Cash back offers on Farmtrac compact tractors, ending on January 31st.
Cashback offers are generously funded by the Farmtrac importers, Reesink Agriculture, this is a great opportunity to save some real money on your new tractor. Order confirmations are required by the 31/1/23 and is subject to tractor availability.
It’s great to see the Dipperfox SC400 stump grinder on a mini digger. The footage is from RJ Hall engineering Ltd in Scotland, which are the UK distributor for the Dipperfox range of stump crushers. The photograph and the video were taken using a drone in Aberdeenshire on a snowy morning! The Dipperfox SC 400 stump grinder is, at present, the smallest model in the range. There are two larger models available if you are looking for a larger stump grinder.
The great thing about the Dipperfox SC400 is the fact that it can be used on much smaller machines, like the mini digger in the photograph. The Dipperfox 400 can also be used on all types of loaders and even stand on tracked loaders like the Toro Dingo, which have the advantage of being able to enter into small places. This could be especially useful in domestic gardens where space is sometimes limited. Skid steer loaders are another power unit that will power the Dipperfox 400; the skid steer requires a minimum size of one tonne and up to 2.5 tons.
If you are looking for a larger tree stump grinder or crusher, then the Dipperfox 400 model. There are two larger models available; these larger models are great for clearance jobs, although obviously, they do require extra power. You can find out more about the Dipperfox 600 here and the Dipperfox 850 here. The Dipperfox 850 stump crusher was the first and original model to be released. However, Dipperfox could see that smaller models would have huge potential for getting into those tight spaces. The Dipperfox 400 has the advantage of being able to be used on small machines that can access domestic gardens.
The Dipperfox stump grinders take a totally different principle to the traditional stump grinder. It’s a great and clean and efficient way to remove tree stumps. Due to the low speed of the stump crusher, there’s no need for debris guards. Potentially, this can also save a great deal of time. If you would like to know more about the Dipperfox stump grinders, please contact RJ Hall Engineering Ltd for the UK market or Dipperfox for the rest of the world.
Today we are looking at the Handy 8 ton vertical electric log splitter. The Handy 8 ton log splitter is part of the Handy pro range of log splitters. The price of the log splitter is £649.99, including VAT.
I always recommend customers go for a machine that is eight tons plus as I prefer a machine that works efficiently. Smaller and cheaper machines will do the job adequately; however, if you are using your log splitter year after year, it’s worth having a machine that does the job efficiently and practically.
The Handy wood splitter is powered by a 3 kW electric motor which produces approximately 4 hp. Although, in general, I prefer to have a petrol or diesel machine, electric power is quiet and efficient. It also has the advantage of being able to be used in an outbuilding without needing ventilation.
The electric motor powers a hydraulic ram which gives the force behind the log splitter. Two-handed operation ensures that hands are always kept clear of the log splitter.
The log splitter can split logs from 80 to 300 mm in diameter and from 100 to 550 mm in length. With the eight tons of splitting power, large heaps of logs are quickly reduced in size.
It’s easy to move the Handy dog splitter around due to the transport wheels provided. The handy handle makes manoeuvring the log splitter very straightforward.
It’s always important to have a machine that is up to the job. With eight tons of splitting power, the Handy should be able to cope with the toughest and knotty logs very easily. I always recommend that customers purchase the best machine they can afford. It’s a waste better to buy something that is slightly overpowered rather than underpowered. It can save huge amounts of time in the long run. The Handy 8 ton electrical vertical log splitter comes with a two-year warranty.
Specification
| WEIGHT | 109.9 kg |
|---|---|
| DIMENSIONS | 84.5 × 93.5 × 150 cm |
| WARRANTY | 2 Years |
| MAX. SPLITTING FORCE | 8 Ton |
| SUITABLE FOR | Gardening |
| NUMBER OF WHEELS | 2 |
| RATED POWER | 3000 Watts |
| WHEELS | Solid |
| POWER | Corded Electric |
| CABLE LENGTH | 3 m |
I have just been looking at this 23-tonne log splitter; it certainly is quite a machine! We do have log splitters for sale on our website, but I have to say we do not have any 23-tonne log splitters available at present. The logs splitter below is a post that I saw on LinkedIn, so I thought I would share it.
I appreciate that this 23-tonne log splitter is not for the average homeowner; it’s more for the commercial woodman who is processing lengths of wood and logs. As Terry mentions, this machine could potentially be for a one-man operation if it was used with a radio control. It would also be a lot safer to be out of the way of the machinery and moving parts.
If you’re looking for a log splitter, we have smaller log splitters available on our website. Although the majority of people will not be looking for a 23-ton log splitter, it’s always good to purchase a log splitter with plenty of power. In an ideal world, I would go for something with at least eight tons of hydraulic power to slice through your logs efficiently and easily. Obviously, a smaller machine will work, but the more power you have, the easier it will slice through those knotty and tough logs.
As with all machines, I always tell people to purchase the best machine that they can afford as it works out cheaper in the long run. There are many different machines available, but if you purchase something decent and look after it, it should give you many years of decent service.
The Farmtrac FT22 compact tractor is available for a special price of just £6995 plus VAT. Farmtrac has a limited number of FT22 compact tractors available at very favourable prices. I’ve just seen the post on LinkedIn from Terry Harrison machinery. The compact tractors are available for immediate delivery.
Farmtrac compact tractors offer exceptional value for money within the tractor marketplace. If you’re looking for something reliable and compact, the Farmtrac offers versatility which more than meets your expectations. Farmtrac offers a range of models, the FT22 being the smallest compact tractor at 21.3 hp.
They come with a three-point linkage, power takeoff and auxiliary hydraulics, everything that you would expect on a compact tractor. They are great for landscapers, horticulturalists, gardeners, estates and much more. There is a front-end loader available to make your compact tractor even more of a workhorse.
The Farmtrac compact can cope with a range of attachments, from backhoe diggers, loading buckets, trailers, flail mowers, rotavator’s, landscaping equipment and much more.
There are a limited number of Farmtrac compact FT22 tractors available. However, viewing and test drives are available. Here is Terry Harrison’s original post on LinkedIn below the video. You can also visit his website here.
Today we are looking at the Hyundai garden equipment big 20% off sale. Hyundai has a 20% sale on some of their garden equipment, ranging from an electric leaf blower, chainsaws, petrol and electric. The petrol garden multitool, complete with a strimmer, brushcutter blade, chainsaw, hedge cutter and extension bar, one engine to power for accessories. Hyundai are also offering several power washers on special offer, from petrol models to economical diesel models. There are two petrol chipper shredders available on special offer, along with a Power Barrow with an option for a wheelbarrow or tracked Barrow. You can see the list of equipment on special offer below the video.
Hyundai HYBV3000E Electric Leaf Blower & Garden Vac £47.99
Hyundai HYC1600E 14 inch Electric Chainsaw £64
Hyundai HYC2400E 16 Inch Electric Chainsaw £88
Five in one petrol multitool £184.
210 mL petrol power washer £335.99.
Hyundai 3100 psi petrol pressure washer £599.99.
Hyundai 4000psi Diesel Pressure Washer 498cc £1559.99.
P1 4200psi / 290bar Petrol Pressure Washer (Powered by Hyundai) | P4200PWT £808.
Hyundai 196 cc 60mm Petrol 4-Stroke Garden Wood Chipper Shredder | HYCH6560 £544.
Hyundai HYCH7070E-2 E-Start 7HP Petrol Wood Chipper £871.99.
Hyundai HYMD500 196cc 4-Wheel Drive 500kg Mini Dumper/Power Barrow £1943.99.
Hyundai HYTD500 196cc Tracked 500kg Mini Dumper/Power Barrow £2527.99.
Hyundai makes a wide-ranging of equipment at excellent prices. They also offer a three-year guarantee on most of their products, provided they are being used for domestic purposes. They do actually offer a one-year warranty on most of their products if they are being used commercially. Personally, I wouldn’t recommend the garden products for commercial or contractors use. However, if you are looking for budget equipment to make life in the garden easier, Hyundai garden equipment certainly offers good value for money.
The petrol and diesel-powered power washers are a good idea as there is no electric cable to deal with. I personally use a Stihl power washer, which is a good and well-engineered tool. However, I do like the idea of not having an electric cable around and the fact that the power washer can be used anywhere, provided that there is a water supply.
Take care with Stihl 4 mix engines to avoid a costly mistake! I have used Stihl products all my working life, which is around 40 years. I have to say that over the years, having owned Stihl chainsaws, Stihl strimmers, Stihl hedgecutter’s Stihl blower’s and even a power washer. I have also owned and used many Stihl 4 mix engines. I have had very few problems, I guess that’s why I keep purchasing Stihl products!
However, Taryl explains in detail about a problem in some Stihl 4 mix products. It appears that the issue is with some of the backpack blowers. Starting with the BR500, 550, 600, 700 and 800 models.
It appears that Stihl are using a bronze bush rather than a needle bearing on the above models. It does make you wonder why a company like Stihl are doing this. However, I have a BR 600 backpack blower that is almost 7 years old and is used regularly and commercially. Thankfully, I have had no problems so far!
Unfortunately, there are some cheap oils on the market. It’s important to remember that a 2-stroke engine relies on the fuel mix to lubricate the engine. Also, the four mix engines run quite hot, so it’s important that they have good-quality oil.
I have always used the Stihl HP two-stroke oil, which is available in various sizes. I normally purchase the 1 L metered bottle and then buy a 5 L can to top up the metered bottle.
The good news is that if you use the correct Stihl oil, you shouldn’t have any problem with your Stihl 4 mix engines. When it comes to engines and you have a quality machine, there’s no point in taking shortcuts. As I mentioned above, I certainly haven’t had any problems with my Stihl BR600 backpack blower, in almost seven years. So the moral of the story is don’t take shortcuts and use the correct oil.
In the video below, you can see the new Dipperfox SC400 stump crusher or stump grinder in action. The Dipperfox SC400 stump crusher is the smallest model of three different models.
The first model to come out was the Dipperfox 850, a great machine and fantastic for contractors who are clearing woodlands and forestry work etc. The downside is that it requires a 14-to-30-ton excavator to power the stump crusher. Of course, this is fine for some situations, but far too large to get in the average garden!
Dipperfox then produced the smaller 600 stump crusher, which needs considerably less pair them the 850 model. The power requirement for the Dipperfox 600 stump crusher is 35 to 83 kW and a 6-to-14-ton excavator. The great thing about the 600 model is that it will fit on a standard backhoe-wheeled loader. It is also small enough to fit on a compact loader, ranging from 2 to 6 tons.
Finally, we are back to the Dipperfox SC400, which I believe will become very popular with contractors and hire shops etc.
The great thing about the Dipperfox stump crusher 400 is that it will fit onto a 1.5-ton mini excavator. And up to a five-ton machine. It will fit on all types of loaders, for example, Avants and similar machines.
The Dipperfox 400 will fit on a tool carrier like the Toro Dingo, as shown in the video. The minimum power requirement for a tool carrier is just one ton, and the maximum size is five tons.
This makes the Dipperfox 400 much more versatile than the previous models! It’s not quite as compact as the Predator stump grinder that I use, but it’s certainly a lot quicker and has a totally different principle. Another great advantage is the fact that you don’t need to use debris guards as the machine works at relatively low revs. This is quite a timesaver, especially if you’re working in built-up areas, where it takes time to move debris guards around.
For more information on the Dipperfox 400 stump crusher, for UK sales go here and for worldwide sales go here.
In this video and blog post, I want to talk to you about the John Deere X127, which replaces the X155R ride-on mower. I am getting a terrific amount of people searching for the John Deere X155R ride-on mower, which is no longer available brand-new. Although the John Deere X127, which replaces the X155R ride-on mower, is more expensive, I believe it’s considerably improved.
You may be able to find the John Deere mower on eBay, but as far as I know, it will not be brand-new. The distributor that we used to use no longer sells John Deere ride-on mowers. So, the John Deere X127 is the replacement machine that is now available new.
I have found this particular model available brand-new on eBay; the cost is around £5000. However, you may be able to make an offer. You can find the eBay link to the John Deere X127 here. You may be able to find something cheaper. However, this is what my research came up with.
I will run through a few of the features of the John Deere X127. I will create a post later on with more detail. I’ve always found John Deere equipment to be extremely good, especially the more commercial equipment. I would personally purchase this machine as a mulching mower rather than a mower for collecting. The collector is an optional extra.
I have seen several John Deere mulching mowers in action; I have to say that I was very impressed with the performance. With mulching, it’s very important to cut your lawn regularly, as you cannot expect a good mulch if you trying to mulch grass that is too long.
The John Deere ride-on mower comes with a 42 inch mulching cutting deck. It’s powered by a Briggs and Stratton two-cylinder 656cc petrol engine which develops 20 hp. I have owned machines with the same type and series of engines, the engine performed well. The model I had was a carburettor-type engine; however, more modern EFI engines perform much better. Not only are they more responsive and powerful, but they are considerably more economical than the old carburettor models.
The engine is fitted with a cast-iron cylinder liner for longer life. A useful feature is the fact that the choke lever is sprung-loaded, which stops the throttle lever from accidentally being left in the choke position.
The engine features full-pressure lubrication, which is always better, especially if you are cutting on slopes. It just means that the engine is continually being lubricated.
Something that I had not come across before is the oil drain feature. It enables the oil to be drained without the need for any tools, which sounds like a good idea. I’m not quite sure how this is achieved, as I always like to know that my oil drain plug is secure.
There is an optional collector available for the John Deere X127. However, I personally would not purchase the mower for collecting, I would use the mulching feature rather than the collection feature.
I don’t know why manufacturers do this; however, the collector has two bags that need to be removed when they are full. The worst part about this is that you have to keep dismounting from the mower. If you want to collect the grass is much better to have a mower where you can empty the collector from the operator seat.
I’m also not a great fan of the large pipe that takes the grass clippings into the collection bags. Not only is the tube quite bulky on the side of the mower, but these tubes can become blocked if the grass is wet.
Recently I carried out a review of the Etesia Hydro 80; this is much smaller than the John Deere. However, I’m just showing you this machine as there is no need to dismount from the mower to empty the grass collector. The grass chute is also very direct, meaning it’s much less likely to become blocked with wet grass. The grass chute does not obstruct any manoeuvrability or make the mower more cumbersome.
John Deere X127 comes with the normal two-year warranty; however, you can purchase an extra warranty if required. I believe that the mower is great for mulching, based on what I have seen on other John Deere mowers. However, the collector is slightly cumbersome, and the idea of having to dismount from the mower is not good.
In this video and blog post, I want to carry out a review of the Etesia Hydro 80 compact ride-on lawnmower. I used to own an Etesia Hydro 80, which I used for my contracting business. It’s a great machine, very compact and ideal for going where other ride on mowers won’t go.
Prior to owning the Etesia Hydro 80, I was using a very similar machine known as the Etesia Bahia. When I purchased the Etesia Bahia, the Hydro 80 was not available. However, the Hydro 80 is just a slightly heavier-duty compact ride-on mower than the Etesia Bahia.
If you’re using your mower for contracting, I would definitely recommend the Hydro 80 over the Etesia Bahia, as it has a slightly stronger build quality. We will go through everything and I will show some slides that will help to explain everything more clearly.
The price of the Hydro 80 is £5850 plus VAT, and the price of the Etesia Bahia is £5150 plus VAT. These are list prices, so I am sure that there is room for negotiation if you purchase from an Etesia dealer. I believe that the extra cost of the Hydro 80 is approximately £700 and well worth it.
There are various different models available. If you are contracting, I would go for the Kawasaki 16-hp twin-cylinder 4-stroke engine. This is the largest engine option; it’s always better to have more power than not enough!
The reason I purchased the Etesia Hydro 80 was that originally I was using two roller rotary mowers with a 22-inch cut. I didn’t particularly want a ride on mower, due to the manoeuvrability issue. However, I did need a machine that could cope with wet and damp grass. The problem I had was that the rotary mowers that I was using were hopeless at collecting wet and damp grass.
As many of you will know, when you are contracting, you can’t choose when to cut grass. Very often, I was cutting in less than ideal conditions. Sometimes it could be from the rain from the previous night or just a very heavy dew.
As I mentioned earlier, I didn’t particularly want a ride-on mower, due to the manoeuvrability issues. However, the Etesia is about as manoeuvrable as you get for the size of the machine. Etesia’s are famous for their ability to collect wet grass.
The Etesia Hydro 80 has a 32-inch (80 cm) cutting deck with a grass chute that goes straight into the collector at the rear. The collector has a capacity of 240 L, which is very good considering the size of the mower. The Etesia could achieve a better work rate with one man in a day than two walk-behind machines using two men! So, the Hydro 80 was certainly a very good investment for me.
In this photograph, you can see the Hydro 80 cutting slightly rougher grass, more the type of grass that you would find in an orchard or paddock. Although the Hydro 80 will cope with this type of grass, I purchased my machine for lawn cutting. If you are regularly cutting more paddock and orchard-type areas, it’s probably worth looking at some of the other Etesia models which are available.
The Hydro 80 has anti-scalp rollers fitted to the deck, which help to prevent scalping damage to the lawn. I also had some adjustable caster wheels, which were fitted to the side of my deck. It looks like Etesia has probably done away with the caster wheels. I’m guessing that the anti-scalp rollers do the job adequately.
The Hydro 80 is fitted with an electric blade clutch which is operated from the dashboard. The blade clutch has a blade brake fitted for safety purposes. I always engaged and disengaged my cutter deck on tick-over as this helps to prolong the life of the electric clutch. For example, if the clutch were on a car, you wouldn’t engage the clutch at full revs!
Many people, including myself, like a traditional striped lawn finish. Many of the walk-behind roller rotaries leave a really good striped finish to your lawn. I had an optional roller fitted to my Hydro 80 mower, which was fitted underneath the rear of the mower. It was simply lowered by moving a lever behind the operator’s seat. For me, it was a great option as people appreciate that striped finish on their lawns.
The Etesia Hydro 80 is fitted with a 240 L grass collector, which can be operated from the driver’s seat. I believe on my walk behind rotary mowers, they had a collector capacity of around 70 L. So the Etesia collector is roughly 3 ½ times larger.
One of the many things I like about the Hydro 80 is the fact that I can empty the grass collector from the operator’s seat. The collector is emptied by moving a lever on the right-hand side of the machine. This is fairly effortless as it has a small manual sprung ram to make emptying the collector easier. I believe that there are some models that are electrically emptied, there certainly are on the Etesia Bahia.
There are some manufacturers that have two or three bags for collectors that have to be manually emptied. To me, this defeats the object of having a ride-on mower, as once you are seated, you do not want to keep getting on and off the mower. I certainly wouldn’t recommend purchasing a ride-on mower with that type of collector. Thankfully, with the Etesia Hydro 80, everything can be carried out from the operator’s seat.
In this photograph with can see the compactness of the mower. It measures 1.98 m x 0.82 m wide, so it really is very compact. At this size, it makes the mower very easy to transport. I had a small trailer to transport my Hydro 80; it worked absolutely fine for me. Obviously, the Etesia can be transported in a van or truck.
The Hydro 80 has an excellent turning circle which makes it highly manoeuvrable; it’s almost as manoeuvrable as a walk-behind machine. The mower also leaves a great finish on any lawn.
The cutting deck overhangs the mower body fractionally; however, with a great seating position, which gives a good view which enables you to mow up to walls and obstacles.
Despite the compactness of the Etesia ride-on, you can see in the photograph or video that the operator has plenty of legroom. I’m 6 feet tall, and I certainly never felt cramped up on the machine. There is a small amount of adjustment in the seat to maximise operator comfort.
On the cutter deck, there is a large hinged door or hatch that gives easy access to the blade and the grass chute. The 32-inch blade is attached by one main bolt and then has two shear bolts to protect the blade. This is a great idea, so in theory, if you hit a foreign object, it shares the bolts rather than causing damage to the machine. The shear bolts can easily be replaced and access is gained through the hatch door.
There is one 32-inch blade on the Etesia Hydro 80. On each end of the blade, there are some large lifters that create a fan action within the deck. After a period of time, the lifters will wear. However, these are easily replaced by simply bolting a new set of lifters onto the blade.
It’s important to keep the lifters in good condition as it makes for efficient grass collection. The collection system relies on blade lifters to blow the grass into the collector. It’s also important to keep the collector clean; a power washer, airline or stiff brush can be used to keep the collector clear and keep the air flowing through efficiently.
All the controls on the Hydro 80 are within comfortable reach of the operator. On the left-hand side, we have the height adjustment lever; behind that is the handbrake. And then, to the rear of the mower is the fuel tank with the fuel gauge on top of the fuel cap.
On the right-hand side of the machine, there is the lever for emptying the collection box. The throttle is also placed on the right-hand side of the machine. On my machine, the cutter deck engagements which was also placed there. I believe that it may now be on the dashboard.
There’s also a built-in shock absorber to give the operator more comfort. The built-in headlights come as standard if you feel like cutting in the dark!
On the top of the cutting deck, there is an attachment that allows a garden hose to be connected. Although a very simple feature, it’s great for keeping your mower deck clean along with the grass chute.
Simply attach a hose to the deck, turn on the tap, engaged the cutter deck, and after a few minutes, your cutting deck will be clean.
In the above photograph, you can see that the covers have been removed from the mower. This enables the user to be able to reach the necessary components for maintenance etc. Being a compact machine, there’s not a huge amount of space to work on the machine. However, I always managed to be able to replace belts etc. and carry out regular maintenance. Incidentally, the drive belts are spring tensioned, so there is no maintenance required. I didn’t need to replace the belts very often.
It’s very easy to get to the oil dipstick and oil filler cap, and the battery has easy access. The covers are very easily removed by a few various screw-type fittings.
The Etesia Hydro 80 is powered by a hydrostatic drive system. One of the advantages of the Hydro 80 is the fact that it has a higher specification hydrostatic drive than the Etesia Bahia.
The majority of ride-on mowers today have a hydrostatic drive system. I would not recommend purchasing a mower with a traditional gearbox and clutch, as hydrostatic mowers are so much easier and more efficient to use.
The principle of a hydrostatic mower is very simple. There is an oil pump that powers a hydraulic motor on the rear wheels. The great thing is that it gives you instant forward and reverse at variable speeds; there is no need to use a clutch or change gears!
Driving the Hydro 80 is very easy; there are two large foot pedals; one pedal is for driving forward, the other for going in reverse. It really makes mowing easy! There is no need for a foot brake as the forward and reverse pedals also act as brakes.
One of the many advantages of a hydrostatic drive is the fact that you can just vary the speed so easily. Especially if you are cutting longer grass, you can adjust the speed of the machine depending on the thickness of the grass.
The Etesia has a strong tubular framework, which is a common sight on Etesia ride-on mowers. There are obviously more structures beneath the mainframe to carry the engine and transmission etc.
Another one of the benefits of the Hydro 80 over the Etesia Bahia, is the fact that it has an upgraded front axle. On the Hydro 80, the front axle is more of a casting. Whereas the Bahia, it’s built from tubular steel.
I didn’t see any wear and tear on the front axle of my Hydro 80. However, I did see somewhere on the Etesia Bahia after a considerable amount of hours of work. Another plus point for purchasing the Hydro 80 is if you are using the mower for contracting.
I purchased my Etesia Hydro 80 for lawns and collecting the grass, so I wasn’t really interested in mulching the clippings. However, my machine did come with a mulching plug, I did test it out, just for curiosity purposes. I wasn’t overly impressed, however, I knew that I would not be mulching the grass.
Things may have changed now, as mulching has come a long way over the last few years. I believe Etesia has a slightly different mulching system from the system that I tried.
The Hydro 80 is a very capable machine, and it is capable of cutting longer grass. Personally, I think it’s much more at home cutting lawns; however, if the grass is dry, it will cut grass several inches high without too much difficulty. If you are looking to regularly cut long grass, then I would think more about purchasing a different machine. Etesia has a range of brush cutter machines for various grass-cutting tasks.
If you are cutting long grass and you do not want to collect the grass. The collector has a removable floor which allows the grass to be blown up the grass chute and then fall out behind the mower. The other option is to attach the deflector, which bypasses the grass chute.
Although I wouldn’t recommend the Hydro 80 for continually cutting long grass. It does leave quite a good finish, even in one pass and with long grass!
I didn’t purchase any attachments for my Etesia. However, there are some useful attachments available to get the most out of your mower. I will explain more below.
An optional snow is available, it’s probably not something that I would use in this part of the UK. I am not quite sure how much pushing power the Etesia would have. In the photograph, it looks like it’s managing okay.
Once again, the scarifier is not a product that I have used. However, I am all for utilising the power of the Etesia! The scarifier looks like it could be a very useful accessory. It certainly looks much easier than hand raking. There are adjustments on the front wheels of the scarifier, so it can be adjusted according to the conditions of your lawn.
Scarifying lawns is something that is often neglected, so potentially a scarifier could be a great investment for the Hydro 80 or Etesia Bahia.
The spreader looks like a very useful attachment, especially for various fertilisers for your lawn. It can also be used for grass seed or salt in the wintertime. This would require the optional towbar option.
Another useful attachment is the sweeper attachment; not quite sure where it gets power from. But it is certainly another way of utilising the Etesia.
A trailer is always a great option for a ride-on mower, as there are so many uses for a trailer in the garden. The trailer has a 500 kg (half a ton) capacity, which is plenty for most gardens. Once again, you will need the towbar attachment to be able to utilise the trailer.
The Etesia Hydro 80 is a great compact ride-on mower to replace your existing roller rotary mowers. I would definitely recommend the roller accessory that I had fitted to give that perfect striped finish. If you are contracting or even if you have a large garden, for the extra £700 approximately. The Hydro 80 offers excellent value for money and strength over the Etesia Bahia. I don’t want to undermine the Bahia, as it is a great machine. However, I do feel that the Hydro 80 is definitely worth the extra cost.
I would also recommend purchasing the Kawasaki 16-hp twin four-stroke petrol engine. I have had Kawasaki engines on several machines and never had a problem with their engines.
It’s always better to have a machine that is overpowered rather than underpowered. The 16 hp Kawasaki engines certainly gave me power to spare.
You can see the Etesia price list here and Etesia’s website here.
| Mower | |
|---|---|
| Theoretical output (m²/h) | 7200 |
| Number of blades | 1 |
| Cutting width (cm) | 80 cm |
| Mowing deck | Steel deck |
| Mount type | Suspended and removable deck |
| Rotation direction | Hourly |
| Blade protection | By shear bolt |
| Type of blade clutch | Electromagnetic with built-in brake |
| Cutting height (mm) | from 44 to 102 mm |
| Emptying systems | |
|---|---|
| Grassbox capacity (L) | 240 L |
| Grassbox emptying | Ground assisted emptying |
| Grassbox structure | Tubular structure – anti UV |
| Measurement and weight | |
|---|---|
| Weight | 240 Kg |
| Height | 130 cm |
| Width | 82.5 cm |
| Lenght | 199.5 cm |
| Motor |
|---|
| Motor | |
|---|---|
| Number of cylinders | 2 |
| Cylinder capacity | 603 cm³ |
| Nominal engine power | 9.3 kW/12.5 HP |
| Maximum engine power | 11.9 kW/16 HP |
| Fuel tank capacity (L) | 12 L |
| Oil tank capacity (L) | 1 L |
| Cooling | 2 cylinder, air cooled |
| Fuel | unleaded fuel 95/98 |
| Power | Electronic with transitor |
| Starter | 12 volts 20 Amp. with regulator |
| Engine type | Kawasaki FS481V |
| Battery | 12V – 20 Ah |
| Wheel transmission |
|---|
| Wheel transmission | |
|---|---|
| Transmission type | Hydrostatic |
| Forward speed (km/h) | 9 km/h |
| Backward speed (km/h) | 8 km/h |
| Oil | 2 L |
| Number of driving wheels | 2 |
| Vertical drop | 18% |
| Acoustic pressure | 86 dB(A) |
| Frame | Multi-tubular mechanical welded frame |
| Direction | Mechanical |
| Pneumatic | Front: 13×5.0-6 – Back: 16×6.5-8 |
| Braking | Incorporated in hydrostatic transmission |
| GPS/GPRS | -I I |
