KIRK - I just mow with mine, but for several years I had a 129 & 44A deck as my prime mowing tractor, just used the 982 for Special occasions. Most of the mowing has been in the last 6 yrs after I sold the 129. I have a big tandem axle hydraulic dump cart I bought 5 yrs ago that it stays hooked up to most of the time when it's home. The 982 is the only tractor with a spare set of remotes to run it. The cart has a 3000# capacity and the 982 pulls it nicely, although the frt wheels do get a little daylight under them from time-to-time with that big a load.
I'm not a huge fan of the Onan engine, expensive to maintain & work on compared to a Kohler, but they're ALL expensive now days. I can remember when a throw-out bearing for a GD CC was $12-$15, now they're $50. Parts were high priced it seemed back in the mid 1980's, and then they seemed to get cheaper, now they're getting REAL expensive again. And scarce for the Onan. My local CC dealer laughs when I ask about engine parts for the 982. I get most of my Onan parts from my local JD dealer, the early 420's used the B48G engine, or I order from Onan.com.
I'd been looking for an 1872 or 2072 for 2-3 yrs when I saw this 982 for sale at a Labor Day tractor show. I bought it the next night. I'd only seen 2-3 18/2072's for sale in all that time and two of them were in rough shape for their age, hours, and money, the other one I was bidding at a farm auction against an equip. scalper and he had MUCH more money than I did so stopped bidding. But I made him pay a decent price for it.