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Newbie safety question

Yesterday's Tractor Forums
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William Fissell

Member
Hi,

I have a newbie safety question. '53 NAA/jubilee with heavy FEL and with 5' king kutter brush hog. 3pt hitch in good shape, blades in ok shape, waiting for a PTO shaft guard to come in to TSC so I can install it.

I want to be as safe as possible - I am the sort that always powers down the tractor b4 leaving the seat, etc. I grew up mowing with a sickle on a cub, and mowing with a cub cadet riding mower with a deck (ie I have seen stones come shooting out real fast). I need to knock down a few years growth of goldenrod and tall grass, and a brush hog is what I have.

I have walked the property twice looking for obstacles and I don't see any, but you never know. I will have someone who is experienced to tutor me on brush hogging, as I have been using the tractor for a year for its FEL but never brush hogged with it.

What's the consequences if there's a stump/rock/clod of hard earth for the brush hog to bang into? How paranoid do I need to be about making sure there's nothing solid on the land where I need to knock some stuff down?

rather ask a dumb question then have folks shaking their heads over my corpse.

Certainly willing to let the answer be "don't".

Bill
 
I'm assuming that your brush hog has a stump runner of some sort with swing away blades.

The blades will pivot on their attachment bolts and are swung out by the spinging of the brush hog. If the blades hit anything hard, they are able to swing back out of the way. When this happens, you'll know imediately by the banging. Keep one hand on the control for the 3pt hitch and raise it quick if you hit something.

Unless it happens quite often or you hit something really bad, there shouldn't be any damage to the equipment. The most that usually happens is a dulled blade. In worse cases, the blade may be bent in some way.

I wouldn't recommend trying to bend the blades back, just replace them. Also, don't try to heat the blades to fix them either. The blades are heat treated in a specific way and if you don't get it just right, they could end up being brittle and the next time you hit something, they will shatter and send metal shards all over the place.

Just take your time and get comfortable with how the mower runs and you shouldn't have any problems.

Josh in WNY
 
Bill, your bush hog, all or most bush hogs I believe, have a PTO shaft clutch or shear pin. If you hit something immovable the clutch will slip or the pin will shear and you will not damage anything mechanical (or yourself especially). Only thing that will be hurt is the edge on the cutter blade and that is just a grinding job to fix.

Jim
 
Thanks!

I was more worried about flipping a tractor if the hog got hung up on something. I can't really imagine it, but in other settings I've stayed safe by considering things I can't imagine.. The front and back of the hog are open, and the front is a little boat shaped, I assume to push it out of the way of obstacles.

The blades are free to move around, and the center pivot is a large fyring-pan shaped disc, again I assumed to let the hog bump over things.

thanks!
 
I will touch on a couple items not mentioned. #1 Top link should be a standard adjustable unit, not a chain. #2 depending on how heavy the material being cut you are not required to take a full swath at the lowest level. Multi-level or half swaths will sometimes be easyier. #3 I hate front loaders on mowing tractors. If the loader is up so you can see ahead you are in an unstable position on slopes and run the risk of catching tree limbs or overhead wires. #4 speed kills! go slow.
 
Thank you!

Yes, standard top link- I have been told to never use anything but a rigid top link lest the implement pivot on the bottom link and clap me on the back of the head, killing me.

I hear you about the loader- Might take the bucket off for mowing- that's a good idea! I am on land that is dead flat.

thanks!
 
This thought wont help you know. Sorry about that. Working something like 600 acres in many a small parcels, I run each field each spring right about Easter time. Winter mud is near dried up Spring mud is about to be stirred.
I remove wind falls, take off limbs that'd knock me off the tractor if given the chance, mark obstacles I'd need to miss or go around I like a 't'post with a colorful plastic soap bottle jammed down over the top as a marker.
only food for thought
Fernab
 

Wm, getting accustomed to operating that equipment is your BEST decision..!!
Once you get into that field and have goldenrod and saplings 4 feet over the tractor, you will feel like you are "in the great unknown" (and you ARE).!!

Walking the field and making mental notes are very important.
It is not unusual to Bush Hog a field like you have to do..!
You will be guessing about everything on your 1st few opening rounds..
Make sure your PTO slip-clutch WILL SLIP...!!
Loosen it until it actually does "Slip", then set it just tight enough that it does not slip under a good heavy load, but could if the hog hits something..
That protects your transmission from damage..
Don't try to run over anything (Trees?) that lift the Bush Hog---but that is not usually a problem..
You will be a while getting used to the sounds.!!
The steady "Snip-snip-snip" sounds from the blades and the occasional WHAM-BAM when you run over a sapling or downed limb..!!
Let NO-ONE stand near, as that Bush Hog can throw 4 foot pieces of sapling a Hundred yards..!!
Have fun..!!
It is exciting to take-on a field and "Git-R-Done"..!!
There are "Pros AND Cons" to the ORC idea..

Ron..
 
when I am rotary mowing on unfamiliar ground I will run with the FEL about 4 inches off the ground, so that it will warn me about something that could hurt the mower or maybe the tires. Has not affected the quality of mowing.
 
Agreed, for that reason, I prefer to brush hog with a tractor with a loader on the front. Also, frequently I can remove the rock/stump with the loader at the same time and push it into the woods. I too am generally more concerned about the tire than I am the brush hog. Tires cost a lot more than blades or shear bolts.
 

Sure...

Take a few extras along and a drift-pin to drive the broken part out..

Enjoy getting into the down and dirty work that is what that equipment was meant to do...!!!

Did you remove the bucket from your front-loader..??

Grease her up good and let the pieces fly...!!!!

Ron..
Ron..
 
You are gonna not like this one but absolutely take your time! Take as many passes as necessary to cut the stuff. It may take three or four or even just one. The more passes you make the safer you are. As you go down a foot you may find something you haven"t seen. I once ran into a lawn mower with the brand new Swather while cuttin a 300 acre field! Absolutely no idea where it came from cause none of us put it there!

Don"t make any assumptions about where stuff is. One more note, if there was ever a house there you may want to check Google Earth and see if a septic could be lurkin. Believe me, it really stinks to find one!

Good luck and have fun!
 
I go the PTO shaft guard today....and the chain... I'll probly install it tomorrow or weds.

Then I'll let you kow how it works. If I don;t check back in later this week, check the cleveland obits. My widder will sell the jubilee cheap.
 
Altho I really like my NAA its just too fast
for brushcutting,even in low gear.
Brush,not grass. I brushcut with my Massey 135 in about second gear in thick grass.Where the brush is too high I have to back into it and push it over with the hog because I'm trying to protect the rad. Even so sticks jump up between the tractor and create oll sorts of havoc.
 
Walk the work area and mark any obstacles, these mowers are tough, but eventually something will break, bend or loosen up if you hit things. Also take note of the terrain, look for things like woodchuck holes, or similar, and remember there is no hurry. Also make sure that mower is properly adjusted to the tractor, front usually lower than the back by 1" or so, and level side to side. Keep the tail wheel greased and those blades sharp and or replace them if they are bent, out of balance etc. Things can fly out of these mowers, when I was in H.S., I was cutting similar weeds and grass, and a grapefruit sized rock flew out the front just behind me on the 2010 JD and went over the hedgerow, I've never seen anything like it since, my Rhino SE-6 does not seem to toss much, but this one was a Bush Hog, guards were likely missing etc. Anytime you clear a new area you really need to look it over with a fine comb and see what you are dealing with, you do not want to turn over or get bounce out of the seat, a neighbor did the latter and was run over and killed by a rotary cutter on a 640 ford.

I use my loader all the time, and have quite a few acres to cut, often times the loader is a handy thing to have on, contrary to what was said below I'd leave it. I agree, sometimes having a loader on can be a pain, but if you are clearing new areas you may want to grade or flatten things, it may come in handy.
 
I know others have said "go slow", probably meaning travel speed. But don't throttle down too much or it will take more power to cut the growth. Rather, go slow--use good engine speed, and maybe take only half a swath at a time. If growth is tall, a second time over would chop up the material more thoroughly anyhow.
 
I use a brush hog extensivly to mow down heavy regrowth of aspen,willow and spruce,some as tall as 10' along my 11 ml of fences and another 15 ml of bush edge on my ranch.I use however an 80 hp tractor for it. I would never use a tractor without a cab as the pieces fly forwards and up at the driver quite often.Ofcourse just grass dont give a problem.
One dont have to worry that the tractor overturns,it just wont happen.
The thing to watch out for are big mole or wood chuck mounts and ant hills that can bend the stump pan.Smaller Rocks just make a lot of noise,wheras big rocks should be avoided at all for obvious reasons
 
I have posted this before,but safety is first and foremost. When I was 14 I was out behind the barn unhooking a blade from our 8n ford. Ihad my left foot on the left foot board and swung my right leg over the back of the seat to try to kick right power lift arm off of pin on blade.We had a 1/4 bolt much too long through the pto shaft in adapter. I had on wet levi's (had been irrigating) The bolt caught my pants leg and pulled me down over the seat so tight, it stalled the tractor engine. (the only tging that saved my life) Ifinally came to my senses and pushed the pto lever out of gear and unrolled myself. I walked in the house and my mother took one look at my leg and fainted.
 
I would add,keep the RPM's wide open and go just fast enough to make a clean cut.

These machines are fairly sturdy as i never had a problem yet other than bend the stump pan a few times and i have abused this thing to no end considdering what i use it for.
For added safety on a non cab tractor a guy should weld short pieces of logging chain in te front opening(I didn't)to prevent back feeding of stones and such.
 

Don't forget to keep an eye on the water temp..

Not unusual for trash to build up and restrict air flow and lead to over-heating..

Good Luck and have a great time..!

Ron.
 
I'm told it's only Keene, I guess time will tell. It's generally handy to have them locally for some things, but I have found the prices at Messicks are better and since Keats doesn't stock much of what I need anyway, I generally have stuff faster if I order from Messick's than if I have Keats bring it into the store for me, and it's delivered to my front door. I was "taken" when buying a used tedder there a couple of years ago, so I'm a little disenchanted by them.
 
I hire bush hogging done.Operators have been swept off the seat by limbs at the edges of fields.Bush hogging is hard on tractors.
 
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