Help me understand (zero turn -vs- tractor)

[Tomtint]

Having a smaller mid mount mower on a tractor would more useful over the years as apposed to a zero turn. ..I have. Had a BX with a MMM and it cut well. Only issue was that the front tires would sometimes lay the grass down if it was slightly wet, then once it dried, the grass would pop back up like Mohawks. I now have a Walker GHS 48"zero turn and the cut quality is without doubt better. But depending on your property and shape, a zero turn is brutal on the turf if you have to mow in the same direction and turn in the same spots every time you mow.

 

[drjay9051]

Simply put a Zero Turn has a faster travel speed !!

In addition, imagine you come to a tree, pull the right handle back, left handle forward and you will literally spin around the tree in a heartbeat. Done. on to the next tree.

Here is a good example and he does not have the "pedal to the metal".

Gravely Zero Turn Sharp Turns by Robs Mowers Alstonville - YouTube

 

[tradosaurus]

don't make my mistake and get a 48" Zero turn. I mow about 2 1/2 acres and by upgrading to a 60" zero turn I cut my mowing time by 40%. I bought a Toro Titan HD 2000.

 

[drjay9051]

don't make my mistake and get a 48" Zero turn. I mow about 2 1/2 acres and by upgrading to a 60" zero turn I cut my mowing time by 40%. I bought a Toro Titan HD 2000.

Agree. Wider is better. The only limiting factors will be storage area and width between trees.

I went with a Gravely 52 and it is miles faster than my 60 inch flail or finish. in addition I actually enjoy driving the ZTR. Now if I could mount a .50 on the roll bar it would be a hoot.

 

[skipperbrown]

Lots of opinions. My opinion is you need both! I have used a bx for most everything on my ac property. The usefulness of a FEL cannot be understated. It also mows very good. Heck, it does almost everything. However, the bx is so small it doesn't handle most implements very well due to the traits that make it a good mower: Ground clearance, small tires, compactness. I decided to move up to a b series and find that it is a little too big to mow my yard due to all the things I have added over the years like trees, bushes, and fences. Now I use the b for tractor work and the bx for mowing. I'm looking hard at trading the bx for a ztr this year.

 

[cphilip]

Lots of opinions. My opinion is you need both!

No truer words have been spoke...

 

[Gary Fowler]

Is a zero turn faster just because of the turning or does it have a deck design that cuts more efficiently? Do the blades spin faster?

A commercial grade zero turn mower is designed to cut at speeds in excess of 10 mph. I think the blades do turn much faster than a tractor with mid-mount mower deck. I would guess that mowing with a tractor would never exceed 6 mph top speed.
They are also faster due to the quick turn around and ability to get close enough to trees, etc. that many times edging with a weedeater is not needed.
The only con to owning a zero turn is that they are mainly just for mowing. Any mower that accepts additional attachments is going to cost you about as much as a tractor and any attachment is going to be extremely expensive.

As to whether a multi-tasking zero turn suffers from degrading the quality of grass cutting, I suppose you would just need a sided by side comparison.

 

[ddbackhoe]

In the next 30 days or so I will be the owner of a small lot (3 acres) with a 1500sf home on it. I am converting the home into a small office for my business and will be adding a 8 space parking lot. Right now the lot is about 1/2 lawn and 1/2 meadow, very flat and not many trees (5-8). I expect to have to mow the lawn, plow the lot, and take care of the meadow (or possibly turn it into lawn over time).

I want the lawn to look very nice when mowed.

Can a sub-compact with a mid deck mower create a great mow? I am leaning that way over a zero turn since it will give me options for snow and other property maintenance. If not I might have to do the zero-turn for now and add a tractor down the road.

Thanks in advance for your input!

Don't buy either one. Sub the work out and be done with it.

 

[RedNeckRacin]

THIS is FAR from the truth!

A Grasshopper front mount mower sno-blows VERY good also has a broom or blade option. Yes they DO work very good!

SR

Hardly a case of equal comparison. Those are proprietary attachments and I'm SURE the price matches. They are lawn mowers plain and simple. They do that job very well. The versatility of a 3pt hitch and a pto can't be matched with a zero turn.

 

[Sawyer Rob]

Hardly a case of equal comparison. Those are proprietary attachments and I'm SURE the price matches. They are lawn mowers plain and simple. They do that job very well. The versatility of a 3pt hitch and a pto can't be matched with a zero turn.

I never said they would match a 3 point for versatility, what I said is, they plow and blow snow quite good...something you said they wouldn't do.

I know this, because I use a sno-blower on the front of my GH mower and yes it really does blow the snow well. A foot of snow is no problem for my GH, and it throws it farther than the 3 point blower I use to use...

The 61" blower option cost me $1,800.00. How much will a front mount blower set you back for a tractor??

SR