Anyone mow with a 6' out-front mower like a Grasshopper?

[sixdogs]

A neighbor has a 6' wide out-front Grasshopper mower that we might trade for. That's pretty wide and I wonder how an out-front mower like that handles on open ground like a few acres. Is it easy to control and does it mow fast? Does it handle like a zero turn with the mower underneath? Does the extra width pose any unexpected problems? Any advice or comments appreciated.

 

[Industrial Toys]

Well people are going to disagree. I have a 6 foot out front deck for my Steiner that I am selling. If it's side discharge (which I hate) then you have an even wider deck with the chute, which is the first thing I take off. The bigger the deck, the worse it cuts uneven ground. For a smaller machine, I have found five feet to be a reasonable compromise. But, I do have larger machines, so I am a bit prejudiced because my many acres does get cut much faster than that. Just around the house, it's five feet at a time though. Rear discharge all the way.

My particular Steiner 430 is quite awkward for out front mowing. If I had to do a lot of back and forth and around trees, I wouldn't be using it.

 

[RandyT]

Wider decks don't tend to mow as well on uneven ground because of the width can't follow the contours very well. Unlike a normal Z turn which basically moves the front of the mower in what ever direction you steer, the grasshopper operates more like spinning top, and you are the center of the axis. So if you are turning left the deck front edge goes left, and the rear tail wheels go right and you basically stay in one spot as you rotate around.

I prefer the grasshopper type mowers over the normal Z turns because you can reach under things better than you can with a normal Z turn, but can also mow just like normal.

 

[MossRoad]

Yep, the wider the deck, the more likely to scalp on uneven ground, UNLESS.... it's an articulated deck.

 

[sixdogs]

Very good reviews. I had forgotten the side discharge hassle and it all came back to me quickly. The mower I'm looking at is a side discharge and I could imagine it being a problem with clumping.

Presently, I mow with a 7' pull type Woods rear discharge mower and I can go through the thickest of spring grass and it just spreads evenly out the back. I don't think I want to go back to the side discharge so I'm thinking I'm going to stay with the setup I have. A question I have about a rear discharge Grasshopper is whether they leave tire tracks over the freshly cut grass? You do drive over it after it's cut so that sounds logical?

 

[nyone]

Place i use to work at had a big out front like your asking about. Blade tip speed was very slow slow, it sucked in soft ground too. I bet my 48in ZTR could cut faster. You just didnt have the ability to cut with any decent ground speed. They also had a snowblower for it. that thing really sucket.

 

[blacktruck]

A long time ago we had a JD diesel (not sure of the model) with a 72" deck mounted in front. On perfectly flat ground on short grass it did a decent job and was easy to drive. Throw in a few obstacles and some tall grass and then not so much. In some of the lesser cut back areas and around the edges of the property it really sucked. I was working at an airport at the time so it was generally pretty short and flat in most of the places we mowed. A side discharge on more than a 60" mower doesn't seem to be able to get the grass out of it when wet or thick. The width with the chute made getting close to anything out of the question. My opinion is that a zero turn is far easier to handle if there are any obstacles and anything over 60" deck should be a rear discharge.

 

[sixdogs]

Great thread and info. Thank you all.

 

[RalphVa]

I mowed with a Scag that had the deck out front back in the 80s. Don't recall the width: was somewhere around 5 to 6 ft; had 3 blades which you could easily remove or put back on in about 5 minutes because the deck would crank up. Cut the mowing time in about 1/2 vs. use of underbelly Sears tractors for the approximately 5 acres there.

No problems at all in the early years.

Ralph

 

[QRTRHRS]

I had a Woods Mow'n'Machine which was a front mount made by Grasshopper. And before anyone questions that, indeed Grasshopper did make mowers for Woods for a short period.

Anyway, the deck was 61" wide as I recall and it did do an erratic job. Something not mentioned though; IMHO, the front mount is a lot more stable on side hills than the standard belly mount zero turn. And, yes, cleaning and blade maintenance is great on the front flip up deck.

 

[cold1313]

I had a 6’ Grasshopper with the front mount deck. I loved it. Comfortable to ride, the Chevron tires were good for slopes. Built like a tank. I had the liquid cooled, Kubota mower. I asked my Kubota dealer and they had parts for it if needed and said I should get a ton of hours out of it.

I bought it used and it had the side discharge, a steel mulching plate I could attach and even had the grass collector. I sold the collector. I did get grass in the face a lot but not as bad as my current Kubota. It’s also typically pretty windy out my way being near Lake Erie.

I still mow with a front mount mower (Kubota F3990) – the Grasshopper started to get a hydro pump leak so I traded. My Grasshopper was very loud, might have just needed a muffler.

No complaints about it. If you have a Grasshopper dealer nearby, then you should be good. I’d consider another one in the future.

Even though I hate the side discharge deck, I can’t see a rear discharge working for me. The grass gets to tall out here, or could be damp etc. I even mowed down 5 ft field grass when I first got the Grasshopper. No clumping issues for me and there is nothing flat or even about my yard.

I would say to check if it has the electric deck lift – that is so handy. If it doesn’t, I would invest in it.

 

[zzvyb6]

I have a JD F-935 72" front mounted deck. No problems on level or hilly ground. No problems with side discharge. I occasionally run a Woods lawn vac trailer behind it. You need more than an 8" delivery hose to keep up with the deck output.

 

[Industrial Toys]

How do you NOT blast buildings and roadways with the side discharge?

 

[4570Man]

How do you NOT blast buildings and roadways with the side discharge?

By mowing with the non discharge side towards the building and road.

 

[PILOON]

Friend just bought a Kubota front machine but in his case it mounts a snow blower C/W all hydraulic chute controls.
It is heated cabbed to boot.
Snow blowing is now a shirt sleeve operation!

Awesome performer in and around compact parking areas.
Superb visibility and maneuverability so I can imaging grass cutting duties in modern landscaping situations.

 

[Industrial Toys]

That is very unproductive and totally unecessary, unless you require some kind of collection system. Also, sometimes in higher grass, you don't want to spray the discharge into grass you haven't cut making it that much more difficult, and maybe the road is on the other side. I own some side discharge decks, but have no use or love for them.

In fact, every time the neighbor across the way cuts his side of the road with my old 770 (JD Tractor, not the Grader) and 5' belly mower, I am out there with a leaf blower, blowing the clippings off the road.



Another thing. If a mower was out front and 4wd, it could put you in a nice place for a front mount snow blower, depending on brand.

 

[sixdogs]

I had a 6 Grasshopper with the front mount deck. I loved it. Comfortable to ride, the Chevron tires were good for slopes. Built like a tank. I had the liquid cooled, Kubota mower. I asked my Kubota dealer and they had parts for it if needed and said I should get a ton of hours out of it.

I bought it used and it had the side discharge, a steel mulching plate I could attach and even had the grass collector. I sold the collector. I did get grass in the face a lot but not as bad as my current Kubota. It痴 also typically pretty windy out my way being near Lake Erie.

I still mow with a front mount mower (Kubota F3990) the Grasshopper started to get a hydro pump leak so I traded. My Grasshopper was very loud, might have just needed a muffler.

No complaints about it. If you have a Grasshopper dealer nearby, then you should be good. I壇 consider another one in the future.

Even though I hate the side discharge deck, I can稚 see a rear discharge working for me. The grass gets to tall out here, or could be damp etc. I even mowed down 5 ft field grass when I first got the Grasshopper. No clumping issues for me and there is nothing flat or even about my yard.

I would say to check if it has the electric deck lift that is so handy. If it doesn稚, I would invest in it.

Very helpful. I have read that a GH with the mulching setup that blocks the side discharge does an excellent job with little or no clumping. Do you know anything about that? Let me mention my ground is 100% flat with trees around the outside and only a couple in the middle. The only time the grass gets very long is if I get caught in the spring with heavy rains.

 

[cold1313]

Very helpful. I have read that a GH with the mulching setup that blocks the side discharge does an excellent job with little or no clumping. Do you know anything about that? Let me mention my ground is 100% flat with trees around the outside and only a couple in the middle. The only time the grass gets very long is if I get caught in the spring with heavy rains.

I had the side discharge block plate. It pins to the deck in about 15 seconds, very easy and very heavy duty. It worked well for me. I just ended up mowing a lot of tall grass to where I wanted to throw it out and not risk clumping. When I did use the plate, I never had an issue with clumping.

 

[sixdogs]

I had the side discharge block plate. It pins to the deck in about 15 seconds, very easy and very heavy duty. It worked well for me. I just ended up mowing a lot of tall grass to where I wanted to throw it out and not risk clumping. When I did use the plate, I never had an issue with clumping.

Thank you.

 

[MossRoad]

By mowing with the non discharge side towards the building and road.