xring100
Veteran Member
- Joined
- Dec 9, 2012
- Messages
- 1,540
- Location
- Livingston County, Michigan
- Tractor
- Kubota M8540, ZD1211 60"
You'll be well served with a Toro TimeCutter MX4250 with a 42" deck. You can get a fabricated deck on them as well as a Kawsaki engine. For the price, it is tough to beat and you don't need anything with heavier HST drives because your yard is small and you'll spend the next 20 years putting 300 hours on the thing.
https://www.toro.com/en/homeowner/riding-mowers/timecutter-mx4250-74760
I used a 2x4 jammed between the frame and the deck to lift my old Toro Timecutter that I rested on the top of one of my steel lawn chairs, but if you need something better to lift a zero-turn for servicing the blades, then consider a Mo-Jack.
I thought toro dropped the kawasaki engine on the residential models in favor of a no name toro branded last year. You could still get the kohler but he wanted the kaw. Kawasaki was having some capacity issue or something. I have a buddy who was looking for one and was able to find a 2015 left over. He was not all that impressed with the cut quality. The smart speed is a gimmick it only changes the input from the control sticks it does not actually increase torque via gear ratio etc for towing.
On another note for the o.p.
a fabricated deck on the low cost models would not be a deal breaker they are still made from thin gauge metal probably not much stronger and unless they include baffles a stamped drawn deck might actually provide better cut quality.
A kubota pro 60" deck weighs over 300lbs. the rzt 54 kh " cub with fabricated deck weighs 610 lbs in total engine frame etc.