Mower Decks - 60"or 72"?

[dwarren]

Mower Decks - 60\"or 72\"?

Help! I've narrowed my choice of a new tractor down to a Kubota 2710/2910, thanks in part to the very helpful input from the citizens of this web site. Now I come again seeking the collective wisdom of the tractor wizards who frequent and support this venue. My dilemma is simple, to get a 60" or 72" midmount finish mower. Other than the obvious (72" is bigger) what are the advantages of one versus the other? I'm particularly interested in quality of cut, ease of removal to service and durability. Also, is one built better than the other? I finish mow 2 acres, with lots of trees to mow around.

 

[M. Sullivan]

Re: Mower Decks - 60\"or 72\"?

I have the 2710 and 72" and cut 6-7A. Awesome grass cutter. Feel there are significant benefits in the 72" vs. the 60". Mainly install and removal, the manual covers both--check the archives on this, I listed out the differences wwhile thumbing through the book. Maybe also search on 'belly', if the search engine searches through the text of the posts, should make it easier to find.

72" seemed much more robust in build and design. Believe the weight was 50% more as well. Overall a big difference between the two for 10% or so more $$. If you have the property for it, seriously consider hte 72". Cut quality is great--beats any of the 5 L&G tractors I've had (incl. good ones).
Good luck.

 

[DaleW]

Re: Mower Decks - 60\"or 72\"?

I was in the same situation just recently and had actually ordered the 60 in deck. That was when I saw M. Sullivan's post on comparing the two. He is absolutely right...get the 72. After looking at the manual the adjustmemt for cut height is 4 pins on the 72 as opposed to a number of pins and bolts on the 60. It used to take me 6 hours to mow my 5 acres with the Toro 38 in. Now I can get it done in under 3 hours with the 72 in. Very sturdy unit and a great cut. You woun't be sorry.

 

[dwarren]

Re: Mower Decks - 60\"or 72\"?

How does the 72" handle hilly and irregular terrain? My yard is very uneven and I'm a little concerned that a 72" would results in scalping. By the way,a dealer told me yesterday that to remove the 60 inch deck, you can drive over it. Has anyone else heard this?

 

[ejb]

Re: Mower Decks - 60\"or 72\"?

If you have 2 acres of lawn, and no plans to add more any time soon, the difference in timesavings is going to be minimal with the 72 than the 60 (so what if you save 5 minutes of mowing time??)

I would go with the 60. I have a 60 inch belly mower on a yanmar tractor and I cut a lot more than 2 acres, and have never wished for a wider cut. The 60 will probably fit in places the 72 is just a little bit to big for. Pocket the savings (if any) and the 60 will be more than enough mower for you.

 

[Bird]

Re: Mower Decks - 60\"or 72\"?

dwarren, I use a rear (3-point) mower instead of the mid-mount, but yes, there are some mid-mount mowers on which the recommended way to remove or re-connect them is to drive the front wheels over them.

Bird

 

[reslaire]

Re: Mower Decks - 60\"or 72\"?

I had a 60" mower deck on my previous tractor (B1750) and now have the 72" deck on a B2710. I mow around 3.3A. I need about 3 hours to mow with the 72" versus 4.5 with the 60". It is true the 72" deck can restrict where you can mow (like between trees which are 71" or less apart). The cutting quality seems to be better with the 72" deck, but I am not sure why that should be. The grass clippings seem to be smaller.

I have always driven the tractor over the mower deck to mount it. According to the 1750 manual, it is also supposed to be possible to push the deck under the tractor from the side. I tried that with the 72" on the 2710, and it would not pass between the R4 tires (you have to remove the swinging bar at the front to have a chance of this working). Perhaps with turf savers, this would work. The decks are all sturdy enough to be driven over. The deck has to be blocked, and a ramp up and down makes life easier. I also use 4WD and low range. There are a couple of other hints for mounting on the 1750, if anyone is interested. Putting the deck on the 2710 is a lot easier than on the 1750.

Hope this helps.

Bob.

 

[glennmac]

Re: Mower Decks - 60\"or 72\"?

Could I please get some more recent experience on the issue of ease of intallation/removal of the 60" vs.72" on a 2710/2910 with R4s.

M. Sullivan's 5/6/00 post comparing the ease of adjustment/removability on the 60" and 72" was very influential. He pointed out that because the 72" has four freely-rotating guage wheels it should be a "snap" to roll in from the side compared to the 60", because the 60" has some non-rotating scalp wheels. Yet reslaire says on 6/23 that the 72" deck "would not pass between the R4 tires" of a 2710 and had to be driven over.

This seems to be a huge contradiction on the very issue that is important to me: How do you remove/install the 60" vs. 72", and which is easier?

Glenn

 

[Robert]

Re: Mower Decks - 60\"or 72\"?

I have a B2710 with a 60" deck. The deck just squeezes between the front and rear tractor tires (R4's) with the front wheels fully locked to give additional clearance. I cant imagine that the 72", which is larger in every dimention, could be installed in this manner. In fact the manual which covers both the 60 and 72" decks, states that 72" mower can only be installed by chocking all four guage wheels and driving over the deck. However if you have a FEL the manual states that the front of the tractor can be raised with the loader allowing the deck to be slid in easily from the side. As others have stated the unidirectional rear guage wheels on the 60" deck make manuvering it challenging when trying to slide it under the tractor. Though I have not tried this, a small trolley jack supporting the rear of the mower deck may help.

 

[glennmac]

Re: Mower Decks - 60\"or 72\"?

Robert, a belated thank you for the quick feedback you gave. It helped convince me to buy the 72" deck for my new B2910.

I am pleased with the decision. First, it provided a legitimate justification to move the purchase decision up from the 2410. Second, it cut my mowing time on three acres by about 20% versus the 60" deck I had on my BX2200. Third, it is easier to attach and remove than the 60" even though it is bigger and heavier--at least when you have a loader to lift up the tractor. Fourth, it has a nice big step welded onto the left side that you can use to step onto the tractor (the 60" doesnt have this). Fifth, because the deck protrudes further from the wheels than the 60", I can mow closer to trees/bushes and the edge of my creek, and I can mow in tighter circles. Sixth, it it easier to adjust the mowing height because you need only adjust the 4 guage wheels and need not adjust any scalp wheels (but I miss the simple knob adjustment on the BX).

I do notice that, because the deck is so heavy and is supported on the gauge wheels (ie, is not suspended like the BX deck), that the guage wheels cut tracks in the soft soil of my creek area. But the 60" 2910 deck I'm sure would have done the same thing. I am going to try to raise the deck off the ground one inch with the position control when I am in the soft area to see if this alleviates the problem.

Glenn