Zero turn ? what should I buy ?

[kide]

Marty - Neither... You'd need to be in the male 16-25 year old age bracket to understand why I'm making that 53.2 mile trip so frequently (I'm currently 65 going on 17)... I do look for cubs on every trip back and forth, have spotted a couple, will post locations if they look good

.

A while back in this thread, someone mentioned Grasshopper - my close friend Don bought a used one with a 25 hp Kubota diesel on it for about $3000. He's used it for 4 seasons now with nothing mre than a belt replacement and normal maintenance. They have tons of attachments and the flip up front on that style makes blade changes a snap...

 

[dtanner]

I hope you guys can see what a pain this yard is to mow. The pictures don`t show just how steep these hills are. It go dark on me before I could finish up. takes me and hr and 40 minutes to do 2.5 acres because of the hills. I will have stop take a few more pictures .

This is where it got to dark .

 

[dtanner]

Bill Jamison

Well the Zero turn has over 40 hrs on it and no issues yet. I have noticed it uses less gas now than it did new. I mow a yard that takes me just under 2 hrs and i`am burning way less than $12.00 for gas at $1.23 a liter.The thing I like most is the speed and the cut is beautiful.This Toro 4880 will mow at over 5 mph and the cut is real nice. The last few years over here there seem to be a lot of people starting up small business mowing peoples grass.It is hard to believe people will pay $70.00 plus a week to have there lawn mowed. I did add 4 gallons of washer fluid to each rear tire to add more traction for the steep areas ; but this winter I think I will remove it and try a hard weight to see if I get the speed back I lost. I think the washer fluid is all ways playing catch up and slows the Zero turn down.I have some wheel weights that is melted wheel weights from cars that weigh 30lb and I want to try them and see if that will bring back the speed I had before the fluid weight was added.My plan is a center stud in each wheel so I can add the weights or remove them if not needed,I will report back on what I find. I think the blades turn 72 hd rpm is the reason the cut is so nice at 6 mph. They do seem to turn fast. later Don T

 

[bjamison]

Don T - thanks for the update. At my Dad's camp, we are going to be taking on some additional grass to cut and the thought of a 60ish inch deck and zero turn mower speed is starting to look attractive. How's the ride at 5 mph?

I looked at a Bad Boy zero turn at TSC with a 60 inch deck, but I doubt I'd buy one of those. I like Toro, Xmark and Ferris - but really know nothing about them.

 

[mgwin]

Bill,

I don't know about Ferris mowers, but Torro is a very good mower. The Exmark is OK too, but they look a little cheaper made to me. I have heard of people having trouble with the Bad Boys, plus, they are not really commercial grade. If you're looking for more options, check out the commercial grade SCAG mower. Gerry Ide and myself both have one. I have had mine for 8 years and haven't spent one cent on repairs. I may have to buy a battery soon, mine seems to be getting weak.

 

[bjamison]

Marty G - thanks for the tip on SCAG mowers. I looked them up on the internet and they look like one heavy duty zero turn mower. I can see why you and Gerry I. like them. Good suggestion.

 

[kide]

Bill: Almost all the commercial guys around here are using Scag ZTRs and the big walk behinds (some with a stand on sulky). When I went after the ZTR, I wanted something that would last like the Cub and didn't hesitate to pay the extra, since if you amortize that cost of 15 years (at least), it beats the heck outta the big box store stuff. I put a good hitch on the back and use it quite a bit more than the 129 now (but still need the 129 for "wrecker duty"..). I've bought one belt , several oil filters and a number of blades since I bought it in October of '05. The commercial grade air filter is still all original.

Plus - they're built in Wisconsin - you know - where all good V Twin stuff comes from

 

[mgwin]

Bill,

Check out Gerry's pics on the main forum page.
Gerry thinks because a SCAG weighs about 1200 lbs., they will get good traction in the mud. They will get stuck way before the traction even gets started!

I had to pick on him a little bit.

 

[kide]

Marty - that thing went down faster than the Titanic..... Again, a ZTR won't steer when it doesn't have traction - the sucker actually made a u-turn into the mud. You can't see it in that pic, but we were on a bank on the edge of the driveway....