Comparing Skid Steer Brush Hogs? Here’s How to Spot a Badass Hog.

Let’s imagine you’re checking out a 72-inch skid steer brush hog. Cutting width and price are front and center, but the real meat of the comparison is beneath the deck.

Is the mower meant for pasture maintenance? It’ll need a different drive system or blades than one that needs to chew through woody growth. How thick is the deck? What are the hydraulic requirements? You’ve got to dig into the specs to choose the right weapon for the work.

So, if you're comparing a flail mower with a skid steer brush hog for sale — or even two brush hogs, side by side — we urge you not to shop by width and price alone. Give the following features a closer look and invest your money in an attachment you’ll love.

Match Your Skid Steer Brush Hog to the Work

A standard gearbox mower and a direct-drive mower solve different problems.

The Prime Industrial Brush Mower has a standard gearbox, which makes it the quicker and lighter option. Our popular brush hog uses two hardened blades with a professionally spun stump jumper and mows right over trees up to 3 inches in diameter. Standard flow runs from 15 to 25 GPM. Depending on width, current models weigh from 1,050 to 1,300 pounds.

That loadout is great for pasture maintenance and grass — and even better when cut quality or maneuverability are your biggest concerns.

The Prime Direct Drive Mower is our answer for heavier growth. The 417-pound flywheel works with four free-spinning blades in an open-front design that gnashes through trees up to 8 inches in diameter. It runs at 20 to 25 GPM and weighs 1,786 or 1,950 pounds depending on width.

More mass = more moxie. You’ll dominate woody material. It asks more from the skid steer, too, though, so check your machine before falling in love with the bigger number.

1. Thick Steel

We can’t say enough about the impact of the deck construction or durability.

Our standard Brush Mower uses 3/16-inch commercial-grade decking. Full-length 3/8-inch runners protect the bottoms of the skids. Around the motor, where the mower carries the most stress, we add extra 1/2-inch reinforcements. It’s a solid chassis for the vast majority of skid loader brush hog jobs.

The Direct Drive design steps it up to 1/4-inch decking with added support gussets and a fully welded double push bar. After all, this badass hog has to eat those 8” thick trees, right?

A cheaper mower has to save money somewhere…and material costs a lot for manufacturers. Check the steel thickness and reinforcement before you call a lower price a steal.

2. Killer Blades

We always go back to tree diameter limits, because it’s a pretty clean way to compare the cutting power of brush hogs. Blades for 3-inch saplings and blades for 8-inch trees just look different. If you’re mostly cutting waist-high grass and aren’t worried about woody material, there are other ways to optimize a blade’s design.

After a heavy hit, blade count and rotating mass have the most effect on recovery. If your mower spends a while climbing back up to operating speed, it loses productivity with every strike on a thick piece of wood or brush. In our own gearbox-versus-direct-drive comparison, we note that the standard mower favors agility and cut quality. The Direct Drive has more power to keep up speed during heavier clears.

3. Hydraulic Flow

Okay, so you bought the meanest skid loader brush hog on the page. All that power is worthless unless your skid steer has the hydraulics to feed it.

As you compare, check on each mower’s flow range. Our standard Brush Mower uses 15 to 25 GPM. The Direct Drive calls for a bit more juice — 20 to 25 GPM.

4. Serviceability

A brush hog lives close to dirt and you’re gonna experience frequent impacts. Blade changes and routine maintenance are just a part of ownership. Don’t buy until you’ve looked into how accessible the parts are for routine service. It shouldn’t swallow half a Saturday.

We gave the Direct Drive model a top-access hole for blade changes. The standard Prime skid steer brush hog keeps the motor mounted to the gearbox, so we use an Omni gearbox with a commercial-grade motor.

Buy the Hog, Not the Logo

Prime Attachments is family-owned. Our pricing reflects the steel and engineering in the attachment. You’re not paying extra for the overhead of a giant global name.

If you are comparing a skid steer brush hog for sale, we get it — you’ll probably look at width and sticker price first, but remember that these are only the opening numbers. Check out deck thickness and blade construction and hydraulics. Ask what support comes after the sale.

Then, put your money into a truly badass brush hog.