Bob_Skurka
Super Member
- Joined
- Jul 1, 2003
- Messages
- 7,503
I have been searching for a new garden tractor, and to be blunt I wanted to buy the best available tractor. I started out looking at Cub Cadet, Kubota, New Holland and JD garden tractors. I already own two CUTs, so I was NOT looking for a "real" tractor. This is basically a quest for a lawn & garden tractor to mow the lawn, pull a trailer and do very little else!
My criteria boiled down to the following, find the tractor that does all of the following things with the least amount of compromise.
1- Had to be an EXCELLENT lawn mower
2- Tightest turning radius possible
3- Ability to mow steep slopes and compound slopes
4- Ability to mow manicured lawn areas
5- Ability to mow rough reclaimined pasture
6- Ability to mow while climbing hills
7- Ability to mow under small ornamental trees
8- Easy to use - the lovely wife will get many more hours on this tractor than I will
9- Easy to remove mower deck
10- Has to be soft on the turf
All of those things pretty much led me away from traditional lawn tractors VERY quickly. As I stacked up features I needed, ZTR mowers were eliminated becuase they would tumble down the hills and they would not handle the reclaimed pasture. Traditional lawn tractors were also eliminated becuase they are unstable on the hills, the turning radius is too large, and because they don't have the traction needed in some spots on the property. 4 wheel drive garden tractors gave me the traction needed, but still didn't offer the tight turning radius to mow around the plantings we have and some models are not very turf friendly. Sub-CUTs were never really considered seriously because the ROPS would hit the tree branches of the ornamentals and because they suffer from the same stability issues and turning radius issues as traditional garden tractors.
So because of the help of many members on this forum I began to look at Power Trac. No problems with stability on those machines, they will cling to a slope without rolling. Turning radius is quite good on their smaller units, I was drawn to their PT180 and maybe the PT422. The mower decks on the PT180 were too small, I wanted something in the 54 to 60 inch range. The slope climbing ability of both units came into question and while the PT425 unit probably would climb the slopes without too much issues, I really wasn't looking for a machine as large as the PT422, let alone the beefier PT425. Also the PT units appear to be EXCELLENT tractors and anyone considering a CUT should consider a PT, they don't appear to be excellent lawn mowers, and that is something foremost on my list of criteria.
I eventually ended up looking at Steiner & Ventrac tractors. Both make tractors that compare very well to many Sub-Cuts but they have a couple twists to their design. They are articulated units like the Power Trac tractors, they have weight transfer systems for slopes, they are designed for rough terrain & smooth golf course lawns, they are easy to use, but the price tags are pretty scary.
After playing around with several models of both brands, I picked up a brand new (1.6 hours on the meter) Ventrac 3000. It is their smallest unit with a 21hp gas engine mounted in the rear. The turning radius is a tiny 16" so simply spins around bushes when it mows. I bought the smaller of the 2 mower decks (52") to make fitting it into the garage easier, and I also bought a 48" front "slip" bucket. Total cost was $9850 delivered to my door.
My criteria boiled down to the following, find the tractor that does all of the following things with the least amount of compromise.
1- Had to be an EXCELLENT lawn mower
2- Tightest turning radius possible
3- Ability to mow steep slopes and compound slopes
4- Ability to mow manicured lawn areas
5- Ability to mow rough reclaimined pasture
6- Ability to mow while climbing hills
7- Ability to mow under small ornamental trees
8- Easy to use - the lovely wife will get many more hours on this tractor than I will
9- Easy to remove mower deck
10- Has to be soft on the turf
All of those things pretty much led me away from traditional lawn tractors VERY quickly. As I stacked up features I needed, ZTR mowers were eliminated becuase they would tumble down the hills and they would not handle the reclaimed pasture. Traditional lawn tractors were also eliminated becuase they are unstable on the hills, the turning radius is too large, and because they don't have the traction needed in some spots on the property. 4 wheel drive garden tractors gave me the traction needed, but still didn't offer the tight turning radius to mow around the plantings we have and some models are not very turf friendly. Sub-CUTs were never really considered seriously because the ROPS would hit the tree branches of the ornamentals and because they suffer from the same stability issues and turning radius issues as traditional garden tractors.
So because of the help of many members on this forum I began to look at Power Trac. No problems with stability on those machines, they will cling to a slope without rolling. Turning radius is quite good on their smaller units, I was drawn to their PT180 and maybe the PT422. The mower decks on the PT180 were too small, I wanted something in the 54 to 60 inch range. The slope climbing ability of both units came into question and while the PT425 unit probably would climb the slopes without too much issues, I really wasn't looking for a machine as large as the PT422, let alone the beefier PT425. Also the PT units appear to be EXCELLENT tractors and anyone considering a CUT should consider a PT, they don't appear to be excellent lawn mowers, and that is something foremost on my list of criteria.
I eventually ended up looking at Steiner & Ventrac tractors. Both make tractors that compare very well to many Sub-Cuts but they have a couple twists to their design. They are articulated units like the Power Trac tractors, they have weight transfer systems for slopes, they are designed for rough terrain & smooth golf course lawns, they are easy to use, but the price tags are pretty scary.
After playing around with several models of both brands, I picked up a brand new (1.6 hours on the meter) Ventrac 3000. It is their smallest unit with a 21hp gas engine mounted in the rear. The turning radius is a tiny 16" so simply spins around bushes when it mows. I bought the smaller of the 2 mower decks (52") to make fitting it into the garage easier, and I also bought a 48" front "slip" bucket. Total cost was $9850 delivered to my door.