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Re: (ET) Re: Reel Mowers (was: 2 mower deck questions)

Some years ago I used gang mowers behind a gas powered tractor. The good news is that they are "universal" - the reels are driven by one of the wheels, so all the tractor has to do is tow it. As such, any tractor with a draw bar will do. Of course, the load on the tractor is proportional to the number and size of the mowers. The bigger the gang, the wider the cut, and the bigger the load. I use one about 5 feet wide (5 overlapping reels - 3 in the front row, 2 in the back) behind a 12 hp tractor on rolling lawn.
Reel mowers run well at a relatively slow speed. I found that they produced an excellent cut on low grass when adjusted correctly. They don't work well (if at all) when the grass gets high enough that the reel won't pull it against the blade - more than 1/2 reel height. So no field mowing. In addition, they are sensitive to going out of adjustment if they hit solid objects or ingest stuff like sticks. And they do take a lot of "backlapping" to get them to leave streak-free gold course quality cuts.
They are difficult to store. It's not a good idea to leave them to rust in the rain - the blades don't like that. As I recall, the ones I used were not exactly a "snap together", and taking the unit apart for storage was not a practical solution. We kept ours under a tarp on top of a sheet of plywood "out back" for the summer, then disassembled it for winter storage. 

Finally, they ain't cheap.


At 09:49 PM 6/13/2005, Tom Coate wrote:
So has anyone tried a gang reel mower with an ET? They do seem to be readily available, for example: 
http://www2.northerntool.com/cat-1/143+764941.htm
My familiarity with reel mowers is limited to the many hours of my youth I spent with the kind you push yourself. I'm wondering if a towed gang unit would be the ticket now that I'm "graduating" to a new house that has about 5 hilly acres to mow. Just wondering how well these work out in general, and how they might do behind an ET? Would it be faster than mowing with the standard ET deck? Or would I just wind up at the bottom of the hill unable to get up again? 

- Tom Coate

Christopher Zach wrote:
Someone also made a massive tow behind reel mower system that was used for golf grounds. Might be able to find something like that used. 

Chris



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