Mowing craftsman garden tractor

[Gary Fowler]

Unfortunately, ZTRs are not known for handling steep slopes either. Perhaps some other readers that own ZTRs have some mods to improve on slope mowing. If so, I'd sure be interested; no doubt a good quality ZTR would be the fastest and best cutting mowers to be had.

In order to have a ZTR that will handle slopes, you have to get away from the box store mowers that have the small tires and weigh in about 300 pounds. A heavier duty, heavy weight mower like my Ferris IS700Z will mow side slope on 15-20 degree slopes all day long and run straight. I can climb a 30 degree slope straight up and stop going down that same slope with no problem, just pull the control handles into neutral.

On my Craftsman 6000 ZTR (typical box store model), it wont travel straight on a side slope of 10 degrees with one wheel in full reverse and the other full forward. It just careens off downhill even after I replaced the almost slick turf tires with bar lug tires. It just doesn't have the weight or traction to hold the ground. IT will climb about any hill up to 45 degrees but hang on to your hat going down as it has no way of stopping unless you run into a wall or something even on 15 degree slopes. Even with full reverse, it just starts sliding and keeps on going till you hit bottom. I doubt any other box store zero turn will do any better. If the grass is wet, forget it, no amount of coaxing is going to keep you going straight on anything other than flat ground.

Mowing speed is another issue, box store mowers traditionally mow at max of about 6 MPH which may be fine for rough ground and you may not be able to handle even that speed on them due to the rough ride. Most of the higher end mowers ($6000+ price range) will travel at 10 mph or more which makes the job get done in almost half the time. The reason I bought my Ferris is because of the exceptionally smooth ride due to the suspension system. Heavy mowers with larger tires all ride smoother than the lightweight models but when you add shocks and spring suspension to the front and rear axles, you get a really smooth ride.

 

[TheMadOne]

I've never liked "Garden Tractors". I mowed for years with a JD 110 and 160. They were slow, and barely held enough gas to do my 3 acres. I got a used eXmark ZT that was a trade in from a landscaper. I live on a large hill and have had no problems with the mower turning, tracking, or stopping.

My one caveat is, at least with older models, zero turns will beat you up pretty good if your ground isn't perfectly smooth.

 

[murphy1244]

I would be looking at a Simplicity Conquest or better. I think(IMO) they are better than a deere brand. Much better cut.

 

[MESSMAKER]

Three acres will wear out a box store mower quickly. The Transmission and deck will be the first to go. Most motors will give you at least 1000 hours. Spend a little more up front and get something a little tougher. You can use weight as a guide. Look for at least 700lbs for a garden tractor and maybe 1000lb for a zero turn. You also want at least 23" tires on the drive wheels. That means they have at least a mid-grade transmission.

 

[Gary Fowler]

Does anyone know anything about the craftsman garden tractors the 2016 models. I gave up on lowes mowers because they were listing a tractor troy-bilt that was out of stock and troy-bilt had it listed out of stock. I talked to Lowes and found the husqvarna so I looked at reviews and it was having problems with the transaxle braking after so many hours. $2299.00 is too mich to spend for a couple years then you have to replace axle. The axle is $975 for a new one. I looked at the hustler and it is around $4000. This is for 3 acreas with some slope. Not sure what too buy.

Not one of the box store mowers are garden tractors, they are all lawn tractors. There is a big difference between lawn tractors (lawnmowers) and a true garden tractor which is designed to have a capacity to attach implements for plowing, disking etc. in addition to mowing the lawn. I had a JD 332 diesel engine GARDEN tractor once and it was much more robust than any lawn tractor you could buy from a box store or even from JD dealer unless you got into the above $8-10K price tag.
I do see that Sears has offered a higher end lawn tractor for about $3k that is supposed to be better than the average lawnmower. I think it is made by Husky.

 

[jenkinsph]

I've never liked "Garden Tractors". I mowed for years with a JD 110 and 160. They were slow, and barely held enough gas to do my 3 acres. I got a used eXmark ZT that was a trade in from a landscaper. I live on a large hill and have had no problems with the mower turning, tracking, or stopping.

My one caveat is, at least with older models, zero turns will beat you up pretty good if your ground isn't perfectly smooth.

Things change over time, forty years ago the 110 garden tractor had either a 7 or 8 hp engine. The 160 lawn tractor had a 12 hp engine. I would not expect them to be as fast as a modern day garden tractor with triple the hp. Same thing with your Exmark ZT, more hp.

 

[Garycw]

They sure don't make em like they used too. Like I mentioned before I still have a 1972 Murray with sleeve hitch and about 5 Brinley implements 100lb wheel weights that's seen A lot of ground work. Only plastic part is the shift knob. B& S 16 hp twin. It was the ticket in '72 for gardening.
Although the 46" deck only lasted a few years. It was bought for gardening and never even had the deck on it till sometime in the 80's. Wouldn't give you 2 cents for a Murray today if they're even still made. Some of the old craftsmanship were good too, but the decks were and still are the weakest link.

 

[Gary Fowler]

Wouldn't give you 2 cents for a Murray today if they're even still made. .

Oh they are still made and as a matter of fact, about 99% of the brand names sold are made by MTD (Murray). Just do a search of MTD brand names.

 

[RaydaKub]

Things change over time, forty years ago the 110 garden tractor had either a 7 or 8 hp engine. The 160 lawn tractor had a 12 hp engine. I would not expect them to be as fast as a modern day garden tractor with triple the hp. Same thing with your Exmark ZT, more hp.

Very true, but that old 110 my dad bought in 1968 was a tank. 8hp Kohler alright, but the entire rear end was mounted in a steel box about 1/4 inch thick, maybe 8 to 10 inches high. I think there are a lot of 20+ hp box store mowers that weigh 1/2 what that thing did.

 

[jenkinsph]

Ray,
My dad had a 112 that I mowed for many hours with on two properties. Looking back I suspect my grandfather would be amazed how fast one person could mow his large lawn today. He would have two of his helpers and himself mowing his 4 acres of lawn, an all day job. The old push mowers were slow and cumbersome to operate. Today I could mow and trim the same yard on Saturday morning and be done before lunch