I was just at TSC this afternoon picking up dog and cat food. I have been looking at their ZTR mowers and this afternoon, there was a Bad Boy 60 inch residential model. I liked the looks of it. I have read this thread and got much good info from it. I also looked at the parts manual for it online. I also looked at the specs online. There were a few things I noticed:
1. The residential mower has a 3/16 inch thick deck as opposed to the 1/4 inch commercial deck
2. I cannot find the model of the drive axles for any of the Bad Boy mowers. They say the residential is Hydro gear integrated pump and motors, but they don't say what version it is. Most other manufacturers will list the exact model or version somewhere. I just can't find it for this one.
3. The 26 HP Briggs engine is the same one used on some Dixon commercial units, the Swisher 60 inch model, and several others. I checked on Briggs' web site and this engine has cast iron cylinder sleeves. I think it would last a long time.
4. I like the electric deck lift, but it is something else that adds complication to a machine and thus is one more thing that could fail and cost quite a bit to repair.
5. I don't have much of an issue with sealed spindle units. I've had them on my old Swisher tow behind 60 inch mower for 7 full seasons and have had to replace only one. Cost of replacement was about 60 bucks and I did the easy repair myself. If greasable spindles are a plus then the 60 inch Zforce Cub Cadet is ahead of the Bad Boy in that respect.
6. As someone else mentioned, if you look at the parts manual, many of the items are things that could be bought at a hardware store. The engine would be easily replaced and can be ordered online from a wide variety of vendors. I doubt the frame or deck will break. If you are reasonably handy with a wrench and inclined to do repairs for yourself, then what is the advantage in buying from a dealer? The nearest Bad Boy dealer is 35 to 40 miles from me. If buying from a dealer is high on my priority list, then it will be Dixon, JD, Grasshopper, Scag, Ferris, Toro or Exmark for me. These are all with in 10 miles. Do I like any of these better than the Bad Boy in the same price range? I'm not yet sure that I do. Good dealers are a good thing, but, for me, I can't see buying from a dealer that is not close to home. I am a dealer of sorts in sporting goods (mainly firearms) and the best thing I can do for my customers is give them a competitive price and spend time with them helping to decide on a purchase. If I do that, my customers will return. They will, however, go somewhere else if they can get a better deal. They seldom go elsewhere, because I am quite competitive on many items.
As long as parts are available, then I think repairs should not be an issue. The biggest item that I have seen on the Bad Boy that might be a problem expense wise is the drive axles or the deck lift. The axles are a wash compared to other ZTR's as those would be expensive, but not terribly hard to replace. The electric deck lift might also be expensive, but doesn't look all that hard to replace.
So, I have added the Bad Boy to my maybe list. I am still researching ZTR mowers and am in no hurry, but very interested.
Don Williams a.k.a. Librarian