I need a new lawn mower

[pastorp]

Good morning to all you GBO brothers,

We moved last fall back to our home state of Florida. And the grass is starting to grow here. I haven't needed a lawn mower in years but I do now. Problem is with all this made in china stuff and the high prices its hard to sort through all that's available in today's market.

I have 2 acres that I need to mow. A pool that I don't want grass clippings in. And I've put in a lot of trees and shrubs I'll half to go around. Any ideas what might work for me?

Thanks,

[Empty Quiver]

Zero turn mowers are very hard to beat. Hills can be a problem though, especially if the grass is wet. If you are thinking a bagger is a necessity I can't help you there, I never met one I liked.


To be honest I would be more concerned with the dealer than a specific brand.

[pastorp]

Yeah I think a bagger would be a plus and I'm handicapped so I have some mobility issues. 


So I would need a rider. My handicap is more a distance thing and some balance issues. I was looking at the zero turn models of johnsered, JD, and a couple others at lowes. But I don't know how repair support is handled.

The other option is hire a lawn service but I don't like people I don't know poking around my place planning a home invasion or worse.

[fatercat]

john deere

[Empty Quiver]

Of course you wouldn't expect troubles right away. Parts availability, as well as accessibility and things like picking the thing up for service are things you might not appreciate till needed.


I think most quality machines are dependable. Just a Ford Chevy thing. Zero turns are much faster, and fairly compact. I always liked front mounts, but for a homeowner it might be a bit much.


Toro makes good products, JD, Woods, Dixon, I have little faith in Cub Cadet these days.

[Ranger99]

it's hard to recommend any specifics.
i just had to buy a new-to-me used
push mower to replace the one stolen
this last year. got a good deal from knowing
what to look for.
i would say whatever you get, if there are any belts,
get one each replacement belts, any filters,
one each, etc. so you know you'll have one
when you get ready to p.m.   you'd do well
to have one each replacement blades on
hand also.
i'm having the devil right now trying to find
some parts local for a couple of things i'm
working on.  don't forget the cost of replacement
tires. i need one now that is about what a
cheap tire for my truck costs. check around
on prices and you'll see what i mean.


good luck

[Larry L]

You probably wouldn't live long enough to wear out a Gravely Zero Turn. The cheapest model they have is the ZT model. If looking at one, the Kawasaki engine is the one to own. Cost is going to be around $2600.00. They have larger models but the price gets larger too.
http://www.gravely.com/en-us/zero-turn-mowers/gravely-zt/Pages/default.aspx


If looking at a JD, check out all of the plastic parts, they seem to be an issue for some users.

[pastorp]

As a update on the mower thing. I have followed up on the gravely suggestion. Thanks Larry L. I remember a uncle that had a egg farm when I was a kid. He used a gravely mower all his life and never wore it out.

I'm going to look into the gravely. One question though. Online it mentions two different motors offered a gravely motor & a Subaru motor. Who really makes those motors ?

Thanks for the help.

[Old Syko]

Take a look at the guys in your area that make a living from their mowers and see what brand they are using.  Now, not the fly by night guys that are doing the one man band thing but the guys that are in it for the long haul.  No matter what you get you don't want a stamped steel deck since the deck is the life of the mower in a lot of cases.  Look for something with an assembled deck of at least 11 gauge steel or better.  You'll not do better than a Kawasaki engine but you already know my feelings there.      Let us know what you get and hopefully it won't be JD or CC.   

[hunt-m-up]

A lot are running Grasshoppers around here with some Gravelys mixed in too.

[Oldshooter]

OK my humble opinion is Dont get one from a big box store. youll have to find a local shop to fix it and for parts anyway, pay a little more and get a good one from a dealer. all above will do, especially the gravelys, I personally like the Bad Boy line. a few more dollars but well built and solid

[bobg]

     What is wrong with the Cub Cadet?  This will be the 8th year i have run my 42" zero turn. So far had to replace the belts once. One deck wheel and the two cables that raise and lower the deck.
      The biggest piece of junk i ever had was a JD. Constant problems. The final straw was when the ignition switch went. A guy i was working with said he would give me $500 for it. Sold it in a heart beat. The best mower i had was a Yard Pro from Central Tractor. Mowed 8 acres with it for 15 years. Spent $250 on it in the 15 years i owned it. Still running great when i moved and no longer needed it. Got $600 for it. Guess you can get good or bad in anything you buy.

[hunt-m-up]

OK my humble opinion is Dont get one from a big box store. youll have to find a local shop to fix it and for parts anyway, pay a little more and get a good one from a dealer. all above will do, especially the gravelys, I personally like the Bad Boy line. a few more dollars but well built and solid

+1, The box store will be worthless when it comes to parts and service.

[Oldshooter]

More ranting on Box store stuff......I know the pwer tools you get there are special made for them to sell cheaper(past experience). The JD mowers you find at one are prolly the same.

[JonnyReb]

 When i was a kid i used an ancient Gravely ride behind to mow my neighbors catfish farm, that mower had to be made in the 50's, and in the 80's still worked great, although it was a dangerous contraption.

 We mow about 5 acres and over the years have worn out 3 or 4 big box store mowers. We bought a Bobcat zero turn and 4\5 years later its still going strong, i really do think its worth the money for the commercial mowers if longterm reliability is important.

  Just want to add that my 90' 12horse JD 5spd was excellent, its 2000 replacement with hydrodrive didn't last 3 years:(

[pastorp]

Well I looked online, at the box stores, & finally went to a local dealer in a small town close to where I live. After poking around the shop a little and the owner showing me what he had I bought a snapper zero turn model with a 42" cut.

He had carried this mower over from last fall so he reduced the price by about $700. It's well made or seems so. And for what I want to do I believe it will work just fine. We have 2 acres fenced but the area around the house is about 3/4 acre. I leave the gate open and the cows mow the rest. But the wife don't want the cows in the yard so I bought the mower. 

Anyway I'm happy so far.

[Oldshooter]

But the wife don't want the cows in the yard so I bought the mower.

 
WELL maybe the cows in the yard is not as big a problem as what the cows leave in the yard!      
 
That Snapper  sounds like it will do you a good job. 

[pastorp]

Your exactly right oldshooter, it's the deposits. Funny thing I get my fertilizer free but half to go in the pasture to shovel it up. If the gate was open I wouldn't have far to go. But she's afraid she might step in it. 

Easier to just go along.

[Oldshooter]

Yep, when mama aint happy...............

[Bugflipper]

Today mtd makes most of the brands that sell at the box stores. Just take your pick, none will last as long as the old mowers did. I went with yardman agout 5 years ago. The first year no problems. The second $200 in parts and 4 or 5 days wasted. The next few years were the same. I gave up throwing money into it the last year. It was going to be $450 in parts plus a couple of days time of labor. It died a month before mowing was done. It only had 93 hours of use on it. I bought an 80's model john deere with a blown motor for $125 and stuck the kohler in it. Not an issue out of the 30 year old mower. Had to trim the hood a bit for the big motor to fit but everything else buttoned up well and it cuts and drives like a champ.
I also got a used compact utility john deere tractor with a pull behind pto finish mower. Couldn't see getting a zero turn and it only doing one thing. The JD was $2200, so pretty close in price and only had 800 hours on it. Found a box blade, boom pole and cultivator on craigslist. What took 4 hours to mow with the yardman (if it didn't break) now takes 30 minutes. The little mower takes care of the tight stuff. The small tractor will do it, but have to have an exscuse to use the little mower. The tractor will also load/unload heavy things from the truck, work the garden, resurface the driveway and landscape the yard. It's easier for doing small chores than getting out one of the big tractors. The little diesel engine doesn't bog in thick grass like a gas motor so you can mow a whole lot faster. The power steering and hydrostatic transmission makes it easy for mowing.

[pastorp]

Just a update on my new mower.  last week I decided to cut the grass. Just the acre or so inside the horse fence.

Boy howdy does this zero turn mower cut. Zipped through it in about a hour, there is a learning curve on steering this thing, does a nice job. And has plenty of power with the 22 hp pro motor. I managed to keep it out of the pool, but just barely. 

Report later after I use it more.

[Ranger99]

glad to hear it worked out.
you may still want to get filters, spare blades,
etc. before you get to the point you need them
and can't find them while the grass is steadily
shooting upward.


good luck with it