Homeowner PT questions

[MowMN]

Hello all-

First time TBN poster hoping to get some feedback from the community regarding PT recommendations.

This fall I moved to a 1-acre property with nearly half of that consisting of a long 18-22 degree slope with several scattered trees as well as a small pond at the base of the hill. For mowing, I've been using a 14-year old Cub Cadet zero turn and promptly replaced the turf tires with R1s after sliding down the hill and nearly taking the mower for a swim. While this has substantially improved the traction of the drive wheels, mowing around the trees on the hill continues to be a pain because the ZT, with just the casters on the front end, wants to continually nose downhill.

In looking to upgrade to a 4WD mower, I would also like to get something with more capabilities to help with managing the property. I currently foresee myself using it for the following applications:

1. Mowing: Finish mowing only. Bulk of the operating time
2. Snow removal: Looking at a front-mount power brush for snow removal in winter and for keeping the drive clear of debris from all of the trees in the spring and fall
3. FEL: Want to replace my wheelbarrow and save time (and my back!) after moving landscaping materials, yard waste, etc this past fall by hand.

I've been looking at several SCUT/CUTs and browsing the used market but the PT seems to provide everything I need in a single package and at a price point that's within my budget. With the exception of welding, I have the capabilities to do maintenance/repairs myself so the lack of a dealer network doesn't bother me.

My question for PT owners is whether a 422 would be enough tractor or would it struggle operating on my ~20 degree slope? I know the 425 has more HP as well as the bigger wheel motors but the 2.8k price bump is not insignificant. Unfortunately I'm located in MN and can't easily make it out to Tazewell for an in-person comparison.

 

[MossRoad]

Welcome to TBN.

From my experience with a 2001 model year PT425 and a 60" finish mower and what I believe are the same wheel motors that are on the current PT422, after an hour or so in hot temps mowing, the hydraulic fluid starts getting hot and the machine will lose a bit of power for hill climbing that steep with the mower running. I can shut off the mower and climb the hill no problem. Down and across are not issues, just up. With a 422, PT recommends the 48" mower. I'm guessing that a 422 with a 48" mower would be very similar to my older 425 with the 60" mower on a hill.

The newer 425s have larger wheel motors. I have no experience with them, but again, just guessing, they'd be much less likely to have issues with running the mower while climbing a 20 degree hill. And if you put a 48" mower on it instead of a 60" mower, that would be even more power available for the wheel motors.

Hopefully someone with a newer model 425 will hop in and tell you from actual experience, not my guessing.

As far as a power wheelbarrow goes, the PTs are fantastic for moving material around a yard. For loose material, the large light material bucket is great. I also have a small rock bucket with teeth. Once I sharpened the teeth, it works great for breaking up tough soil, and, the teeth really help with pushing into crushed rock or gravel. However, looking back on my purchase, if I had to do it again, I'd get the grapple bucket with teeth. There's been a lot of times I wish I could grip a pile of brush with a grapple, rather than just pushing it around with the pallet forks. Hindsight is 20/20.

I also have a 60" power angle snow blade. It was only $450 back in 2001, I believe. Works way better than a bucket for moving snow. Don't know about a broom.

Good luck in your decision process. Feel free to ask anything you may have questions about. :thumbsup:

 

[Incline]

Hi MowMN - Welcome to the forum.

I bought a 425 about 6 months ago. I don't have any experience with the 422 so my comments are a bit one-dimensional. My property is similar to yours in that all 2 acres are between 15-20 deg slopes. The 425 has no problem brush cutting up, down, and even sideways across the slope (albeit slowly). I tend to lose traction and spin the tires before I run out of power going up the steepest areas of around 23 deg. where the soil is soft.

A comment - although the 425 is advertised as 25HP, the recent engines have been re-labeled to 23.5HP due to some regulatory changes. Apparently it's the same engine but either tuned down or simply re-marked to better reflect reality - not sure which. Possible the engine in the 422 suffered similar downgrading. I'm happy with it but thought I'd toss that out there for transparency.

Finally, just a personal observation from past experience - I almost without exception have been glad I spent the extra $ upfront for large purchases like this when having to make the choice your considering. I have no regrets......other than maybe I should have bought the 1445 instead -

 

[cqaigy2]

Hi MowMN,

I have a 422. It's worked well for me, but i'm happier since i replaced the 22 HP Robins, with the larger engine. Physically it's not much larger than the 422, but the larger engine, more FEL and double steering rams are a plus and the fact you are going to have the machine for a long time. In retrospect, i'd go for the larger 425 if i had a do over.

 

[MowMN]

Thanks so much for the responses. There do seem to be a few 422 owners on this forum such as cqaigy2 who have commented that they wished they had gone with the 425 in retrospect. Maybe I'll just have to save up and spring for the larger model myself. Perhaps I can get lucky on the used market but you PT owners must love your machines because the pickings seem very slim.

Quick question for those of you operating on slopes - are you running turfs or bar tires? Does the PT tend to tear up the turf with bars/R1?

 

[cqaigy2]

I'm on slopes and run bar tires. I don't think either are hard on turf because of the way it turns. When the ground is absolutely saturated, i've gotten mud to come up, running back and forth a number of times.

 

[MossRoad]

I've still got my original turf tires (well, 3 of them, I tore one apart). I mostly mow my lawn with them and they are fine. Also work really well on our flat asphalt driveway when plowing snow. Our remote property about 9 miles away is almost entirely sand and very hilly. The turfs work great in sandy soil on slopes and also in the woods. I can climb over 8" logs no problem. If I had clay or mud, I'd be tempted to go with bar tires, though. The turfs would probably plug up with mud pretty fast.

I think the bar tires are a heavier ply than the turfs, too, so they're probably more durable in rough terrain.

 

[Incline]

I have bar tires. They're 4 ply vs turf 2 ply. They are pretty gentle on soil. I don't have any "pretty grass" so can't comment on what it would do to a lawn but others have said that they won't mark it up unless you take several passes over the same area.

I was excavating last week in mud/dirt - I noted that the areas between the bars had completely filled in with packed mud, basically leaving me riding on a flat/slick surface and yet it seemed to have surprisingly good traction. I'm thinking the "bar" served no purpose at that point and maybe my next set of tires will be some version of turf for added contact area to the ground.

 

[agjones]

Welcome, as you can see... You can get good support from the forum... You'll get good phone support from power-trac.

I've got a 2013 425, and what seems to be an early 425(smaller wheel motors).... You're asking a great question, here's the way I'd look at it : over the years you'll lose a little power here and there.. Engine wear hydraulic wear.... Etc... The 422 may be initially adequate then frustrate you down the road... The 425 will have adequate power for the described applications over its life... The area you're working is pretty small, so I don't see you running in to the 422 endurance/heat issues mossroad mentions... But he's right... Long hot work days will go the way he says...

Most engines have lost power on paper due to the regs changing... No actual power loss in my experience.

As far as tires, the lugs are great for traction and not too bad on the grass if you are focused... There's a hybrid option, industrial or r4 tread. I got a set of nice high ply rating r4's on rims, delivered off ebay for ~500. Most of the traction of the bar, a little less resistant to crab crawl across Slope.

I'd suggest getting the tire set up you know you need for snow and find a second setup used locally. I find turf tires and rims in the 422/425 size cheap on CL all the time.
As far as attachments to start with, the size and terrain you describe makes the 48"mowers a good fit. The utility grapple is indispensable in my work (add a trailer ball on your own) the 4n1 might be a good fit for both bucket work and some snow work. Of all the implements meant for other equipment you might customize to the PT, a snow blade is about the easiest.

48" mower, 4n1(w teeth) or utility grapple... Good start.

If you were close to me you could try mine side by side... But it sounds like w the right running gear under you, and savings by going with the 422 you'll be able to get another attachment, a qa plate to stick to a locally sourced show blade, plus alt/backup running gear.

Happy new year, ask any questions and we'll help where we can.

My suspected 425 w predator conversion is likely to be up for sale soon...I've added an 1850 to my little fleet...and don't need the 2nd 425 now. Pm for details.
Cheers

 

[jfh28]

I've got the bar tires.......if the ground is dry then they are fine but if the ground is soft they will chew it up on turns......I should mention that my grass area is grass in name only....lol.....as for snow if its anymore then a dusting you are going to want chains so it doesn't really matter if you have bars or turfs then......again if your typical snow fall is more then just a dusting I would opt for the snow plow over the power broom.......the lmb is ok for snow removal if its a small area but all the backing up and dumping of the bucket gets old fast if the drive is any length.......my property is almost all wooded so I deal with trees and limbs falling on the drive all the time......I have the grapple bucket which I think is more versatile and has a bigger jaw opening for tree work then the 4in1.......it is my least used implement but absolutely essential when needed.......best of luck with whatever you decide to get........Jack