Modern Mowers....

[DSM Turbos]

I got a Toro 50" zero turn time cutter from the local hardware store / mower dealer.

Very happy to have a zero turn vs my old ride on (my Husqvarna mower had so many damn issues with the wheels and spindles)

 

[fourtrax]

i went from a garden tractor cub cadet Fuel Injected 46" ( nothing but ecu issues) to a Airens 48" zero turn (got from a mower shop same price as lowes). cut my mowing time in half but, i drift regularly on the slops where the cub cadet was stable. no regrets with the switch and the drift is predictable and i just go with it.

 

[Croatan_Kid]

I've been rocking a Ferris IS-700 for 11 years. Has a 28hp Briggs Commercial Pro on it. It's been a trooper. I had a few small issues taken care of under warranty and wound up *actually* solving the issue myself with a couple of flat washers under one of the deck pulleys. Has hydrostatic drives and they're easily serviced and have spin on filters. Standard, basically flat, 18" blades with a 5/8 center hole. I usually go through 3 or 4 sets a season.

My buddy also has an IS-700, but it had a Kawasaki. His old JD 435 had a Kawasaki and got replaced with a newer, fuel injected, Kawasaki. All three of them have locked up over the years. He keeps up his stuff as well as I do, but they've shown to not hold up long term. His older Ferris IS-2000 has something like 6000 hrs on a 29 hp Kohler and it's about due for a rebuild.

Also, FWIW:
Toro, Snapper, Ferris, Simplicity, and probably more are all owned by the same folks. If I'm not badly mistaken, they are the ones who bought out Briggs & Stratton too.

I always say "buy once, cry once". Get as badass and heavy duty of a mower as you can!

 

[skyhighZJ]

OG gravely “ZT” here. No regerts and every part imaginable. 60” cut full hydro. And OG Status.

 

[paradisePWoffrd]

I bought mine from the local Farm Supply place in Reidsville. The big box stores sell junk. You don't want a 3 series John Deere, those are the consumer garbage. A 5 Series is the minimum mower I would buy from JD but the Cub is a better value (and price)

the 100 series is what they sell at the box stores. I agree that 500 is better but 300 isn't a terrible machine. ATleast 5-6 years ago when i was looking. Most of that size used tractor are all the same. Many are made by mtd

If you want to compare ztr mowers between brands, just look at the transmissions and pick the level you want, with the features you like.

 

[cranbiz]

Don't buy anything from Lowes or HD when it comes to large lawn equipment like a mower. They're the cheaper mass produced models for major retailers. You'll have MUCH better luck getting something from a dealer. Take a look at the models when you drop by Lowes or HD next, then compare them to a dealership model. Much different.

About 5 years ago I bought a JD X350. I don't have a ton to mow, maybe a quarter of an acre. I sort of got it as a "future proof" mower so when I move into a bigger place I already have it. It's been great so far. I don't use it a ton so it's only got around 70 hours on it. The only thing I'd have done differently is get it with a bigger deck. Mine's a 42 but the 48 would have been better. A mulching system would have also been ideal. I still have that on my list of things to purchase but haven't gotten around to it.

Agreed.

The only reason I went with a 54" deck over a 60" deck was the 54" fits in my shed (barely), the 60" would not. I went from a 42" deck to a 50" deck and now the 54" deck. Each time my mowing time has gone down. Started at 4 hours, then to 3 hours and now 2.5 hours. You wouldn't think that 4" makes that big of a difference but it does. (That's what she said)

 

[thebrotherinlaw]

I bought a used Scag and kept it for 20 years. Awesome mower that never needed anything but regular maintenance. Bought a new one when Scag was offering zero percent. If your mow zone is relatively flat there’s nothing better.
We had some steep stuff at work and I bought a couple of the Cub Cadet zeros with the steering wheels and dual back tires. I thought they’d last a season and we’d scrap them but they turned out to be incredible and you can’t turn one over.

 

[R Q]

Found this while researching. Looks like I need to avoid Brigs motors.

Basically she's saying stay away from single cylinder Briggs.
I have a 2002 Exmark 60 ZT with a Kohler and also a 2018 48" Turf Tracer which is a walk behind Hydrostatic unit with a velke that I stand on, it has a Kawasaki.
The new motors are mass produced and quality on any of them isnt like it used to be. Keep your oil changed and ONLY use Kawasaki or Kohler oil, preferably Kawasaki. Keep the air filters changed because any restriction there will cause them to burn oil sooner, but they are all going to burn oil, it's the new norm.
Try to get a welded deck rather than stamped.
If you go the hybrid Commercial/homeowner mower (the $4-5000) units with a transaxle, they aren't as desirable as full hydrostatic commercial units but they will last better than the older ones.
Buy from a dealer that has a good rep for service.

 

[jeepinmatt]

If you have any roughness in your yard, get a Ferris with suspension. Feels like you’re cheating, makes it fun, and doesn’t spill your beer! I have a Ferris IS3200z with 72” deck and 35hp Kawasaki. I absolutely love it. I cut my 3/4 acre yard plus 2 more half acre yards for my neighbors, and I have it all done in less than an hour. My second favorite feature is the blades are about 1/4” thick so you can use it like a light bushhog, but my favorite feature is the floating deck. It moves with the suspension, so it does an amazing job of not scalping, better than 52” mowers that I’ve owned, which doesn’t even make sense. Well, maybe the suspension is my favorite feature. Or maybe it’s the 12mph top speed. Anyway, get a Ferris or Simplicity with suspension, and a big deck and engine.

 

[Noel]

If you have any roughness in your yard, get a Ferris with suspension. Feels like you’re cheating, makes it fun, and doesn’t spill your beer! I have a Ferris IS3200z with 72” deck and 35hp Kawasaki. I absolutely love it. I cut my 3/4 acre yard plus 2 more half acre yards for my neighbors, and I have it all done in less than an hour. My second favorite feature is the blades are about 1/4” thick so you can use it like a light bushhog, but my favorite feature is the floating deck. It moves with the suspension, so it does an amazing job of not scalping, better than 52” mowers that I’ve owned, which doesn’t even make sense. Well, maybe the suspension is my favorite feature. Or maybe it’s the 12mph top speed. Anyway, get a Ferris or Simplicity with suspension, and a big deck and engine.

Used a friend’s mower that had the coilovers on the seat and front suspension. It needed to be dialed in for my big ass. Hit a big bump, it loaded up and about sent me flying. But was definitely a comfortable ride.

 

[awheelterd]

Suspension is tits. My super frugal dad had a complete out of body experience and bought a top of the line exmark and holy crap that thing is amazing. I like my hustler but dang, after mowing a little with that exmark it made me want to throw rocks at mine. But then I remembered my mower cost half of what his did and I felt a little better.

 

[Croatan_Kid]

Agreed.

My 700 has the standard Ferris swingarm style rear suspension and a bogie front. Much better that a fully rigid mower. I eventually added the nice, suspension seat when the factory one wore out and it's like a whole new mower now. If I remember right, or unless they've changed something, you've got to get at least an IS-2000 to get the fully independent suspension on the front.

The only things I've really replaced are the battery (on my 3rd one), blades, 3 drive belts, a handful of deck belts, and the seat. I think one time I did pull the carb apart and clean it out. Other than that, just your normal services and greasing.

I buy airfilters and inline fuel filters on Amazon. Basically in bulk. Blades too, actually. I think the last ones I bought were 11 bucks a piece. Spark plugs got cross referenced to NGK V Powers and I buy a couple boxes on Rock Auto. Oil, filter, and hydrostat fluid are from Amsoil. I do get the hydrostat filters from the dealer. Oh, and as soon as I started seeing the tires leak a little and after the rears had a plug or two each, all the tires got filled with sealant. Belts are Oregon, I think. I run them til they break. I always keep at least one spare on hand, but they're common enough that I can go to either local mower joint and grab one whenever I need them.


As said above, find something with a motor, deck/spindles, and hydrostatic transmissions (or hyd pumps and motors) that you like. A suspension seat goes a long way too.

 

[No fries]

The only shop in town I refuse to buy from. Had a bad experience with them and they have a terrible reputation. There is a John Deere dealer one town over but I feel like JD is over priced and not what they use to be. the outdoor shop in Harstville I'd definitely buy from but I think they only have Kubota and Toro. Columbia is only about 45 min away and probably has anything I could want.

Not sure if you ever pulled the trigger but my boss is looking to sell his zero turn.
$6,800 for a commercial 52" exmark radius has 40 hours on it. Oil changed every year, not sure what year it is but I can find out. He paid over $9000
It is in Charlotte but I don't know if it would be worth the drive.

Shop "lost" it when he had the winter service done. Turned out they had parked it next to the new models and it was so clean they walked right by it assuming it was a new one they had never sold.

 

[ghost]

Not sure if you ever pulled the trigger but my boss is looking to sell his zero turn.
$6,800 for a commercial 52" exmark radius has 40 hours on it. Oil changed every year, not sure what year it is but I can find out. He paid over $9000
It is in Charlotte but I don't know if it would be worth the drive.

Shop "lost" it when he had the winter service done. Turned out they had parked it next to the new models and it was so clean they walked right by it assuming it was a new one they had never sold.

Not yet. I put a new belt on the Husqy but haven't had to use it yet. I'm hoping to get through this winter and put it off until spring. I did go look at the Bad Boy at TS and the Arien's at Lowe's. I'm planning on checking out the two places in Hartsville. One sells Dixie Chopper and the other sells Kubota and Toro. Appreciate the offer but I'm going to try and stick with something with a decent dealer relatively close if I can.

 

[No fries]

Not yet. I put a new belt on the Husqy but haven't had to use it yet. I'm hoping to get through this winter and put it off until spring. I did go look at the Bad Boy at TS and the Arien's at Lowe's. I'm planning on checking out the two places in Hartsville. One sells Dixie Chopper and the other sells Kubota and Toro. Appreciate the offer but I'm going to try and stick with something with a decent dealer relatively close if I can.

understood,

offer stands for other members too since @ghost passed on it.

 

[Hurley]

I bought a used Scag and kept it for 20 years. Awesome mower that never needed anything but regular maintenance. Bought a new one when Scag was offering zero percent. If your mow zone is relatively flat there’s nothing better.
We had some steep stuff at work and I bought a couple of the Cub Cadet zeros with the steering wheels and dual back tires. I thought they’d last a season and we’d scrap them but they turned out to be incredible and you can’t turn one over.
View attachment 426882

What's the story on that Super-Z? Dad's got one he's been running since the late 90's and one of the wheel motors died....of course with the cost of a replacement unit he went and got an Exmark but I've been trying to find either someone to buy his for parts or vice-versa.

 

[thebrotherinlaw]

View attachment 428276

What's the story on that Super-Z? Dad's got one he's been running since the late 90's and one of the wheel motors died....of course with the cost of a replacement unit he went and got an Exmark but I've been trying to find either someone to buy his for parts or vice-versa.

I gave mine to our rock mason. He wanted to start a mowing/landscape business so I gave it to him for the great job they did stacking rocks and mashing fingers.

 

[untchabl]

Bought a Spartan RT-Pro 54" on Tuesday. Has a 24hp Kawasaki. Should be able to mow the yard one time before putting it up for the winter. Great deals out there this time of year.

 

[ghost]

Nice! There is an add I keep hearing for a place that sells Bad Boy equipment. Unfortunately they are in Manning and over an hour away. When things dry out I'll be mowing the leaves to see how she does and make my decision.

 

[ckruzer]

Bought a Spartan RT-Pro 54" on Tuesday. Has a 24hp Kawasaki. Should be able to mow the yard one time before putting it up for the winter. Great deals out there this time of year.

View attachment 428468

i wish i had more flat yard to make use of something like that. its definitley more worthy of my beer hat

 

[Kickdeez]

I have a Hustler Raptor SD 60 that I bought used with like 50 hours on it for less than 1/2 of retail price. I have had it for 3ish years I think, and I like it for the price I paid. It's a solid unit with the kawasaki motor and a welded deck. My yard is just under 2 acres and it does fine. If I had more dollars to allocate towards a mower, I'd get something like a Ferris with a suspension. But I'm a poor, so I got what I got.

 

[Shreddinlettuce]

Anyone use a hydraulic walk behind with a sulky?

They’re zero turn and offered in 36 inch widths that would go better in the twisters. But only really commercial units available

 

[justjeepin86]

Anyone use a hydraulic walk behind with a sulky?

They’re zero turn and offered in 36 inch widths that would go better in the twisters. But only really commercial units available

Yes, they are sweet. I have only used a 52", but loved it. They climb like a billy goat.

Fwiw, I rarely used the sulky. I preferred to walk with it. But, if i was doing a large flat yard, I'd ride, for sure.

 

[R Q]

Anyone use a hydraulic walk behind with a sulky?

They’re zero turn and offered in 36 inch widths that would go better in the twisters. But only really commercial units available

I use a 48" Exmark hydrostat with a two wheel Velke as my main mower. It's the most maneuverable and easiest mower on the turf. Advantages of the Velke vs a sulky is that you can easily step off and walk hills and soft areas and then step back on for the regular mowing.

 

[Shreddinlettuce]

A zero turn is too wide for a lot of my yard and a tractor requires a lot of random paths to turn, but with 1.5 acres I want to ride something. I’m looking at a 36” toro hydrostatic 15 horse Kawi walk behind with sulky it’s expensive compared to a cheap zero, but at 125 a month for 4 years it’s cheaper than a yard guy and should last my lifetime, and a zero turn with non serviceable wheel motors is a timebomb. I’m basically paying for a nicer zero but getting a walk behind that’s more compact…

I plan to walk behind initially and get a silky later (Tori ones are $675, eBay specials $250)

Toro has $750 off their pro series and 3.9% for 4 years till February