Class III CUT's suitable for lawn work??

[slowzuki]

Re: Class III CUT\'s suitable for lawn work??

Sheep work very well, eliminate whipper snipping too.

 

[Soundguy]

Re: Class III CUT\'s suitable for lawn work??

Well the 3 big options are: get a rear finish mower... problem is your tractors is a bit big for 'lawn' work.

You could unload tires.. get turf tires.. and remove the loader.. seems like a bit of work.. and you might be looking at 1k$ in tires...

2nd option is one of those ztr's... downside is they are as expensive as a new off brand tractor / or a used common brand tractor. The idea of a ztr is nice.. but seems so limited.. all it does is mow ( and mow good .. no argument there). A cheap ztr isn't much bigger than your rider lawnmower.. to get substanitally more size.. you are in the 6k range or so.

Would be cheaper to buy a chineese tractor.. brand new.. say 3400 and a finish mower... say 1200.. and come out ahead money wise.. and have a second tractor. Similarly.. you could get an older domestic used tractor.. say like a farmall H series.. late 40's or so.. with a 60" belly mower. probably in the 2-3k$ range.. mows decently fast too. I turned down a great deal on a 49' H farmall.. and kick myself all the time... was only 2k$ and had a new mower... just didn't have the 3pt I wanted.... oh well.. live and learn.

3rd option is upgrade your lawn equipment with ann add on trail mower. These trail mowers are a gas powered mowing deck you can pull behind your existing lawnmower ( or atv ).. For instance I have a 48" craftsman... It can be offset behind my murray riding mower.. My mower is a 40" cut.. so you alloy a little overlap.. and have something like a 7' cut. True the price of the trail mower is as much as another economy riding lawnmower 800-1000 range... but makes it a one man job.

I mowed my 3 ac of lawn with my mower/trail mower for a year.. before I let it go 'pasture.. and then let my tractor / rotary cutter maintain it.

good luck

Soundguy

 

[songhunter]

Re: Class III CUT\'s suitable for lawn work??

I agree that your tractor is too heavy for lawn work. Almost all farms in this area have the same problem. Most have an ag or utility tractor to handle the large jobs and a smaller lawn tractor used for mowing. I made the mistake of trying to split the difference and bought a small CUT with a 48" finish mower. It turns out that a 42" lawn tractor from Lowe's can cut the two acre lawn about as quickly as my CUT with a 48" finish mower, mostly due to difference in maneuverability.

If your current tractor handles 85% of your needs, your least expensive solution is probably a small lawn tractor. I wouldn't go less that 48" cut, though, since that's a lot of grass to routinely cut with a lawn tractor (probably spend around 1-3K). The next step up would be the ZTR or a walk-behind with sulky (6-8K). The most expensive solution (and maybe not the best) would be a sub-compact diesel (9-13K). Considering the costs, it seems to me the best solution is a larger lawn tractor with a minimum cut width of 48" and a hydrostatic transmission. I would go with a used, name brand like Simplicity, Ford (model YT16H is nice), Gravely, or Case (model 444 is good too). I hope that helps!

 

[bigpete]

Re: Class III CUT\'s suitable for lawn work??

I don't know how far you want to go with this suggestion, but I bought an older Gravely rider with a 50" deck for a few hundred $ a year ago. I have rebuilt the top end of the engine (a twin Onan 18 hp) and refurbished the deck a little with new blades, belts, etc. I'm sure I have a few hundred more into it now, but it has saved me a few times when my bigger machine has been in the shop.

For a couple thousand, you could pick up a newer used Gravely G series rider and have a bullet-proof solid garden tractor. You can plow and blow snow, til a garden, etc. with one of these little Bad Boys. Just a thought.....here's an example: Gravely Rider on Ebay You can even do better (newer) than this. Just check around a little.

 

[Pacesetter300]

Re: Class III CUT\'s suitable for lawn work??

Thanks everybody
All great ideas. I brought up the ZTR with the CFO. To put it mildly, I think it's a little soon since I sold her on the big one less than nine months ago /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif Going to check on the price of a set of turf tires. I think they'll do for the FEL work as long as the ground isn't muddy. Easier to slide by too as she'll equate them with a set of Goodyears at Sears /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Pacesetter

 

[BenderKC]

Re: Class III CUT\'s suitable for lawn work??

Take her to test drive a ZTR. She will see the beauty of these machines, the ease with which they do their job and you will have a convert. I am not kidding.

 

[jackd]

Re: Class III CUT\'s suitable for lawn work??

Not only that, SHE may end up cutting the grass, and leave you more seat time on the CUT!!! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

JackD

 

[Pacesetter300]

Re: Class III CUT\'s suitable for lawn work??

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Not only that, SHE may end up cutting the grass, and leave you more seat time on the CUT!!! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

JackD )</font>

I'm liking this better and better all the time /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

I hog the 14 acres out back and she can cut the 3 acres out front. Sounds fair to me!!

Pacesetter

Pacesetter

 

[jackd]

Re: Class III CUT\'s suitable for lawn work??

We have the same set up, but a little smaller pasture -- 10 acres : /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif