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gang mowers

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JayRais
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gang mowers

Postby JayRais » Sun Apr 02, 2006 1:25 pm

Has anyone had any experiences, either good or bad, using gang style
mowers with their Cubs?

Jay Rais
Garcen Valley, Idaho
'48 Cub
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have lots of friends.

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Bob McCarty
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Postby Bob McCarty » Sun Apr 02, 2006 2:18 pm

Jay, My dad had a Cub with a 3 gang reel mower on it. It mowed the lawn great, but sometimes jammed if you caught a stick or anything in one of the sections. I don't know how hard it is to sharpen them in comparison to flat blades. Wish I knew where his Cub went after he traded it in to upgrade.

Bob

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Lurker Carl
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Postby Lurker Carl » Sun Apr 02, 2006 2:48 pm

Reel mowers sure do clip the lawn nice. But if you don't catch any rocks/debris or let them get rusty, they don't need sharpening all that often. A special rig is needed to sharpen the reels to keep the angle true and even. It's kinda pricey and not too many mower shops have the equipment these days to do it.
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JayRais
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Joined: Sat Jan 28, 2006 12:35 pm
Location: GARDEN VALLEY, IDAHO

gang mover

Postby JayRais » Sun Apr 02, 2006 3:00 pm

Thanks for the replies.
I was just sorta curious about them.
I may get a mower someday and thought
I should check them out. It wouldn't be for a lawn, rather
a field, so a rotary would probably be a better choice.
A fool and his money

have lots of friends.

zack
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Postby zack » Sun Apr 02, 2006 3:49 pm

I worked at a golf course for three years and they had two sets of gangs with seven reels to each gang. They worked very good on some types of grasses and not so good on others. We pull them with two Massey Fergason 35 Turf specials.

400lbsonacubseatspring
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Postby 400lbsonacubseatspring » Sun Apr 02, 2006 7:50 pm

The problem with reel-type mowers is keeping the bars adjusted just right so they don't hit the blades, but are still close enough to cut grass. We used to use a piece of newspaper as a test. If metal didn't touch, but the newspaper cut by scissor-action, you knew you had it just right. Over time, certain areas of the blades get more worn than others, and need to be "re-trued" as well as the bar -- in fact, sometimes it is easier to fit the bar to the blades than put them all back in "true". This can be done by hand, usually, but takes a lot of time and patience. 6 blade reels are a definite improvement over 4 or 5 blade reels.

Essentially, unless they really get mangled or rounded, the blades need little attention, and are essentially self-sharpening.

A stick or pine cone will stop them dead, though, unless you're really flying with them (7 mph or better) usually you use them at 4-6 mph, and anything that is dry and thick will stop the reel. If it's a really well-manicured lawn, like a golf-course or a cemetary, with little debris, they do a great job. Nothing beats them for speed on these types of lawns, and they have the advantage of sealing the grass tips in a manner that the ends to not turn brown, or bleed sap, requiring extra watering, as rotary mowers do.

If the turf is full of woody weeds, or sticks, clumps, or other nastiness, you're better off with a rotary.

I used a 5 reel gang on a cemetary for several years, while high-school gorillas used power push mowers to "trim" in areas I couldn't fit. The difference in the look of the grass during dry spells was significant. ( I kept a 6 ft stick on lying next to me, draped up on the hood, incase one of the reels did jam)

If you can follow them with a lawn sweeper, the quality is amazing.

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Buzzard Wing
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Postby Buzzard Wing » Sun Apr 02, 2006 10:44 pm

The guys before me covered it well... Here is a photo of a local guy's set up:
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y40/Bu ... 6Small.jpg
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y40/Bu ... 1Small.jpg
1971 Cub (Rufus) 1950 Cub (Cathy) 1965 Lo Boy Fast Hitch (Nameless III) 1970 Cub 1000 Loader & Fast Hitch (Lee)

400lbsonacubseatspring
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Postby 400lbsonacubseatspring » Mon Apr 03, 2006 10:50 pm

Larry,

Wow, those are nice big, heavy reels, with nice small diameter blade reels inside them. Those were obviously designed to minimize getting "stuck" to as great a degree as possible.

I think that rig would perform better than most

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Buzzard Wing
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Postby Buzzard Wing » Mon Apr 03, 2006 11:09 pm

Yep Tom, it is a nice setup. It was originally used for mowing at a mansion here in the big city. I believe it was 'rigged' by the brother of the guy that runs the local Cub Cadet dealership. Their family owned the IH dealer way back. It all lifts off the TC and surely is a fine piece of craftsmanship. The reels are 'off the shelf' ground driven, but the iron to make it fit a Cub is pretty custom.

I do like the cut of a reel mower, like you said nothing better. My pals that had a turf farm used a pretty big Jachobson (sp). They also had the machine for sharpening and lapping the reels.

Those Locke mowers are pretty common around here too, seems some of the wealthy folks know a good cut when they see it, guess I won't find a lot of work for my Cub with AG tires??
1971 Cub (Rufus) 1950 Cub (Cathy) 1965 Lo Boy Fast Hitch (Nameless III) 1970 Cub 1000 Loader & Fast Hitch (Lee)

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beaconlight
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Postby beaconlight » Mon Apr 03, 2006 11:21 pm

I saw some on Epay earlier today.
Think it was Mcgrew had them
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