Garden Tractor Or Zero Turn ?

[joe white]

Ferris zero turn for me too. Fast, responsive and comfortable with the four wheel independent suspension. They're expensive but all of the commercial mowers are and if you mow large areas they are worth it.

[Murphy Slaw]

It's under 3 acres, gawd those commercial zero turn's get expensive quick!

[KevWind]

Originally Posted by Murphy Slaw

It's under 3 acres, gawd those commercial zero turn's get expensive quick!

Indeed. We had a Walker and you would think it was a BMW

[Gitfiddlemann]

Originally Posted by Murphy Slaw

It's under 3 acres, gawd those commercial zero turn's get expensive quick!

The commercials one do for sure, but I don't think they are necessary just for relatively smaller acreage residential use.
The residential ones come with excellent engines. Mine is a Briggs & Stratton, others with Kawasaki. The decks and wheel assemblies are also solid.
As long as the brand is a reliable one, and you take good care of them, I don't think you need to go commercial, unless you're in the mowing business and doing it every day.

[Murphy Slaw]

What's the longevity of those 1800 / EZT non-serviceable hydraulic transmissions?

[MacDude62]

Honestly, the jump in price you've noticed is real across the board. I took the plunge on a zero turn a couple of years back for my 2-acre plot, and I haven't looked back. The time saved and the ease of maneuvering around obstacles like trees and landscaping features made it worth it for me. Plus, the efficiency on fuel and the reduced wear on the lawn were bonuses.

Given your situation with a hunting property that sounds like it has its fair share of varied terrain, a zero turn could offer that agility and speed to keep things neat without eating up your day. If cost is a major factor, it might be worth looking into some used options or last year's models to get the price down. For anyone looking to stretch their dollar further, you can find here cheap tractors and equipment. Sometimes you stumble upon a deal that strikes the perfect balance between cost and functionality.

[LiveMusic]

I mow 1.2 acre and 1.6 acre tracts. I recommend zero-turn for sure, is very fast. I am partial to eXmark and I have looked at a bunch of them over the years out of curiosity. I have a Quest series, I think it is 50 inch. It is 10 years old now and going. I mostly have been able to work on it myself. The hydraulic transmissions or whatever they are called have not failed. I highly recommend the Kawasaki engine. I think FR691v is what I have and I've never had to work on it and it always cranks write up and countless fans like me. Last I looked, about six months ago, this mower was still 'only' $3800 and my dealer is not cheap. May have gone up for this season, don't know. This is the lower tier of eXmark, the tier above, it jumps up good in price. Better mower, yes, but I've done ok with the Quest.

If one were to want serviceable hydraulic transmissions, I think you will have to go to the mid to upper tier of mowers and you're looking at probably five to six grand and more. If I were buying, that's what I'd buy, but if I didn't want to spend that much, I would stick with eXmark Quest. But, part of that loyalty comes from the fact that I know how to work on it after the past ten years.

Also, for sure, if you buy any brand sold at big box stores, I recommend buying from a small dealer, not the big box.

Kawasaki engines are in many brands.

The Toro is pretty much the same mower as eXmark, I am told. Like, parts interchange.

[imwjl]

Originally Posted by Murphy Slaw

I've avoided zero turn mowers because of the price. I have a hunting property that has a few acres to mow, the easement, a small yard area around the cabin and then about an acre around a small pond.

I'd always get about 7/8 years out of a 46" 20/22 HP garden type mower.

The first one, when I bought the land in 1999 cost $750.
The second one, around 2007 was about $1200.
The 3rd one, around 2015 was about $1500.

Those puppys are NOW $2500 and up.

I might go with a zero turn this year and try to get 10/12 years out of it, looks like it can be done for around $3500 with a Hustler or Bad Boy.

Any opinions?

Between the ski area and 16 rec trail areas we (our parent group) goes through all sorts of machines fast. Add a shooting range too. The only way we get any good life for any sort is get first tier and more repairable products.

Hunting? Mow a lot less. It helps the watersheds too.

Another good tool is we own some big self-powered walk behind brush hog types. They last longer than the sit on machines, handle stuff that challenges those machines, and for me another bonus. They've helped me reach the 6th decade in decent shape.

We also get machine brands where there are good repair and parts agents near the properties.

For machine costs and the habitat and quality stuff, we've also considered and done having someone else do the work up to a few times a year. Those incremental costs get near machine ownership without any of the headaches, maintenance and what we consider dumb/bad/unproductive labor. We've cut ownership costs and labor spent same time we got more time for fun stuff.

[The Bard Rocks]

Originally Posted by KevWind

When we had are 17 acres at our old place I had both, and agree for mowing overall I think a zero turn is a better machine, than a small garden tractor Yes they are more money but I think they are more efficient .
That said neither of the ones I had,, were particularly good in uneven terrain (they would both either scarf any sharp transition point OR they would get stuck)

Now days I only do heavy duty large areas and I use a 7' high flow hydraulic rotary dual blade brush hog on a skid steer. I used to have a PTO style on a tractor but the front mounted rotary on the skid steer is much more maneuverable and quicker. I can do most of the 70-80 acres of pasture that we mow in about 4 hours

Man, you really fly! When I was farming, cutting hay with a discbine (about the only machine that will cut as fast as you can stay in the seat), I could not cut accurately at 10mph, and settled upon a travel speed of 7mph as the fastest and best for me. Most other farmers then were cutting below 5mph.

OK, you are cutting 7' at a time with your rig. It's very hard to cut exactly the full width of your machine, but let's say that you are a much better operator than I am and you do. My math shows you must be flying around at ~20mph to whack off 70 acres in 7' strips in that time. Hardly any older tractor will even go that fast on the road, though many newer ones can - on the road. And this figure doesn't allow for slowing down on the turns either. You sure there wasn't an extra zero added to the acreage you cut, or perhaps one subtracted from the hours you spend at it?

Now, back to the original question. I've used all kinds of lawn mowers over the years and today operate 2 zero-turns, both at 48" cut and of semi-professional quality. I love them. It is like comparing a sports car to a VW bug. Both can be fun, but one is a lot more so and sure gets there quicker.

If your lawn is rough, steep, or very uneven, you lose some of the zero turn's advantage, though not all of it. If you need to tow implements, the garden tractor might be best as it can do many things besides cut grass. The zero turn really does one thing only, but does it very very well. I guess I'd figure how much time I'd save with the zero turn and how much money it would cost me to save it - and then do my own math.

[llew]

I have a friend who works the commercial got division for a John Deere dealership. He kept an eye open for a used ZTR coming off of a landscape maintenance lease with low hours and it good condition. I've had two now. So much better than the $999 (Back in the late 90's) to $1500 basic riding mowers I used to tear up on a regular basis. I have about 3 and a half acres in the swamp off of The Great Pee Dee River and a little over two acres is cleared and growing grass. Exposed roots and cypress knees everywhere. A residential mower's nightmare!
Yeah...they are expensive but they last. Cut my mowing time almost in half. Good luck with whatever you decide!

[Murphy Slaw]

Originally Posted by llew

Good luck with whatever you decide!

This thread is from last year.

Ironically, I kicked that can down the road for the whole mowing season, and it's going to be an issue again, and now those 46-48 inch cut, twin powered garden tractors are over $3000.00.

I'm sure glad we have inflation under control.....

[joe white]

Is that all??? I'm looking to update my Ferris this year to a bigger one with 72" deck. I'll be lucky to get in it for five times that amount. LOL

Did I ever mention that I love to mow grass?

[Rudy4]

I've had a CUB tractor and then a CUB ZTR, both big headaches due to the Kohler engines. I and decided to stay with a ZTR but go with a Kawasaki engine a couple years ago. After spending a bunch of time researching and trying to not spend a ton of money I settled on a 54" Ariens IKON XD with a Kawasaki engine. I'm pretty happy with it, although some of the 2 acres I mow is on a grade and mowing anything with much of a slope is difficult. Hopefully the Kawasaki engine will hold up better than the CUB Kohlers did.

I'm not sure how many other mowers have this problem, but my Cubs clogged the deck all the time. I pretty much had to clean them with a putty knife after each mowing. I've been through two mowing seasons with the Ariens and it has remained clean! That's worth the price of buying it!

My wife loves to mow, so I hardly ever get a chance to use it. She also uses the hitch to pull her garden cart with the ZTR, so it gets used for that, too.

[joe white]

The Kawasaki engines have been extremely reliable for me. Keep the air filters clean and use a high quality motor oil.

[MrDB]

A ZTR is more maneuverable but as you said more expensive. I've had good luck with Husqvarna tractors, seem to be made well and easy to work on when necessary. For a hunting property where a manicure style lawn is not needed a good lawn tractor might be the best bet. Plus if you need to pull a little trailer for firewood, debris, etc. they are best for that.