bx2370d 2016 model with 380 hours on it. rck60B23BX. used it three days last week to mow northern Idaho 3-4 acres of meadow/pasture. mix of knee high field grasses and low brush with tall thick reed canary grass and several species of sedge. guessing 1-2-3 tons per acre of standing crop. did not bale so just a guess.
compared to last two years when I used a 40 HP New Holland with 72 inch land pride PTO tail dragger. with some standing RCG stands over my head: 72 inches tall or more. it was a chug, taking half swath at a time, half to recut stubble and half new uncut.. cutting more was bogging the big blue tractor, but could make almost 2 mph most of the time..
First: no rain this year since June, and after two years of mowing with bigger tractor, the standing crop was considerably lower.
the little BX2370 did surprisingly well. could only do each cut about 2/3 of width, with effective new cut width of 40 inches, and a 1/3 overlap of prior cut. guessing that the AVERAGE speed with the smaller 23 HP BX was more like 1 mph average. slow and steady wins the race.
most notable side note: I was cutting at max height 4 inch with the BX, whereas the big land pride 72 inch was more like 6 inches from ground to stubble top. a LOT of low brush and branches to 2 inches in the fist several cuts to reclaim old-field.
One smaller field of solid RCG, over 5 feet tall, was so thick I did not attempt with the BX. It would have cut it but truly less than 1 mph, with at least half effective width, and a dull blade... did not wish to push my luck with new to me mower. its a wet field with exceptional density..
as to comfort: the larger wheel base Ford New Holland tractor was more like riding a horse above the grass, whereas the smaller BX was like riding a bucking rough riding mower.... and the shorter wheelbase over rough ground kept speeds down for comfort. the traditional 5 foot tractor wheels roll over uneven ground to no ones surprise.
bottom line: same fuel used for both at 10 gallons per day.
the Ford New Holland is a neighbors borrowed setup, and the BX is mine, otherwise I would use the New Holland.
next year, I will use the BX in June and then a follow up cut later... cutting twice to eliminate the reed canary grass rather than one cut July 4.
