Zero turn advice

I must have gotten lucky. Im fully aware that it might take a full dump on me at any moment though. I havent given any thought about what i would replace it with.
 
I have done quite a bit of training at husqvarna for all the engineers and seen all their RanD, it is a very nice product! !!!! And very easy to get parts and attachments for. But you have to buy from a dealer! The ones at Lowe's are not the same! Make sure it has a orange deck and not gray! As said above the zero turn will get the job done faster but you can't relax and drink a beer!! Also the dealer alot of time has a special going were if you buy the mower you get a chain saw free!!!
 
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Pics just because this is what a zero turn is for lol #teamscag
 
rockcity said:
Was going to recommend a Gravely but you picked up a good machine.

I went to purchase a Gravely years ago (2007) and ended up with an Ariens. It's a decent middle of the road machine. Bigger and faster than the Gravely of the same price but not quite as nice. Being said, it will last my lifetime but wish I had bought the Gravely
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They're made in the same plant.

shawn said:
Bull. That is fucking nonsense.

In 1990, my parents paid $1600 for a Montgomery Ward brand (MTD) lawn mower. 18hp B&S motor, 7 speeds, whatever. It was basically identical to a bunch of other MTDs made in the same period, just painted a different color. It lasted about 3 years before the front axle pivot broke. Kept driving it. Lasted another year or two before the rear axle broke in two.

$1600 today is a hell of a lot less than $1600 in 1990 dollars, and buys you an actual John Deere brand ("not a real John Deere") at Lowes with a 3-4 year warranty.

$2500 at Sears gets you a Craftsman with remote keyless entry that drains the battery dead in a week's time.
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The John Deere mowers you see at Lowe's and Home Depot ARE actual Deere products. That's just their entry-level stuff. By the way, if you're going to buy a JD, run far, far away from the D105. The transmission is plastic. Seriously, the entire housing and drive pulleys are plastic.
 
maulcruiser said:
The John Deere mowers you see at Lowe's and Home Depot ARE actual Deere products. That's just their entry-level stuff. By the way, if you're going to buy a JD, run far, far away from the D105. The transmission is plastic. Seriously, the entire housing and drive pulleys are plastic.
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Oh yeah, I know they're Deeres. They're made by JD, but people say they aren't "real" Deeres.

I will say that, after specing them out, I found that you could get a mower with nominally better components from somebody else for a lower price. The L series motors look a whole, whole, whole lot like badge-engineered B&S motors, too.
 
^ True. I used to work for a dealer selling them, and I could see the differences, but to me they were pretty much the same. How's the service out of yours? We had only sold a handful of them and I left the dealer before I ever saw them again.

shawn said:
Oh yeah, I know they're Deeres. They're made by JD, but people say they aren't "real" Deeres.

I will say that, after specing them out, I found that you could get a mower with nominally better components from somebody else for a lower price. The L series motors look a whole, whole, whole lot like badge-engineered B&S motors, too.
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Yes, John Deere has their own special way of making life miserable for non-Deere dealers. I work for Deere now, and it's even frustrating to me and I can get any part I want. Deere puts their own specs on motors and transmissions which means they change just enough to make it their own aggravating crap.
 
I haven't put any $ into mine in 7 years other than cost of gas. It is due for a service. The size of my yard... I only log about an hour each cut. That ends up being about a total of 35-40 hours logged each year; I'm barely at 300 hours after 7 years. For a $6000 commercial machine, that's like 5 months of regular commercial use. It should last a lifetime for me. :)
 
That is a good looking lawn!
 
Those old JDs seem to go forever!

I used to have an old '86 Snapper that I couldn't kill. Parents bought it new and I abused it as a kid and we logged about 10-15hrs a week on it between parent's yard and their rental property. The engine finally went out but the rest was still pretty decent. A buddy of mine puta new engine on it and it's still going strong!
 
rockcity said:
Those old JDs seem to go forever!

I used to have an old '86 Snapper that I couldn't kill. Parents bought it new and I abused it as a kid and we logged about 10-15hrs a week on it between parent's yard and their rental property. The engine finally went out but the rest was still pretty decent. A buddy of mine puta new engine on it and it's still going strong!
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I will never get rid of this mower, its a real john deere, not one of these plastic pieces of shit you see now days
 
snappy said:
Bought a hustler this morning 42" deck.
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My dad has a Hustler for about 5 years that he uses 3-4 days/week. He is super hard on stuff and not the best at maintenance, and it has held up well with limited issues. Biggest thing I suggest, checking/adjusting the valves atleast once per year.

I still think a used Farris is the way to go.

I bought a $100 80s model craftsman with a new engine, used it for 3 years with little issue other than speed. Now I just use my dad ztr every other week. Top off the fuel tank, and help him with yearly maintenance and he's happy.

I have seriously thought about a belly/front mount mower for my atv though.
 
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guffey24 said:
you guys do what you want, I will keep my $300, 88 john deere 160 and keep doing this, its really all about the grass :)
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Any input into how to grow grass like that?
 
drkelly said:
Option number 1 sounds wrong. I would be pissed if I paid $1,500 for a riding mower and it was junk after 4 years. I'm starting my 10th year with my used $800 Craftsman riding mower and I've invested less than $100 in maintenance over those 9 years. It took me 1.5 hrs to cut the grass at my old house, and a little less at my new house. I'm hard on it too pulling an aerator with 200lbs of block every fall, and pulling a yard trailer full of heavy stuff frequently too.
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Ditto on the craftsman. ..20hp/46", hand driven hydro.


bought mine new 8 years ago for 800. Zero maintenance, same blades-sharpened once a year, i have never changed oil, keep the battery on trickle charger all winter, starting year 9 now. ..btw, four-5 gallon gas cans last me all season, I get 3+ mowing sessions out of one jug.

Less than $200 a year with fuel! Had a friend mow my yard weekly for previous 8 years, $40 a week, April to Oct, $1000 a year roughly. takes me 40 minutes to mow weekly, weedeat every other week. It's a no brainer for me.

Let me also say I am very meticulous about vehicle service. This was a long term experiment to see what would happen. I believe I'll do it the same way when this one blows up.
 
I've got an early 2000's model JD Ztrac with a collection system. It's a 54" deck, separate PTO system for the blower drive on the collection system, huge plastic box on the back that you don't have to get off the mower to dump. I only use the collection set up in leaf season. I can make a pass over the yard completely covered with leaves and it looks like you walked a hoover across it.The collection system is removable in about 10 minutes . I've often told my wife the mower is one of the most time saving badass things I own.
 
I took a completely different tact when i got married. Yard is 1.5 acres plus other spots which would take about 2 hours on a 48", more for trimming/blowing. Yard is mowed about 20-22 times per year average.

Cost of my time $50/hr - $1000/yr
Mower - $5000 or $500-1000/yr for 5-10 years

So i know that i am going to be out $1500-2000 per year and that is just my time and the mower expense. I have a buddy that does a better job than i would for $50/mow including trimming/blowing off/ect.

Buying a new mower and me mowing was going to cost me double than having someone else do it. I have mowed all my life, change my own oil, ect so i am capable and even modded my mower with TWO cupholders! But I have yet to miss a single fishing/hunting trip or anything else i wanted to do that yard work would kill.

He bushhogs 6 acres for $100 too. That has prevented me from buying a tractor as well. Not sad.
 
Ron said:
Any input into how to grow grass like that?
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Its really not that hard to grow a nice lawn, first you need to know what your growing in, I see alot of new subdivisons that have terrible grass and always will for several reasons, the grading companys come in a remove all the top soil and leaves the homeowner trying to grow grass in hard pan, it doesnt work

I can help anybody that wants to grow a nice lawn

1. Send a soil sample to Nc State for testing, I want to know what we are working with below ground it makes all the difference in what happens above ground, optimum soil ph is between 6.0-6.5, I see alot of ph's around 5.0, if your ph is low like this you can throw whatever you want at the lawn and it will never respond, I will be more than happy to look at a soil report and make recommendations

2. start taking measures to ammend your soil if everything is out of wack
3. know your square footage of turf

4. use good professional products, dont waste money at these big box stores, they sell garbage in a bag, that includes the seed that you buy. In most cases you will spend less or the same for professional products, I ship stuff allover nc and sc, and tn, (right Mike)

5. follow a program, it is easy, timing is the key, if it says put it this out on June 1, do it as close to June 1 as possible. I will be more than happy to write programs that fit your needs

pm me if your interested
 
I have an IS700 Ferris and my buddy has an IS2000. Awesome machines and they don't beat you to death. Mine, being newer has hydrostatic gear boxes vs his older pump/motor setup. Both work very well, mine is just smoother and more refined. I opted for the 28hp Briggs Commercial Pro, he has a 27hp Kohler. His definitely has more torque. Both are 52" cut and have been fairly easy to maintain. Glad I bought it, for sure! 6000 might seem like a lot for a lawnmower, but it'll be the last one I ever buy.

Not sure if I posted in this thread yet. If I did...oh well :D
 
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