway bars prevent any flex between
the tractor and mower and makes for a
long, too ridgid combo.
I actually preffered the 2N for finish
mowing. 2nd gear was the perfect mix of
speed and power. On the 8N 2nd was a bit
too slow and 3rd a bit too fast.
You do not need an ORC with an FM.
 
I mow 2 to 3 acres all the time with my 52 8N and a 5 ft King Kutter finish mower. I run in first gear as it is easier on my back. Not in a hurry anyway. Our place is pretty hilly and a zero turn or garden tractor will spin or slide sideways. My King Kutter is over 15 years old. Just make sure you grease it before each use and they will last a long time.
Richard in NW SC
 
(quoted from post at 23:32:46 04/13/17) I have a 1949 8N Tractor. I have approximately 2 acres of grass that is generally flat that I need to cut. My question is, will the 8N tractor generate enough power or to cut the grass with a decent finish mower? I have many trees in the yard so I cannot rip through the yard at full speed. Need your opinions please. Is anyone finishing cutting with an 8N. Are there any problems I need to consider. I will need to buy the finish mower.

I currently have a good zero turn mower but my yard is full of those small round gum balls and they keep popping the belts off my mower. I need to find another way to cut the yard or remove 30 trees of various sizes.

Power will not be a problem but maneuverability will. Speaking from a decade or so of personal experience mowing around "many" trees with an N-series and rear mower that combination is a royal, time consuming, PITA. Your zero turn is vastly superior in that regard and if I were you I would be looking for a solution to the gum balls and belt problem....

TOH
 

i have a dozen or more obstacles that i mow around. i simply use a riding mower to tidy that stuff up occasionally.

agree with UD, the king kutter three point setup is nice, those flexible links are a wonderful design idea. disclaimer: my king cutter is an ancient side discharge unit, but i'm guessing they still use the flexible link arrangement on the new ones.
 
The most efficient way to mow is to make long straight lines as much as possible at a speed not too fast that it leaves uncut grass. The less turns, the better. 2nd gear on an 8N is sufficient but getting around obstacles and such may require going down to 1st. That'll greatly increase fuel consumption, reduce ground speed, and add time the task. I used a WOODS 660 Finish Mower with my 8N to do 10 acres on one property and 5 acres on another. Keep blades sharp. Now, based on what you said, I agree to keep the zero return and use that, or, farm out the job. Get quotes from the local landscaping/grass cutting service guys. You may find it cheaper than buying a finish mower and putting all the wear and tear on your equipment.

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<font color="#FFFFFF" size="3">*9N653I* & *8NI55I3*</font>​
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What u going to get for $1200? I just bought a 50" Cub Cadet and it hurt me a good bit more than that....
 
I mow my runway sometimes with a 2N and a 6 ft finish mower, 2,000 ft long and 300 ft wide. Slow as all get out but it gets the job done. It is planted in Russell Bermuda grass. The ground is flat as a frying pan and just as hard.
 

I have a new Kabota Zero turn which cost me almost $6,000. The gum balls in my yard pop the belts of every time I mow so I am looking for anther way to get around the gum balls. I cannot afford to remove 25 trees all at once. Im starting with the first three next week.
 

I have done a lot of mowing on 2-5 acres for about 20 years now with a Yamaha Terrapro quad and pto mower. I love that thing. If you can find one check it out. Much better quality than most of the "zero turn" mowers out there. Just be sure to use the heavier mower blades (there are two types, and the lighter ones are only good for light grass).
 

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