Have L3600 and need to mow about 3 acres of lawn...

[JimS]

Not sure it this should go under Kubota or Lawn care but anyway... I have about 3 acres of lawn near the house. Have mowed it with a 42" craftsman for quite a few years. Wife does much of it. Also have a back field of about the same size that I just brush hog a time or two a year and mow a path more often. Have quite a bit of hilly woods too. The L3600 has been good for rough mowing, getting firewood, general loading and unloading various stuff with the FEL, a few times plowing snow from the long driveway, pulling over trees, etc.

I know the 42" mower is really not the best machine for this much lawn but we have had 2 of them over about 10 years. They have worked reasonably well but take a LONG time and have needed some maintenance, nothing too unexpected. The ground is a little rough but not terrible. Would be nice to have a mower with a suspension or suspension seat. Wife recently proposed I sell the L3600 and buy a cheaper small tractor that could do it all. I am skeptical that such a deal would actually be cheaper. I don't use the L a lot but when needed I sometimes need to pull all it will pull or some other big task. Like the old saying that no one ever wishes they bought a smaller tractor...

I just visited a Kubota dealer and wasn't too impressed (with the dealer). I got there about 15 minutes before closing and they were more interested in moving the outdoor stuff inside than talking to me. Once I got the attention of someone they basically said I could buy a $7000 Exmark ZTR. I could buy a BX but by the time I got the mower it was a bit over $15k. And they said blue book on the L3600 with loader and 500 hours was $3600- $5500 (This might be because this was an urban dealer near my work that may not have much call for such a tractor. They deal mostly with mowers. I told them that the price was absurd). Or I could buy turf tires for the L and a 3 point finish mower - the cheapest at about $4000.

Wife talked to a different dealer who said my L was worth $15k as trade and could get a B (used) for under $6k. I don't have any more details but the obvious question is how many hours, loader?, etc... I am not eager to trade a tractor in good condition for a used smaller one with unknown history. Besides I would still need something small and maneuverable for right around the house, flower beds, and trees.

When I objected to selling the L she proposed a Home Depot 48" Husqvarna for the lawn area. About $1500 which is nice on the budget but I think it is more of what we have been doing - just a bit bigger and we both want something a bit better.

As a side note, I would like to build a light boom mower and even the L is already small for that. But I suppose I could live without that.

I have read a number of threads on this but don't have a good plan yet. Any suggestions?

 

[Recoveryhill]

In my opinion, the Big Box mowers, either zero turns or tractors are more or less disposable mowers. To the extent that the lawn is smooth and the grass kept well cut, the period before one is ready for the scrap heap is longer. If the ground is rough and or the grass gets high, the useful life is shorter. All machinery requires maintenance but a solid machine will have a service life of years with maintenance while an inexpensive machine will experience failure regardless of maintenance.

I think the question you need to answer first is do you really need the L3600? I suppose if you really don't need it but really want to keep it just because, then keep it. Sounds like with the chores you describe, not only do you like having it but you need it? Swapping out your L3600 for a smaller used tractor doesn't strike me as the best plan.

I don't know where your are or how long your grass season is but if you're cutting three acres every couple of weeks, maximizing your efficiency there would really pay off. Even if I couldn't part with the dollars for a commercial quality big deck ZTR, I would probably go for the largest consumer ZTR I could afford and try to keep it in one piece as long as possible. The time you will save over even three years should pay for the machine.

 

[chim]

I enjoy having a tractor and the capabilities it brings. We recently planted more grass here and now have about 3 acres of the stuff to mow. Two years ago the trusty ol' B7500 & 5' RFM were replaced with the L3200 & 6' RFM. Great combo that does more than mow the yard.

 

[rbargeron]

Jim - As I read your post I was thinking it sounded like my own situation years back. After lots of reading and looking at equipment, I decided on a Woods RM990 rear finish mower. Your L3600 is big enough to handle it. The RM990 has 4 castors, swing-back blades, commercial quality gearbox and spindles, built to last. It will give a nice finish cut on the 3 acres and will do a good job on the back field too. Do a TBN search for more opinions. Most agree there isn't another product out there that's better. If the newest model is more than you want to spend, a used one may be a less costly way to see if it's the right tool for your place.

 

[dodge man]

You have a couple of options. You could go with something like a BX and get rid of the L. With a 60" deck it would cut down on your mowing time quite a bit. You could also go with a zero turn and that would be quicker yet, Kubota makes some nice diesel zero turns but you are talking as much or more money than a Bx depending on what you would get. The cheapest might be getting a big finish mower for your L. Its out back so the tires are going to mash the grass down and the cut won't be great but if its a fairly open area, it would be pretty fast. Keep the cheap box store mower to mow around things and use the L for the big areas.

 

[Gary Fowler]

I mow about 6 acres about every 4-5 days when we get regular rains. I use my Ferris IS 750 and it takes me about 2.5 hours to mow all but a small area that stays wet. I kept my Craftsman ZTR 6000 which I put bar lug tires on for this task. I use this to mow the areas that stay wet from spring flowing water. I try to use it rather than letting the turf tires on my Ferris slip off into ditches and the pond requiring me to use my RTV 900 and chain to pull it out. The bar lugs power on thru and out of mud fairly well. If I were mowing only 3 acres, I would still suggest just keeping your tractor and getting fairly good commercial duty or near commercial duty ZTR. I haven't used a push mower since I got mine. I do break out a weedeater about once a month to do around the trees and flower bed but most of the grass can be neatly trimmed with the ZTR (at least neat enough for me).

 

[Will_C]

Another vote for keeping your tractor and getting a ZTR.

Will

 

[AStanton]

Two neighbors near me-- one has an excavation business-- bought Graveley zero turn mowers with 60 " cuts. The contractor mows about 6 acres in 2hours. Both are happy with these units. I like the idea of a dedicated mower, they are lighter and quicker.

 

[wmonroe]

My vote also goes to keeping your L and getting a finish mower for it. Use the craftsman for the trimming/detail work and your L for the rest. You mentioned getting turf tires, do you have R1's now? For my situation the R1's are fine but everyone's needs are different. I mow about 2-3 acres and do most of it with my L5240 (with R1's), but go around the house, landscaping, trees, etc with a riding mower and the process seems to work well.

 

[NoNewParts]

another vote for keeping your tractor.
when you need a real tractor.....you need it.
I use a big pto rear finish mower for my side yard. does a nice job.
Another option is one of those pull Swisher type self-powered finish mowers.
(the big one with 4 wheels)
Pull it around with you L, or even offset it behind your Craftsman to mow wide.