Freeing Your Stuck DR Brush Mower

at3+14.5hp+e+s+new+b+s+pro+brush+mower-50st-epa_rOne of the many advantages of the DR Mower is that it can travel in locations where other machinery cannot. A swampy area where a riding mower meets its doom a DR Brush Mower might drive through with ease. With a DR Brush Mower areas that otherwise might never be mowed are opened for clearing. That being said, the DR Brush Mower is not invulnerable to getting stuck. Exercise judicious caution when operating in an area where there is the potential for getting stuck, or you might find yourself saddled with the task of getting unstuck.

But let’s say you didn’t exercise that judicious caution and right now your DR Brush Mower is sitting out there immovable and you are in here wishing you had a Yoda to extract your TIE fighter. Never fear! I don’t have a Yoda for you, but I do have some advice that will get your DR Brush Mower unstuck and back in action.

First, if your DR Brush Mower is stuck you need to step back and assess your situation. The degrees of being stuck are like this:

  1. DR Brush Mower wheels stuck in a minor irrigation ditch or similar small obstacle.
  2. Entire DR Brush Mower stuck in a swamp or other impassable location.
  3. DR Brush Mower lost over a steep creek bank, or some similar impassable barrier.

This shouldn’t need to be said, but I will say it: If your DR Brush Mower is stuck, disengage the blade. Do not re-engage the blade until you are somewhere you can mow normally.

Now, if you DR Brush Mower is stuck in a small way, a simple solution often works. If your DR Brush Mower wheels are caught in the muddy bottom of a small ditch, lock in the differential lever (if your model has it) so that equal power goes to both wheels. Often this is enough to free the DR Mower if it is stuck in a minor way. If the machine is still not moving, try holding the handles and rocking the machine from side to side as you attempt to drive forward. If you are stuck in a ditch this can sometimes enable the wheels to grab the side of the ditch and climb out. If you’re still not moving, tip the mower back so that the deck is lifted clear of the ground. This increases the weight over the wheels and removes some friction in forward movement and it can be enough to get your machine free. Next, try putting the machine in reverse. Sometimes the nature of the terrain going forward makes it impossible to move, but reversing out of the situation is possible. If none of these quick and easy tricks frees your mower then its time to move up to the next level.

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Depending on the size of your DR Brush Mower, and depending on your strength, sometimes it is possible to simply muscle the machine out of its stuck location. If you have one of the smaller models this is a greater possibility, but if you have one of the larger models it may exceed your physical abilities. I use a large 18hp model DR Brush Mower and I am strong enough to physically pull the machine out of some swampy traps, or manually lift the back wheels off the ground by elevating the handles. Because I have the strength to do this I can quickly get my DR Brush Mower out of some spots where the machine can’t extract itself. However, I realize many people don’t have the strength for this option. If your DR Brush Mower is stuck and unable to free itself, and you don’t have the strength to free it, then you need to remove the mowing deck. Freed from the weight of the mowing deck, the DR Brush Mower is quite a bit lighter and more nimble. In almost any situation you will now be able to drive the DR Brush Mower back to firmer ground. You will have to drag the detached deck by hand, but the deck is light enough that this is doable, even if a bit frustrating.

If none of the above options work for you, then it probably means you accidentally drove your mower into a deep creek bed, or some other similar entrapment, and the mower is simply not capable of climbing free. If this is the case, turn off the mower and go find Yoda. Alternatively, find enough strong and able-bodied people necessary to help you extract your DR Mower. With sufficient help this is not too hard, even if it is a bit embarrassing and your helpers will probably never let you live it down. If in a worse case scenario you’ve lost your mower in a pond, you’ll probably need something to tow the machine out.

Or get Yoda.

But Yoda is never around when I need him.

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