Revelation
Member
Looks like a lovely area to live. JD 320 is what I would get
Lawn mower vs tractor
- Thread starter CrimsonTide
- Start date
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TigerfaninAR
Gold Member
What's the limit on a zero turn? Does the ground need to be like you average front yard with little to no bumps or can it be a little rough?
sandman2234
Super Member
- Joined
- Dec 4, 2005
- Messages
- 6,052
- Location
- Jacksonville, Florida
- Tractor
- JD2555 and a few Allis Chalmers and now one Kubota
I live about 3/10 mile from the church I attend, and when they decided to go with a lawn cutting service, I told them to keep me in mind for the field, but that I wasn't interested in mowing the grass around the buildings. I got a call from the guy that mows all of it last week, and he wants to hire me to mow the field. It just takes too long to mow it with a 50" or so zero turn mower. My 65 pto hp JD can mow it about twice as fast as he can, and not break a sweat.
Spending the money for the tractor can hurt, but as long as you have that old cheap worn out riding mower to catch the areas that the tractor doesn't like, you will be way ahead of the game with that much property.
David from jax
TigerfaninArk,
The roughness will depend on how high you can raise the mowing deck without it being a problem. If it is too rough, your not going to want to sit on a zero turn to mow it anyway.
David from jax
Spending the money for the tractor can hurt, but as long as you have that old cheap worn out riding mower to catch the areas that the tractor doesn't like, you will be way ahead of the game with that much property.
David from jax
TigerfaninArk,
The roughness will depend on how high you can raise the mowing deck without it being a problem. If it is too rough, your not going to want to sit on a zero turn to mow it anyway.
David from jax
Gittyup
Elite Member
- Joined
- Oct 4, 2007
- Messages
- 3,145
- Location
- Mid Atlantic
- Tractor
- Kioti CK25 Shuttle Shift, loaded tires, JD X739
A tractor would be the best investment. And I'd want a big mower for that much cutting. I'd look for a good used JD 455 or Kubota 1850 or similar before I'd lay down $3500 for that ZTR.
EddieWalker
Epic Contributor
The zero turn mower is for maintaining a lawn. It's not good for fields or pasture. It is the best tool for the best looking lawn, but you really need to have smooth dirt to take advantage of it's strengths. Cutting tall grass is not one of it's strengths.
I started out my search for a mower after my Craftsman riding mower died on me. I figured another would do the job for the areas that I mow, but after looking around, reading posts and asking questions, I went from a $1,000 budget for another used mower to $3,500 for an entry level zero turn mower ot going all out and buying a top of the line Scag commercial mower for $8,400.
Having that mower has really opened my eyes up to what a high quality mower is capable of. I can mow an acre of grass in just minutes, where before it took an hour on my ridealong. I've increase the area that I'm mowing and the new areas were rough at first. Now, a month later, I have it under control and can just fly by mowing it. It's fun and amazing the difference.
That said, I wouldn't dream of using it on my trails and open areas. I use a finish mower for that and cut it at about four inches compared to an inch and a half for my zero turn mower. I can cut grass that's a foot tall and have it look nice with my finish mower. If I let it get beyond a foot, Then I have to use my rotary cutter. That will cut just about anything I can drive over, but it's not a nice, neat cut. It just cuts it down and gets it under control.
As you can see, there are all sorts of conditions to consider. Having a tractor allows you to eithr rough cut your grass with a rotary cutter. If you want to mow all 7 acres, which is allot of work, you can then use a finish mower and not have to worry about the dirt being perfect, and still get a very nice looking cut. Then you can get a nice ridealong mower for the area around the house and just maintain that small area.
Other uses for the tractor might be putting in a garden? Spreading gravel? Leveling out the dirt or digging a drainage ditch. Picking up fallen trees or branches. The loader bucket is great for everything from moving dirt and gravel to carrying your chainsaw and tools to where you need them. It's awesome for picking stuff up thats really heavy too!!! I use mine as a jack, cherry picker and handy dandy do everything.
Having a tractor is something that you will never regret, but not having one is limiting what you can do, when you can do it, and how much enjoyment you get out of your land.
Eddie
I started out my search for a mower after my Craftsman riding mower died on me. I figured another would do the job for the areas that I mow, but after looking around, reading posts and asking questions, I went from a $1,000 budget for another used mower to $3,500 for an entry level zero turn mower ot going all out and buying a top of the line Scag commercial mower for $8,400.
Having that mower has really opened my eyes up to what a high quality mower is capable of. I can mow an acre of grass in just minutes, where before it took an hour on my ridealong. I've increase the area that I'm mowing and the new areas were rough at first. Now, a month later, I have it under control and can just fly by mowing it. It's fun and amazing the difference.
That said, I wouldn't dream of using it on my trails and open areas. I use a finish mower for that and cut it at about four inches compared to an inch and a half for my zero turn mower. I can cut grass that's a foot tall and have it look nice with my finish mower. If I let it get beyond a foot, Then I have to use my rotary cutter. That will cut just about anything I can drive over, but it's not a nice, neat cut. It just cuts it down and gets it under control.
As you can see, there are all sorts of conditions to consider. Having a tractor allows you to eithr rough cut your grass with a rotary cutter. If you want to mow all 7 acres, which is allot of work, you can then use a finish mower and not have to worry about the dirt being perfect, and still get a very nice looking cut. Then you can get a nice ridealong mower for the area around the house and just maintain that small area.
Other uses for the tractor might be putting in a garden? Spreading gravel? Leveling out the dirt or digging a drainage ditch. Picking up fallen trees or branches. The loader bucket is great for everything from moving dirt and gravel to carrying your chainsaw and tools to where you need them. It's awesome for picking stuff up thats really heavy too!!! I use mine as a jack, cherry picker and handy dandy do everything.
Having a tractor is something that you will never regret, but not having one is limiting what you can do, when you can do it, and how much enjoyment you get out of your land.
Eddie
TigerfaninAR
Gold Member
Thanks. Just the info I needed. Let the tractor shopping begin.
