# What ground speed to you all cut in Bermuda grass.



## Marshall

We have a variety of Bermuda grass here in GA and of course, Bahaya. What are your ground speeds when you guys cut your similar grass?

I am cutting for my father with his equipment and he wants me to cut on the JD 4030 in B1, or B2 at around 1800 to 1900 RPM. Kuhn 9' cutter and at this rate, cuts a little over 3 acres an hour.

Is this about how fast you guys go, or is this considerably slower than most. My father has his ideas and I try to go along with what he wants. I moved back to the farm to try and help him as much as he wants me to so I try to keep it how he wants it. It seems slow to me though. My older brother, who does not help, but lives 20 miles down the road keeps telling me to just go faster with it and cut the way I want to.

I dont subscribe to my brothers way of thinking, Pop turns 73 tomorrow and I dont want to worry or aggravate him. That would defeat my purpose for trying to help him as much as I can.

Thanks for the replies in advance.

Marshall


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## okhillbilly

I usually mow at 3 to 4 acres per hour. Depends on how smooth the ground is and if the the tractor is not bogging down in the grass. I mow in low 4 or high 5 most of the time around 1800 to 2000 rpm with a New Holland tractor and 9 foot disc mower, sometimes 6 th gear if its real smooth and the grass is cutting cleanly.


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## Heyhay..eh

I mow with a 4020 & 12 foot hesston /w knife. My general practice is to use the gear that will allow me to cut effectively @ 2000 rpm. That can put me anywhere from 2nd to 5th gear depending on the crop and the field.

I know what you mean though about helping out. Sometimes I mow with an older fellow and he tends to go at a slower pace. He sees the deer, foxes, grouse ... I usually miss a lot of that stuff! ... unless I am on the same field as him ... following him around.


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## gold642

I mowed hay Sunday with a John Deere 4430 in 3rd shuttling from 1 to 2 . I have a John Deere 935 MOCO discbine 11 ft cut with impellor. I mowed about 7 acres an hour in 3 cutting of alfalfa . We have had nice rain and heat over the past 3 weeks and it is making around 60 bales to the acre. I used a New Holland 426 which makes a 18 x 16 x 36 bale. This mower has only ever plugged up one time and that is when I was mower at night late last spring and sucked in a deer. It must have been dead before it went in but it sure made a hell of a mess.


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## Marshall

I cut 20 acres today and it took 5 hrs and 20 minutes. At that pace, that comes out to 3.75 acres an hour. I cut some in the B1 and B2 range, and I also stepped it up to C1 and C2 when the grass was thinner and the ground was smooth.

My father came out there when I was about done and the first thing he asked when he brought me a drink was, "How fast are you going?" At that time, I was in B1 because it was so bumpy on that part of the field. He was content when he heard B1. LOL LOL LOL.

Marshall


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## rank

~9 mph and that works out to about 14 acres/hr with a 15' head. This is alfalfa/timothy/brome/orchard though....not bermuda.


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## nwfarmer

9 mph. Wow. I like to keep it just under 3 mph although I could cut faster. Grass, alfalfa and a mixture of both.


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## nwfarmer

9 mph. Wow. I like to keep it under 3 mph cutting grass, alfalfa and a mixture of both with a 16 ft head.


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## mlappin

rank said:


> ~9 mph and that works out to about 14 acres/hr with a 15' head. This is alfalfa/timothy/brome/orchard though....not bermuda.


About the same here. Cut 25 acres yesterday at the same farm but in two different fields in about two and a half hours. NH 1431 Discbine pulling it with a White 2-110. About 1800-1900 on the tach and running in fifth over, shift into under to turn around. Just bought that tractor but seems to have a_ very_ strong engine in it, previous owner claims it dyno'ed at 117hp a few years ago.


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## RCF

In smooth fields we can run upwards of 10mph that is cutting about 25 acres/hour. In rough fields we slow down to about 6mph and if its a tough stand of bahia we end up slowing down more than that sometimes. We are cutting everything form Coastal, Tifton 85, Bahia, Sorghum, triticale, wheat, and other grasses.


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## OhioHay

We cut around 9 mph with a 13ft head in small fields. Normally works out to about 10 to 11 acres per hour.


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## OkhayBallr

At 13mph 15ft head 18acres per hour:eek:
4995 dosent bog down no matter how thick bermuda is...


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## darren

I once mowed at 18 mph. just to see if I could do it. Was 2nd. cutting and looked like crap when I was done.With youre set-up , 5-8mph. would be a good speed.Sometimes going fast can slow you down (breakdowns and streaks).Just my 2 cents worth.


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## geiselbreth

i cut with 10 .5 krone on mower caddy these new disk mowers will cut hay faster than u can stay on the tractor in good smoth feild about 6 mph is plenty fast also usibg a new 3200 cv krone in bermuda grass run about 4 mph with it also latte season bahia grrass is hard to cut at these speeds


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## man of steel

I run a 7200 JD at 9mph in c4. First cutting with grass in it I sometimes have to drop to c3.


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## cmsc

We mow between 8 to 14 mph with a new holland h8090 and a 720hd head 13.5 footer average 12 to 23 acres an hour run 1600 to 2000 rpm with header rpm from 1800 to 3000 depending on the crop . really makes up the time when you can turn on the ends in less then 5 secs and be going the other way.


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## Customfarming

i cut from 12-16 mph only slow down if rough or the tractor is pulling down this is with tine conditioners all the way in. I leave the fields clean. i try to cut an average of 30 acres an hour. everybody sees our fields and our reputation is on the line if we mess up so we make sure when we cut fields they are cleanly cut.


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## johndeerefarmer

around 6 mph in coastal bermuda (6220 John Deere and 9' JD 275 disc mower). If it's a light cutting I will speed up to about 7.5

Keep the knives sharp and you can go about as fast as you want to- if your land is smooth or if you have a nice air suspension seat. Just watch that it doesn't bunch up as you go around the corners. If you don't catch it you will be out with a pitch fork spreading the cut hay out by hand.


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## Hayking

we cut bermuda grass about 8 mph with a 15.5 cut width alfalfa 10 mph


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## Jakebid

It all depends on how smooth the ground is for me. I can cut up to C3 in a power quad transmission about 6 acres per hour or I cut back to C1 if it is kind of rough. We have pretty good fields and with an 8 foot cutter I usually get 5 to 6 acres per hour.


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## barnrope

This sounds just like home. Dad is 75 and prescribes to the slow and steady method. When working around him it is best to keep things in B1 or B2. Every once in a while though I'll bump the 4440 pulling my 1431 NH up to C4 at PTO speed when he is close just to see what he thinks. At 11 MPH he just shakes his head!


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## Hayking

I have a H 8080 New holland With a 15.5 disc head and a can cut THICK bermuda grass at 7.5-8.5 mph if its thinner i can run faster.


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## rank

barnrope said:


> Dad is 75 and prescribes to the slow and steady method..... At 11 MPH he just shakes his head!


He has probably seen alot of money in repairs go out the door as a result of speed. I know I have and I'm only 43.


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## Barry Bowen

Discbines are great for speed and a good cut. The only limit is the smoothness of the field and the intestinal fortitude of the driver. I cut with a nice old 1066, pulliing a 5209. Normally I cut 6th gear around 7-8 mph, but in rough fields usually 5th gear around 5-6 mph. I try not to tear my stuff up running too fast, but just for kicks and giggles one day on a smooth field that was really thick, I stuck her in 7th. That old girl just sucked it up and was not even blowing any black in the exhaust.


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## STRAWBOSS

We cut around 8-10 acres/hr with the 4013cv Krone with a 9700 ford pulling. It has no problem cutting anything, due to the 1000RPM shaft. maybe I can get a video loaded.?


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## reagan

i used to own a 4040 john deere and used to pull a 9 foot moco. our farm bales bermuda/tifton/bahaya/hermathia. usually ran B3-C1 with bermuda.


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## haybaler101

Barry Bowen said:


> I cut with a nice old 1066, pulliing a 5209. Normally I cut 6th gear around 7-8 mph, but in rough fields usually 5th gear around 5-6 mph. I try not to tear my stuff up running too fast, but just for kicks and giggles one day on a smooth field that was really thick, I stuck her in 7th. That old girl just sucked it up and was not even blowing any black in the exhaust.


I pull a 13 ft. NH7450 on a IH 966. Normally run in 12 gear in most normal conditions, but give me a long smooth alfalfa field and I will show you 14th gear. Just a note, 966 has had a turbo added so it is technically a 1066.


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## jdhayboy

We have a JD windrower 4995 and drive that thing as fast as it goes in road gear around 12mph as long as the field is smooth enough


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## LeadFarmer

Amazing how different the types of grass are. . . We have a lot of princess grass, and NO way are you getting above 4 MPH in that stuff. We have someone custom cut it with a MacDon equipped with a 15 or 16 ft draper header.
Im cutting alfalfa hay as I type this, in a New Holland HW345, with 16' sickle header. Hay is probably 1.5 tons/acre, my speed is 5.5. I haven't bogged or clogged all day.


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## LeadFarmer

jdhayboy said:


> We have a JD windrower 4995 and drive that thing as fast as it goes in road gear around 12mph as long as the field is smooth enough


That's a good way to burn up the tranny. Road gear is made for. . . You guessed it: the road! Seen it happen to several guys trying to haul ass in their discbines.


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## haybaler101

LeadFarmer said:


> That's a good way to burn up the tranny. Road gear is made for. . . You guessed it: the road! Seen it happen to several guys trying to haul ass in their discbines.


Well--if it won't take it, I don't want one! I run 8 to 12 mph with a tractor pulled discbine, I sure wouldn't expect any less from a self-propelled


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## NDVA HAYMAN

Monday, I was cutting with my discbine and JD6430. I was running along at 6 mph. Then I made the mistake of thinking of you guys and how you cut at 10 mph. So, I decided to run mine up to 10 mphand guess what? I suddenly hit a groundhog hole in the thick timothy and after I dig my arse out of the headliner, I decided 6 mph was fast enough for me.


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## haybaler101

NDVA HAYMAN said:


> Monday, I was cutting with my discbine and JD6430. I was running along at 6 mph. Then I made the mistake of thinking of you guys and how you cut at 10 mph. So, I decided to run mine up to 10 mphand guess what? I suddenly hit a groundhog hole in the thick timothy and after I dig my arse out of the headliner, I decided 6 mph was fast enough for me.


 It happens. Only run that fast when I know the fields and prefer the front wheel assist with big tires for the 12mph stuff. 2 years ago, did something on the front axle 3 times on the 966 IH.


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## Chessiedog

most of your guys fields must be a lot better than our paved roads around here.


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## swmnhay

7 mph here.Yes it will cut at 12 mph but things tend to break then also.


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## haybaler101

Chessiedog said:


> most of your guys fields must be a lot better than our paved roads around here.


Yep, we have a lot of places where we can drive faster in the field than on the county roads!


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## jdhayboy

If road gear was only made for the road then why do the flashers go off when the cutterbar is turned on? JD4995 I figure if the machine was made to where they turn off, then she must be made to cut in that mode.


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## Chessiedog

LOL haybaler I have to admit our roads aren't much . Normally 6 to 7.5 mph is fast enough for me in the field . It's just like a guy told me that i took a tractor to ,to turn up the HP's on " we always just want little bit more . LOL


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## LeadFarmer

jdhayboy said:


> If road gear was only made for the road then why do the flashers go off when the cutterbar is turned on? JD4995 I figure if the machine was made to where they turn off, then she must be made to cut in that mode.


 You may be right man. I don't have a lot of experience with John Deere self-propelled units, everyone here prefers New Holland, MacDon or the odd Challenger/Hesston/AGCO. No one likes the way the JD's cut.

So using your same rationale: I don't even know why they would put two different gears in the tranny. What we are calling "road" gear should be sufficient on its own then, correct?

It doesn't add up if you ask me. You obviously aren't supposed to cut in "road" gear, thats why there are two different gears.


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## LeadFarmer

haybaler101 said:


> Well--if it won't take it, I don't want one! I run 8 to 12 mph with a tractor pulled discbine, I sure wouldn't expect any less from a self-propelled


Oh you can run 8 - 12 mph in a self-propelled discbine , no problem, you can even do it without switching to "road" gear.


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## charlesmontgomery

I pull a 9'2" Kuhn disc mower behind my Massey. Usually drive about 6 mph at rated pto speed. i cut 10 acres in 2.5 hours . Cut a 16 1/2 acre field in a little over 4 hours. Averages out to 4 acres per hour.

If you are cutting it low with knives angle down it cuts better than if you level the knives off to make it taller. On thin hay will kick it up to 7 mph.


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## somedevildawg

Tifton Ga cutting at 5mph at 1.8tpa, Alicia Hybrid Bermuda Needing H2O in south ga


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## ronald dansby

You younger guys go ahead an run your equipment 8 to 14 mph when cutting,us older guys will keep cutting steady around 4 to 5 mph an at the end of the season we will be done same as you but our breakdown cost will be lower,our equipment will last longer,thus leaving us more money to purchase what equipment you haven't tore up at your close out sale.


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## haybaler101

ronald dansby said:


> You younger guys go ahead an run your equipment 8 to 14 mph when cutting,us older guys will keep cutting steady around 4 to 5 mph an at the end of the season we will be done same as you but our breakdown cost will be lower,our equipment will last longer,thus leaving us more money to purchase what equipment you haven't tore up at your close out sale.


I don't think so! I run about 1500 acres a year total thru my 13 ft NH discbine. The breakdowns i do have are not caused by speed, but usually by rocks or normal wear. I was mowing this evening at 9.5 mph and tractor and machine where floating nicely across the field, if it gets rough I slow down. The key is, smooth hay fields to start with and I know where the obstacles are at. If I reduce my speed by half on my mower, I will rack up over 150 more hours per year on this machine and tractor. Tractors rent for $60/hour here, diesel cost $30/hour, driver at $15/ hour, and mower another $20/hour for a total of $125/hour. Thats $18,750 per year more it will cost me, I can make a lot of repairs for that or just trade machines every 2 years instead of 4. So you guys might want to recheck your math and kick that machine in the arse if it is capable of going faster.


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## mlappin

haybaler101 said:


> Thats $18,750 per year more it will cost me, I can make a lot of repairs for that or just trade machines every 2 years instead of 4. So you guys might want to recheck your math and kick that machine in the arse if it is capable of going faster.


Besides, if it takes twice as long as it _could_ take, that's even less time for a person to get other stuff done. Equipment might be expensive, but lost time is irreplaceable.

I mowed 70 acres today in 5 different fields. Due to a battery failure and the time it took to get a new battery and change the cables over to stud post I started a full three hours later than I intended to. If I was driving half as fast I'd still be out there mowing and it's going on midnight here. All smooth fields and were mowed at 8 MPH, I had my cup of lemonade from lunch on the shifter console in the tractor and it never tipped.

The last field of hay I planted the wife drove the tracked skid steer while I and four of the neighbor kids walked in front and picked every rock in the field, took 11 hours to do 18 acres over two days. Filled a 18 foot straight truck with 14" contractor sides 3 times when we were done. I don't hit rocks while mowing.

When I traded my round baler in last year, I almost got as much in trade as I paid for it 5 years before, in lighter hay I've run in road gear with it.


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## hay wilson in TX

Bermudagrass is tougher to cut than alfalfa, HERE.

With the horsepower I have available and a 9 ft diskbine and fresh sharp blades 7.5 mph in bermudagrass but 11 mph in alfalfa. Go up another gear the engine rpm's fall off. With more horsepower I could run faster in the alfalfa, but in bermudagrass the blades would soon become dull enough to limit the speed of travel.

There may be other hay crops that are as tough to mow as bermudagrass. With new sharp blades the blades bend back and the cut is less. Using a drum mower there is a obvious higher stubble caused by the blade going back with the effort of cutting bermudagrass at higher ground speeds. I expect there is also the same effect with a disk mower, just not as obvious.


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## haybaler101

hay wilson in TX said:


> Bermudagrass is tougher to cut than alfalfa, HERE.
> 
> With the horsepower I have available and a 9 ft diskbine and fresh sharp blades 7.5 mph in bermudagrass but 11 mph in alfalfa.


And how "young" are you again Mr. Wilson?


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## mlappin

hay wilson in TX said:


> There may be other hay crops that are as tough to mow as bermudagrass.


I've heard reed canary can be really tough to do anything with if left to get mature.


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## Toyes Hill Angus

As far as feed quaility goes:
Reed Canary canary can become such a problem if you can't get to the hay in time that I think you are better off to burn it lol. It seems that you can watch it grow and develop at a normal rate, but once it rains two inches it grows to 6' tall before the field dries up enough so that you can get onto the feild without cutting ruts.
As far as cutting mature goes:
as long as it is still standing up straight my old 488 NH would still cut it once 4' tall, but you want to be going SLOW. If it is down and lodged...BURN it


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## LeadFarmer

hay wilson in TX said:


> Bermudagrass is tougher to cut than alfalfa, HERE.
> 
> With the horsepower I have available and a 9 ft diskbine and fresh sharp blades 7.5 mph in bermudagrass but 11 mph in alfalfa. Go up another gear the engine rpm's fall off. With more horsepower I could run faster in the alfalfa, but in bermudagrass the blades would soon become dull enough to limit the speed of travel.
> 
> There may be other hay crops that are as tough to mow as bermudagrass. With new sharp blades the blades bend back and the cut is less. Using a drum mower there is a obvious higher stubble caused by the blade going back with the effort of cutting bermudagrass at higher ground speeds. I expect there is also the same effect with a disk mower, just not as obvious.


The bermuda grass here is WAY more tough to cut than alfalfa. Ours is all custom grown for seed, and it is like the thickest, nastiest rug you have ever seen.


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