Customer Reviews

Swisher T2066 66-Inch 20 HP Finish Cut Tow Behind Trailmower

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I reviewed all of the available pull behind mowers, and I chose the swisher because it was the widest with the most HP that I could find. Also, I was close to buying the Agri, but those folks couldn't tell me where to buy one, as Sears was out of stock on them.

For the money, this unit is rugged. I did, however, break the drive belt the first day out on it. Probably user error, as I had the tension too tight on that belt.

I rate it a 4 out of 5 because it is a bit loud when it bounces around, if you dont have a real smooth lawn. But I am putting it to the extreme, cutting a large area (4 acres) with various slopes, using a Polaris 425cc ATV.

I purchased the Brush Cutter version of this mower a few years ago to use mainly on open acreage. When it works, it does a good job, but the first day out, I had problems with it. Almost every time I've used it, I have had problems/repairs. I have replaced numerous belts. I believe while cutting heavy brush, the load on the blade increases, causing the belt to slip, burn and eventually break. The first time I used it, the large nut on the main pulley came loose and everything in the deck was damaged. Another time, the idler pulley assembly came loose, causing the belt to fly off and at the same time, take out the wiring from the clutch and destroy everything in its path. This thing is poorly engineered. I just made repairs again, against my better judgment, took it out to cut brush, not saplings, and the idler assembly loosened again. I put it back together and 1/2 hour later, the belt once again destroyed all of the control wiring.

I had called Swisher initially when it broke the first time. They were nice over the phone, but very matter-of-fact. My unit also had an electric clutch that had to be engaged at full speed only or the unit would stall. It also has pulleys for two belts. They told me two belts was causing the clutches to get destroyed, so they went to one belt. That was my first clue that I was a Beta tester in disguise. The only place this thing is going is to my local junk-yard to be recycled. I will never again purchase a Swisher product. Some of their newer stuff looks OK, but the terrible engineering is what bothered me the most. My next purchase will b e the DR Brush mower. Good Luck if you buy one.

I bought my T2066 as a used unit but it was still in excellent condition. This is a great finish mower, very powerful and does a great job. I should point out that this is called a "Trailmower" because it "trails" behind your tractor or ATV. This is not a "Brushmower" as some have assumed. This mower will finish your lawn as nicely as a push mower will. Since this machine works so well, I'll only touch on what I feel could be improved upon.

There isn't much that can be done about it, it's just because it's a very wide mower but, the grass clippings from the extreme left side of the mower have a hard time getting discharged out the right mounted chute. The mower has mulching blades so this isn't usually an issue, it only leaves a little windrow of clippings near the left side when cutting longer grass, especially if it's a bit wet.

I feel the battery box should be mounted to the frame rather than the mower deck. A frame mount would present far less vibration to the battery and it would be easier to reach for servicing etc. I plan to relocate mine at some point.

I feel the left front caster wheel should be moved outboard a little. When cutting longer grass, because the left front wheel rides in the uncut grass, the wheel pushes the grass down and the mower doesn't cut it properly. On the next round you can easily overlap a little to catch this line of grass but the way it is currently, you have to overlap quite a bit to cut that line. If the wheel were moved outboard, closer to the line of cut, that line of grass would be closer to the line of cut and therefore wouldn't require you to overlap as much on the next pass.

The anti-scalp wheels are great but they are a little poor in design. Most of them consist of two flat-bottom, flat-side, wheels sandwiched together, the front centre one is three wheels sandwiched together. I have a few suggestions for these. 1. I'd like to see these changed to the wheels that are shaped like a sphere like I see on other mowers. When you turn a corner, the rather squareish wheels slide on the grass and can damage the lawn a little. 2. The bolts that hold them in are not very strong and this starts to cause a few issues. The bolts will eventually bend and when they do, the two wheels run apart at the top and leading edge. The wheels grab grass and then as the wheels come together at the bottom, the wheel pulls that grass out and packs it in above the wheel. This will eventually stall this wheel out and cause it to slide on the lawn, making a huge mark. I've replaced the bolts on my mower with grade 8 bolts to help keep them from bending. 3. The area around those wheels is small, particularly above and behind the wheels, and this tends to catch debris. If you go through any soft ground or mud, the wheel will pack gunk up above and behind the wheel and again will eventually stall the wheel causing a huge mark in the lawn.

All in all this is an awesome mower. I can cut my 4.5 acres of grass in record time and on half the fuel that it cost me with my garden tractor alone. You should use a tractor that has some weight to it as this mower is no light-weight. Mine is a 13 HP tractor and it is minimal to tow the T2066. I find that towing the mower uses up the drive belt on my tractor faster too, I need a replacement about once/season.

I bought my 66" Swisher finish mower to mow bahia grass around a 1 acre lake with a slope I don't like to drive too close to the water on. I also offset it and pull behind an older JD 48" lawn tractor and now my 35Hp Branson tractor for mowing 5 acres of flat pasture. I've put about 30 hours on the unit and have no concerns with reliability of the Briggs & Stratton 20 horse or the mechanicals of the unit. I've read reviews where a couple of guys have had problems with belts, pulleys, idlers, etc.

Other than a cut tire when delivered, I've had no issues and would recommend this to anyone who knows how to treat equipment.