O**E
This is a great addition to my brush cutters and other grounds keeping machines!
Your browser does not support HTML5 video. I bought the largest one that they sell and it is huge and heavy! I bought this to maintain my ponds and trim along fences and my roads. It requires you to assemble it when it arrives and that is something that you definitely need two people to do. The driveway to my property is almost a mile long. I used this to cut down saplings of up to three inches in diameter. The machine does a fabulous job at turning debris into fine materials. In my pastures, I have used it to totally disintegrate tree limbs and other fence clippings from my pole saw. As long as it is 3" or less you won't have any issues. It does have some trouble with cedar trees, but everyone knows that they are super tough. Where it really shines is cutting the grass and weeds along my ponds and under fences. It will reach out 11 feet away from my tractor. There isn't anything better to get the job done and this is mostly why I like it. I haven't pulled out a weed eater around my ponds in over a year!If I could have, I would have only given it a 4.5-star rating because of the following: The gearbox bolts became loose last year while I was trimming along my roadside while using it vertically. I almost smoked the belts before I could get it stopped. I replaced the factory bolts with grade 8's and that solved the problem. I have also bent the front guard and I will have to replace it this spring (I am really rough on this machine) with something tougher. I think I'm going to weld a piece of solid angle iron across the front of the bent bar. This should keep it protected. Why is it bent? Because I have used it to push over 2' & 3" trees and eat them up! Probably too rough, but hey, that's why I bought it! I also lost several of the protective metal shields, near the far end, because the mild steel bar that holds them has been completely bent up and into the area near the flails (see picture). I have had to beat on this bar, fight it, bend it and wrestle it back into the frame several times. Currently, I have a bent nail in the end holding it in place. It came with a clevis pin but not a strong one. My old barn nail works better! The bar runs the length of the machine and holds all of the protective dangling shields in place (see picture). They dangle out in front and keep rocks and trash from hitting you or the tractor. Remember that these machines turn backward and up throwing the debris up and into fixed teeth that the flails beat to submission. I think that chains might have been a better choice, hinged metal, or maybe chainmail. The small bar gets caught up on debris and they will bend it back enough to break off the clevis and then bend it into the area that has mulch and debris and you lose your protector shields and that is why I don't have any on the far end. The other main issue is that in order to grease it properly, you must remove the belt side cover to get to the zerk fitting for the main cutter. If they would have just drilled an oblong hole then this wouldn't be necessary. I plan on drilling one this spring and installing a large grommet to keep debris out. All of the other ones are easy to get to and you really want to keep this thing greased well. The other issue is that the rear roller scraper doesn't do a good job and I am going to modify it or try to adjust it. I have found that it doesn't scrape off the mud or grass build up and that will cause it to roll uneven and cut improperly/unlevel. The other main gripe of mine is that the hydraulic lines that run the cylinders can get caught up in the flails if you don't use it fully extended. They welded a ring on the flail to help hold the lines (see pic), but the down pressure adjuster won't go through it, so it doesn't work! I had to repair one of mine after a tree limb, or two, pulled it down and one of the cutters or something else nicked it. After the repair, I used baling wire to help hold them out of the way and ever since it has been fine. I am going to mount an old fishing rod, or a spring somehow onto it this spring and use it to keep tension on them and up and out of the way. I also had to replace a bad zerk fitting that came from the factory (no big deal) and the hole for the positioning pin, for stabilizing in transit, won't go through because they didn't drill it correctly (see picture). I could drill out the hole larger, but I never leave my farm so I'm not too worried about it. I have driven all over my 65 acres without an issue. I have driven centered and completely verticle many times without using the pin.In summary: The guys that sold this to me, NOVA tractor, are great folks, do what they say and deliver! And just like any other large brush cutter or farm equipment, you will have to perform regular maintenance, take care of it and use it wisely. For cutting up debris, Roadside maintenance, and ditch bank mowing there isn't anything better! I would definitely buy this again!!!
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