F2690 Finally arrived!

[Dishpointer]

I finally got my mower. I actually got it last week but with the rain I finally got to mow with it this weekend and man-oh-man, it sure is a nice mower. Plenty of power and a very smooth ride. I really like the suspension seat and 72" rear discharge deck. No more grass blowing over me or the mower. I put 3 hours on her and it was nice. I'm a little disappointed that the factory blades were not as sharp as I would have liked it but I can fix that. I did order a spinner knob to make it a little easier to trim around my trees and not have to put my beer down. And once Rural King sends out their 10% off coupon, I will order the orange Femco Tuff Top to give me a little shade. It was more than I wanted to spend but my dealer wrote it up as a tractor so I didn't have to pay sales taxes. I did have one mishap while mowing. A little locust thorn punctured the sidewall on the main drive wheel and gave me a flat. I took care of it today at the tire shop for $11 but already see the need for a good tire sealant to keep these flats at bay. Once it stops raining and dries up, I'm going to find the stragler locust sprouts, snip them off and add Tordon RTU to them so they wont come back. I did order some tire sealant from Gemplers. Has anyone used this before? Ultraseal™ Extreme Heavy-Duty Grade | GEMPLER'S

 

[JOHNTHOMAS]

Lots of people use Slime on their tractor tires and give good reports. I've resisted and added tubes but my F3080 and ZD326 are having erratic flats on one tire. Flat in a week or few days and then not flat for weeks. Haven't really did a soak with soap solution to find leak yet but going to Slime them both if I can't find the leak. Looks high price for the stuff you referred to. Slime can be bought almost anywhere, even Wal Mart.
I have a tire plug repair kit that was under $10 and maybe even $5 that I've used a few times and SIL has even used it a few times. Might work on mower side wall but the plugs work fine in tread area. Bought at Advance Auto. Not like you'll be doing 60 mph but can be aggravating when a distance from your air supply.
Congratulations on joining the best mower made owners club:cool2::drink: and you'll love the rear discharge deck as those of us that own them do. My first F Kubota was a F2680e 2wd about 8 years ago. Traded it to Barlows and bought it back later and then traded it back to Barlows for a ZD326 which only beats the F around the close rental units. The F beats the ZD bad on open fields and control and getting under trees/shrubs and ride comfort.
If your mowing rough areas with ditches you may want to trade the pins holding front tire shaft on to hardened steel bolts. I cut up a few wheels that dropped off and I ran over them before figureing out the pins were breaking. No problems since I replaced the oem pins.

 

[Bigkrank]

When I had the front mount Kubotas I had a problem with the gage wheels also and put round clamps at the top of the post so the wheels could not fall out if the pin came out. My pin did not break but something caught the ring and the pin came out and I ate a wheel.

I put the clamps on the B2630 mower also.

 

[kuboman]

Lots of people use Slime on their tractor tires and give good reports. I've resisted and added tubes but my F3080 and ZD326 are having erratic flats on one tire. Flat in a week or few days and then not flat for weeks. Haven't really did a soak with soap solution to find leak yet but going to Slime them both if I can't find the leak. Looks high price for the stuff you referred to. Slime can be bought almost anywhere, even Wal Mart.
I have a tire plug repair kit that was under $10 and maybe even $5 that I've used a few times and SIL has even used it a few times. Might work on mower side wall but the plugs work fine in tread area. Bought at Advance Auto. Not like you'll be doing 60 mph but can be aggravating when a distance from your air supply.
Congratulations on joining the best mower made owners club:cool2::drink: and you'll love the rear discharge deck as those of us that own them do. My first F Kubota was a F2680e 2wd about 8 years ago. Traded it to Barlows and bought it back later and then traded it back to Barlows for a ZD326 which only beats the F around the close rental units. The F beats the ZD bad on open fields and control and getting under trees/shrubs and ride comfort.
If your mowing rough areas with ditches you may want to trade the pins holding front tire shaft on to hardened steel bolts. I cut up a few wheels that dropped off and I ran over them before figureing out the pins were breaking. No problems since I replaced the oem pins.

I don't want to hijack this thread but you have experience with just about all mowers. I have a F2680 and the small GF1800 front mower which I am thinking of trading on a ZD. Would you trade or will I be disappointed getting rid of my smaller front mount/

 

[Dishpointer]

One other thing I forgot to mention that I really like is for some reason my mower came with the optional cruise control. This was an option that I was curious about but didn't order figuring I could always add it later. I really like it for use in bigger areas as you don't have to use the foot pedal. It's nice but wouldn't work well around many obstacles.

 

[xring100]

Awesome sure is nice looking

 

[xring100]

I don't want to hijack this thread but you have experience with just about all mowers. I have a F2680 and the small GF1800 front mower which I am thinking of trading on a ZD. Would you trade or will I be disappointed getting rid of my smaller front mount/

If you mow under a bunch of stuff you might not like a zero turn. Zero turns dont back up grades very well either. I love my zd1211 but see the advantages of the front decks after using my neighbors grasshopper front deck.

 

[Rustyiron]

Congratulations on joining the best mower made owners club:cool2::drink:

You aren't kidding!
Just today I mowed for the first time in 8 years with my F-2000 that I've had for 30+ years!
Being able to buy parts for a 35? year old machine (I bought it used from a commercial cutter) is priceless.

 

[Happy Gilmore]

Anyone have any experience using mulching blades on a 72" RD deck?

 

[kuboman]

If you mow under a bunch of stuff you might not like a zero turn. Zero turns dont back up grades very well either. I love my zd1211 but see the advantages of the front decks after using my neighbors grasshopper front deck.

Well the dealer brought out a ZD1211 for me to try and he went home with the GF1800. The ZD has its draw backs but the advantages over the little GF sold me. If it had power steering I might have kept it but the ZD is so quick. I still have the F2680 so I'm not stuck for a front mount.