BY OXDALE PRODUCTS
A flail mower for a tractor runs on the PTO (exactly like a topper). Flails are designed to cut and mulch vegetation. They differ from toppers in a number of ways. Toppers are large and use rotary blades to cut up an organic matter (often long grass or weeds).
Toppers can be thought of as oversized lawn push mowers. Compared to flail mowers and toppers, a finishing mower is more suitable for cutting back overgrown areas to a more manageable length, making it ideal for level pastures.
A topper is a large rotary cutter that uses a rotor and a blade carrier to create the ‘topping’ action when mowing, taking only the ‘top’ of the grass off and leaving a large stem. Topper mowers are compatible with most tractors, making them versatile for maintaining fields, rough grassland, lawns, and fine turf. They are used in various settings, including golf courses and sports fields, to maintain grass at a manageable length.
Due to their cutting action, toppers leave long clippings over the area that has been cut. This means that the clippings can take quite some time to biodegrade and positively impact the grassland. Topper mowers typically have two blades attached to a carrier which rotates the blades to cut the top of the grass.
Whilst toppers have their uses, the flail is a far more versatile machine as the mulching action that a flail provides ensures that the clippings biodegrade and mulch down quickly, encouraging grass growth and encouraging the sward to thicken. They are also compact and can be transported easily due to their shape, which means they don’t hang out far behind the tractor.
While toppers are useful, finishing mowers are often preferred for maintaining short grasslands like sports fields and golf courses due to their ability to provide a professional finish. The working width of a topper of often more restricted than a flail mower.
Flails are mowers that use the power of rotating hammers at high speed to finely cut and mulch organic matter. You can purchase both a front mounted flail mower or a rear mounted flail mower.
One of the main benefits of flails is their ability to cut various types of vegetation, including thick, dense grass, weeds, and even miniature shrubs. Toppers can also cut various types of organic matter and vegetation, but the key difference is that because toppers will chop but not mulch the plant matter, what’s left atv bottom is messier and doesn’t biodegrade very easily.
Flails have several advanced features that make them easy to use and maintain. Many models come with adjustable cutting height settings and various cutting attachments, depending on the task. Additionally, many flails include a range of advanced safety features such as rollover protection and you can often find flails in many different sizes and working widths to suit your own needs.
As flails can be set to different heights, they can cut short grass, such as amenity grassland or lawns, and they can also cut taller grass in paddocks and fields. You can still ‘top’ a field with a flail by simply setting a higher cutting height which will stop the mower or tractor from cutting the grass too short.
If you are looking for a low-cost, easy way to keep your grass fields and paddocks tidy, then a topper mower is most likely your best bet. Topper mowers can be attached to the 3 point linkage of small or compact tractors. They are easy to operate, simple to maintain and don’t cost as much as flails.
Due to their simple design, you can just drop the topper to the floor and start cutting, and the topper will leave a good length of grass to ensure that the grass isn’t cut too short. Topper mowers can tackle light scrub, including grasses, brambles, and saplings.
You can purchase a compact tractor flail mower that is designed to have all of the power of a larger flail whilst remaining compact enough to run on a smaller horsepower tractor. Topper mowers are also suitable for overgrown pasture and paddock areas on smallholdings with grazing animals.
If you are looking for a mower that can handle many different types of vegetation, is more compact, and can be used to cut both very short and long grass, then a flail is for you.
Providing the height is set correctly, a flail mower can do a very good job at keeping grass fields, and paddocks topped whilst leaving plenty of cuttings of grass to encourage the sward to thicken. The small clippings left will then drop in between the grass blades and mulch the soil to encourage new growth. Regularly greasing the PTO shaft and ensuring it includes shear bolt protection is important for maintaining the equipment.
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