7 acres - what zero turn do you suggest?

[Stuka]

Finally nailed down a piece of land, it's 7 acres, mostly flat with a fair number of trees. I'm mowing with a tractor now, but by April will want to switch to a mower. I am looking for something in the $5000 - 6000 dollar range, not necessarily a premium brand but more of a reliable, value machine with the widest cut. I am just beginning to research, at this point the Husky MZ61 with the Kawa engine looks good. I'm really interested in what your experience is, thanks.

 

[4570Man]

If I was buying a new machine it would be a Ferris IS2100 although that's above your budget. Used I'd look for a Grasshopper front deck. I've never used a Grasshopper, but they're pretty similar to my F2560 Kubota and I like it.

 

[travlitt]

I have had great service with this mower. It has a liquid cooled engine. It is now 3 years old and trouble free. Has a 61" deck, you can order it with a 72" deck if desired.

 

[vidio1]

Second vote for a Scag

 

[coldsteelva]

Try to find the best condition used commercial mower you can find (another +1 for SCAG). It will be miles better than the best condition consumer/pro-sumer model.

 

[Stuka]

Which model Scag is that? Edit: Oh, I see, Velocity Plus

 

[Clay45]

I have just under 7 acres and truly enjoy my Scag TigerCat. They now have an improved version but if you find a good deal on just a TC go for it. That Scag Cheeta looks good too but they are way too fast for my uses. Its the SCAG design, construction, and components that stand out to me. But they charge for it.

 

[Streetcar]

+1 on used commercial mower. Just replaced scag with second exemark. Both brands are good, did not think scag was worth extra cost when upgrading size

 

[onionfmr]

I have had great service with this mower. It has a liquid cooled engine. It is now 3 years old and trouble free. Has a 61" deck, you can order it with a 72" deck if desired.

View attachment 497402

Have to agree with travlitt and others on Scag. My wife and I run two Scags. One is a Turf Tiger and the other is a Cheetah. We move approximately 6 acres of finish lawn with lots of trees, slopes, structures and obstacles. With both of us mowing, we can finish in approximately 2 hours. With me pulling a Rhino 72" finish mower behind a MF1240 or MF1643 and her using a Turf Tiger it was about 4 1/2 hours to finish. Our Scag dealer let us test the second Scag mower for a couple of weeks for free. Pretty amazing time saver, so we bought the second Scag and never looked back. Knock on wood, we have put hundreds of hours on these machines in approximately 12 years of owning them. So far, knock on wood, we've only sharpened blades, replaced oils, filters, and batteries. I'm expecting this year it will be belts? Definitely go with the Velocity deck (newer units) as it just mows better and faster. Also, make sure that your dealer sets up the deck baffles correctly or read the manual and do it yourself. Otherwise, you will have a mess cutting high thick grass.

 

[DK35vince]

Not in you budget range, but I mow my 8 acre lawn with a 35 HP Hustler Super Z w/72" deck.
Awesome mower.
Built tough and mows FAST.