How tough is the DR Brush Mower? If you are thinking about buying a heavy duty DR Brush Mower with the brush deck attachment, or if you are a new owner and you are wondering how tough the machine really is, then this post is for you. I have been a user of the DR Brush Mower for over ten years (upgraded once to the newer/bigger 18HP model) and I have many hours of experience. With this post I aim to give you a practical sense about the reality of the DR Brush Mower’s abilities out in the field of real life.
If you have read the literature for the high-end DR Brush Mower with the heavy duty brush blade then you know it is rated for cutting through three inch saplings. But if you are a new (or soon to be) owner of said machine you might be looking out your window at a very over-grown field and wondering, a bit nervously, if that statement about cutting through three inch saplings is something the DR Brush Mower can do regularly, or if that is something more like a once in a lifetime feat that got listed in the specs just because it sounded cool. Let me assure you, cutting three inch saplings is not some remote outer limit in the DR Brush Mower’s ability. The heavy duty brush blade really can cut through a three inch piece of wood again and again.
Let me put this another way. If you go out and start mowing your terribly overgrown field for the first time you will suddenly realize that you can’t tell precisely how thick a sapling is by simply staring at it. What is the difference between a two and a half inch sapling and a three and a half inch sapling? In the midst of all that overgrown weeds you can’t tell, and if you’re feeling nervous then suddenly everything looks five inches thick, and sure to ruin your brand new machine. Intimidated, and fearful of breaking your new machine, you suddenly have the idea of getting down on your hands and knees with a ruler and measuring every dubious sapling to make sure they don’t cross that red line limit of three inches.
No, you don’t have to do that. Seriously, relax. You don’t have to baby the DR Brush Mower like that. The three inch thick sapling rule is nice for the precision of a machine manual, but in practical everyday life if your DR Mower can climb the brush or sapling in question, the machine can cut it. End of story.
When you are out mowing let your DR Brush Mower be your guide. If a sapling is too thick for the DR Brush Mower to start pushing over and cutting, then that sapling is too thick. But if your DR Brush Mower can start climbing and pushing over the sapling then the mower can cut that sapling. It is a very simple litmus, and saves a lot of worrying about whether something is “too thick” or not. There is great variety in how difficult it is to cut through saplings; a hardwood like oak or locust is a lot harder to cut than a softwood like poplar. The nature of what you are trying to cut is almost as important as the actual thickness. You will find that, in general, the limit for the DR Brush Mower is about a three inch sapling, but you will discover there is a bit of flex in that limit*.
*DR Power strongly recommends that users read and follow all safety guidelines outlined in the machine’s owner’s manual and does not guarantee that the mower will mow materials over 3″ thick.
