Bought a New House, Need a New Mower!

[Avenger]

That's right! We actually sold our home that had a small yard on the side of a hill, and bought a new home with a very large, 1 acre yard that is all flat. Well, mostly flat. It has a slight hillside along a fence. The yard boasts mature deciduous trees of various verities, so leaf collection will be a duty I'd ask of this mower. The layout of the lawn is not square, but has 'features' that wrap it's way around the house and shop area. The property is just over 5 acres total, with the lawn taking up about a full acre according to google earth.

I currently have a 30" wide riding mower. I figure it will take me roughly a month to cut all that grass with my current mower. I need an upgrade! Besides, what's a new house without a new mower?!

I'm leaning towards a zero turn with a 50" deck. I think that would make shorter work of weekly mowing duties. It would also enable me to get around the trees and other obstacles in the yard. However, I think I would also like to pull a pull type sprayer (for weed and feed) and maybe a bagger to collect some grass clippings. The grass is extremely thick currently, so while mulching is great, I think bagging up those cuttings would be a bit better. Your opinions are certainly welcome here! I would also use the sprayer to spray the driveway for weed control. The driveway is currently gravel with a large parking area in front of the shop and garage. I'd probably spray it down once or twice a year to keep the weeds from popping up.

I am not opposed to conventional types of riding mowers either. I just figured a zero turn would be faster and more nimble around the trees.

So, I need recommendations. Can I get a hitch on a zero turn? What about bagging attachments? What makes and models do you prefer?

I am not looking for commercial grade. I have to keep my costs down a bit. Probably not more than $5k for this mower.

Thank you for your opinions!

 

[workinonit]

I think you can get a Bad Boy in that price range. The guy that cuts my grass sometimes when I'm traveling and can't has one and it seems to be a good mower. I have a Kubota ZD1211 but that's quite a bit out of your price range.

 

[calfal]

I have a 2009 bad boy pup.. have been pleased with it, with a mulching blade I think it would take care of your leaves,, if you have a bad boy dealer where you are I would give them a look..

 

[RjCorazza]

I prefer zero turns. If a 48-54" mower is a good fit for the terrain, go with that. Prices do increase with the larger mowers though.
As far as leaves, I incrementally mulch leaves with Gator blades and a discharge chute cover. With a large volume of leaves I think a tow behind mulcher may be easier labor-wise. I have always wanted to get a Cyclone Rake vacuum, but don't have a place to store it.
Happy shopping.

 

[workinonit]

All of the zero turns I've ever owned have had mulch kits, not just mulching blades. All of them will mulch large amounts of leaves in one pass. Pretty amazing to me.

 

[dlctcg]

I run a Cyclone Rake XL behind our Exmark Lazer Z with a Triton 50" deck. Actually downsized the deck to a 50" when I purchased the mower for easier mobility around trees, around structures & other landscape structures. Even going from the 61" deck to a 50" it takes me the same time to mow our 2+ acres of lawn, this is definitely because the 50" gets in & around places on our property easier then the 61".

As far as the Cyclone Rake goes I would not be without it... we have very heavy leaf cover every fall & it has been a game changer... The Cyclone Rakes come with a hitch to mount to the Z-turn so pulling a tank will be possible too. The only thing is I'm always aware of the weight as I'm doing leave, if the are wet at all I'll empty the Cyclone Rake prior to it being full to keep the hydros from working harder then they should (did that with the last Z-turn also).

The Exmark's may be more than you want to spend but thought I give you my thoughts on deck size, trailer, & leaf clean-up.