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Posted by: JohnO
I bought the 44" swisher a couple of months ago. It's handy to a degree, but is definitely no substitute for a lawnmower.
Good: it's very difficult to ground out - will roll over sharp rises in the ground and maintain perfect cut height. Wheel axles are right in line with the blade axles, so if the wheels clear it, the blades will. Doesn't bog down in heavy grass. Can offset to one side and cut under bushes without driving through the bush.
Not so good: It won't turn any better than a quad, which is to say not very well. The quad tends to mash the grass down so that it doesn't all get cut. A bit of a pain to raise and lower the deck. While you can tow it behind a quad, it has no better ground clearance than a regular lawnmower, so towing it through the rough stuff is difficult. And it's very noisy. Really, if they just had a quick way to raise the deck way up for transport, I'd be happy.
In general, a quad is not a good substitute for a tractor. It isn't designed to be run at slow constant speeds - no deadman's throttle. No power takeoff, and just isn't built to carry that sort of equipment on a regular basis.
On the other hand, I have been looking at the dump bucket Swisher sells. That could be handy.
Posted by: JohnO
Actually, I was rather impressed with how well the Swisher distributed cut grass, a lot better than the commercial rear discharge mower I once had. If the grass isn't too tall, it gets scattered about as well as you could hope for, and you won't need to rake afterward.
I've used it to cut my front yard when my regular mower (60" Dixon) was out of action, and it did a pretty neat job. Took forever to finish, as it takes so long to turn around and I didn't want to tear up the yard with fast turns on the quad.
I use the Swisher to keep my ATV/MTB trails clear on my farm, plus mowing a hilly little spot with lots of trees. The fact that I can raise it up and haul it back to that spot is great.
But, if all you're doing is mowing the front yard, you can get a 42" riding mower for around the same price, and it'll do the job better and faster. As a yard mower, these trailer mowers are a better excuse to buy a quad than they are a viable alternative to a riding mower. I suspect that more than one of these have been bought to convince a skeptical wife that the quad wasn't a complete waste of money...
Posted by: Lightman
I'm really interested in those pull behind atv lawn mowers, such as the models from acre-ease, or swisher. They hook up to the trailer hitch and usually have around a 60" cutting area. Seems like it would be fun to pull around the yard on the prairie =]
Posted by: Lightman
which model did you try? I'm very curious about the experience, because nobody seems to have tried those pull behind mowers. Do they deliver a nice cut? I've heard 8-12mph you can pull with the higher hp models....?
Posted by: Lightman
Would you guys have been happier with the 60" model? It's not much more money, and has around a 13hp engine.... I just figure if my walk behind mower is a 22" cut, a 44" swisher really would only cut the time in half, if I could be as efficient(doubtful).... Anyway, the 60" seems like it would really make things a lot quicker. My yard has a lot of straight back and forth cuts without too many trees/obstacles. How do you guys find the quality of the cut? Does it look nice, like you used a mower?
Posted by: Lightman
How well do your rear discharge 44" finish mowers cut up the clippings? Are there large piles of crap laying on top of the grass surface or is it pretty well 'mulched'?
Does anyone wish they got the 60" instead? I notice it's a side discharge, don' t those leave big piles of grass? That would be fine for a field but not my front yard...
Posted by: Lightman
I already have a quad and want another excuse to ride it =] If it will do as well as a riding mower why not? Are the hitch assemblies so long that it makes turning around hard?
Posted by: 550muler
I use a 44" Swisher with the 12.5 hp Briggs with electric start and remote blade engagement. I pull it behind my 550 Mule (see my profile for pics if interested). I bought the Swisher to replace my small rider, I mow about an acre of yard, and I think the results are as good as my John Deere rider. Mine will bog some if you try to mow too fast in thick grass 8" and taller, but I can mow at about 8-10mph during regular mowings if it's not too tall. There is one gripe I've got about rear discharge decks, while they don't clog or throw stones at anyone they also don't scatter the clippings very well, so make sure if your mowing your lawn with one not to let the grass get too tall, or you'll be mowing very slowly so the blades can 'mulch' the clippings a little more effectively.
mark
Posted by: swingset
I just bought a 44" Swisher Pull behind for my Rubicon. It has a 10.5hp Briggs/Stratton. Cost $799 at TSC (on sale right now).
Here's my thoughts:
First, mine is the cheapest one there is pretty much, so it's a "Get off the bike to start/stop" kinda thing, but I don't mind that.
It will cut at 6mph, but not much more than that...or the cut is really uneven.
It's offsetable, so you can have it cut to the side somewhat so you are mowing a path, you don't have to drive through what you're cutting. If you're doing paths, this is great.
Although mine is a "finish" mower, it will cut pretty tall grass in 2 passes if you raise the deck first time through.
On a typical yard, it's pretty much useless unless you have zero obstacles. Trees and tight turns render it utterly useless. Get a cheap lawn cart or pull something behind your ATV and practice in your yard before you buy one, and you'll see what I mean. I bought mine solely for maintaining a trail, and in that capacity it's superb, but I wouldn't consider it for a yard with trees or tight turns. For $800 used, you can buy a lawn mower that will do a much better job on a small yard.
I also would suggest one that does NOT side-discharge. I have a friend with one, and any tall grass clogs the discharge port, and if he's doing paths like I do, he has to always "edge" with the opposite side to prevent clogging. Mine is a rear-discharge, and there's no problem using it anywhere so far.
Posted by: Twaaang
Does anyone have actual experience with the various tractor attachments like a backhoe, dump bucket, etc? I know that we can plow snow and push dirt around. But a forklift???? I'd buy them in the long run but maybe an actual tractor or forklift would be better. Don't need anything for commercial use, just around the home in the mountains. Digging small footings, removing stumps, building fences, etc. Also what size of ATV is most practical for these applications.
Don
Posted by: ElectricShift
I plow with my grizzly.
Posted by: ElectricShift
well, those are good for cutting....but when i used one it wasnt as fun as a thought it would be, i was thinking ''cut grass at 30mph'' but you have to stay under about 5mph or the mower begins to bounce, shake, and rattle.
Posted by: ElectricShift
I pulled a snapper off-set that i rented from sun-belt
Posted by: ElectricShift
Well, actually.....when you pull the mower off to the side, that is for if you are pulling it behind a riding lawn mower, that way you can pull off to the side and cut a huge path, The mower that i used was more industrial, it was pretty much a brush mower and i used it to cut the edges of my property where sapplings had grown up.
