425awstojd2320
New member
- Joined
- Jun 24, 2009
- Messages
- 9
Well here's my story. Looking to upgrade from our jd 425 aws 54" to a ztr. Personally loved the 425-had some issues over the 10 years but overall loved the unit. Now has 1050 hours and my wife has developed some shoulder issues and is having a rough time steering--thinking a ztr is the way to go. I certainly cant argue w/the idea of upgrading. We mow 6+ relatively slope free acres. Most is somewhat rough (old hay field turned sub-division converted to lawn mostly.) We have hundreds of trees to go around and very few wide open clear areas to mow. Demoed a jd z425/445 last year--cut well but way too rough of ride for most of our lawn--made me realize we needed more of a "commercial unit". Last week demoed a 2009 Land Pride zxt pro 54" kawasaki 25hp gas. MSRP per dealer $7819 quoted $6585. 2010 models req. ROPS which adds $800 so he thought the 2009 would be a good buy w/o the ROPS requirement. Cut well but couldn't go much faster than the 425 due to the rough terrain. It did seem to leave a ring around the trees where it cut about 1/2 inch lower on the outside radius of the circle--not a big deal-couldnt really tell by the next day once the grass grew a little. Wife approved but I decided I wanted to check out the Ferris brand before pulling the trigger. Went to Ferris dealer today, took a 3100 and 2000 ztr for spin around the store. Could immediately tell the ride was smoother on both. The upgraded seat on the 3100 was very nice, even the standard seat on the 2000 was better than the Land Pride or jd 425. Think I could easily go max speed across our lawn w/o difficulties so I am almost sold on the Ferris. Only hang up I see is the occasional issue w/ the engine loosing power when engaging the deck but that seems like a somewhat rare problem--2 year warranty should resolve any immediate issues. Cut quality has also been brought up but would assume it is going to be atleast as good as the 425. Quoted $8595 on the is2000z 61" 26 hp kaw standard seat and $10,975 on the IS3100z 37hp 61"kawa w/upgraded seat--both prices seem reasonable given prices on ebay atleast. Upgraded suspension seat adds $900 per dealer, seems like a lot but is probably worth it since we plan on keeping it for 10+ years. Was ready to demo one of them at home to make the final decision until I asked about the IS2500z diesel. Now I have a dilemma. I love the idea of the diesel--also have a JD 2320 which is diesel--so would only need to keep 1 type of fuel. Also like the longer life of diesel engine and less fuel consumption described on other threads. Downside is the retail is $11699, asking $10900, for the 52" plus another $900 for the upgraded seat and 10995 for the 61" w/standard seat--that starts to be some real money. The dealer happened to have a 2500 in a crate that he is going to bring out Monday for a demo at home--cant wait. Think I may be nuts for spending $12000 on a mower (after spending $18500 on my 2320, fel, mmm, bb tiller in the past year) but I think it may be worth it. Atleast I should be able to get $3500 for my 425 so soften the blow. Sorry for being long winded but wanted to be thorough.
Thanks for any replies. I love this site.
http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=167590&stc=1&d=1275776316
Thanks for any replies. I love this site.
http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=167590&stc=1&d=1275776316