Craftsman Lawn Tractor Abuse/Don't Take a Knife to a Gun Fight/I DO Need a Brush Hog!

[TMR]

Hi Prokop...this is my second Craftsman 42"...first one I got with the property and was about 20 years old. I finally decided I needed a new one. This one is 6-7 years old...25HP V twin BS...I was really worried about the engine as I mowed my field as the weeds were tall (3'-4' in some spots), thick and still very green. I had to really take it easy and seemed like I could only "bite" about 6" per pass. Motor sounded pretty good and I checked oil a couple of times...all seems to have survived.

I did break the deck drive belt and had to pull it out of a drainage ditch with my truck (little worried I may have bent something then)...also the discharge "deflector" is now fully ripped off...since out in the country it seems to allow the discharge to spread out a bit more. ALso, yesterday I quickly re-mowed the dead, dry hay and weeds. It was very dry and was a windy day so it dispersed it pretty well. I may go out today and do the same with what I cut yesterday.

Do you brush hog your property now?...or use a heavier duty Kubota deck mower? I am curious if I brush hogged...would I still be tempted to do a "finishing" pass with a rider or other deck mower? I DO like the look now that I am done.

IF I had a CUT I would "consult" with neighbors who farm and hay their fields to determine what I might do the smooth out the field and eliminate or at least begin to reduce the amount of weeds vs hay. The field is on 20 acres across the highway from our home in 60 acres of woods. There are times I think about building a garage/barn on the 20 acres and would like to eventually either build a home there or sell it in 2 10 acres home sites as we will eventually move toward kids/city as we get older (now 63). Thus, I want to keep the open part of the 20 acres nice...and even improve the street appeal.

I really DO respect what my $1500 Craftsman does for me. BTW...I purchased a new deck a few years ago b4 I "learned" about replacing the spindles...I think it was about $300+...not too bad as a cost every 3-4 years if that is necessary. I have since repaired the first deck and now have a spare...may need to put the spare into action after the last few days

I need to start looking more seriously for a CUT maybe...

35-40HP
4 Wheel Drive
PS
Used Probably
JD/Kubota/NH/?...dealers within 50 miles for service needs
Low hours

Could look new if low hours units are as expensive vs new as they appear.

Probably a new thread...

Thanks...TMR

I am with you bro, before the Kubota came along I used Craftsman 42" lawn tractor to cut grass on our property. That poor thing had to be welded up every week, I don't even remember how many of those stupid alum spindle housing I replaced.
Front axle was stamped metal and I had the luck to be able to replace it with a forged one from older mower - that was after the original got bend and the tractor would go straight and to the left but never to the right
The cutting deck was so beaten up I had to reinforce it with trusses and much much more.
The land was just too rough for that little thing.

 

[Patriotic Stabilist]

We have a 25 HP 61 inch cut Scag, that is one heavy duty mower. It makes short work of our 2 acres and the back half of 1/2 an acre that I mow at a rent house. It works pretty good.

 

[k0ua]

I used to mow 7 acres with a 42 Montgomery Wards (MTD made) mower. Thats when I bought my first welder. The welder paid for itself in no time. Glueing the chassis and deck back together. But the rebuilds of the stupid poorly designed transaxle just got to be too much of a problem. So I bought my first tractor, and never looked back.

James K0UA

 

[rekees4300]

Bushhogging a field with a lawn mower is like taking a knife to a gun fight. To do all the things you want to do is going cost more than $1500. Take a look at the new John Deere 1 Series.

1 Series Tractor

 

[Patriotic Stabilist]

We have a 25 HP 61 inch cut Scag, that is one heavy duty mower. It makes short work of our 2 acres and the back half of 1/2 an acre that I mow at a rent house. It works pretty good.

 

[clemsonfor]

Thanks Bigfoot...what I was addressing was the "easy" part essentially the 2-3 acres and the one mile of trails are the only "open" land on my total of 120 acres in two locations...30 miles apart.

I have lots of "potential" uses in making new trails, creating some "feed plots" for the deer, planting and "working" the forest area...etc.

What I was addressing is what I am doing currently with the 25HP Craftsman.

Ultimately I think my problem will be the typical...I have uses for 50HP BUT would still like to have some ability to go between trees on occasion...and do not want two tractors.

Thanks...TMR

Sounds like you really dont need a FEL at this point with your uses you mention. That dont mean you could not use one. You can get away with a 20+ HP tractor. 30 hp or over is a waste of money in my opinion. You can get an older ford say 2000 or even a real old 8N if your handy. A running 2000 will run you around $4000 maybe less for a deisel and will bush hog that area even if waist high in less than 3 hours. You can pull a 5 ft box blade and a 6ft disk. Your tractor will pull out small treees you just have to chain to them. If your only open area is 3 acres and you only have 1 mile of trails you dont need a big tractor.

 

[clemsonfor]

Hi Prokop...this is my second Craftsman 42"...first one I got with the property and was about 20 years old. I finally decided I needed a new one. This one is 6-7 years old...25HP V twin BS...I was really worried about the engine as I mowed my field as the weeds were tall (3'-4' in some spots), thick and still very green. I had to really take it easy and seemed like I could only "bite" about 6" per pass. Motor sounded pretty good and I checked oil a couple of times...all seems to have survived.

I did break the deck drive belt and had to pull it out of a drainage ditch with my truck (little worried I may have bent something then)...also the discharge "deflector" is now fully ripped off...since out in the country it seems to allow the discharge to spread out a bit more. ALso, yesterday I quickly re-mowed the dead, dry hay and weeds. It was very dry and was a windy day so it dispersed it pretty well. I may go out today and do the same with what I cut yesterday.

Do you brush hog your property now?...or use a heavier duty Kubota deck mower? I am curious if I brush hogged...would I still be tempted to do a "finishing" pass with a rider or other deck mower? I DO like the look now that I am done.

IF I had a CUT I would "consult" with neighbors who farm and hay their fields to determine what I might do the smooth out the field and eliminate or at least begin to reduce the amount of weeds vs hay. The field is on 20 acres across the highway from our home in 60 acres of woods. There are times I think about building a garage/barn on the 20 acres and would like to eventually either build a home there or sell it in 2 10 acres home sites as we will eventually move toward kids/city as we get older (now 63). Thus, I want to keep the open part of the 20 acres nice...and even improve the street appeal.

I really DO respect what my $1500 Craftsman does for me. BTW...I purchased a new deck a few years ago b4 I "learned" about replacing the spindles...I think it was about $300+...not too bad as a cost every 3-4 years if that is necessary. I have since repaired the first deck and now have a spare...may need to put the spare into action after the last few days

I need to start looking more seriously for a CUT maybe...

35-40HP
4 Wheel Drive
PS
Used Probably
JD/Kubota/NH/?...dealers within 50 miles for service needs
Low hours

Could look new if low hours units are as expensive vs new as they appear.

Probably a new thread...

Thanks...TMR

If you want a mowed look why not just cut it befor it gets 3 ft tall? Cutting it 4x per year will be faster than 12" at a time once or twice a year?

There is no way you need a 40Hp 4wd tractor to bushhog 3 acres? I bushhog around 5-7 acres 2-3x a year plow an acre or more once or twice a year use my boxblade as needed. I have a 24hp 2wd yanmar. I have a 4ft bushhog and can cut about an acre+-/hour depending on ground condition level or not and the height and density of the grass. I can pull a 6ft finish mower over lawn height grass as well. I could have spent 15-20K to do the same thing. It would be almost twice as fast but use almost twice the fuel at close to $4/gallon i have more time than money right now!!

 

[czechsonofagun]

Good Morning, TMR:

I bought Kubota B1750 with MMM and it is built so well that I get through the season without touching the deck - except lubrication of course. But I cut the grass once a week or so, the MMM is not the best for tall and thick grass. when I have to cut something like that, I have to cut twice, once with the deck up and than with the deck down.

What is interesting is that the Kubota is 20HP and the Craftsman was 19.5HP - but the Kubota is not even in the same league with the Craftsman.

In your situation I would get a small tractor and a brush hog.

 

[riptides]

Finished the job today...an other 6-7 hours...I really can verify that you need a seat with some suspension...oww the back is sore. LOTS of rough terrain.

Broke the deck dive belt but had a spare...got stuck once in a natural drainage area...had to get the truck to pull it out.

All in all...I think my body feels like the tractor looks! Field looks like an estate!

TMR

These are reasons to move to a CUT.

Time -and-

Body. Yours not the lawn machine.

I actually got out of "lawn", "garden" tractors altogether. Part of my property around the house, and one 2-4 acre pasture, use to be maintained by those type of machines.

They got to be too much of an investment in spindle, belt, wiring and engine repairs.
They worn me out physically on bad and marshy terrain.

I got rid of both of them, and use a CUT (Kubota B7800 30HP) machine for thier duties.
I am so lazy now with this machine, on a regular basis I cut 20 acres with it, instead of getting the bigger tractors out.

I guess I just like one machine for turn key and go work.

If I spend more than 2 hours cutting grass, I better be working on more than 2 acres of it.

 

[Bigfoot62]

. . . the tractor would go straight and to the left but never to the right . . .

Just wanted to point out,
Two wrongs don't make a right, but three lefts will.