Hello all, thanks for this great forum that I've been reading for years. A great knowledge base here, I only wish I'd seen it before I got my first machine.
I'm going to buy a Z-Force S 60 with the steering wheel, but I can't decide between the residential version or the commercial version. I need a ZTR with front wheel steering as I have long ditch banks to mow laterally, and that puts the kibosh on a free castering front end given my lack of ninja driving skills. A traditional tractor is out because I have around 50 trees and other tricky spots.
I mow 2.2 acres and will be putting about 50 hours per year on the machine. Frankly I'd rather buy a Simplicity/Ferris with suspension or a Hustler, Scag, Gravely, etc., but I must have that front wheel steering so Cub is it. Gizmow and Cub's Tank S are too heavy for the soft spots in my yard where I've been known to get stuck. I had no trouble lifting the front end of the Z-Force to my waist and moving the machine at the dealer as I've been doing with my SLT-1554 lawn tractor during my "anything to avoid going back with the string trimmer moments", but the Gizmow and Tank would be real gut busters. Cost is an issue as well since I'm a regular working guy.
My major concern is this: I'm a big fat former competition power-lifter weighing in a tad North of three bills, and I murdered my SLT-1554 drive system due to that and due to the few inclines I have to take. Aside from the ditches, the yard is mostly flat but there are three very short uphill challenges in key spots.
Here's the question: There's a Cub Cadet Commercial Z-Force S 60 available for about another $1000 over the residential model. Upgrades include ZT-3100 vs ZT-2800 hydros featuring charge pumps, shock valves, and stronger gears, a Kohler Command vs. Courage engine, a better seat for huge guys, slightly bigger tires, high lift blades, and a seven inch longer wheelbase. It weighs 45 pounds more than the residential model.
I want to use this thing for 1000 hours or twenty years, whichever comes first. I don't mind working on these things so I'd accept dropping in a new engine or hydro in that time, but if going cheaper means two new hydros plus a new engine, I'd rather just cough up the extra cash now.
I think the hydro upgrade to the ZT-3100 would be the biggest upgrade of them all, but I could be wrong. Is the ZT-2800 a good strong hydro? I can't find much bad about them on the net, but I also don't see many 60" machines using them. Then again, the front wheel steering should take a majority of the turning load off of them except for true zero turns. I'm drive-train paranoid at this point after my "sealed for a lifetime" SLT-1554 hydro, so whether it be the 2800s or 3100s, I will be changing oil and filters regularly. I may be over-thinking this hydro thing... just not sure.
Kohler Courage vs Command. The Courage is rated for 750 hrs. and the Command for 2000. That should be a no-brainer for the Command, but it seems from user reports that the Kohler Command isn't quite the sturdy beast in real life that it should be. My SLT-1554 has a Command and it blows enough oil smoke on start-up to provide stage effects for a Foghat concert. Runs like a champ though.
Resale Value: If I'm successful at training my dogs to eat grass down to the three inch level, it seems to me that the word "Commercial" on the side decal will open me up to far more potential buyers. Not a huge concern, but a concern nonetheless.
Commercial or residential Z-Force S 60. Which way to go? Thanks for any advice you can offer. Apologies for writing a novel here.
Links for both: Residential Z-Force S 60 and Commercial Z-Force S 60
I'm going to buy a Z-Force S 60 with the steering wheel, but I can't decide between the residential version or the commercial version. I need a ZTR with front wheel steering as I have long ditch banks to mow laterally, and that puts the kibosh on a free castering front end given my lack of ninja driving skills. A traditional tractor is out because I have around 50 trees and other tricky spots.
I mow 2.2 acres and will be putting about 50 hours per year on the machine. Frankly I'd rather buy a Simplicity/Ferris with suspension or a Hustler, Scag, Gravely, etc., but I must have that front wheel steering so Cub is it. Gizmow and Cub's Tank S are too heavy for the soft spots in my yard where I've been known to get stuck. I had no trouble lifting the front end of the Z-Force to my waist and moving the machine at the dealer as I've been doing with my SLT-1554 lawn tractor during my "anything to avoid going back with the string trimmer moments", but the Gizmow and Tank would be real gut busters. Cost is an issue as well since I'm a regular working guy.
My major concern is this: I'm a big fat former competition power-lifter weighing in a tad North of three bills, and I murdered my SLT-1554 drive system due to that and due to the few inclines I have to take. Aside from the ditches, the yard is mostly flat but there are three very short uphill challenges in key spots.
Here's the question: There's a Cub Cadet Commercial Z-Force S 60 available for about another $1000 over the residential model. Upgrades include ZT-3100 vs ZT-2800 hydros featuring charge pumps, shock valves, and stronger gears, a Kohler Command vs. Courage engine, a better seat for huge guys, slightly bigger tires, high lift blades, and a seven inch longer wheelbase. It weighs 45 pounds more than the residential model.
I want to use this thing for 1000 hours or twenty years, whichever comes first. I don't mind working on these things so I'd accept dropping in a new engine or hydro in that time, but if going cheaper means two new hydros plus a new engine, I'd rather just cough up the extra cash now.
I think the hydro upgrade to the ZT-3100 would be the biggest upgrade of them all, but I could be wrong. Is the ZT-2800 a good strong hydro? I can't find much bad about them on the net, but I also don't see many 60" machines using them. Then again, the front wheel steering should take a majority of the turning load off of them except for true zero turns. I'm drive-train paranoid at this point after my "sealed for a lifetime" SLT-1554 hydro, so whether it be the 2800s or 3100s, I will be changing oil and filters regularly. I may be over-thinking this hydro thing... just not sure.
Kohler Courage vs Command. The Courage is rated for 750 hrs. and the Command for 2000. That should be a no-brainer for the Command, but it seems from user reports that the Kohler Command isn't quite the sturdy beast in real life that it should be. My SLT-1554 has a Command and it blows enough oil smoke on start-up to provide stage effects for a Foghat concert. Runs like a champ though.
Resale Value: If I'm successful at training my dogs to eat grass down to the three inch level, it seems to me that the word "Commercial" on the side decal will open me up to far more potential buyers. Not a huge concern, but a concern nonetheless.
Commercial or residential Z-Force S 60. Which way to go? Thanks for any advice you can offer. Apologies for writing a novel here.
Links for both: Residential Z-Force S 60 and Commercial Z-Force S 60