riding mowers

Humboldt · Post by **Humboldt** » Thu Jun 30, 2005 1:41 pm

Who's got one?

Just rented a brush hog to clear the back 1/2 acre of my property and damn if I don't need a riding mower now.

No way to mow 1 1/2 acres by hand

Looking at Craftsmans of course, and Husqies.

Worth buying new or should I look for a used one? The biggest price jump seems to be from the 18 hp models to the 24 hp.

YARDofSTUF · Post by **YARDofSTUF** » Thu Jun 30, 2005 2:10 pm

Got an OLD John Deere, great mower, 30-40 years old now, takes a beating from mother nature adn my dad.

Spammy · Post by **Spammy** » Thu Jun 30, 2005 2:12 pm

Not sure I will ask my Gardener

Post by **YeOldeStonecat** » Thu Jun 30, 2005 2:28 pm

Spammy wrote:Not sure I will ask my pool boy

*fixed*

downhill · Post by **downhill** » Thu Jun 30, 2005 2:29 pm

Snapper rider. It's around 17 years old now.

Still running like a champ.

(Replaced an 8 hp motor with a 12 2 years ago.)

These mowers are simple to work on.

Zilog B · Post by **Zilog B** » Thu Jun 30, 2005 2:29 pm

Steal one

Bastid · Post by **Bastid** » Thu Jun 30, 2005 2:32 pm

Zilog B wrote:Steal one

naahhh, we dont steal...we "tactically aquire"

Zilog B · Post by **Zilog B** » Thu Jun 30, 2005 2:33 pm

Bastid wrote:naahhh, we dont steal...we "tactically aquire"

borrow permanantly

Leatherneck · Post by **Leatherneck** » Thu Jun 30, 2005 3:14 pm

I have a Cub Cadet and love the hydrostaic tranny and electric PTO. Don't get to wrapped up over HP. A good deck design and blades make the difference. Mine has a 19hp Kohler, but it's probably overkill. I can attach many toys to it though!

Spammy · Post by **Spammy** » Thu Jun 30, 2005 3:14 pm

YeOldeStonecat wrote:*fixed*

Dunster · Post by **Dunster** » Thu Jun 30, 2005 3:15 pm

I have a John Deere. Five years and going strong. I'd also suggest Snapper.

I had a Yard Machine about 6 years ago. It lasted me 1 year and 2 months! The cam went flat and the repair bill was going to be darn near what it was worth. (They have a one year warrenty and Yard Machine wouldn't budge on it at all).

Moral of the story - Buy something with quality! Go green or yellow (Deere or Snapper)

Dunster · Post by **Dunster** » Thu Jun 30, 2005 3:16 pm

bigmo66 wrote:I have a Cub Cadet and love the hydrostaic tranny and electric PTO. Don't get to wrapped up over HP. A good deck design and blades make the difference. Mine has a 19hp Kohler, but it's probably overkill. I can attach many toys to it though!

Cub Cadet good too

Humboldt · Post by **Humboldt** » Thu Jun 30, 2005 3:26 pm

bigmo66 wrote:I have a Cub Cadet and love the hydrostaic tranny and electric PTO. Don't get to wrapped up over HP. A good deck design and blades make the difference. Mine has a 19hp Kohler, but it's probably overkill. I can attach many toys to it though!

I hear you, but my *yard* is more of a field than anything else. Far cry from a tiny suburban lot of 2" Bermuda blue grass

Not that that's what you're dealing with, just that I need something that can handle some big stuff when it needs to. This last time around the "grass" was over 6' tall in places

Needed the brush hog to deal with that and want to keep it nice and short.

The only problem is the ground is basically flat but with a lot of hillocks and dips from all the marsh grasses and subterrainian water movement. Looks flat as could be till you walk it, then you see all the ankle-breakers and whumps. Looking for something with a heavy enough axle to deal with it.

I need to go out and level it a bit. Should hire someone to drag it but will probably end up out there with a wheelbarrow and shovel and 6 pack doing it by hand.

Thanks for the tips guys

minir · Post by **minir** » Thu Jun 30, 2005 4:07 pm

Hi Humboldt

I have a 7yr old Sears Craftsman, Model 944.608961

Its 16HP with a 42" Mower and no problems at all. I have quite a slope on one side that i have to mow and it puts a pretty fair load on it, but seems to handle it with aplomb. My so called lawn is fairly uneven as well.

Easy to do maintenance on as well.

--

regards

minir

Ken · Post by **Ken** » Thu Jun 30, 2005 4:11 pm

We have had many through out the years, Sears, John Deere and Snapper... I had a friend that loved Toros... We used to have races years ago and I believe the Snapper was the fastest, although the Sears popped the best wheelies...

Dunster · Post by **Dunster** » Thu Jun 30, 2005 4:34 pm

Humbolt,
One other thing I remember that made a big difference to me was going with a V-twin motor. The V-twins are much more quiet than the single shaft engines. Also, for mowing as much as you have, you really should go with a V-twin.
My yard is 3/4 of an acre and I'm usually on the mower for an hour, and then 1/2 hour doing trimming with the push mower.

Humboldt · Post by **Humboldt** » Thu Jun 30, 2005 8:40 pm

Thanks guys
Will keep on looking.

Joint Chiefs of Staff · Fri Jul 01, 2005 12:11 am

downhill wrote:
These mowers are simple to work on.

We're talking about Humboldt here!

/hi humby// lol

triniwasp · Post by **triniwasp** » Fri Jul 01, 2005 12:31 am

Don't forget to look at the accesories that are available. With the yard you got your gonna need some toys.

Post by **YeOldeStonecat** » Fri Jul 01, 2005 6:53 am

Cub, Deere, Kubota, Simplicity, Honda, Gravely

Think about your mowing needs and style, side discharge versus rear discharge (often the rear ones work better for mowing large outer areas when you mow less often and let it get taller)

No need to get caught up in the big horsepower race, 20 years ago the average lawn tractor was a single cyl 8hp or so spinning a dual blade deck and they did just fine. If you run equip from a PTO, yeah, bump up to HP in the teens, but if just cutting, you don't HAVE to get HP in the teens.

If you have a relatively flat area, with lots of trees and obstacles to deal with, consider the zero turn styles.

Humboldt · Post by **Humboldt** » Fri Jul 01, 2005 10:09 am

Nah, no trees really, none yet at least.

Thanks for all the help guys.

mountainman · Post by **mountainman** » Fri Jul 01, 2005 10:39 am

Last year I bought a Dixon ZTR. I love it.

My dad had one when we moved to a bigger house (bigger lawn) and I've used Dixon ever since. You can't beat not having to backup to make sharp turns.

mactoman · Post by **mactoman** » Sat Jul 02, 2005 9:30 am

Usually when you need a bush hog you need a good sized tractor to pull it not just any little riding lawnmower

Humboldt · Post by **Humboldt** » Sat Jul 02, 2005 11:14 am

mactoman wrote:Usually when you need a bush hog you need a good sized tractor to pull it not just any little riding lawnmower

Hi mactoman,
Different areas use different words I guess. At least that or I'm confused

What I'm referring to as a brush hog is also called a high trimmer, basically a glorified lawn mower. Self-propelled, either belt-driven or with a worm gear, about 6 feet long with a heavy steel guard on the front to push brush over. Massive engine.

I take it you mean the type of lawn mower attachment you hook up to a PTO?

mactoman · Post by **mactoman** » Mon Jul 04, 2005 10:44 am

Yeah, thats what I thought you were talking about, when you said bush hog.
sorry for the misunderstanding.

Humboldt · Post by **Humboldt** » Mon Jul 04, 2005 11:07 am

mactoman wrote:Yeah, thats what I thought you were talking about, when you said bush hog.
sorry for the misunderstanding.

no problem at all. Of course I'd LOVE to have a small Kubuta or the like with a PTO but no $ for that

blebs · Post by **blebs** » Mon Jul 04, 2005 11:26 am

Hey Humbie, just for your info, Craftsman is made by American Yard Products and they also make these:

Ayp, American Yard Products, build lawn mowers and tractors for many named brands. Sears, Poulon, Husqvarna and more tractors are build by AYP. Many AYP parts are interchangeable from Husqvarna tractors, Poulon tractors or Sears tractors and lawn mowers.

thechemgeek · Post by **thechemgeek** » Mon Jul 04, 2005 2:44 pm

L120 Deere. Have had it for a year now...kicks my lawns ass...

oh..i should add. i got it from home depot during their fathers day special, no interest for one year. i just paid it off. no interest.

Humboldt · Post by **Humboldt** » Mon Jul 04, 2005 3:17 pm

^^^
Oh wow. Oh man, now THAT is what I want

How much did that run you?

*drool*

blacklab · Post by **blacklab** » Tue Jul 05, 2005 12:33 am

Humboldt wrote:I hear you, but my *yard* is more of a field than anything else. Far cry from a tiny suburban lot of 2" Bermuda blue grass

Not that that's what you're dealing with, just that I need something that can handle some big stuff when it needs to. This last time around the "grass" was over 6' tall in places Needed the brush hog to deal with that and want to keep it nice and short.

The only problem is the ground is basically flat but with a lot of hillocks and dips from all the marsh grasses and subterrainian water movement. Looks flat as could be till you walk it, then you see all the ankle-breakers and whumps. Looking for something with a heavy enough axle to deal with it.

I need to go out and level it a bit. Should hire someone to drag it but will probably end up out there with a wheelbarrow and shovel and 6 pack doing it by hand.

Thanks for the tips guys

Have you ever thought about going Native? A lot of people are seeding native grasses and then watching it grow. It will take care of itself. They then put walkways so they can walk amongst the flowers.

As far as mowers go I have two John Deerss. One is a self propelled walk behind that you have to turn upside down to drain the oil out. The other is a riding mower that is just about impossable to work on.

I'll never buy anything green again.

blacklab

De Plano · Post by **De Plano** » Tue Jul 05, 2005 1:50 am

Overheard the guy at Miller Frams saying that the Husqy (that they sell) isn't as good on rough surfaces. I can't remember what he suggested though

I bet it was not a Ryobi though

mactoman · Post by **mactoman** » Tue Jul 05, 2005 11:14 pm

kubota is probably the best buy on the market, and it's also good quality.
And easy to work on. I guess it depends on who has the best financing at the time, but outside of that, were you loking at something like a troybuilt?
I'm using that as an example, I hope you know what I mean. I think troybuilt went out of buisness though.

loop2kil · Post by **loop2kil** » Wed Jul 06, 2005 4:04 am

Just bought a John Deere 737 Zero Turn-60" cut with a kawasaki 23 hp. I cut 4 acres of hills in about 1.5 hours. It's actually a commercial mower and kinda pricey but to me its been worth every penny. The bush hog is great but not needed long term, once you get it cut and keep it cut you will never use it again. you want something that is designed to cut grass only.

so far doing simple maintenence has been quite easy. just changed the oil and filter in like 10 minutes.

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