Difficult lot - mower suggestions?

[Birdhunter1]

A stand behind has a narrower wheel base and a higher center of gravity than a ZTR, but it would be easier to abandon ship when it rolls.

I should have stated my advice on the walk behind is 100% based on other guys, I've never ran one. One mowing account my dad and I had has a ditch between the highway and a car dealership, the previous guy that ran a solo crew did it with a walk behind and a ride on thingy. I knew the guy well, he hated that ditch but it looked good when he mowed it and he said the walk behind helped, he let that account go when he downsized away from bigger time consuming jobs.

Dad and I had the account about 7 years, his old Toro with Super lugs held on the ditch banks very well, my Grasshopper did too. Dad Gravely Pro-Turn 160 does not, flipped it once. The ditch is about 1/4 mile long and highway to car lot is about 200'.

The new crew I do not know but they use Grasshopper front mounts and a walk behind.

 

[Gafn]

I suggest a nice used commercial walk behind. I have a few spots on my property that exceed 40 degrees... The walk behind sticks to it like glue....

Mine is an old belt drive unit I bought 3 years ago for $800 with the Kawasaki 17hp engine on it. I mow everything that I can with the tractor and what is left I use the walk behind on. Plus I have a small orchard, and us the Walk behind to clean up around the trees. Just check Craig's list - they are out there, they are cheap and disposable. In fact the wife has agreed to buy a new one, once the Kawasaki dies... but three years of using it, and the dang thing will not die...

As for it getting away from you - just let go - again at $800 it is disposable. Added bonus... helps keep me from getting to fat from just sitting on the tractor...

 

[DHD]

I got some steep slopes and recently got a Husqvarna R322T AWD with a Combi 103 mowing deck.
I had looked at other 4 wd riding mowers but not could justify the high cost, the Husqvarna R322T AWD was about $5000.

It's hard to explain how well this machine can perform on sloped ground, so I've tried to find a video of the R322T mowing some slopes.
I didn't find a video of a R322T, but I did find a video of an articulating AWD mower being used on a steep slope.
The machine in the video is a Jonsered FR2216MA2 with a Combi 103 mowing deck which is almost the exact machine as my Husqvarna R322T AWD.

Front and back transmissions are the same for both machines but the Husqvarna R322T's engine has a little more HP.

The video does a pretty good job in showing what the articulating AWD mower can do on slopes.

Part 1.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vMfAAoaLur0

Part 2.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KZQ3cbD0rPY

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/general-lawn-garden/250220-husqvarna-r322t-awd-mower-any-8.html

Here is a link to another thread on this forum, take a look at post #74.
A guy from Wrightsville, Pa uses a R322T AWD to mow the steep sloped lawn in the photo on post #74.

 

[dstig1]

DHD - thanks for that and the links. I had never heard of this mower at all. This sounds like it might be perfect for my needs. I don't have a ton of area, so an expensive commercial mower is beyond overkill, but it is still a bit of a challenging site to mow. This might be the perfect blend... Now time to start digging around a bit more on this.

 

[DHD]

DHD - thanks for that and the links. I had never heard of this mower at all. This sounds like it might be perfect for my needs. I don't have a ton of area, so an expensive commercial mower is beyond overkill, but it is still a bit of a challenging site to mow. This might be the perfect blend... Now time to start digging around a bit more on this.

Here is another link for the R322T, a bunch of other R322T owners hang out there, lots of good info.

http://www.mytractorforum.com/64-husqvarna-dixon/250230-husqvarna-rider-322t-awd.html

 

[jix]

A couple of tethered goats?

 

[radioman]

well-- I been working 1 day a week mowing with landscaping company and I work on their hardest mowing jobs. One lot that we mow is terraced but still steep. We use a combination of commercial walk behind on the flat spots but it can go up the hill to flat spots. I use a push mower mowing sideways pushing it at a angle pointing up. They say its the best way to mow with what they have, but personally I would have attempted it with cheapo lawn mower from box store and load the tires with wiper fluid and add concrete weights to rears just to lower the center of gravity some. I also have used my kubota BX on a side of ditch real steep over 30 percent grade i think with loaded tires but i have to take the FEL and BH off to make it stable and lower COG.

 

[BHD]

Plant a grass that does not need mowed. or wild flowers,

one can always mow down hill, and depending on the tractor up hill, go slow,

one thing the county does is weight the upper wheel or fill with fluid and that way the tractor is much more stable, on slopes, many times mowing very steep ditches, it would scare me what they mow, I have never head of them flipping a tractor,

 

[JD420]

My apologies that was meant as a possible alternative to the x7xx. I was just saying I mow some fairly steep hills with my 430 and it is fairly sure footed on the hills I mow. But I'm sure not as sure footed as an 4wd. But finding those older mowers in nice shape is sometimes difficult. And when you do find a nice one its rather pricey for an older mower. Good luck on your search for the right machine.

 

[dstig1]

radio - I don't have time to do this with a push mower. We use one for our current house in the city, but that would take forever, and time is very much at a premium to get the build completed.

JD420 - thx. As I noted before my friend with an X320 is going to do a test run to see if that is workable or not. That should give me a good idea where I stand, but it is going to be at least another week or two. Looks like I will need to get the Stihl weed whacker out for a spin around here some first. Sigh...more time I don't need to waste...

DHD - thx again. will check it out!