Weapons of grass reduction

I am looking for a riding mower for our roughly 1.1 but eventually up to 3 acre yard.

I'm also looking to spend less than 1 Challenge Car Equivalent in money.

With a warranty.

Preferably a 3-5 year warranty.

What does the hive suggest?

I am looking for a used zero turn and none of them seem to be well taken care of and under $2k. We have 3 acres, less the house, to mow too and I am not sure my craftsman rider is up to the task.

It's not. Mine fell apart at the seams after a season and a half.

I have an aquantance that may be able to get me 40% an Ariens zero turn. Any opinions on those?

I got a 1 year old mtd for $400 and have been using it for 7 years with no maintenance beyond a new deck belt and new blades once because the yard is all roots. I'd have paid the 1200 for it new if i knew it would last this long in my treacherous yard

$10 a week for the kid next door to do it.

An RX-8 with a 3 blade mower deck?

We went Dixie in 2008. They had 0% for 36 months and the 50"/24hp kohler critters were going for $5k. I'd do it all again. Mowing time went from 3-4 hours to 90 minutes. Multiply that by the 30 times a year I must mow and gave me my life back!

Since a ZTR is out of the budget, look for a slightly used walk behind. A 48 inch Scag, Exmark, or Toro walk behind will eat that size yard up in short order.

Qualification. I mowed grass professionally for several years and used both walk behinds and ZTRs.

RC helicopter that can fly upside down?

less trimmed lawn and more wild space. Leaves more time for projects. I hate yard work.

Herd of goats?

Brian wrote: $10 a week for the kid next door to do it.

You win the smart contest.

3 acres and less than $2k don't go together new or well kept used. I spent $5k on my mower used and am happy with it. I would not go smaller. John Deere 777 72" deck. Dixie would be good. Commercial brands are serviceable and reliable.

I'm just going to echo what dculberson said. I too spent ~$5k on a used commercial mower. Liquid cooled engines last longer. Hydraulics are higher quality. The frames are often much sturdier. The decks cut better for longer. They tend to be more serviceable too.

NOHOME wrote:

Brian wrote: $10 a week for the kid next door to do it.

You win the smart contest.

The hard part is finding that kid. And finding one that will mow for $10 a week. That's so 5 years ago cost. Maybe more. The few I've run across will do it for twice that.

In reply to QuasiMofo:

I'll trade you my Dixie Chopper for your latest Challenge car.

You have to deliver it though, but you're welcome to bring your SWMBO spend a day or 2 enjoying the beaches/seafood/casino/etc.

wlkelley3 wrote:

NOHOME wrote:

Brian wrote: $10 a week for the kid next door to do it.

You win the smart contest.

The hard part is finding that kid. And finding one that will mow for $10 a week. That's so 5 years ago cost. Maybe more. The few I've run across will do it for twice that.

Eh, the sq/ft of my yard is about the same as the house, so not much. Still cheaper than buying a cheap push mower.

STM317 wrote: I'm just going to echo what dculberson said. I too spent ~$5k on a used commercial mower. Liquid cooled engines last longer. Hydraulics are higher quality. The frames are often much sturdier. The decks cut better for longer. They tend to be more serviceable too.

Dad did the same thing 9 years ago. He did have to put an engine in it, but all in he is still under $6k and has a mower that can take a beating and keep going. Hell his (and mine) are still air cooled. His had about 11k hours on the engine when it lost enough compression it wouldn't restart warm. It was a 10 year old used Dixie commercial 60".

This thread reminds me... time to change the gear box fluids and filters this year again.

You don't mow a go-kart track, you just ride the go-karts more to keep the grass down.

Every time I wish I would've moved to the country instead of the beach I remember how much work 3 acres of grass entails and then I am glad that I can mow and edge my entire lawn in way less than an hour with only cheap battery powered tools.

First

Warranty requires new and for what you want to mow, there isn't a new unit available in your price range. (I am making the assumption that the price is the sticking point and least moveable variable)

Your transmission/transaxle/hydro set up is what is going to be life limiting factor. Most units you are looking at in your price range is limited to 100 hours of peak life and the new transmissions in that price range are not really rebuildable.

So you want a commercial or an older garden tractor.

I found 2003 John Deere 717 zero turn mower and John Deere LX255 in your general area. The transaxle in the Lx255 is a BEAST! Super BEAST!. (as in I towed a MasterCraft XStar boat up a hill with a Fat Sack full of water beast)

I would recommend those over anything of a similar price new.

Every spring I figure the old bottom-end John Deere lawn tractor that I bought new in 2003 is going to bite the dust. Every year it soldiers on and it refuses to die. It never even gives me any trouble. I had to replace all the fuel lines, make one repair involving welding a bracket back onto the deck, replace a ball joint in the steering arm, put a set of new blades on it, and put a battery in it. I think the battery is dead again. Darn. It's been great.

I spent $900 on JD LT155 about six years ago, it's needed one connector replaced, oil, filters, and a battery or two since then. Even better, it was from a local JD dealer, so no Craiglist nonsense. They even delivered it.

I'm happy with my late-model Snapper Rear-engine Rider (think Forrest Gump) for its cheapness, simplicity, and reliability, but with only a 28" single deck it makes a long job out of 0.8 acres of bumpy mole-infested grass.

Actually got it for free because "the engine needed rebuilt". So replaced the obviously corroded fuel line, took apart and soaked the carb in mineral spirits overnight, and it fired right up drinking from the garage's mystery container of old gas. I just de-winterized it last night, which only involved filling the tank with more mystery gas and changing the oil. Fired right up, of course. This thing will outlive me.