Back in the late 60s to early 70s, (age 14 on up) I ran a 6' flail mower on a Ford 8N. It was a great mower. However, because of minimal safety features, it could really throw a golf ball. I like the offset feature of this new mower, as you can see what is coming up in front of the mower, which gives you a better chance of seeing debris and stopping. Thank you for showing this.

An excellent tutorial and demonstration. I think you were fair and balanced in your opinion. Thanks.

Pretty amazing tool. I like in the comments what other countries use vers what we use. Allot of times such as this implement you see them !! I think that is great Tim! Different ideas! I have always had rotary mowers sometimes it's handy to have that extra long reach in the back and other times that flail mower being closer to the tractor could be a handy idea as well. Thank you Tim and Cristy for the efforts again you guys rock!!!!

We had a 7ft flail mower years ago and did a lot of cutting with it. Once you got the grass cut to the height you wanted it the mower could give close to lawn mower results as long as the grass didn't get too long.

Hi Tim when my 1026r was delivered Jd had installed two outlets on the back of the tractor. This has been very useful for my trailer and hydraulic grass collector. I still have my mid hydraulic connections.

I've been using a 54" flail behind our B2650. Cleared several acres of heavy overgrowth with it, grass / brush about 5' tall and saplings up to 2" diameter without too much trouble. I have the "hammers" on mine, figured the cutting blades would not hold up too well given our property. A couple passes in different directions and all that's left is a fine mulch on the ground. Worked great for clearing a spot for our home.

Excellent information as always. I was impressed at how easily it seemed to drive the flail mower I was always under the impression they need quite a lot of horse power. Look forward to seeing it on the 2 series. The extra weight will make all the difference.

Excellent review, Tim. Very level and thorough. Thanks! I’ve got to say, you get a lot of work out of that little tractor!

I spotted those red handled pliers in your hands. I bought my 1st pair over 20 years ago & they are hands down the best pliers money can buy.

I have never ran a flail mower or even seen one up close, I thought they were only for mowing lawns. The mower handled the field grass without and problems, and I especially liked how the offset worked when you mowed along the ditch, I have the same situation here, the offset feature definitely would make mowing the ditches I mow a lot safer job. Good video Tim, you did a great job showing and explaining the mower's features to us, and I learned something about Flail mowers. Thanks. 🙋‍♂️

For me, that was comprehensive. You answered questions about many systems and tractor choices . Thanks 🙏

I love my flail mower/mulcher, use it on pastures, roadside maintenance, and clearing brush.

Thanks for leaving the barbed wire problem in your video. It just shows the real world problems encountered on working out in the public. Part of the work process is solving problems encountered each day. Your father taught you well on how to handle them.

The offset might allow you to keep your grill screen cleaner when mowing taller material. Maybe this is one of those demo attachments you might want to hold onto?

That is a nice piece of equipment I think the offset part of mower is nice . Great video.

Flail mowers have always been the easiest and almost maintenance free type of mower we’ve used. My favorite mower really for a tractor implement.

Very helpful stuff, Tim & Christy . Thanks!

I purchased a 50 inch Betstco Flail Mower two years ago. I can tell you that unit eats everything. My one complaint is they do not offer hammer head blades for it for grass only. One thing that I would caution you on, do not back up with the flail down. It puts a lot of strain on the belts/chain drive. It also seems to dull the blades more. I am very glad to see you trying the offset. You solidified my thoughts and that is the offset probably would not have worked for me. I have been kicking around the idea of trading my 1025r in and go get a 3046r just to give me more power and a little larger implements for what is available in used market. Just a lot of tractor for 1 acre.

Tim Christi quit a mower looks great does a good job thanks again for showing new equipment God Bless All PaK

I've had the 60" version of this flail on my JD 4720 for about 10 years now and I agree with much of what Tim has said. I grew up with an older 7' Ford 917 flail (grass cutter with hanging blades) and bought this for brush mowing and hill, bank maintenance. I call mine the eraser because it just makes things go away... The flail portion is great and in 10 years and hundreds of hours of hard use I've only had to replace two of the hammers due to large rock strikes. The ditch bank is another story... Even on my 4720 tractor its been a pain the butt. When I first bought the flail I had a longer set of hoses from my local Deere dealer that I ran under the tractor, I eventually replaced that setup with a dual SVC setup from Deere that uses an electric valve to reroute the flow from the loader stick. It works well but I have had problems with the valves occasionally freezing up and that repair has been rather expensive when it happens . Back to the mower... I routinely loose snap pins from the 3 point and have had to have several upgrades done to beef up the mechanism. The most severe was one of the pivot beams breaking and the most recent repair was to the mounting point for the pivot on the flail itself... The welds that hold the pivot cracked and the flail was trying to separate from the mounting. Looking at Tim's unit it looks like they redesigned this... It also looks like they cost reduced the swing back mount (extended at 9:16 right side three point mount) that protects things when you run the flail into a solid object like a tree/fence post and changed the debris flap from metal to rubber. Otherwise mine appears almost identical other than the scars of many years of abuse... The other thing even with a bigger tractor when using this mower you have to be very careful as it will easily pull the opposite rear wheel off the ground, 9:55 in the video is a time when I have to be careful, maybe his lower center of gravity is helping.... When I bought mine I really wanted the bigger 7' model but it required the next category up hitch. I had the HP to drive it so I was initially disappointed but after my first usage I realized that would have been a horrible idea... Honestly I'm amazed Tim did as well as he did with such a small tractor. Flails really like HP and the ditch bank really needs a heavy tractor for ballast. I also use mine with the loader attached for counter balance. If this one ever totally dies I'll buy another Maschio with hammers, but the next one will be a 6' or 7' horizontal shift unit... One other comment for those of you asking about floating the slots he talk about take care of that nicely...

Dang I love a flail mower. They are probably the best all around mower to have.

I had to re watch this episode because after brush hogging the trails this weekend, I can see how this will become worth its weight.... So many trees and briars to mow against while trying to keep the trails wide enough for 2 six foot passes with the rotary cutter. The flail would be great to follow up and get all the edges and sides to keep the underbrush from closing up the trails. Tim, I'd love to see a follow up video with the 2038R using this attachment. It looks to be the perfect pairing. Thanks again for the great content!

Very useful video! Can’t wait to see it on Johnny 2 and less brushy conditions.

Thank you for another nice video Tim and Kristi God bless you and your family

Great video Tim. That does a nice job. I would think you could use the “float” position on the loader control for at least one of the functions on the mower to allow the float action. Just a thought. Thanks for sharing and blessings to you folks!

Made in Italy.....i bought it 10 years ago. The best instrument for hard job. Hello from Sicily.

I really think that the flail mowers are the way of the future. Sine I bought mine back in May of 2019, I haven't used my brush hog. The flail mower cuts closer and mulches at the same time

Cool. I bought a flail from betsco, but haven't used it yet. Thanks for all the tips. Super helpful.

Looks like this would be very good at cutting grass and other weeds that have gone to seed by keeping Johnny in the mowed path and not breathing in all the debris that covers the radiator screen. Great product. You need 2 Johnny's, one with a to run a Brush Hog and the other with the flail mower, then compare the 2 at the same time. Great camera work Christy and Tim you did great driving Johnny.

I like the finish cut with this , I have seen the brush hog before that seems to leave a windrow . This was a great video for the information .

wow johnny handled that mower very well for it being offset and further back keep up the good work

We have a big one of those for mowing irrigation ditches on the farm, as well as a Mascio speed disk we pull. By far the most well made equipment I’ve ran by far. They really take it to the next level on quality control before it’s shipped to the customer.

Hey Tim, when talking about keeping the pin centered at least for the lift one you can switch your hoses around and lock the scv in float "easy peasy" as for the other, have the front ride plate hard faced and keep the 3 point dropped it will allow the mower to keep itself level & naturally the three point floats upwards by itself.

Well done Tim - offset flail mower pretty intense implement, impressive test results. I appreciate your attention to plumbing this tool. Look forward to your closing verse from scripture.

I was using a offset flail mower in the early 80s on my 100hp tractor we used to cut road verges with them there not new. from the UK

Thanks Tim & Christy. I think that flail mower performed well but as you said, the 4 footer may have been a bit better with your 1025r. I have an area in the front of my land I dread cutting and most of the time I just won't cut it b/c of the steepness. That's when I'd love to have something like this. Thanks again for the demonstration. Full-watch. 👍🏽

Enjoyed your demonstration of the flail mower thanks

I'm guessing it won't work with the Quick Hitch due to the clearance needed for the swing of the PTO shaft. The 1025 is definitely on the small side for that mower but it did work... I've been considering an offset mower for a while but never knew of this unit. With my 3039R I should be able to run a 63-65" unit w/o trouble.. Nice unit there, Tim..

💥 For someone that has a lot of ditch banks an offset flail would be a perfect solution. Have fun with that flail mower Tim. It’s one of my favorite attachments. *Keep on tractoring!* 👍

Good morning Tim. Agree with you 100%. They are pretty practical attachments but not sure hanging them out off the back of the smaller subs and smaller compacts is a good idea. There is a lot of weight and forces of energy being applied to the 3 point which those tractors are not engineered to handle. Thanks for the great overview and honest review for folks! Cheers!

Thanks for putting this together. Very helpful.

Hi Tim I really like the process where You mow an initial path then drive in it so you don't hit things hidden in the high brush with Your Tractor Ken

For the slot directly behind you that you have trouble seeing: You could mark the middle and end points on top of the slot.

Love love the job a flail does on rough cut areas....have some 20min of video up mowing with one on a B26

Good work on the hoses! Need a set for my bx.

I didn't realize that they made offset flail mowers for compact tractors. I didn't hear a suggested price, but I'm guessing that it is going to be on the more expensive side. Thanks for sharing.

Great video Tim! I’m just about convinced to trade my brush hog in for a flail mower.

This would make life easier around ponds. It cuts pretty good i gotta say. Definitely can't wait for you to try it on Johnny 2. Thank you for all the awesome videos you 2 do. God Bless

Researched the unit you can also lock the top link to fixed for non-float if desired.You put a link pin to fill the slot,(fills space)which locks the arm pin in place in fixed spot thus a non-float/limited float unit. FYI. I would prefer float like you have shown. Thanks for the video!

I’d love a flail mower. Non off set. They can take brush better than a brush hog and leave a finer finish.

Great Demo, I have a regular Flail on my B2601, 54"

I've been hemming and hawing on the Isotunes for a bit. That coupon code plus sale makes it too sweet of a deal to pass up, thanks!

Hey Tim, I love my flail mower. I'm running a 68" I wanted one of these tgat you are using here but no rear remotes and added cost, I just couldn't do it. Another great video.

This is very helpful. I am purchasing a 65in ditchbank flail for my 3038e. With factory installed rear controls. I think the 3 series will handle it well after watching this video. Thanks a lot for posting.

In my last year that would’ve been a dream, not only the tipping up on its side to get stuff out but the offset part. Our house was on a lake and we had drainage ditches on two sides of the property the lake along the backside and a third drainage ditch along the front of the property and the city would come through and dig the front Ditch out every couple years and it was just too steep to get with a riding mower, So just something to get in the ditches would have been awesome. They were almost always wet and muddy and being that it was field drainage we’re very fertile so they would grow like crazy I’ve often thought of getting a tow behind just for doing the dishes. Not just because they were steep but when they were muddy the mower would get stuck every time. Are usually had to let it grow about 5 feet tall before it was dry enough to get in there. I thought of a cycle bar but something like this would be a much better option.Also for mowing over the water, having it stick out like that and being able to angle it would’ve been great

Another great episode of Tractor Time with Tim. Thinking about the 1025R

Very impressed with the cut quality.

Well Tim that's wat I'm more used to seeing here in Ireland

Hey.... I’m happy to see you running a Maschio. They make the nicest, heavy duty flails. I did a lot of research before buying mine which is a Buffalo 300 (12’). Mine shreds 6” logs no problem. One thing about flails, if your cutting just grass, knives are best. Yours has hammers (what I have also), is better for land reclamation on more woody stuff. The nice thing about a flail over rotary cutters is that it shreds grass to be broken down faster. Maschio is a Italian company that is in the USA manufacturing John Deere hydraulic tillage. Maschio makes a ton of different attachments and implements but are just starting to offer them in the US market. Their 3-point mounted sprayers are really nice! Great video Tim.... those bushes your cutting either need to be pulled by the root or manually cut with Tordon on the stump. A tip... buy a pair of Knipex bolt cutters, they are the size of pliers and cut barbwire like butter.

I do like the way you can articulate your flail with the offset. Would be really handy ditch work.

Just ordered the ISOtunes PRO 1.0 Thanks for the discount, Tim!

On the farm we had a few fields that were late August cuttings, we used to have to cut them with a field chopper which is called a flail chopper, this would work well there

Cordless grinder with .045 cut off wheel in the tool bag

That mower looks like it does a really nice job. I would love to see how it does on a larger tractor.

That would be the perfect size for my B2410. I was looking for one two years ago, but got a 4' rough cut KingKutter instead.

I like it especially being able to offset.

Thank you for this demonstration. I would not have thought of using this type of mower had I not seen your demonstration. Very interesting! Best wishes

I’m down here in Gaffney SC. You guys are great!

Ive never heard of this before. I have 50 acres that the previous owners left trash an wood an junk everywhere, i think this would handle stuff like that better than a rotory cutter. I plan on gettin a 3046r in the near future

Lol I was getting ready to make a set of hoses to do just that. So yes if available to buy pre made I’d buy some

Hi Tim, Great video on the Fail mower, The problem where i am located in the N/E Adirondacks, we have a lot of what we call Adirondack Potatoes, {AKA Rocks}, and it would knock the heck out of those hammers... I dont see you guys having those problems in the midwest...God Bless...Chief..{NYS/ADK}

Be careful around those anchors, if it has been up a long time the anchors could be rotted just below the surface and one bump could pop it loose. A game camera caught a nice shot of the anchor on one of my towers flying through the air.

What a neat attachment

Keep a set of fencing cutters in your toolbox it will help cut and pull the Bob wire . I tend to use it every time I cut a field I've never been in.

That's nice, I won't mind nowing where to check into one of those,I just purchased a little Johnny myself

I don't know if anyone mentioned it yet. When mowing in wet grass and really tall stuff you'll leave stragglers behind b/c of the tires compressing it before the mower. I think having the offset helps in that case being so far back it gives more time for it to stand back up before the blades hit it. Also it you are worried about it being tippy when in off set mode the only way to fix that is to add counter weight to the tractor. Like filling your left rear tire with water or adding a wheel weight or both to help balance the tractor like you did with the front weights. I think that the way you had it setup was pretty good for that little tractor, I just think it could use a little wheel weight for counter balance. The only thing I didn't like was how Jerky the hydros were when tilting it up to 90 degrees. But that could just be a flow or pressure setting on the tractor. Overall I would buy that set up as is, just needs a little tweeking to get it dialed in.

I liked the way it cut along the ditch.

Excellent review,

Looks like it does a great job I want one for my 1025R

Awesome video thank you I want one!!

Thanks for explaining the advantages and disadvantages of a flail mower. Good work Tim! Now imagine we are running 16ft on a 235hp tractor to chop cornstalks and sunflower stalks at something around 5mph.

You will see the difference in a week or two when grass grows back. Maschio one of the topbrands on the market.

Since I don't have a life, I saw a bx with a front mount flail mower. It was made overseas somewhere. All from the palm of my smartyphone. 🤔🤔🤔

Great review

I like that it work great on my 790!

Tim, the Knipex 71 32 200 Comfort Grip High Leverage CoBolt Cutter with Notch and Spring on the Azon are the most wonderful cutters. They are built like miniature bolt cutters and greatly reduce the effort to snip things in two. Not a diagonal cutter. Love mine! Love seeing your flail mower. I wonder if you would have as many spring back up things if you were cutting lower. Are those new lights on the ROPS? The guarding on those lights looks high quality.

I like that a lot because what you said it has a roller and it cuts brush

Stay healthy and stay safe 😊😊😊😊😊

There we go 👍

Hi Tim and Christy nice work nice video

Great review bud 😎👌

Great video on the offset Flail Mower. I have thought about getting one for mowing the private road that I help maintain. Looks like it did a good job cutting along the roadway in front of your house. What do you think of the cut that you get from it on green grass? I have enjoyed this series of videos on the tower clean up.

I should add that, if I’m cutting just grass I mow with my batwing. I run the flail mower in things like locust because it shreds thorns so they can’t cause flats like a rotary could. I also like the way flail mowers grind up brambles, olives and cedars which a rotary can leave a splintered or jarred stump to cause flats.

I’ve been thinking of adding the scv off the power beyond port. To a valve body like a dual wood splitter valve.

Another awesome video ! That thing is cool ! For a sub-compact I think It handled it pretty well , 4 footer definitely be better on the 1 series like you said . Not sure what I’ll do with it but a definitely want one ! Won’t be ditch around that’s not mowed ! Matt F

Figured you would use the Johnny 2038 for this implement. But the 1025 handled it better than I thought. My flail mower is able to offset manually. Remove 6 bolts and plare hitch 6" to the 2nd position. Have not done that yet.

I have a side flail myself and have found it nice to mow ditches but should have gotten larger than recommended for distance down the ditch. I have found that if you travel at 3 mph hit seems to cut nicer as your not keeping cut material in the mowing chamber. I have a float hydraulic lever for my angle up down so I set it push all the way and it floats as I cut making it much easier to contour. The shoes it skids on can cut into grass if not careful when sliding the mower in and out..

I’ve got one of the import Farmers Helper Ef105 flail mowers on my Massey GC1723EB; in non-offset configuration; and I’ve got one season on it. In general, it works OK. I’ve found that it works better when the grass/brush has dried out some; if it’s still kinda wet it’s tough and can bog down the tractor... waiting until it’s dryer means it starts to get brittle and the mower has an easier time with it. The grass on my property can get to a foot or more tall before it stops raining; so it’s a pretty challenging situation.

love vidioe great job description ,and would like offset mower seem safer too