Looking at purchaseing a king kutter brand

Mark

So anyway I got me this new old tractor, think it is an 8 some'n or other, Ford or Fordson not quite sure. Got a couple of acres to mow. Need a mower for the old 8 and was down at TSC and they have this really nice looking unit called a king kutter. Does anyone have an opinion of the king kutter? Or is there another brand better? Heard some'n about a bush hog or brush hog, what about those? And is bush hog a name brand or just a general reference? My buddy has a woods, does a nice job and he beats the tar out of it, but a little to pricey for me. The other thing I notice is the shaft out the back, I think they call it the PTO, quits turning when I press the clutch. Why is that? Is that something to do with a live PTO? What can I do to make it turn all the time? What about this over running clutch thing? Help me out. My grass is getting deep.

Havin fun
My$.02

Mark

Mark

Like all equipment, these things are put together "on-site" and usually by kids who really don't know what they are doing.

I've never seen a new piece of machinery yet that did not need to be given the "once-over" at every connector, bolt and fastener before being put into service.

Out of the box, they are just "thrown together".

Just a thought,

Allan

Mark

On at least 2 occasions, the 3rd member support came off the deck such that the tractor was only connected at the top and one side. Needless to say this was a very pecarious position and could have flipped the tractor. Resulted in bending the tractor interconnect brackets all up. So I had to rebuild them and brace them up better as they were pretty flimsey where they were bolted together.

I used proper sized hardware (theirs was smaller than the holes provided in the steel) and welded the end of the bolts after installation.

Swinging yoke didn't work well over terraces and things so I ripped all that out and put a chain between the front and rear (rather than their steel braces which bent) and solved the trailering problem.

Just last week the tail wheel disintigrated and had to replace that.

It drags like a big tub. It is just a pain. But it cuts good....but all this other stuff. Would not buy another.

Mark

Let me add to your comments.

The one thing I don't like about this KK is that they do not come equipped with a forward throw-curtain; holes are there & drilled at the proper locations, just no darned curtain.

When running in heavy saplings, a sharp pointed gizmo could possibly be thrown forward into a tire. Not a good setup in this regard.

Even with the light-weight Woods, units all have a curtain, at least.

Allan

By the way, a friend of mine just bought a KK model just like in Allen's picture. He's just going to use it to mow pasture weeds after his cows have eaten the grass down. The cutter ought to last a long time doing that. I on the other hand, often try to cut almost any brush that I can get the 70 hp tractor to push over. KK just doesn't make a model that will stand up to that use, or maybe they consider it abuse. However some of the older cutters from AC, MF and JD don't seem to be too bothered by it, if you hold your ground speed down.

I found a use for my old round baler belts. I use two thicknesses and the 5" is just about right. They flex just enough and don't get hung up in the blade like chains do.....besides chains are expensive....takes a mile of chain to fill the front of a mower (it seems).

Mark

Hi Joe,

I bought the 84" Cat II heavy duty KingKutter because it appeared much "beefer" as compared to the same sized Woods when the two were parked side by side. It is rated at 80 hp and as I recall, it tipped the register at around $2K.

The little KK's just seem a little anemic to me and a lot of the guys here confirm this. If you are just using it to trim lawns however, they might be okay. Dunno.

Allan