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John Deere JD 4115 Which Brush mower

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HuskyGTH200
Join Date: Sep 2003
Posts: 23 Tug Hill NY
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2007-08-06          144382

Looking for a suggesions on a brush mower for my JD4115. Looking to maintain trails and clear some small growth vegetation, probably not any bigger than 1". I have a very old 4' mower now, which has seen its last repair job. Also what width would be good to go with?....I am thinking of looking at 5' wide mowers.....I feel 6' would be to be big for my 4115. Any suggestions are greatly appreciated.
Thanks to all replys.


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John Deere JD 4115 Which Brush mower

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candoarms
Join Date: Mar 2007
Posts: 1932 North Dakota
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2007-08-06          144384

HuskyGTH200,

You might be able to move up to a 5ft mower......but no bigger.

Actually, the 4ft model is perfect for your tractor's horsepower rating.

Your tractor might strain a bit with the bigger mower, unless you slow down quite a bit in the heavy stuff.

Any bush mower will handle the vegetation you mentioned.

If your mower is beat up due to rough ground, or from striking solid obstacles, such as trees, you might want to consider a heavy duty mower.

Some of the mowers I see these days look to made out of foil paper. This cheap junk isn't worth the powder needed to blow 'em up.

Purchase your mower from a reputable company. Don't worry too much about the price. The difference in price isn't much....at least not enough to lose any sleep over.



Joel ....

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John Deere JD 4115 Which Brush mower

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DRankin
Join Date: Jan 2000
Posts: 5116 Northern Nevada
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2007-08-07          144419

I would be worried about the length of the thing.

A 5 foot brush hog is going to stick out about 7 feet from the rear end. Could make for some pretty dicey handling characteristics. ....

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HuskyGTH200
Join Date: Sep 2003
Posts: 23 Tug Hill NY
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2007-08-07          144422

Thanks Candoarms, I guess I was considering going to a 5ft due to mowing now with my 4ft now......always thinking that a 5ft would get the mowing done just a little quicker. My current mower is from a friend that he had on a 8N and his father used it for years and "things" are just tweeked on it. It bunches up the grass and rolls out the rear of the mower in a ball......I like the newer mowers that have the safety chain on the rear exit of the unit and some have them on front and rear. It seems that the newer units clear themselves better.....does this make sense???? I also like the idea of a stump plate for for the added safety when hitting something that could cause damage.......

As for the length of a 5 footer.....I think the one I have is got to be all of 7 foot behind the tractor now....

I see on other posts that Bush Hog & Woods seem to have the better reviews/comments.

Thanks to both of you.
....

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candoarms
Join Date: Mar 2007
Posts: 1932 North Dakota
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2007-08-07          144424

HuskyGTH200,

The mower you are currently using probably has something missing.

Inside of the outer skirt, there should be some steel gussets which mainly serve as fillers in the dead areas where the blade won't reach.

I have no idea what the proper term is to identify these fillers in the corners. You'll have to bear with me here.

With all bush mowers, you have a blade that cuts a perfect circle, placed inside a square box. In the corners there is a lot of dead space, where the blade doesn't reach. The pieces of sheet metal are used to surround the blade, as close as possible. If these pieces of metal get torn out, (hitting a tree stump will cause this) the blade won't properly chop up the grass clippings, causing them to form large balls that end up rolling out of the rear of the mower.

Any new mower will have these fillers in the corners. I'm guessing that your mower is missing these. Replacement fillers can easily be fabricated and welded in. If you take the time to do this, your mower will likely work much better.....almost as good as new.

Good luck.

Joel ....

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kthompson
Join Date: Oct 2005
Posts: 5275 South Carolina
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2007-08-07          144433

Husky,
Have you check the blades on your current cutter? Sometimes I find just grass to be the hardest to cut with my rought cut mower. You do not want to over load your tractor but you do want your mower to be at least even with the outside of one of your rear tires of you will over time find the roads you are cutting keeps getting narrower. ....

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HuskyGTH200
Join Date: Sep 2003
Posts: 23 Tug Hill NY
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2007-08-08          144448

I checked out this ole mower last night, I beleive its an old BMB, by whats left from an sticker on it.....total length is around 85" long, width is 5ft, guess I haven't paid to much attention to how wide it is.....as for the curved metal corners underneath, they are in bad shape. They've seen better days. Wonder if I could get replacements for them, if not maybe could make some new ones. I understand about needing them in the corners, but in my opinion, from what I see on newer mowers, the rear of the decks are designed notched out or even completely open to let the clippings escape. This ole mower has 5" of steel at the rear, {just as much as on the sides}, that I am tempted to cut out...anyway just my thought. My rear tires measure outside to outside is 50".
I see that the majority of new 60" mowers, spec tractor size to start at around 24hp or 25hp on up. The 4115 is 24hp. I definitely don't want to strain my machine.......
Thanks ....

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kthompson
Join Date: Oct 2005
Posts: 5275 South Carolina
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2007-08-08          144449

Husky, if your cutter is old it could have had metal added or removed over the years. I don't remember seeing any rough cut mower with the back closed in with solid metal. It may have been added to strenghted the deck or to prevent material flying out. You probably can make the parts for the side that are worn.

I would not exceed the 5 foot size cutter you have. PTO clutches can be damaged

They do cost more but you may wish to consider a flail mower for this size tractor. They also do not extend as far back either. Be sure you understand the cutter blade options for the model you consider. I like them due to being shorter and not throwing material as bad as rough cut mower will. They do cut slowing on certain types of materials than the rotary mower as they don't just cut the material off, but can almost mulch it. kt ....

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DRankin
Join Date: Jan 2000
Posts: 5116 Northern Nevada
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2007-08-08          144450

Usually the HP ratings for mowers and such refer to the PTO HP ratings.

The 4115 has 20 ponies at the PTO. I personally would stick with a 48 inch cutter if I was getting one for my 4115. That is what the manufacturer recommends too.

Maybe what you lose in cutting width you can make up in ground speed/cutting time.

I am sure someone on this board has done the math on cutting width vs. ground speed. Maybe they can chime in here. ....

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Murf
Join Date: Dec 1999
Posts: 7249 Toronto Area, Ontario, Canada
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2007-08-08          144451

As Mark touched on, the math is pretty simple, but in this case, IMHO, completely irrelevant.

As Mark also pointed out, you only have 20hp to work with.

For what you're doing, reasonably tough stuff for a small machine, you will probably be better served with a decent used machine, but a 4 footer will be difficult to find.

A 5 footer will be far easier to find, but you will need to really take it slow on the heavy stuff.

By the time you put much $$$, sweat and time into what you have you will be into more than finding a good used unit.

Best of luck. ....

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kthompson
Join Date: Oct 2005
Posts: 5275 South Carolina
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2007-08-08          144452

If buying a used cutter, I would want to hear it run. Rather be able to cut a little with it. On my tractor if possible as you know your tractor's noises. Look for signs of leakage under the gear box and check the oil level on the gear box to try and be sure it has not be run dry. Don't really know how to test a slip clutch other than hitting stump or such with cutter, not something I do on purpose. kt ....

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Murf
Join Date: Dec 1999
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2007-08-08          144457

Kenneth reminded me of something that came up the other day. A mechanic at the dealership, the general manager and I were talking about something and we got onto the subject of slip-clutches.

The mechanic stated that in over 20 years of working on farm equipment, he had not seen a slip-clutch that was more than 5 years old was in proper working order. To say I was surprised was understatement!!!

It seems the friction material in them has an affinity for absorbing moisture, this causes them to rust themselves into one solid mass with the steel mating surfaces. According to the manufacturers instructions (he showed me an example) you are supposed to disassemble them and clean them of rust (and debris) annually and re-tighten them to the proper point!!

How many people have ever done this?

According to the mechanic, the ones that are not seized solid are too loose from wear caused by actually slipping free from overload.

You learn something new every day!

Best of luck. ....

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kthompson
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Posts: 5275 South Carolina
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2007-08-08          144461

Murf, I was told to "use" the slip clutch so when you needed it to slip it would. Have been told the same about them rusting stuck. kt ....

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hardwood
Join Date: Dec 2002
Posts: 3583 iowa
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2007-08-08          144468

I demoed a 4100 with a five foot rotary mower when the 4100's first came out. I think the HP is about the same for a 4115. The 4100 definetly had all it could handle and then some. I'd stick with the four footer. Frank. ....

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HuskyGTH200
Join Date: Sep 2003
Posts: 23 Tug Hill NY
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2007-08-09          144509

I think, with the advise of everyone has given that a 4 footer will be my choice......I definitely don't want to over task the 4115.....I have more to do with it than just mow and if its broke and in the shop, can't get any of it done that way........And yes, with the PTO "ponies" only at 20, a 4 footer will work out better......
I've been on the Woods & Bush Hog websites, downloaded a pile of info......what brands are you guys using? & what pro's & con's are you seeing?
Thanks ....

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candoarms
Join Date: Mar 2007
Posts: 1932 North Dakota
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2007-08-09          144511

HuskyGTH200,

I'm using an old Rhino mower that I purchased at a local auction. It works fine for what I need it for, but I'll be replacing it in the near future. It's a bit bigger than my tractor can handle at higher speeds. I have to slow down much more than I should have to.

This land I purchased was just jam packed with old fencing wire, railroad ties, steel wheels, tires, radiators, engine heads, rear ends, etc. All of this stuff was placed in the trees, where the grass grew up over it. I picked up everything I could find, but I'm still striking some metal once in a while. So far, I've hauled out three semi loads of scrap metal from the place.


I didn't want a new mower until all of this garbage had been picked up and removed.

When I do get a new mower, I'm considering a LandPride 4ft. model. My neighbor bought a slightly bigger Landpride model a few years back, and it works like a charm.

LandPride is one of the few companies who produce equipment specifically designed for very small tractors. Most other companies make their smallest mowers for tractors from 25-40hp. (5ft.) For people like you and me, these implements aren't a good fit.

Shop the landpride website when you get a chance. I think you'll like the selection of equipment that's specifically designed to operate properly on your smaller tractor.

Joel

....

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HuskyGTH200
Join Date: Sep 2003
Posts: 23 Tug Hill NY
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2007-08-10          144579

Joel,
Thanks for the info.....I will check out Landpride. I have a dealer within a few miles of me.......
I'll keep you posted ....
Thanks again.
Scott ....

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kwschumm
Join Date: Feb 2003
Posts: 5764 NW Oregon
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2007-08-10          144594

You might check out the MX-4 cutter at your JD dealer. My MX-5 has been abused beyond any reasonable use and it keeps coming back for more. You'll pay deere-ly for one but they are really well built. ....

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