I have no idea what to buy

[NH3930Turbo]

Hey:

I am buying a property with about 1.8 acres of grass. This is my first time owning this much grass to mow and first time buying a ride on mower. Can anyone give me some directions on what the market looks like out there? What brand is garbage? Which is really high end but way overpriced? I live in SW Michigan which has a moderate amount of snow as well and the property is flat. Any direction is greatly appreciated.

Thanks!
Matt

It really depends on your landscaping, imo. Our old place was right at 2 acres. Gently sloping front yard with no trees and a few trees in the back. Mowed with a 2003 JD130 48" I had for 12 years, it always got the job done in about 1.5hrs. Just got rid of that mower last week, still running good. Now if your yard is heavily landscaped and has obstacles, I'd recommend going with a ztr. We've since moved and I've upgraded to a cub cadet ztx4 60" to mow about 4 to 5 acres with a lot of obstacles, takes nearly 5hrs to mow everything. Hard to beat a traditional garden tractor when it comes to toting carts around and such. Both have limitations.

 

[scaredychicken]

How many weeks do you have to mow grass in Michigan?

I wanna say 3

I love Michigan, from the 2 yrs that I lived there. Beautiful areas, well defined seasons. Snow was a bit much.

 

[stso9d]

Hey:

I am buying a property with about 1.8 acres of grass. This is my first time owning this much grass to mow and first time buying a ride on mower. Can anyone give me some directions on what the market looks like out there? What brand is garbage? Which is really high end but way overpriced? I live in SW Michigan which has a moderate amount of snow as well and the property is flat. Any direction is greatly appreciated.

Thanks!
Matt

For ztr, Spartan or ferris are my choices. Bad boy is also decent…

 

[stso9d]

We went through half a dozen before my wife found a mower that she liked for mowing our very irregular shaped 1.1 acres of lawn. The lawn is long and narrow along a creek and mowing it is a bit of work with lots of trees, shubs, and rock features to maneuver around. Definitely not flat land.
The mower is a Honda HRX 217 electric start. It turns out that the electric start is an important feature, as is the hydrostatic transmission with fwd & reverse, blade stop, and cruise control.
Cost was slightly under a thousand dollars six years ago. In spite of a lot of use, it hasn't required anything but gas and an oil change since we got it. We pamper it by knocking out the filters and charging the battery each spring. It lives outside but under a corner of the barn roof.
rScotty

For push mower, Honda rear wheel drive is best i have owned. Worth the price for sure.

 

[Joe Batt]

I see the conversation is shifting I keep most of my property "mowed" with Katahdin and only use the country clipper ztr up around the house and the side ditches. The country clipper requires annual blade and oil changes. The Katahdin only need shelter from cold winds and a constant supply of water. The Katahdin ewes each produce about $200/year.

 

[jcgranth]

Michigan is a long way from Alabama, but I like spartan zero turn mowers. I have had one for three summers and it runs every time so far, and has never. Been in the shop. I cut 3- 7 acres every time. Look for something with a heavy duty deck and and reliable engine and transmissions. Good luck

 

[jb7919]

Hey:

I am buying a property with about 1.8 acres of grass. This is my first time owning this much grass to mow and first time buying a ride on mower. Can anyone give me some directions on what the market looks like out there? What brand is garbage? Which is really high end but way overpriced? I live in SW Michigan which has a moderate amount of snow as well and the property is flat. Any direction is greatly appreciated.

Thanks!
Matt

I have a Cub Cadet with 25 HP Kohler engine. Works great on my 2+ acres. Takes me about 2 hours due to going slow around several trees in an area.

For me, the engine is more important than the mower brand. I agree with others about the welded deck. Also, with being comfortable when riding it.

Something you didn't mention is that 4 letter word --- snow. SW Michigan does get that white stuff. Will you be using this mower to remove snow? If so, when buying your rider find our what you need to move that white stuff. Also, if your property has trees what is the space between the trees? You don't want to get too large of a mower deck and then it does not go between the trees. I have that problem with a few of mine.

Make sure the mower you buy is serviceable in the area you live. For example, some dealers will not service mowers purchased from big box stores. Find out who will honor warranty.

Jim B

 

[Hayseed Andy]

Here’s another vote for a zero turn at minimum. It makes for easy maneuvering around trees, etc. I have 10 acres, only mow 2 of it due to cattle taking care of the other 8 acres. Got a Deere Z915B many years ago. It does just fine. I also recently bought a 3039R with a 72” finish mower (the tow behind kind) and it too does nice work.

 

[GS1100GK]

I would go with any of the Kubota Zero turns for sure. However, you mentioned snow so I would lean to a Kubota B2601 with a 60" mmm, and either a snow blower or FEL with a 5' bucket to push and lift snow. If you plan to do any digging or landscaping get the FEL and bucket instead of the snow blower if money is an issue.

JMHO.

 

[ROUSTABOUT]

I just looked at the Bobcat Zero turn home page. Bobcat Zero-Turn Mowers - Bobcat Company
They offer the Hydro gear ZT transmissions every model I looked at same as most other MFG.

I'm sure if you are looking at the homeowner specials. I sent out 20 a day that had separate pumps and drive motors. Every time an engine went down, started using oil, I'd replace it with a 34 hp. Yes engines went down because they mowed all day six days a week. I had 5 extra mowers so if they had any trouble I could just swap with them on site, and bring theirs back to the shop and fix it. You know, may need belt, deck spindle, electric clutch, safety switch. Never had catastrophic engine failure. I was looking for any excuse to get a 34 horse.