Buying Advice Zero Turn Vs. Trail Mower 16 Acres

   / Zero Turn Vs. Trail Mower 16 Acres #1  

Pebblypo

New member
Joined
Sep 18, 2012
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6
Location
Freeland Md
Tractor
Looking?
I have 16 acres in which 6 acres willl be rented out to a farmer for corn, 8 is a fenced pature with goats on 3 acres and soon to be horses on theother 5. The remaining 2 is in and around the house with many trees and shrubs. I currently have a 4x4 ATV with a garden trailer, regular trailer and snow plow (Also have snow blower). The land is primarily flat with quite a few obstacles to go around (Play set, trampoline, fire pit, trees, etc..). I will be cutting a little over 3-4 acres on a weekly basis. This inculdes my 2 acres and the outside of the pasture fences and around the corn field. What do you recommend for cutting this amount of yard. Possible will need to cut the 5 acres for awhile until I get horses. Once I have horses not sure how often I should cut it. Appreciate any guidance you can give me. And of course I'm new to this farming stuff.
 
   / Zero Turn Vs. Trail Mower 16 Acres #2  
If you have lot of obstacles zero turn is hard to beat. Then you have to decide on a type. Front mounted or mid mounted. We have front mounted because we have hilly terrain. But I like it for another reason. You see what you are cutting and you can stick the deck under in example bushes. The trade off is that the mover is pretty long.
 
   / Zero Turn Vs. Trail Mower 16 Acres #3  
The Z would be ideal for your lawn. If you plan on mowing more, you have to consider how smooth it is, and the fact you will probably want a more commercial Z ($$$) for that amount of acreage, especially if it is rough.

Will
 
   / Zero Turn Vs. Trail Mower 16 Acres #4  
We bush hog our horse pasture two or three times a year to keep the weeds down. I also drag a chain harrow, to break up manure clods. For mowing around the house, like the man said , it's hard to beat a Z. They do ride a little rough compaired to a tractor, but they are fast. If you intend on cutting a pasture I also suggest a commercial model. You may be looking at 8-10 grand. Some of the nice new models have suspensions, mine does not. DW cut the pasture with it a couple of times. Not the best thing for it I'm sure, but it didn't seem to damage it any.

Bill
 
   / Zero Turn Vs. Trail Mower 16 Acres #5  
Do you already have a tractor on the farm? Would not be as fast as a zero turn but you could have one with a belly mower or rear finish mower to do the job and it would be useful for many other tasks. it’s too bad you have a lot of obstacles. a buddy of mine mows a large 7acre somewhat hilly but obstacle free lawn with a JD990 with 6ft rfm and two 6ft pull behind self powered mowers. Mows a 16ft pass at a time slightly faster than a traditional small lawn tractor.
 
   / Zero Turn Vs. Trail Mower 16 Acres #6  
I would be inclined to have a tractor for multifaceted jobs thats just me.


FWIW, if you rent out the six acres for farming you should make sure the nutrients are replaced rather than being depleted. Make sure the renter maintains your property and keep up with the soil analysis.
 
   / Zero Turn Vs. Trail Mower 16 Acres #7  
For a couple of acres with obsticles and a really nice look, the zero turn is the way to go. I have a Scag 60 inch mower that I really like. I also have a 6 ft bush hog and a 7 ft finish mower for my tractor. I use all of them, but the zero turn gives me the best results.

Eddie
 
   / Zero Turn Vs. Trail Mower 16 Acres #8  
I say a zero turn is best to start with. If the 5 acre pasture gets away from you it ain't nothing to pay somebody to come knock it back with a bush hog. Especially since you say you are renting out some of it to somebody else, they can come cut it.
 
   / Zero Turn Vs. Trail Mower 16 Acres #9  
Zero turn for what you outlined. You will not regret it. Redneck in training mentioned front mount and if you can swing the typical added cost for a front mount that would be nice. Either style of zturn It will save you hours in mowing time.
 
   / Zero Turn Vs. Trail Mower 16 Acres #10  
A zero turn would be nice but it sounds like you will also need a tractor. The question is money; I'd love a commercial Z-turn but it's not worth the extra dough for what would be for me, a one-dimensional piece of equipment. My BX does it all.
 
 
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