If the tractor and Implement Business doesen't work out, this man has a great future as a presenter. Always enjoy his Vids, interesting and informative presentation and great delivery. I have no need for a flail mower or 90% of what he shows but always enjoy the vids and learn something. He is a great representative for his company.
He’s the third generation running the family dealership. Messicks has something like 8 huge dealerships throughout Pennsylvania and built a multi million dollar online parts business....they’re not going anywhere.
I've been trying to decide between a flail and rotary and this is the most helpful video I've seen comparing the pros and cons of a flail mower. Thank you!
I ran a rotary in a vineyard for a while. After we pruned the vines in the spring we had to pick them up because we tripped over them and they were hard to work around. The rotary mower just cut the off what ever was sticking up like it was grass. Our local tractor dealer called me one day and said that someone had traded in a flail mower, did we want to check it out. The next day he dropped it off. It was a five footer, had hammer blades, and was made in CA. I hooked it up to our Massey 135. It worked great! It sucked the prunings up and spit them out looking like they'd gone through a chipper. I found if I could run over it, the mower would cut it. One big key is to match your forward speed to what you are working in. Most of these mowers are intended to run at 540rpms. In heavy stuff, gear the tractor down until you get a clean cut.
Anyone that has never used a flail mower with those y knifes has no idea what there missing . Used one for 30 years now . Awesome performance . They cut so close when desired and really mulch everything up fine for better regeneration of the grass and also get rid of lumps and clumps on trails . I mulch up too two inch brush . There a wood chipper shredder also 👍 They are well worth the extra money . Good review 👍👍👍
Damn that hydrostat is screaming. We use many machines with hydrostats, but none seams to be nearly as loud. (Mobile Excevator, Aebi Twoaxle mower, singleaxle walk behind mowers, remote controlled Mowers,...) The remote and singleaxle mowers have about 20-30hp Diesel an petrol. If you hear those sounds from these machines, you have low oillevels or something is broken. And we use nothing else than flail mowers. If you get the feeling with those machines and play with the 3point you can really effectively dig into wooden material without throwing stuff around like a rotary. For mountain regions with stones, we use chains instead of the Y-Knives on the remote mower. Those flailheads are indestructible! Greetings from europe.
💥 Only once I have gotten a large branch jammed into my flail mower. There is a big difference between the hammers and knives however. The best way to dislodge material that gets stuck is to use a reciprocating saw or a small chainsaw. Multiple passes are often needed with a flail on large brush but the finish cut is better than a brush hog. Given the choice flails work better behind small tractors. Great vid! 👍 *Keep on tractoring!*
What are your thoughts on hammers vs knives? On the edge of ordering one of these but can’t decide which option to go with. Half cutting will be long grass along side of private road and half one edge of woods or in woods with mostly weeds.
@@justinb8584 I’ve heard that knives are really best for that manicured lawn look. They will handle heavy grass as well but from what I also understand hammers are better at tall grass than knives.
@@justinb8584 Sounds like your not to interested in how the Finish looks. But with the surprise wood in your future. Hamers are the way to go. I've had 35 years of custom flail mowing for customers and you never know what's out there and it always slows you down.
I have hammer blades on mine and do my lawn . It will also chop up 1 1/2 inch alders . Has a roller on the back for height adjustment , you can fine tune height with top link adjustment . Highly recommend
Great video on the Flail mower Neil. And important discussion about support and parts availability when buying a new attachment or implement - super important to be able to easily access parts and service on your investment to keep it running with minimal downtime. Thanks!
Interesting video Neil as I have been running that exact model Del Morino flail (hammer version) on a 26HP here in France for 2 years now and am very happy with it. It’s also called the FunnyTop here ! Hasn’t missed a beat, even when I cut a neighbour’s field where much of it was taller than me (when seated on the tractor) and it was not just grass. It did it nearly all in just one pass - as you say, you can’t run it off the ground - I only had to go over a couple of small areas twice. Very impressive. Would agree with your comments in general - it’s more durable and powerful than you think initially for its size and I’ve seen it chuck things like stones out a fair distance - it pays to keep people well clear when in use ! Thanks for the review
We used flail mowers in the '60 for a finish mower on lawns. With normal mowing it works great, better than a rotary finish mower, in my opinion. Love watching your attachments segments! Thanks.
Your review and description has really helped me decide. I have been on the fence on to buy or not to buy. The feed back on the comments helped win me over . Thanks Neil !
That catch problem is probably why the old Ford flails do not counter-rotate. My 50-year-old Ford 907 will just eject things like that branch out the back rather than pull it up over the cutter bar. There's also a lot more space between the cutter bar and the shell, so it would take something very large to get trapped there. I changed out the Ford T-knives for Mott-style knives, and it works as well as any modern flail.
Always interesting how trends go on the web... flails are the new hotness lately. Great review of real world use vs. others I've seen so nice job! Sharing the Y-blades jammed stick experience and the larger frame ~25hp engine PTO B2650's performance in High range (resulting in mower "skipping") were especially insightful. Especially helps those of us debating between 25hp vs 32hp+ range tractors!
I have heard flail mowers were used roadside, fairways and parks because they didn't throw debris 360 deg and 100 yard like a rotary would. Most material discharged out the back but you had to watch stuff thrown back at the tractor with the unit off the ground. There are a lot of tests and reviews on almost all the video channels. Thanks Neil take care
You have convinced me that there’s no practical use for a flail mower except for the mythical, flat weedy field with no sticks, stones or discarded trash. That cab weight has that little tractor rocking like a boat.
i hhave a flail on my farmall cub.it does a great job mowing our lawn,and will cut high grass with ease.i did however catch a garden hose in our neighbors high grass,it jammed it tight as a drum.was a 20 minute project to unwrap that one,
Neil - love your channel, reviews and insights - have to disagree with your flail application summary - here in NZ heavy clearing and heavy mowing work is really commonly done with flail mowers tackling up to 15cm hard wood branches and stumps with big hammer flails (berti, seppi, vigolo etc are commonly used) - very different to what you're demonstrating mowing a field so I do get your context.
Neil if you have time you should check out a landpride flail mower they seam to be built to handle bigger brush I bought a 48 inch with my bx23s and it is very heavy on the tractor and will stall it if started below 1/2 throttle but once i got it running it will digest more than a smart person would put it though it seems to be a different animal
I bought a 48" flail with hammers for our B2650. I needed to clear about 3 acres for our retirement home. The land was solidly overgrown with brush, vines, tall grass and saplings up to 3" diameter (8-10' tall). The mower performed great. Drove with the tractor in low due to uneven ground and general debris. Saw nothing but mulched grass and wood chips out the back. I did come across about 20' of old barbed wire which wrapped around the drum faster than I could turn off the PTO. Bound up the drum real good and broke both drive belts on the mower, but did not shear the PTO pin. Took about an hour to clear the mower. Had new belts with me so I was back up running a little while later. Knives are better for grass, but hammers do ok on grass if you're not looking for that manicured look. Plus hammers would have chewed up that small branch that bound up his knives.
Yea I like my l6060. I just dont like the hydrostatic 3-2speed. Its so loud my tractor sounds like It's dying and the hydros whine so bad that I feel like I'm in a preschool riot!!!! My grandfathers l2850 sounds like a tractor should = old school non turbo diesel.
My L3560 makes no hydro noise like the LX does. After watching videos of LX models i ruled them out based on that darn noise. My L3560 just has engine sounds inside the cab, absolutely love that tractor, and glad i went to a L series for more tractor capabilities.
Test the LP one next. Surprised that wasn’t the one reviewed. And I believe you are mistaken about a rotary vs flail on small trees and brush. It mulches it much better. For me the flail wins in also every aspect, except cost. It’s more complex and costs about double a rotary cutter.
Cummins and Bricker is on the same high level as Messicks. They set me up with some parts for a Canadian snowblower several years ago. I'm currently considering a ditch bank flail, sometimes referred to as a verge mower.
Part of the branch issue is to do with the size of the mower. I work 100 acres of orchard and we mow it with a large flail with grass knives, there’s much more clearance between the barrel the blades are attached to and the sheet metal of the flail, we often have large branches up to three inches on the ground hidden in the grass for obvious reasons and have never had any issues with branches getting stuck in the mower
yes can confirm that. same on our orchard. we also mulch our hedges around the orchard if they are getting to big.... back up and push down trees is also no problem. depends more on the skills off the driver as on the equpment....every time I have to mulch in woody conditions i would prefer a flail over a rotary. its also much saver since it isnt throing things far away... greetings from bavaria, germany
Large flail mowers are used to mow weeds in orchard rows, at least in California. The ground needs to be almost bare for the nut harvesters to work properly. Flail mowers work best to get that really low cut height.
yes we do also use them in our orchard. we use a humus flailmower. with this we mulch also whole hedges and branches up to 20cm. and if there are woody conditions no one is using a rotary over here
Around here they are pretty much just a more expensive finish mower. Their design just does not support cut rough ground. They handle taller grass better then a rotary finish mower but if you want a nice finish the grass will usually shorter anyways.
i cant agree. i would say flails are better for rough ground because they are shorter and have better ground support with the roller... never hit a rock where are rotary hits them on a bump and so on...
I really like it but out here in Colorado I don't cut but once or twice a year. If your in heavy grass that is thick I would not want a bigger one than this.
looks like it would give you a finish mower like cut on pasture but using something designed more for taller weeds/grass vs a finish mower. I know I run a 72" befco finish behind the 2650 and it is all it wants when the grass is heavier
Hi messick tractor.. i sure got excited the other day i watch you youtube all the time .so im a trck diver from canada. And i was driving in south west of Pennsylvania and saw a big sign.. i started yelling messick messick.. my wife just looked at me ask is i was allright..lol..
You left one blooper in ... you were doing a demo on a flail until the very end. And then you tried to sell a tiller. Is that why I want to flail and tiller now? What a salesman!
@@tsifour 72" is a good fit on the L3800, I'd probably want larger on the M5660. Since the warehouse for these is 10 minutes from our Carlisle store, and there are so many models (like 50-60) we don't usually stock them here.
Flails are much more difficult to sharpen and replace blades that rotary cutters or finish mowers. However, also much safer in terms of discharging cuttings that rotary cutters or finish mowers. Hence often used on roadways or around buildings such as schools.
Maintenance on a flail is high compared to a bush hog or finish mower. They do have a purpose. I feel that Neil skipped over alot of info here. Notice, no discharge to speak of, that makes mowing around building, cars and people much easier and safer. Most flails have a big steel roller across the back that is used as the height adjustment. This also helps lay the grass down and flat. It also makes it harder to pull across the ground. They only really work going forward, backing under a tree doesnt work so well unless you lift it up, back up, put it down amd drive forward. For perspective my 30pto hp pulls an 88 inch flail easier than a 6 foot bushhog in grass with a 4 inch cut.
i cant agree with you. we got two 8ft flails and one extendabe rotary on our orchard... the only thing thats lats longer is changing blades on the flails. greasing and so on is the same amount of time. but you can drive faster and longer since the blades on the flails lasts longer.... so over all there is no difference....
@ William Hall : Agreed & well said. While flails are good for certain applications, they are definitely not as universally useful as a rotary brush hog. Flail mowers are also higher maintenance and much more costly to purchase.
Have to say flail is much more versatile. Good finish good mulching good at dealing with sticks and brush. Just need hammer blades. Pretty much everyone in forestry and agriculture in Europe uses flails but with hammers not grass knives. Also have no probs service mine or my side armed bomford hedge trimmer.
Quite surprisingly that was a very rookie assessment! I guess the experience with flail equipment isn't exactly there, yet! The day you see flails "digesting" an entire trees, tree stumps and the likes. And leave a trail of perfectly mulched material. That will regenerate better and faster into the soil, beside looking very decent! I guess then your opinion will be quickly updated to reality. ;-)
I find a lot of what you are saying is actually against what I have personally experienced. I find hammer knives to actually work better in grass than the knives. Also, the flail I operate can pulverize limbs up to about 3 inches. In fact this is why road departments use them for right of ways. I have a 53 inch behind a John Deere 1025r. They are much safer than a rotary cutter, they won't throw something hundreds of feet out the back.
How does the land pride flail mower compare to this Del Marino? Im more concerned with durability and longevity than price. Not sure why but there are ZERO videos on the Land Pride which sucks i like to research things before i buy but there is nothing out there on the Land Prides.
Neil got a question for ya. I just got a quote from you guys for one of these Del Morino ditch-bank flail mower and I am not sure of the size. I have the Kubota B2650 (same as your video) and was thinking about getting the 55" wide Del Morino. I would like to get the 63" but am worried thats too much weight hanging off one side of the 3-pt lift arms. Someone had told me that a 48" would be a better match for the Kubota B2650 but i wanted something wider than the tractor. So the question is what size ditch-bank flail mower would be appropriate for my machine the B2650. Much appreciated as always!
@@MessicksEquip Well, this is a brand new Funny Super with hammers mowing 3ft tall hay and the grass is sure getting wrapped around and binding up the spindles.
Neil, can a LX2610 run a ditch/bank flail mower, or is that too much for it's HP ? If NO what flail would you recommend for the LX 2610. Would rather do flail over rotary cutter..
I'm actually thinking about a flail mower in lieu of a mid-mount for my lawn on a B01 series. I think I could access more areas of my lawn and open up my offerings to customers to cut heavier brush, etc. (I have no intention of doing regular grass cutting for hire). I also like the ability to offset capability of that one. Are there models that can offset hydraulically w/a add'l rear SCV?
@@MessicksEquip Great - Thanks. Hope to be up Tuesday morning to test a B2401 & HST. Do you know why on Kubota's site the 3rd function FEL valve is no longer shown as an option on the B01? And why the optional SCV's on on the B2301/B2601 aren't shown as optional on the B2401? If not, I'll ask Don - I have some other questions.
I bought a Maschio Bufalo 300 from Messicks in 2018 which is a 12’ flail for tractors with 150-300HP PTO... I run mine with a Fendt 724 and have jammed the rotor running over a log. I have shredded logs I couldn’t see in deep grass but they were somewhat rotted. Where my mower excels is grinding up Autumn Olives and cedars up to 3” thick which are soft wood. That’s not something these compact models can do.
Neil this time i cant agree with you. I would always prefer flails over rotaries for woody conditions.... we run a 150cm flail with gras knives on our bx at home. branches up to 2-3 inches are no problem. only thng left are small pieces of wood which will rot fast. I work on an orchard and where we use big flails. branches causing our issue are no problems. they mulch it down and that´s it.... but you brought the wrong equipment this time for mulcing down a forest or the wrong company... since this flail isnt build for it. there isnt enough room between rotor and the metal. and you got no hammers... greetings from germany
Neil you say that these flails take less horsepower than a rotary mower, what is a good estimate on hp requirement and does that change with the size of the machine? Also, what should I look for when buying one of these used?
It "needs" less hp because of the mass of the rotation of the drum. That mass will power through a thicker clump of grass. If you are always lugging the tractor in thick grass, its not any more efficient.
Would definitely not handled the area of 1 to 2 inch trees I took out with my rotary cutter. (had to go in slow, in reverse, with that...) But it will be a good choice for some people.
Can all catagory 1 implements attach to any brand of tractor with Catagory 1, three point? Are pto drive shafts the same standard length for catagory 1 implements regardless of the make of the implement?
why do almost all the flail mower reviews ignore the ability to mow at 90 degrees? does this model not support that feature? like for trail maintenance and hedge row trimming??
Here in britain and ireland we cut football pitchs with flails u can get fine cut flails for them do ye get major farm equipment in the state u could verticut with that flail u just demo with
I installed a del morino on my 2301. It does a fantastic job on my heavy brush. Max 2". However, because it counterrotates, it throws everything forward. Thus, it will throw things at the operator. So, I fabricated a impact curtain. Absolutely necessary.
That was by far the best information on a flail mower I ever got. I’m glad someone finally addressed why they run the flail mower low to the ground.
If the tractor and Implement Business doesen't work out, this man has a great future as a presenter. Always enjoy his Vids, interesting and informative presentation and great delivery. I have no need for a flail mower or 90% of what he shows but always enjoy the vids and learn something. He is a great representative for his company.
He’s the third generation running the family dealership. Messicks has something like 8 huge dealerships throughout Pennsylvania and built a multi million dollar online parts business....they’re not going anywhere.
I've been trying to decide between a flail and rotary and this is the most helpful video I've seen comparing the pros and cons of a flail mower. Thank you!
I ran a rotary in a vineyard for a while. After we pruned the vines in the spring we had to pick them up because we tripped over them and they were hard to work around. The rotary mower just cut the off what ever was sticking up like it was grass. Our local tractor dealer called me one day and said that someone had traded in a flail mower, did we want to check it out. The next day he dropped it off. It was a five footer, had hammer blades, and was made in CA. I hooked it up to our Massey 135. It worked great! It sucked the prunings up and spit them out looking like they'd gone through a chipper. I found if I could run over it, the mower would cut it. One big key is to match your forward speed to what you are working in. Most of these mowers are intended to run at 540rpms. In heavy stuff, gear the tractor down until you get a clean cut.
Anyone that has never used a flail mower with those y knifes has no idea what there missing . Used one for 30 years now . Awesome performance . They cut so close when desired and really mulch everything up fine for better regeneration of the grass and also get rid of lumps and clumps on trails . I mulch up too two inch brush . There a wood chipper shredder also 👍 They are well worth the extra money . Good review 👍👍👍
have to agree....
Would you recommend y blades or hammer blades for pasture with small wood thicklings?
@@David-i9q8r y blades heavy duty . 3/8” thick clean house on everything and still cut the grass nice . Easy too sharpen also
@@David-i9q8r Go with heavy duty y blades
Damn that hydrostat is screaming.
We use many machines with hydrostats, but none seams to be nearly as loud. (Mobile Excevator, Aebi Twoaxle mower, singleaxle walk behind mowers, remote controlled Mowers,...)
The remote and singleaxle mowers have about 20-30hp Diesel an petrol. If you hear those sounds from these machines, you have low oillevels or something is broken.
And we use nothing else than flail mowers. If you get the feeling with those machines and play with the 3point you can really effectively dig into wooden material without throwing stuff around like a rotary.
For mountain regions with stones, we use chains instead of the Y-Knives on the remote mower. Those flailheads are indestructible!
Greetings from europe.
Best salesman on the internet!
I don't know why, but watching that flail mower chew through that grass was incredibly satisfying!
💥 Only once I have gotten a large branch jammed into my flail mower. There is a big difference between the hammers and knives however. The best way to dislodge material that gets stuck is to use a reciprocating saw or a small chainsaw. Multiple passes are often needed with a flail on large brush but the finish cut is better than a brush hog. Given the choice flails work better behind small tractors. Great vid! 👍
*Keep on tractoring!*
What are your thoughts on hammers vs knives? On the edge of ordering one of these but can’t decide which option to go with. Half cutting will be long grass along side of private road and half one edge of woods or in woods with mostly weeds.
@@justinb8584 I’ve heard that knives are really best for that manicured lawn look. They will handle heavy grass as well but from what I also understand hammers are better at tall grass than knives.
@@justinb8584 Sounds like your not to interested in how the Finish looks. But with the surprise wood in your future. Hamers are the way to go. I've had 35 years of custom flail mowing for customers and you never know what's out there and it always slows you down.
I have hammer blades on mine and do my lawn . It will also chop up 1 1/2 inch alders . Has a roller on the back for height adjustment , you can fine tune height with top link adjustment . Highly recommend
Great video on the Flail mower Neil. And important discussion about support and parts availability when buying a new attachment or implement - super important to be able to easily access parts and service on your investment to keep it running with minimal downtime. Thanks!
Interesting video Neil as I have been running that exact model Del Morino flail (hammer version) on a 26HP here in France for 2 years now and am very happy with it. It’s also called the FunnyTop here ! Hasn’t missed a beat, even when I cut a neighbour’s field where much of it was taller than me (when seated on the tractor) and it was not just grass. It did it nearly all in just one pass - as you say, you can’t run it off the ground - I only had to go over a couple of small areas twice. Very impressive. Would agree with your comments in general - it’s more durable and powerful than you think initially for its size and I’ve seen it chuck things like stones out a fair distance - it pays to keep people well clear when in use ! Thanks for the review
Do the hammers seem to stay sharp over time? Leave a pretty good finish compared to what Neil got here with the knives on his?
The hammers do take a beating and get a lot of nicks in them in a fairly short time
Oh yes, I have a Funny Top here, too.
We used flail mowers in the '60 for a finish mower on lawns. With normal mowing it works great, better than a rotary finish mower, in my opinion.
Love watching your attachments segments! Thanks.
Can the flail come close to a finish mower on most lawn, if you use it as your main mower?
Your review and description has really helped me decide. I have been on the fence on to buy or not to buy. The feed back on the comments helped win me over .
Thanks Neil !
That catch problem is probably why the old Ford flails do not counter-rotate. My 50-year-old Ford 907 will just eject things like that branch out the back rather than pull it up over the cutter bar. There's also a lot more space between the cutter bar and the shell, so it would take something very large to get trapped there. I changed out the Ford T-knives for Mott-style knives, and it works as well as any modern flail.
Always interesting how trends go on the web... flails are the new hotness lately. Great review of real world use vs. others I've seen so nice job! Sharing the Y-blades jammed stick experience and the larger frame ~25hp engine PTO B2650's performance in High range (resulting in mower "skipping") were especially insightful. Especially helps those of us debating between 25hp vs 32hp+ range tractors!
I have heard flail mowers were used roadside, fairways and parks because they didn't throw debris 360 deg and 100 yard like a rotary would. Most material discharged out the back but you had to watch stuff thrown back at the tractor with the unit off the ground. There are a lot of tests and reviews on almost all the video channels. Thanks Neil take care
You have convinced me that there’s no practical use for a flail mower except for the mythical, flat weedy field with no sticks, stones or discarded trash. That cab weight has that little tractor rocking like a boat.
i hhave a flail on my farmall cub.it does a great job mowing our lawn,and will cut high grass with ease.i did however catch a garden hose in our neighbors high grass,it jammed it tight as a drum.was a 20 minute project to unwrap that one,
Neil - love your channel, reviews and insights - have to disagree with your flail application summary - here in NZ heavy clearing and heavy mowing work is really commonly done with flail mowers tackling up to 15cm hard wood branches and stumps with big hammer flails (berti, seppi, vigolo etc are commonly used) - very different to what you're demonstrating mowing a field so I do get your context.
Neil if you have time you should check out a landpride flail mower they seam to be built to handle bigger brush I bought a 48 inch with my bx23s and it is very heavy on the tractor and will stall it if started below 1/2 throttle but once i got it running it will digest more than a smart person would put it though it seems to be a different animal
I bought a 48" flail with hammers for our B2650. I needed to clear about 3 acres for our retirement home. The land was solidly overgrown with brush, vines, tall grass and saplings up to 3" diameter (8-10' tall). The mower performed great. Drove with the tractor in low due to uneven ground and general debris. Saw nothing but mulched grass and wood chips out the back. I did come across about 20' of old barbed wire which wrapped around the drum faster than I could turn off the PTO. Bound up the drum real good and broke both drive belts on the mower, but did not shear the PTO pin. Took about an hour to clear the mower. Had new belts with me so I was back up running a little while later. Knives are better for grass, but hammers do ok on grass if you're not looking for that manicured look. Plus hammers would have chewed up that small branch that bound up his knives.
Interesting ...I have been considering a flail. The mower may be quiet but those hydrostatic drive tractors would drive me up a wall
Yea I like my l6060. I just dont like the hydrostatic 3-2speed. Its so loud my tractor sounds like It's dying and the hydros whine so bad that I feel like I'm in a preschool riot!!!! My grandfathers l2850 sounds like a tractor should = old school non turbo diesel.
My L3560 makes no hydro noise like the LX does. After watching videos of LX models i ruled them out based on that darn noise. My L3560 just has engine sounds inside the cab, absolutely love that tractor, and glad i went to a L series for more tractor capabilities.
Any reason you aren't making use of the offset feature and mowing such that you aren't running over ALL the material you are going to cut?
Have been trying to decide between rotary and flail and this video helped so much! Thanks!
Nice review Neil. Pretty much nailed the pros and cons. I've never had the need for one. Thanks for the videos.
Test the LP one next. Surprised that wasn’t the one reviewed.
And I believe you are mistaken about a rotary vs flail on small trees and brush. It mulches it much better.
For me the flail wins in also every aspect, except cost. It’s more complex and costs about double a rotary cutter.
I agree i have whale tail hammers on my teagle flail and it mulches everything. Even my hedge trimmer flail will cut through over 1 inch.
Cummins and Bricker is on the same high level as Messicks. They set me up with some parts for a Canadian snowblower several years ago. I'm currently considering a ditch bank flail, sometimes referred to as a verge mower.
Part of the branch issue is to do with the size of the mower. I work 100 acres of orchard and we mow it with a large flail with grass knives, there’s much more clearance between the barrel the blades are attached to and the sheet metal of the flail, we often have large branches up to three inches on the ground hidden in the grass for obvious reasons and have never had any issues with branches getting stuck in the mower
yes can confirm that. same on our orchard. we also mulch our hedges around the orchard if they are getting to big.... back up and push down trees is also no problem. depends more on the skills off the driver as on the equpment....every time I have to mulch in woody conditions i would prefer a flail over a rotary. its also much saver since it isnt throing things far away...
greetings from bavaria, germany
Large flail mowers are used to mow weeds in orchard rows, at least in California. The ground needs to be almost bare for the nut harvesters to work properly. Flail mowers work best to get that really low cut height.
yes we do also use them in our orchard. we use a humus flailmower. with this we mulch also whole hedges and branches up to 20cm. and if there are woody conditions no one is using a rotary over here
You have explained the usage so much better than others have. I thought that a flail could be just as good as a brush mower but now I see it is not.
Around here they are pretty much just a more expensive finish mower. Their design just does not support cut rough ground. They handle taller grass better then a rotary finish mower but if you want a nice finish the grass will usually shorter anyways.
i cant agree. i would say flails are better for rough ground because they are shorter and have better ground support with the roller... never hit a rock where are rotary hits them on a bump and so on...
Would love to see this run side by side on the same field , against a rotary cutter or flex wing in particular.
Maybe a colander with TTWT
Great video thanks for the education, now i know why mike morgan likes doing business with you folks.
I have a Del Marino on my B2601 and really like it.
What size, Drich? I have a B2601 and am trying to decide width.
@@RichardGilbert2727 I'll check here for you. I think its around 50"
@@RichardGilbert2727 It is the TX52. I bought it from Tractor tools direct
I really like it but out here in Colorado I don't cut but once or twice a year. If your in heavy grass that is thick I would not want a bigger one than this.
“There is a Weed here that is as High as Me!”
Best quote ever!!! Lol
looks like it would give you a finish mower like cut on pasture but using something designed more for taller weeds/grass vs a finish mower. I know I run a 72" befco finish behind the 2650 and it is all it wants when the grass is heavier
Hi messick tractor.. i sure got excited the other day i watch you youtube all the time .so im a trck diver from canada. And i was driving in south west of Pennsylvania and saw a big sign.. i started yelling messick messick.. my wife just looked at me ask is i was allright..lol..
Great video Neil!!! Always love your content.
When you went fast, LOL!
I own a Delmorino flipper flail. Awesome implement
I agree buy Quality. Not the other stuff!
You left one blooper in ... you were doing a demo on a flail until the very end. And then you tried to sell a tiller. Is that why I want to flail and tiller now? What a salesman!
Great video as always. What size flail mower could I run on my L3400 and L4060HST?
72
Messick's Equipment How much for a 72” and what is availability.
@@tsifour $3295 for an offset. Most models right now are limited stock, but there are several on the water that are a few weeks out.
Messick's Equipment Thanks for quick reply. I can use on a L3800 or M5660. What units (if any) are in your inventory that I might be able to look at?
@@tsifour 72" is a good fit on the L3800, I'd probably want larger on the M5660. Since the warehouse for these is 10 minutes from our Carlisle store, and there are so many models (like 50-60) we don't usually stock them here.
Flails are much more difficult to sharpen and replace blades that rotary cutters or finish mowers. However, also much safer in terms of discharging cuttings that rotary cutters or finish mowers. Hence often used on roadways or around buildings such as schools.
Just the information I was looking for.
Will it hook up to a quick hitch, like say a Landpride QH05?
Maintenance on a flail is high compared to a bush hog or finish mower. They do have a purpose. I feel that Neil skipped over alot of info here. Notice, no discharge to speak of, that makes mowing around building, cars and people much easier and safer. Most flails have a big steel roller across the back that is used as the height adjustment. This also helps lay the grass down and flat. It also makes it harder to pull across the ground. They only really work going forward, backing under a tree doesnt work so well unless you lift it up, back up, put it down amd drive forward. For perspective my 30pto hp pulls an 88 inch flail easier than a 6 foot bushhog in grass with a 4 inch cut.
i cant agree with you. we got two 8ft flails and one extendabe rotary on our orchard... the only thing thats lats longer is changing blades on the flails. greasing and so on is the same amount of time. but you can drive faster and longer since the blades on the flails lasts longer.... so over all there is no difference....
@ William Hall : Agreed & well said. While flails are good for certain applications, they are definitely not as universally useful as a rotary brush hog. Flail mowers are also higher maintenance and much more costly to purchase.
Have to say flail is much more versatile. Good finish good mulching good at dealing with sticks and brush. Just need hammer blades. Pretty much everyone in forestry and agriculture in Europe uses flails but with hammers not grass knives. Also have no probs service mine or my side armed bomford hedge trimmer.
What will work best for very old woody blackberry? Thanks 😊
Always educational - great options.
Learned something again today!
Does anyone else want to know the rest of the lyrics of that "Helping hand" song?
could you try the hammerhead style cutter on that grass
Weird, I've been shopping for flail mowers a lot recently...
Same here
Same here.
Your phone is listening 🙄😋😂
Great video as always Neil!
... and drive the other way round with the offset mower, then you are only with one wheel side in the uncut grass. =)
Quite surprisingly that was a very rookie assessment! I guess the experience with flail equipment isn't exactly there, yet!
The day you see flails "digesting" an entire trees, tree stumps and the likes. And leave a trail of perfectly mulched material. That will regenerate better and faster into the soil, beside looking very decent! I guess then your opinion will be quickly updated to reality. ;-)
Excellent video. Thank you!
So, what size is that mower, and is it the ideal size you would run on that B2650 or on a LX2610? I don't think you ever mentioned it in the video.
Did you ever figure this out?
I have a B2650 as well what is the size of this flail mower and approximately what is the cost?
I find a lot of what you are saying is actually against what I have personally experienced. I find hammer knives to actually work better in grass than the knives. Also, the flail I operate can pulverize limbs up to about 3 inches. In fact this is why road departments use them for right of ways. I have a 53 inch behind a John Deere 1025r. They are much safer than a rotary cutter, they won't throw something hundreds of feet out the back.
How does the tractor handle that width? Could it comfortably go with a 62 inch flail?
What size and model is that and could a kubota B7500 run one that big Messick Equipment
Very well explained. Thank you
How does the land pride flail mower compare to this Del Marino? Im more concerned with durability and longevity than price. Not sure why but there are ZERO videos on the Land Pride which sucks i like to research things before i buy but there is nothing out there on the Land Prides.
Neil got a question for ya. I just got a quote from you guys for one of these Del Morino ditch-bank flail mower and I am not sure of the size. I have the Kubota B2650 (same as your video) and was thinking about getting the 55" wide Del Morino. I would like to get the 63" but am worried thats too much weight hanging off one side of the 3-pt lift arms. Someone had told me that a 48" would be a better match for the Kubota B2650 but i wanted something wider than the tractor. So the question is what size ditch-bank flail mower would be appropriate for my machine the B2650. Much appreciated as always!
Small tractor for a ditchbank. I'd get the smaller one.
If you're mowing grass with this, how do you keep it from jamming up on the sides of the roller and flail drum?
Sharp knives.
@@MessicksEquip Well, this is a brand new Funny Super with hammers mowing 3ft tall hay and the grass is sure getting wrapped around and binding up the spindles.
Grass on our property gets that tall in ten days...
Standard mower for Europe ... we only use rotary cutting on lawn mowers.
yes thats correct. flails are way better. greetings from germany
Neil, can a LX2610 run a ditch/bank flail mower, or is that too much for it's HP ?
If NO what flail would you recommend for the LX 2610. Would rather do flail over rotary cutter..
Yea, a small one. www.messicks.com/attachment/3894/funny-super-series
@@MessicksEquip Thank you for the very quick reply. Very nice unit !!!
I'm actually thinking about a flail mower in lieu of a mid-mount for my lawn on a B01 series. I think I could access more areas of my lawn and open up my offerings to customers to cut heavier brush, etc. (I have no intention of doing regular grass cutting for hire). I also like the ability to offset capability of that one. Are there models that can offset hydraulically w/a add'l rear SCV?
Several, keep in mind the tractor weight though. Small machine, can't offset very far
@@MessicksEquip Great - Thanks. Hope to be up Tuesday morning to test a B2401 & HST. Do you know why on Kubota's site the 3rd function FEL valve is no longer shown as an option on the B01? And why the optional SCV's on on the B2301/B2601 aren't shown as optional on the B2401? If not, I'll ask Don - I have some other questions.
@@MessicksEquip good point on the weight vs. offset. Could see even a little being helpful though & would be nice if hydraulic.
Time to adjust your slip clutch?
no slip clutch on a flail, the end is belt driven and slips when it hits stuff.
I bought a Maschio Bufalo 300 from Messicks in 2018 which is a 12’ flail for tractors with 150-300HP PTO... I run mine with a Fendt 724 and have jammed the rotor running over a log. I have shredded logs I couldn’t see in deep grass but they were somewhat rotted. Where my mower excels is grinding up Autumn Olives and cedars up to 3” thick which are soft wood. That’s not something these compact models can do.
Neil this time i cant agree with you. I would always prefer flails over rotaries for woody conditions.... we run a 150cm flail with gras knives on our bx at home. branches up to 2-3 inches are no problem. only thng left are small pieces of wood which will rot fast. I work on an orchard and where we use big flails. branches causing our issue are no problems. they mulch it down and that´s it.... but you brought the wrong equipment this time for mulcing down a forest or the wrong company... since this flail isnt build for it. there isnt enough room between rotor and the metal. and you got no hammers...
greetings from germany
Neil you say that these flails take less horsepower than a rotary mower, what is a good estimate on hp requirement and does that change with the size of the machine? Also, what should I look for when buying one of these used?
It "needs" less hp because of the mass of the rotation of the drum. That mass will power through a thicker clump of grass. If you are always lugging the tractor in thick grass, its not any more efficient.
Where do you buy the SAE 140 EP oil for it?
I'm considering buying an offset flail mower for my Kubota MX5200. What would be a suitable sized offset flail mower for a tractor of this size?
52 or 60 messicks.com/attachment/3894/funny-super-series
I dont know if you are familiar with the Ford 9N. It has 23 ish hp and 90 ft/lbs of torque. But would the 9N handle it alright
Easily
I use a 1.3M flail on A Ferguson tea-20 with no problems in Australia, with hardwood sticks and small shrubs, as per my ID picture.
Hi Neil nice video you did a video some time ago with a titan flail are they comparable in quality and price
Cheaper, and I would say not as good quality or feature wise. You get what you pay for.
Would definitely not handled the area of 1 to 2 inch trees I took out with my rotary cutter. (had to go in slow, in reverse, with that...)
But it will be a good choice for some people.
Are these mowers quick hitch compatible?
Can all catagory 1 implements attach to any brand of tractor with Catagory 1, three point? Are pto drive shafts the same standard length for catagory 1 implements regardless of the make of the implement?
Category 1 is universal, you need to check the shaft length each time you put a new implement on your tractor.
What I would like to know is if a flail mower can finish mow wet grass when my zero turn can't do to clumping.
That video is coming, but the answer is yes.
Will this connect to kubota's quick connect 3-point?
Mower is not quick hitch compatible.
Neil are these QH compatible
why do almost all the flail mower reviews ignore the ability to mow at 90 degrees? does this model not support that feature? like for trail maintenance and hedge row trimming??
Can you change directions of the blades.!!!
I have MX6000 Kubota what is the largest width flail mower I can use- Y blades ?
you've got the the PTO HP for 84-96"
That drive system is loud on that tractor.
Here in britain and ireland we cut football pitchs with flails u can get fine cut flails for them do ye get major farm equipment in the state u could verticut with that flail u just demo with
I installed a del morino on my 2301. It does a fantastic job on my heavy brush. Max 2". However, because it counterrotates, it throws everything forward. Thus, it will throw things at the operator. So, I fabricated a impact curtain. Absolutely necessary.
2:05 watch out for that butterfly....
Belts burned up after 8 hrs use. Had to cut off old belts and can't get new belts on.
Not only jamming up the rotor, I managed to destroy the belt because I didn't notice the problem soon enough.
Sticks Don't jam a brown 416👍
Just get a browns 416 brush cutter. Skip the flail save money.
What's the price on that mower
Can the little 1880 handle a flail mower
A small one
use hammer blades
Sold. Definitely want one. Could you pull it behind a b2401 please. Maybe do a comparison. Talk about the 1000 rpm pto.
Second