Which hedge cutter ?

grizzlyadams

Hey all , have decided to upgrade the hedger so my question is which .
Have it down to 2 , both McConnell , pa5360 or pa5455
Do my own ditches ( 110 acres ) and maybe a bit for neighbours and a few hedges , so all opinions welcome .

bogman_bass

The first thing you should ask yourself is if its worth your while owning your own hedge cutter. I rarely think it does. It's not a job that has to be done in a narrow window like spraying or mowing and it's not a cheap bit of kit.

Greengrass1

bogman_bass wrote: »

The first thing you should ask yourself is if its worth your while owning your own hedge cutter. I rarely think it does. It's not a job that has to be done in a narrow window like spraying or mowing and it's not a cheap bit of kit.

Father bought one here and I say its the most useless piece of equipment we ever bought. 7-10 days we have 150 acres done and that's it sits there for the whole yr

grizzlyadams

Greengrass1 wrote: »

Father bought one here and I say its the most useless piece of equipment we ever bought. 7-10 days we have 150 acres done and that's it sits there for the whole yr

But would you not agree that you can do them when you want and not have the contractor go " yeah I'll be on there on Tuesday " only he didn't say which Tuesday and arrives end of November and can't do them . Same nxt feb. That's my 2 cent anyway :-)

Greengrass1

grizzlyadams wrote: »

But would you not agree that you can do them when you want and not have the contractor go " yeah I'll be on there on Tuesday " only he didn't say which Tuesday and arrives end of November and can't do them . Same nxt feb. That's my 2 cent anyway :-)

Very true. We can do them when the ground is good and solid in September.

bogman_bass

is it that hard to get a contractor?

Greengrass1

bogman_bass wrote: »

is it that hard to get a contractor?

We couldn't get one any way. That's why we had to buy

simx

Greengrass1 wrote: »

We couldn't get one any way. That's why we had to buy

what reach is on it? what diesel consumption per hour? always liked the thought of getting one at some stage

Greengrass1

simx wrote: »

what reach is on it? what diesel consumption per hour? always liked the thought of getting one at some stage

20ft ferri from Joe o toole in tullow. Not the easiest yoke to use.
Haven't a clue in that. I've never used it

Mad4simmental

Getting a very very good deal on a pa24 McConnell hedge cutter. Very fresh with very little work done. Anyone have one? Or have any experience using one?

Putting it on a 784 international so hopeing she will be small annof for her. Tanx

Nekarsulm

Mad4simmental wrote: »

Getting a very very good deal on a pa24 McConnell hedge cutter. Very fresh with very little work done. Anyone have one? Or have any experience using one?

Putting it on a 784 international so hopeing she will be small annof for her. Tanx

Should be grand if it has little work done. Condition of the head is all important, you also need to see it running to make sure it is in balance. Otherwise it will shake itself to bits. T fails i presume? 784 Will be fine on flat dry ground, not so good on slopes, where 4 wheel drive is better, even slight slopes can catch you out with a 2wd. all that weight hanging out the side means you only have 1 wheel drive and easy to slide into the drain other just sit and spin. As you only run the engine about 1400 rev, you should be able to cut for a day on less than ten gallons of diesel.
Important you know when to leave it to a lad with a saw head! hacking and battering at ash as thick as your arm and stalling the motor, very hard on them.

Mad4simmental

Nekarsulm wrote: »

Should be grand if it has little work done. Condition of the head is all important, you also need to see it running to make sure it is in balance. Otherwise it will shake itself to bits. T fails i presume? 784 Will be fine on flat dry ground, not so good on slopes, where 4 wheel drive is better, even slight slopes can catch you out with a 2wd. all that weight hanging out the side means you only have 1 wheel drive and easy to slide into the drain other just sit and spin. As you only run the engine about 1400 rev, you should be able to cut for a day on less than ten gallons of diesel.
Important you know when to leave it to a lad with a saw head! hacking and battering at ash as thick as your arm and stalling the motor, very hard on them.

Thanks, ya she has T flails on her. To be honist I didn't know you only do around 1400 rpm, that's very good as you said on the diesel side of things.

lefthooker

What are current contractor charges for hedge trimming?
The bomford we've had for the last 24 years was broke down on a near weekly basis this summer. Tossing up whether to pay someone to do the ditches this winter or look for a straight used machine.