Thoughts on JD F935 front deck mower

[CentralNC]

Can anyone offer thoughts or advice on the F935 front deck mower? I found a 1995 or 1996 with ~1800 hrs. It has the 72" front deck and the 22 HP Yanmar diesel. It isn't perfect, but it looks to be in good shape for a 15 yr old mower. The owner is scaling back the area that he is mowing and just bought a smaller ZTR. He is asking $3k for F935, but might take $2500 - $2700.

My wife and I are building a house on about 14 acres of land. I have been bush hogging the field and using the bush hog and tractor on the area where we are building the house. I will have about 4 - 7 acres to mow next year. There are a lot of trees on about 4 of those acres. I was considering the purchase of a finishing mower, but it is difficult to get my TC35 around the trees. It takes almost a whole day to mow the entire property.

I can't really afford $8+k for a good Scag or Exmark, but I thought the F935 might be a good compromise. Has anyone operated or owned one of these mowers in the past? I have heard good things about Yanmar diesel engines. I don't think 1800 hrs on this engine will be a problem. I have heard that JD mowers are expensive to repair.

Any thoughts or advice?

 

[zzvyb6]

I have an even older F935 than this one. Mine needed some TLC and some new glow plugs. I have the Gator brand blades for it and use a Woods leaf vac to suck up grass clippings (and leaves). Nice machine. A valve adjustment was all the motor needed (easy to do yourself).

If your land is realy smooth, this machine can cut grass very fast because the ground speed capability is high. I bought the headlight kit off of eBay and this can be handy at times. I've also added a feature to run a 540 rpm pto generator for standby power. These machines seem to hold their value beter than others.

 

[wolfe1]

I ran one of these for a few years in college and beat it pretty hard. Ran like a champ. I mowed parkways, football fields and all looked great. I do remember having alot of grease fittings on that mower and if you mow fast / or on bumpy terrain your lower back will pay a price. Never lacked for power and would climb hills like a goat.

 

[CentralNC]

Zzvyb6 / wolfe1 - Thanks for the comments. My land doesn't have a lot of ruts or worn places. It has some gentle slope, but it is smooth. I like the idea of mowing 72" at a time and the diesel engine. I might make the guy an offer tomorrow when I see him.

Thank you.

 

[CentralNC]

I made the deal on the F935. That 72" mowing deck looks huge. I will pick it up on Thursday after work. I am looking forward to mulching some leaves with it and mowing my field this weekend. Feel free to send any info on maintenance or attachments that I shoudl consider. I hope to keep the mower running for a long time. I was wrong about the hours. It only has ~1500 hrs on the 22 HP Yanmar diesel. I appreciate the advice.