Rear Finish Mower Bobcat 60" Quality and Price?

[BNickel]

I'm new to the forum, having just purchased a 1947 8N. It came with a rotary cutter, but I need to get a finish mower by next spring. I'll be cutting about 5 hilly acres. I'm looking at the various options for rear-mount finish mowers. Searching the forums indicates that the 8N is best suited for 60" decks though some say that you can get away with a 72" if you're careful.

I stopped by the local Bobcat dealer hoping to take a look at a Woods mower, so I have a benchmark. They didn't have any, but they do have a 60" Bobcat-brand mower. It's new, but almost 3 years old and they're willing to sell it for $1,500 (maybe less) with full warranty. It has some rust, but seems to be in good shape.

My questions are: Who make the Bobcat mowers? How does their quality compare to Woods, King Kutter, etc? Is ~$1,500 a good deal for this mower? Can my 8N swing a 72" deck or should I concentrate on 60"?

Thanks for your help. I could use all you've got...

 

[BNickel]

Wow, there aren't any opinions on Bobcat-brand mowers? How about a 60 vs 72" mower deck for an 8N?

Buhler?

 

[MoKelly]

It may be better to post this in the Bobcat section to get more responses.

MoKelly

 

[Birdhunter1]

I believe they are made by either Lesco or Ransoms, both of which are good durable mowers. My dad had a Bobcat zero turn mower for a few years, I liked it alot and he did too. The only reason he got rid of it was because he found a sweet deal on a Toro with a bigger deck and engine, if it were not the fact he was doing alot of commercial mowing he would have kept it but it was too small for the areas he was mowing. They are good mowers, I believe their residential mowers are very good too. Bobcat mowers and Bobcat construction equipment (skidsteers and excavators) are not related.

 

[galaxie428]

If you do not have to have new, check out craigslist. I bought a Caroni 72" finish mower a couple of years ago for $400 and while it is not as pretty as a new one, I have not had any problems with it and it mows great.