Zero turn mower recommendation

One thing to note, they do all handle differently. Test drive all that you are interested. Our $9000 Kubota has better input control than the $6000 Dixie chopper.

trucke wrote: Most entry level commercial ZTR will suite your needs. Look for dealer support close by. I'm partial to Hustler. They have a patented parking brake that sets when you spread the steering arms. Saves lots of time. They also have the most responsive steering on the market. Mine has the Honda 20hp V-twin. Eleven (11) seasons and going strong.

This, we have a pair of Super Z 72" ones.....one side discharge and one rear discharge. Both are aircooled with a Kohler on one and a Kawasaki on the other. Much better built mower than the Dixie/JD/etc.

This is what I use, but with the optional grass catcher.

Front mount zero turns are better than mid mounts for hills and trimming under low hanging branches. They also offer better visibility. The down side is that they are longer/bigger.
But they also offer the advantage of doing this:

And adding these:

The best part is, they are one of the highest quality mowers on the market, and I bought mine with 500 residential hours on it for less than most new mid-mount zero turns without the grass catcher/cab/snow blower.

We had one of the bushhog front decks before......amusingly, they could use grasshopper attachments. It was slow, was large, and due to the length it got stuck frequently. When we got rid of it for the second super z, we just cut all of the low hanging branches off so we could mow under them.

I've used them all, and for me this one is the best I've ever used. I have hills, mud, trees, shrubs, etc.. and this is the only mower that can do them all well. It picks up wet grass, leaves, you name it. It doesn't kill my back like mid mounts, and while its top speed is slower than a mid mount, I couldn't actually cut my lawn any faster and straighter than the Ferris or Exmark mid mounts I demo'd just before buying this. They also weren't stable on my hills. And it clears snow from my 500 foot driveway as well. Not sure where you got bushhog from. BTW, every front mount I ever used that had a problem with getting stuck either wasn't set up properly or didn't have the necessary adjustments.

In reply to bravenrace:

BushHog made an almost carbon copy of the Grasshopper with heavier components.

More issues to consider.

Hustler Turf Equipment is very good at designing their machines for ease of maintenance. My Honda V-twin is mounted sideways. This allows the oil and filter discharge to drip straight to the ground. No spillage on the machine itself. The sideways mount means my mower has a 52" deck, but is only 69" long. The seat height is extremely low to get under branches and bushes and provide some stability on hills. Lifetime warranty on leading edge of deck - its a tank. The Fastrak is considered a residential model so it only goes 7 mph. Yamaha's Super Z's will do 15 mph and cut almost that fast.

When evaluating your choices also consider ease of maintenance, storage (will it fit in the garage with a car?), and availability of spare parts.

http://www.hustlerturf.com/

The very best mower I ever used was a Walker. The only reason I didn't buy one is that the cutting width with the grass collection system is 48", and I needed something wider than that.

I second Hulstler. It's in the details. Better pumps, stainless hard lines for the hydraulics, etc.

If you want to save a few bucks look at Big Dog mowers. Built by hustler. Same frames, same pumps, etc,etc. The difference is in the deck design and the seat. Same quality without paying for the name

unk577 wrote: I second Hulstler. It's in the details. Better pumps, stainless hard lines for the hydraulics, etc.

Hustler uses Hydro-Gear, Parker and Kanzaki pumps and motors, just like everyone else, although now most have went to the integrated pump and motor setup instead of the sepearate pieces due to cost and assembly time.

The transaxles are really what makes or breaks these units, and it is what few people look at.

Oh yeah, I almost forgot, Simplicity is also a great brand.

Walker builds and impressive product. The best mower I have used is a Stiga, but it was a European model and isn't available for sale in the states. Articulated in the middle with a front Deck. Perfect for smaller yards and not one like yours, but it cut the yard like a putting green.

Picture of the land train the boys built with me driving.

In reply to trucke:

Yep, the newest one is a bit faster than the old one(pretty sure its an HD model) They'll both mow almost as fast as you can stay in the seat and do a good job.

Flight Service wrote:

unk577 wrote: I second Hulstler. It's in the details. Better pumps, stainless hard lines for the hydraulics, etc.

Hustler uses Hydro-Gear, Parker and Kanzaki pumps and motors, just like everyone else, although now most have went to the integrated pump and motor setup instead of the sepearate pieces due to cost and assembly time. The transaxles are really what makes or breaks these units, and it is what few people look at.

Except me. I've been looking the the hydros on these things and the cheap HD/lowes uses a ZTR transaxle w/o a filter. The better units use the ZT3100 or the ZT3400 transaxles with filters but I'd like to know the life expectancy of the 3100 compared to the 3400. Of course you could go to the separate pump and motor but that's big bucks and I think overkill for 3 acres.

All 3 of our ZTRs, including a consumer model Toro has a higher travel speed than will allow for a decent cut. Bahia grass almost always requires a second pass, since that stuff is like baby bamboo.

The 2 garden tractors that we only use for brush clearing don't have high travel speeds, so you can floor those and still end up with a nice cut.

rustybugkiller wrote:

Flight Service wrote:

unk577 wrote: I second Hulstler. It's in the details. Better pumps, stainless hard lines for the hydraulics, etc.

Hustler uses Hydro-Gear, Parker and Kanzaki pumps and motors, just like everyone else, although now most have went to the integrated pump and motor setup instead of the sepearate pieces due to cost and assembly time. The transaxles are really what makes or breaks these units, and it is what few people look at.

Except me. I've been looking the the hydros on these things and the cheap HD/lowes uses a ZTR transaxle w/o a filter. The better units use the ZT3100 or the ZT3400 transaxles with filters but I'd like to know the life expectancy of the 3100 compared to the 3400. Of course you could go to the separate pump and motor but that's big bucks and I think overkill for 3 acres.

Yeah the filters are reserved for the commercial units these days. There are some models (it's been two years forgive me) that the filter is an option that can be cut into casting and a bolt on part. The design life is calculated with the weight of the unit and the tire diameter, (small tires are better). ZT-2800®/ZT-3100™/ZT-3400™ Integrated Zero-Turn Transaxle Service and Repair Manual This might help.

Those look like 1000 hour units.

Derick Freese wrote: All 3 of our ZTRs, including a consumer model Toro has a higher travel speed than will allow for a decent cut. Bahia grass almost always requires a second pass, since that stuff is like baby bamboo. The 2 garden tractors that we only use for brush clearing don't have high travel speeds, so you can floor those and still end up with a nice cut.

Exactly. Unless you do a lot of travelling while not mowing, its not the ground speed that matters, its the blade speed, the speed that you can mow and the cut quality that matters most. My Grasshopper gets criticized because it's not as fast as some mid-mounts, but I've found that I can cut my lawn just as fast with it as I can all the mid-mounts I have owned and most recently demo'd.

bil_jack1 wrote: Best Zero-turn Mowers for home/garden/lawn purpose, visit -http://thetagtech.com/best-zero-turn-mower-reviews/

bravenrace wrote: The very best mower I ever used was a Walker. The only reason I didn't buy one is that the cutting width with the grass collection system is 48", and I needed something wider than that.

I second the walker. I was supprised it took that many posts for it to be named. If you don't need the grass colection feature, there are wider decks with side discharge, or at least there was back in the early 90s.

I bought a Toro timecutter. It was junk. I returned it a year later for a full refund. It was that bad. I now have a husquvarna. It seemed to be pretty good for a residential grade mower but it has been back to the shop twice for warranty work and it now has a dead short somewhere. And this is the third time I have had to try and get a dead ZTR on a trailer. Believe me it is no fun.

My dad on the other hand has a commercial grade exmark. He has used it to cut two to three acres every week for about five years now. It is completely trouble free. That one replaced a residential John Deere that he sold for parts after two summers.

I guess my message is go commercial if you can afford it. Residential mowers are not designed for large acreages.

For 10 years I, or rather my wife, use a John Deere to handle our 3 acres and that includes some pretty steep hills and precise handling around pond edges with big drop offs into the water.

I say my wife because I hardly ever get to drive it. It's so much fun that it's become here autocross type toy. I do get to change blades, oil, etc.

But with that said she has twice just jumped out and switched out blades when she's hit something she shouldn't have so maintenance is easy.

The only issue I have seen is the battery. It's under the seat, as are many, and that makes changing it or charging it a little bit of a bother. Also I haven't found a way to squeeze a small automotive battery in there so all I can buy are lawn mower batteries which only come with a 6 month warranty.

You have to make a trailer hitch attachment to be able to pull a trailer with a zero turn whereas the tractor type come with one. I'm guessing it's because they can turn so much sharply than the tractor types.

Our mowing time went to about 1/3 of what it took with the tractor type and the maintenance has been significantly less. We sold the Craftsman tractor type and a a big orange, I forget the brand, zero turn that we inherited because the John Deere was just so much easier to maintain & use.

Kubota ZD1200-60

The fastest cutting, most durable, mower I've ever run. The one my parents use, cuts 12 acres every week during the spring and fall wedding season, and every other week in the rest of the summer summer.

It is 5 years old and hasn't needed anything other than blades and oil changes.

They are not cheap.

Have you looked at a Ferris? We cut 42 acres every week March through October. Before getting the Ferris we used a Scag. The scag took 19 hours to cut the grass. The Ferris cut that time down to 12 hours. Both are 72" cut. The Ferris has 4 wheel independent suspension the Scag does not. The operator gets off the Ferris and can walk away from it without feeling like you've been beat with a 2x4. The Ferris is a commercial unit and Scag is also.

Zombie thread guys

Yay Zombies!

In reply to Flight Service:

Yup. Thanks to some guy slinging canoes....