Buying Advice Best riding mower for rolling land and 6 acres?

[rekees4300]

What should I buy now?

With 6 acres of hills you need more than a big-box store mower. Go to a John Deere dealer and look at the X5xx series. They are built for your situation. Ask the dealer for HDAP rear tires. They would make a big difference in traction/safety on those hills.

 

[Poopdeck Pappy]

I like landscaping work, and maintaining a large lawn. But I also value my time. A lot. When I went through this decision I got a zero turn and couldn't be happier. Mine's actually a front mount Grasshopper, but any of them in a commercial duty series would be good. I spend very little time on maintenance, mostly proactive which keeps things ready to use and from wearing out too soon. I think I cut my mowing time in half compared to a rider. I mow around 6 acres, have slopes and hills, and hundred(s) of obstacles or trees. I love to go out to mow though, as I can get it down in a reasonable amount of time, and have a quick sense of satisfaction.
My wife comments when we pass large yards with some guy slumped over the wheel of a riding lawn tractor, creeping along. It looks like it takes all day. She loves how fast we get ours done.
edit to add: a commercial duty mower will have much higher blade speeds, and deeper/taller decks to handle more clippings. you can mow faster, and when wet if needed.

I agree 100% with all that. Having good equipment makes most jobs more enjoyable, or at least less of a PITA.

 

[vidio1]

I've got a Scag ZTR with a 61" deck. It cuts around 2 acres an hour or about twice as fast as the finish mower I used to drag behind my Kubota. There are somethings a tractor is good at, but it's hard to beat a ZTR if you value your time.

 

[Deere Dude]

I personally like garden tractor type mowers but front mounts are great if you have a lot of obstacles to go around. I would look around for a used JD7XX series of some sort and try to get a diesel for the economic factor while running.

They are great driving and are ergonomically well designed. For that size lawn I would get as big a deck possibly which might be around 60-62". I can mow 7.5 acres in maybe 5 hours with a setup like that. But that is cruising especially on a bumpy lawn.

 

[check 6]

I am a great fan of the Kubota diesel zero turn mowers. My 10 year old ZD 1800 with a 54 in deck still runs and cuts like a champ and looks like new. For whatever reason I have added a ZD 1211 with a 60 in deck for bigger jobs. Really like the suspension seat on the new model as well as the improved way to raise and lower the deck. Kubota diesel commercial grade mowers will last and last.

 

[Gary Fowler]

I've got a Scag ZTR with a 61" deck. It cuts around 2 acres an hour or about twice as fast as the finish mower I used to drag behind my Kubota. There are somethings a tractor is good at, but it's hard to beat a ZTR if you value your time.

I have an 8 foot bush hog that I use to mow my pasture. I timed the mowing using the tractor vs using my ZTR and I can mow it faster with my 52" deck ZTR AND mow right up against the trees than I can with my 70 HP tractor. If it was all straight away uncluttered grass I couldn't do it but with all the obstacles, the tractor is too time consuming making all those circles.
As for a mower for 4-6 acres, I would go with a ZTR in near commercial grade or if you have the money go full commercial. They will set you back $6K minimum up to $14K or more for bigger commercial mowers, but they will last a lifetime. I mow at least 6 acres with my Ferris IS700Z with Kawasaki 691V engine and use about 3.5 gallons of gas. Mind you I don't let it get 8" high before I mow or it would take much more time and gas to do it. I keep it cut to 2.5" and cut it when it is less than 4" so at least every 7 days or less if it needs it when I get lots of rain.
I like my Ferris due to the rough ground (ex pasture) that I mow and the spring over coil suspension that really smooths out the bumps. That is the reason for buying it, but it has done a good job in the 3 years with only mower deck belt replacement required.
My brother in law just bought a new JD X545 (rear tires steer on it also) and it is near to being a zero turn but still not as fast as my Ferris and it costs over $6K. He bought it because he wanted something with power steering due to his bad shoulder and he is a JD fan. He had a Craftsman 6500 that he has use for 8 years and it is still going. It needs one new spindle due to grease seal being gone on it from running it with string wrapped up on it but otherwise it mows great and he has mowed about 3 acres of lawn with it every year and sometimes even mows portions of his cow pasture. It has been a very good mower which may not be typical of Craftsman experience.

 

[jenkinsph]

Texas Dad,

I see a couple of issues. First 6 acres is a fair amount to maintain and mow, and second it appears from your post #1 that the ground needs smoothing out. This combination makes for slower mowing and is time lost every time you cut the lawn. I recommend you consider smoothing the lawn areas or mowed areas out first and reseed. For most lawn areas I will till everything and use a box blade and land plane grader scraper to get the ground smooth. Obviously you can mow a lot faster on smooth ground and you could reduce the mowing time by 2 hours every time you mow, that is a considerable time savings each year.

With smooth ground I would suggest a commercial zero turn can mow 6 acres with some obstacles in two hours approximately. A Deere x749 which I have could mow it in three hours and the x500 series could mow it in four+ hours.

If the ground is left rough you will likely have to spend about five to eight hours mowing each time and won't get the full benefit of a faster mower.

 

[TXgreenjeans]

How are the ZTM on hilly ground? They always seem to do extremely well on flat ground, just not sure how they would function on hills and irregular terrain.

 

[big bubba]

How are the ZTM on hilly ground? They always seem to do extremely well on flat ground, just not sure how they would function on hills and irregular terrain.

zt's generally have a low center of gravity an usually don't roll over unless they are small and have a narrow cutting width. the shorter the wheel base and narrower width of cut, the more squirley they can become given sudden changes in direction (easy to do with abrupt moves with the hydraulics). my experience is that on slopes, given the weight etc of operator and machine, they will slide downhill especially in wet conditions. even if not dangerous in that respect, they do leave skid marks in that situation. i use my zt where i feel comfortable, and use my hydro walk behind on slopes such as my pond dams, etc. to each his own, there are many out there bolder than myself.... in a way, the same challenge applies for tractor use on slopes. if you must use your zt on slopes, be sure it's dry and plan each turn for safety. get one with a rops and use seat belt.... keeping your life insurance policy current is also a good idea. best regards

 

[jenkinsph]

How are the ZTM on hilly ground? They always seem to do extremely well on flat ground, just not sure how they would function on hills and irregular terrain.

Depends on how steep the hills are, if real steep not so good if you have to turn. The better models will out perform the smaller and lighter models. Living in the mountains I use 4x4 garden tractors with good results.