Too much Bushhog?

OBwan

Member
Just had a Bushhog Model 306 dropped in my lap. Weight of the hog is 1078 lbs, width is 6 feet and recommended 40HP for the tractor. Hooked it up to the Diesel Ford 3600 and it seems like it is struggling. At full rise on the arms the hog hits the rear tires, maybe need to adjust the top link? Thinking two stabilizer bars to keep it steady. Driveline is either too long or froze up. Tailwheel rotates but will not pivot. Is it too much hog for normal use? The numbers are within the specs per tractor data but just asking.
 
I run that same unit behind my 3000 which is the same tractor as a 3600.
It's a bit heavy for it but I have front weights and a cast iron pan which plants the front end pretty well.
I used to have a 305 - same machine but 5'.
Looked for a 306 for a few years cause the 3000 handled that fine so I knew the tractor would run a bit wider.
Fix yours up. Get everything lubed and working right. Especially adjust the slip clutch on it.
Keep an eye on the oil in the gearbox too.
They are rated for a 100 HP tractor so we'll Never wear them out behind our little tractors.
Photo is of my rig with my good friend Dick behind the wheel.
a280623.jpg
 
Ditto to what Jerry said. Get the manual for the mower, and adjust it to the tractor correctly. Typically this kind of mower will have the front lower by about an inch and level side to side. Yes, you may need to adjust your top link accordingly. Good blades are necessary, either sharpen and balance what is on there now, or replace. Make sure the PTO shaft telescopes freely so that it moves when needed, it needs to slide easily. Tail wheel is easy, clean, de-grease, re-lube pivot shaft and axle shaft.

Properly adjusted, sharp blades, a 3600 will handle that just fine, but may bog down a bit going up hill in tall grasses or heavy/thick growth like weeds or brush. Conditions and ground speed will vary, it's best to cut when the growth is still young as I have learned, cutting once a year, often times with dry chaff from mature weeds and such is miserable work, and can be a lot harder on the tractor, especially when you have fuzz piling up on the radiator screen. I cut twice or more per year now, just a lot easier.


You can service that gear box, I have to flip mine over to drain it, but you may be able to get it with suction. If it's sat awhile, the oil will be coffee colored and or milky from condensation. Some just ignore the gear box, but it is a wise move to service it and check the level of oil prior to operating. I check mine every so often, also for pressurizing, had that happen once, and taking the plug out let a whoosh of air out, never could figure how that happened, slightly overfilled is all I could think of. You don't want to blow the oil seals in it. The manual will explain it better.
 
Was going to use the mower on Wednesday but the pto clutch needs to be adjusted so we’re going to have to split the tractor. Today I pulled off the mower with the 6610 in the driveway. Either today or Sunday maybe. The is a little light on the front end. With the mower on, if the mower is lifted to high, the pto shaft will rub on the deck.
 
Ditto to what Jerry said. Get the manual for the mower, and adjust it to the tractor correctly. Typically this kind of mower will have the front lower by about an inch and level side to side. Yes, you may need to adjust your top link accordingly. Good blades are necessary, either sharpen and balance what is on there now, or replace. Make sure the PTO shaft telescopes freely so that it moves when needed, it needs to slide easily. Tail wheel is easy, clean, de-grease, re-lube pivot shaft and axle shaft.

Properly adjusted, sharp blades, a 3600 will handle that just fine, but may bog down a bit going up hill in tall grasses or heavy/thick growth like weeds or brush. Conditions and ground speed will vary, it's best to cut when the growth is still young as I have learned, cutting once a year, often times with dry chaff from mature weeds and such is miserable work, and can be a lot harder on the tractor, especially when you have fuzz piling up on the radiator screen. I cut twice or more per year now, just a lot easier.


You can service that gear box, I have to flip mine over to drain it, but you may be able to get it with suction. If it's sat awhile, the oil will be coffee colored and or milky from condensation. Some just ignore the gear box, but it is a wise move to service it and check the level of oil prior to operating. I check mine every so often, also for pressurizing, had that happen once, and taking the plug out let a whoosh of air out, never could figure how that happened, slightly overfilled is all I could think of. You don't want to blow the oil seals in it. The manual will explain it better.
 

DEPENDS.... a 3000 is happy with a 5 foot mower...in heavy its a way too much... yes, if you cut lower grass you can run a larger mower, but medium to heavy,, and a 5 foot is all a 3000 can handle.

Guess is depends on what your definition of cutting is.....
 
Bingo.

The 4 (not 4X2) speed 3000 gasser that I once used struggled mightily with a 5' cutter in heavy grass. Geared MUCH too high. I simply COULD NOT have handled a 6' cutter in similar conditions.

Yes a 4X2 diesel is a better tractor but putting one on a mounted 8' cutter for anything more than show is an absurdity.

Dean
 
Bill,
I do quite a bit of bush hogging with my
3000 and 6' BH rotary.
Mostly I run in 3rd except for tight
maneuvering I'll drop to 2nd or even 1st
sometimes.
I don't abuse the tractor but sure don't
baby it either.
I think it handles the 6' mower fine.
 

again,, depends... MY opinion.. on a 4x2, you should be able to stay in 3rd gear... and the cutter have time to properly cut, chop, and recut the grass and not load down.

On a 4x1, your lowest gear is already pretty fast. Your basically in trouble with anything other that low grass that is frequently mowed.


Going too fast, in heavy material, will leave the grass "choppy" and not cleanly cut...

BUT/// we shred/cut fields with tall grass/ saplings/ low brush... to control brush growth and return/keep pastures in optimum grazing mode. All fence lines and roads get cut every year. AND believe me... its all a 3000 can handle, and yes, some of the time you have to drop a gear on the 8x2 with a 5 foot... Even first gear. Heaven forbid you have a 4x1 as your screwed and will bog it down and overheat it everytime.


The "nice" fields, heck, I could cut with a riding lawn mower and yes, you can run a bigger shredder, but also a regular lawn mower or even a finish mower will work fine. Even a compact tractor will do fair, but again, that is not what shredders, or rotary cutters are designed far. Again,, my opinion of using a shredder vrs a finish mower.

During drought years, yes you could run a bigger shredder as there is very little to cut in the mid of summer.
 

Just for instance....
I have only had a Late Styled JD "B" and have used my 6' Pull-type for 15 yrs and that is even thru 8'-10' saplings//

Ofcourse, I do have a low 1st gear, but still only about 25 HP..

I can clip pastures in 4th gear easily, yes, it IS set up correctly and the bLADES ARE SHARP..

aLWAYS HAVE THE REAR OF THE MOWER HIGHER THAN THE FRONT AND THE BIGGER STUFF YOU ARE CUTTING, THE HIGHER THE REAR SHOULD BE..
 
Bingo, Sotxbill.

An 8' mounted cutter on a 3000, regardless of options, is simply absurd.

Dean
 
The 3000 will NOT lift the 3 point, 8 foot mower. The tractor will lift the mower in the air. On the back of the mower, there is a hydraulic cylinder to raze and lower.
23996.jpg
 
The mower in the photo is a mounted mower but the top link is not connected. Accordingly, you are operating it in semi-mounted mode.

A tractor of sufficient size could operate the mower fully mounted.

The hydraulic tail wheels in conjunction with the three point arms adjust the cutting height.

Dean
 
I've run rotary cutters on hundred series tractors, early thousand series tractor, and our 3600 and currently my 4630, going back over 40 years now. It's one of the first jobs I was tasked with on this farm besides other work. Was my job to keep fields cut that were not in crops. I still do this at the current time.

On my 4630, there are conditions when cutting full depth, in the thickest, most dense vegetation, it would seem that this is all that tractor wants with a 6' cutter. Raise it up a little, that changes easily. I've run a lot of 5' mowers in the past and the same applies to the hundred and early thousand series tractor, but my old 850 tractor handles a 6' rotary cutter just fine. However, the conditions dictate how well, as well as how well it is maintained, adjusted and how low you cut. Try to take it all in one pass in thick, dense grass or weeds, up hill, all of these tractors will lug or bog down, it's purely up to the operator to adjust for the conditions. Heck, I mowed my lawn with the 6' cutter, set it down low onto the skids, then raised just a hair, did not turn and it cut my overgrown grass pretty darned good for a rotary, few skips and rough spots, but overall it took minutes when I did not have time, place looked kept at a glance and the lawn tractor cleaned it very easily the following week. I have photos of the results, who needs a finish mower LOL !!!

Ideal conditions around here are late May/early June, then cut again as needed or a bit longer until August. The height of the vegetation is less and the stalks are soft, water laden and supple. That makes for easy cutting. Cut mature, full height grasses, weeds etc. is much harder work, + you get all the chaff, dust and fuzz and spread weed seed everywhere.

3600 will handle a 6' rotary cutter just fine, but the operator must adjust to the conditions, the blades need to be new, or properly sharpened and the cutter must be adjusted correctly to the tractor. Cutting height must match the conditions, and if mismatched then performance will suffer.

There are too many variables, the tractor, the size mower, the conditions all play a role in sizing everything. My 4630 would handle an 8' rotary cutter, but try to cut to low, too fast, etc. it's going to be too much. With the 6' cutter I run with it, even in the heaviest, most dense vegetation, you can adjust speed, cutting height etc. and just walk through it while shredding it very effectively. I think a 7' cutter is the ideal size for this tractor in the conditions I have, but the 6' fits better in narrow paths and in the thick stuff, the tractor is not short on power very often, so again there are just a lot of variables to consider when sizing a tractor and cutter to the conditions you will work in.
 

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