Comparison BX vs GC vs LS J-series SCUTs

[BXpanded]

Side discharge limits the speed at which the mower can get rid of the grass your feeding it. Having more than twice the opening across the rear means that you can get more in faster achieving the same cut quality and in some cases better with out ever having to hear the engine bog down like we all do from time to time in the thicker grass or on the occasion we let the grass grow for an extra week or two.

So yes your missing something its called volume! Every mower just like a snow blower is limited not just by its overall size or HP but also by the amount of grass or snow it can discharge at a given speed of induction. Simply put why can you lift a guard on a MMM when it tall grass and it will help it get threw it just a little faster? Or why when in tall grass do many folks cut it twice rather than one single cut ? Both answers are simple based on the volume it can handle the side discharge mower cant make the same speed in the deeper grass because its working past its limits and forcing a slow forward advance and in most cases leaving behind a poor cut while doing so because everything is getting backed up inside.

As for the neighboring machines and their perceived abilities you would need to do a much more comprehensive test than just a half hearted side by run without knowing exactly what the operators intent is. My one neighbor appears to cut rather slow in an area that appears to me from a distance to be better than my side of the field but in reality when I drive over there and see all the holes and ruts it is in fact worse and I couldn't cut any faster than he does with any machine Also lets not forget that even zero turns are not all what the name states to us. In fact there are many poor quality zero turns out there with side discharge and limited abilities as well as there are good ones so we would also have to compare the actual machine to other zero turns and add that into you comparison as well as the operator as we all know some folks just are not qualified to run any machine right on down to the shopping cart at the local store so that will also have to be figured into it.

I guess I'm still missing something... The blanket statement was made that mowing time on 3 acres could be reduced significantly, even by more than half, with a Zero Turn Mower as opposed to a Sub-compact tractor. I can mow normal fescue at speeds up to 8.6 mph at full throttle, in high range, with a 60" deck, when the surface is relatively smooth. Evacuating the grass is not a problem and the engine does not bog. Most ZTs I see are also side discharge, and of similar width, so would need a similar amount of power at the same speed. Major manufacturers have been building mower decks for a long time and if there was a truly superior design it would have been thoroughly analyzed by now. The deck doesn't care whether it's carried by a ZT or a tractor.

To cut mowing time by half, the ZT or rear discharge would have to travel twice as fast; i.e. 17.2 mph, or would have to have a 10 foot wide deck, or some combination of larger size and greater speed. I sincerely doubt that a similarly powered mower of either type would be able to cut 10 feet wide or at 17 mph.

I do realize there are big commercial mowers with 72" decks that can go as fast as 15 mph. That could be twice as fast, but that unit is probably a bit extreme for the typical homeowner. Most of us don't have a place (golf course maybe?) that would allow that speed or size.

 

[TSO]

I guess I'm still missing something... The blanket statement was made that mowing time on 3 acres could be reduced significantly, even by more than half, with a Zero Turn Mower as opposed to a Sub-compact tractor. I can mow normal fescue at speeds up to 8.6 mph at full throttle, in high range, with a 60" deck, when the surface is relatively smooth. Evacuating the grass is not a problem and the engine does not bog. Most ZTs I see are also side discharge, and of similar width, so would need a similar amount of power at the same speed. Major manufacturers have been building mower decks for a long time and if there was a truly superior design it would have been thoroughly analyzed by now. The deck doesn't care whether it's carried by a ZT or a tractor.

To cut mowing time by half, the ZT or rear discharge would have to travel twice as fast; i.e. 17.2 mph, or would have to have a 10 foot wide deck, or some combination of larger size and greater speed. I sincerely doubt that a similarly powered mower of either type would be able to cut 10 feet wide or at 17 mph.

I do realize there are big commercial mowers with 72" decks that can go as fast as 15 mph. That could be twice as fast, but that unit is probably a bit extreme for the typical homeowner. Most of us don't have a place (golf course maybe?) that would allow that speed or size.

What makes a zero turn faster is maneuverability. Every turn is instant, on the spot. No need to do a three point turn, or go around the circle to avoid turning... That's where you save all if your time.

Before my current 66" Hustler Z diesel, I had a Ford 72" commercial front deck mower. It was "near" zero turn, but still not the same. Open runs, I could now just as fast as my Hustler, but in the end, my zero turn mowed circles around it because of the expedient turns.

 

[sugarloafguy]

Jocola,


I would skip the subs and go to a class 1 frame machine. If you go Ferguson, find a 1526 with auto throttle hydro. They are discontinued but there are some left on the lots. If I were in your position, I would drive over to Albany and make this guy an offer on this little New Holland 23hp Boomer with 60" MMM, ALO/New Holland loader and Woods bush hog. He is asking $12.5K for tractor, loader mower with 40 hrs on the meter and it is in the farm equipment section of Craigslist Albany but I think its in a town next door. Pic two is what I mow two acres of lawn and flail mow 2.5 acres of field with. Bigger is always better and this is more machine than the GC or BX and NH is excellent on parts and service.

Brian

 

[TSO]

Jocola,

I would skip the subs and go to a class 1 frame machine. If you go Ferguson, find a 1526 with auto throttle hydro. They are discontinued but there are some left on the lots. If I were in your position, I would drive over to Albany and make this guy an offer on this little New Holland 23hp Boomer with 60" MMM, ALO/New Holland loader and Woods bush hog. He is asking $12.5K for tractor, loader mower with 40 hrs on the meter and it is in the farm equipment section of Craigslist Albany but I think its in a town next door. Pic two is what I mow two acres of lawn and flail mow 2.5 acres of field with. Bigger is always better and this is more machine than the GC or BX and NH is excellent on parts and service.

Brian

That New Holland is the same as the LS tractor he is talking about...fyi

 

[Olympus]

The speed aspect had already been addressed. It's the main reason why commercial cutters use ztr mowers and not tractor style mowers. It's no contest.

And TSO is right, that NH just posted is an LS tractor with different decals. Same exact tractor!

 

[2210ower]

Morning Gentlemen,

I've been reading this thread and other SCUT comparison threads with great interest as I am about to go from a 2210 Green to another color. I love my 2210 and for the most part has done and more than what was needed though the "after glow" is now gone; but the local service/support has deteriorated to the point I need to get another tractor/dealer, and perhaps you all can help.

I bought the 2210 in 2004 and I'm sure models, technology and features have significantly changed.

I have 4 acres and my terrain is hilly with steep slopes, plenty of trees to go around, and a fair amount of mulch/dirt landscaping needs, and snow plowing. The front lawn and other areas of the property are steep enough that I need to wait for the morning dew to burn off before mowing/working on it or I take the chance of sliding or spinning the wheels, (even with the industrial tires, 4wd in lo gear!) I really need a SCUT as any machine much larger would be a bit dangerous on my property. The JD2210 certainly did the job, though in only 600 hours it thru a bearing in the HST which cost me a bundle.

The 2210 came with foam filled industrial tires to lower the center of gravity and provide more front weight, FEL, 54" MMM, 56" front blade all of which I use depending on the season, and I would like to get the same attachments on my new different color machine.

So far in wading through my SCUT choices the MF-GC and LS-J seem to fit the bill though I cannot find whether or not they have a front blade for plowing, and I cant use turf tires due to the terrain and the bar tires will cut up the turf way too much.

I would consider the Kubota but the local dealer is very hesitant about even offering a tractor since he knows my property and the grades I'm working on.

So gentlemen, any help in selecting a new SCUT would be very much appreciated.

Re's

Mike

 

[The Suburban Farmer]

What makes a zero turn faster is maneuverability. Every turn is instant, on the spot. No need to do a three point turn, or go around the circle to avoid turning... That's where you save all if your time.

+1 to this. If I had it to do over again, I wouldn't get the MMM for my 2320, but would put the $2500 against a new ZT mower. The cut quality of my 62D deck is VERY good, but the overall process of using a CUT as an everyday mower is frustrating... slightly too wet and you leave tire tracks, huge turning radius, etc. Plus I have a LOT of trees and landscaping in the yard that I have to dodge. I timed it last year using my neighbors' zero-turn mower and after all was said and done it was about half the time as using my 2320, PLUS I didn't have to go back and get spots with the push mower that I couldn't quite reach with the tractor -- the ZT just angled right up to what I need to cut and I never had to touch the push mower. Add in a little more time saving if you have to reconnect your deck because you were using the tractor for something else.

Now, I know some folks will disagree. I'm just saying that for me, with a roughly equal mixture of "Lawn" and "Field" and "Woods" -- I now think of my tractor as the Field/Woods machine, and will be looking for a Zero-Turn for the Lawn. Knowing what I know now, I would have purchased a SLIGHTLY larger tractor without a mowing deck because for me, the "SCUT/CUT as a Primary Lawn Mower" thing just didn't work out like I had hoped it would.

 

[Olympus]

Mike - the J series LS is NOT a scut size. It is a CUT size and will be a larger machine than any SCUTon the market.

 

[2210ower]

Thanks Olympus.. Now you know why I responded to the thread, I guess it would be the IL-XJ then... A standard CUT would be too large... A few of my neighbors who have more flatter terrain have the next larger JD CUT's and they are a bit too big for what I have here.. Mike

 

[Olympus]

Thanks Olympus.. Now you know why I responded to the thread, I guess it would be the IL-XJ then... A standard CUT would be too large... A few of my neighbors who have more flatter terrain have the next larger JD CUT's and they are a bit too big for what I have here.. Mike

The XJ models are the exact same size as the J series. The J and XJ are CUT category tractors. They will be a lot larger than the SCUTs.