I was just browsing through here and seen your post. I own about 12 IH cub cadets and my favorite for work is the 149. I have two of them. I bought one for parts but it wasn't in that bad of shape so I got it running and it is waiting for paint. A lot of people think the 149 was one of the best tractors cub cadet made. I use mine for rototilling, & snow plowing. I haven't used it for mowing yet. I have a nice deck for it though. There are very easy to work on, too. If you still have the opportunity I would highly recommend the tractor. Good Luck
Earl