Mowing 5 to 7 Acres - is ZTR the best approach

[AB4D]

I have a Kubota ZG23, the mower cuts grass fast, a lot faster than a BX23 with a 60 inch deck. The mower does an excellent job on flat ground and even some hills. However, I found that the ZG23 does not deal with steep hills very well due to traction issues. As others have suggested, if your are cutting any significant hills you may want to look at something with 4wd. If you can get a dealer to let you try out a zero turn first, I would go that route, because I believe that for just cutting grass a zero turn mower beats everything else. At least if you try one out you will know whether this type of machine will meet your needs.


Jim

 

[gates]

Spiffy,
I have aGrashopper 428D with a 72" deck. While testing the dealer sugested there would be more scalping with the wider deck. If you look at the the placement of the anti-scalp wheels, they pretty much solve the scalping problem. Unless you really have some serious peaks I dont belive there can be a problem. If there is you just use a different approach to the peak.
I will admit that on hills the mower has a tendancy to slide down the grade. I alleviated that problem by cuttting the grade diagonally.

Ron

Klm,
They already have them, there front/side mounts, they are refered to as WAMS. I have seen them 14' wide.


Ron

 

[orangebluegreen]

Only complaint I’ve heard on front mounts is traction is not as good as mid mounts. They claimed the weight of the deck being out front and not hanging center of frame as well as engine weight not being directly over drive wheels combined to cause traction problem for some people. BTW I have heard from quite good source Woods front mount ZTR’s will have a bigger diesel engine sometime in the future, even though they’ll deny that if you call them. The current F21D appears perhaps the same engine in the Kubota BX2230.

 

[Dargo]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Only complaint I’ve heard on front mounts is traction is not as good as mid mounts. perhaps the same engine in the Kubota BX2230. )</font>

Wow, that's completely opposite of what I've experienced in about 3500 hours on ZTR mowers. A front mount Grasshopper ZTR mower will not only climb considerably better, but will also hang on the side of the hill for mowing across much better. I've have considerable time on Skag, JD and some time on Ferris mid mount ZTR mowers. They are fine, but they ride considerably rougher than the front mount ZTR, and they are not nearly as good on hills.

I have an 84" finish mower behind a 50 hp tractor, and even with few obsticles, either of my 61" Grasshopper front mount mowers will cut 1/3 to 1/2 of the mowing time. If there are trees and other obsticles, the difference is even greater. To claim that a tractor mounted finish mower can keep up with a ZTR on mowing only shows the lack of experience and is incorrect information.

Again, I only have about 3500 hours on ZTR mowers, but my top choice would be a dedicated front mount mowing machine such as the JD 1565 mower. However, this mower will be more than double the budget of the poster. The next choice would be something like the Grasshopper 722D2. The Grasshopper will be pretty close to his budget, perhaps a little over. For a mid mount ZTR, I like the JD 777. It is incredibly tough and does a great job. For me though, it is tougher than the operator. The mid mount mowers can beat the heck out of the operator.

I generally do mow flat out as fast as the ZTR will run. With the front mount mowers this is easily accomplished. With the mid mount type, I personally cannot mow that fast because it beats the snot out of me. As I said, I have an 84" rear mount finish mower and I even pull it behind a tractor that has a cab and A/C. Even so, I generally use one of the Grasshopper front mount ZTR mowers I have because they are so much faster. Good luck to the original poster on whatever he buys!

 

[orangebluegreen]

That comment about the front mounts came from a dealer who actually had an F21D he was trying to sell me. Haven’t used one for any amount of time but comment seemed reasonable if the weight of the deck is riding on the ground and not on the drive wheels.

 

[BenderKC]

Check out the Walker ZTR mowers. I have had one for 15 years with virtually no problems. I just picked up a new one today. It does an excellent mowing job.

 

[clarkie]

Thanks for the excellent feedback. Some very helpful issues have been raised.

Dargo you mentioned that you get beat up on your mid mount ZTR. What is the cause of this, and would it be worse that my current Cub Cadet 2165. I do suffer from a bad lower back, so this issue is very important. What is it about the front mount mowers that allows for a better ride.

clarkie

 

[ESM]

I have a Toro large frame ZTR (23HP) with a 60" deck and also a Kubota BX23 with a 54" deck. To me, there is no comparison between the two. The Kubota is a great tractor in every way but the Toro is far superior for mowing. As it should be. A ZTR is a purpose built machine while a tractor is a jack-of-all-trades. I don't have any experience with front mount mowers other then to know they cost more. Good luck with your decision.

A ZTR can beat you up simply because of the speed at which they can mow. If your ground is nice and smooth you will have no problems, if it isn't you will simply need to slow down. You can also whip yourself around from side to side pretty quick if you are too aggressive with the controls.

If you a worried about your back, you can get models with suspension seats. Or even better, Ferris specializes in units with full front and rear wheel suspension.

My advice, get the most power and biggest deck your budget will allow. For deck size also consider the quality of cut a given size deck can provide on your property. A larger deck can't conform to the ground as easily as a smaller deck and so the quality of cut can suffer. A larger deck is also obviously more difficult to work in and around tight spaces. Conversely, a smaller deck means it will take a little longer to cut and it can also make it more difficult to cut along and around obstacles because the deck may not overhang much from the rear tire.

I have found 23HP to be a good match for the 60" deck although if I could do it again I would get the 27HP. There are times in heavy grass or when mowing up hill that I wish I had more power.

As for brand, watch what the professional landscapers in your are are using. Around here it almost exclusively Exmark. I went with Toro because they are very similar machines (Toro owns Exmark), the dealer was close, and I simply liked it better then the rest. I also looked at Exmark, Kubota, Ferris, Grasshoper and Dixe Chopper. I'm sure they are all excellent machines.

 

[Spiffy]

<font color="blue">What is the cause of this, and would it be worse that my current Cub Cadet 2165. </font>

The previous post mentioned speed [a little self restraint and/or knowledge of your terrain can help there], but there are a couple other considerations as well:

$ for $ a GT ussually has larger tires than a ZTR, so when making the compairson by $ [a legit comparison] instead style alone, the Z comes out worse for ride right there.

Also, the midmount often has the rider positioned just in front of rear tires while having a small % of the weight [compared to a tractor style mower] on the front tires - so the front end isn't only destined to deal with rough spots, the rider is postioned far ahead enough to catch some of action, but back far enough to give little front end weight contribution.

That said, to say a ZTR is a rough ride is a broad stereotype and you really have to try all the options yourself. /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif

 

[chowl]

clarkie

Go look at a John Deere 997 Z-trac. I have one with a 72 inch
deck that I mow my horse pastures with. Great machine and lots of power. Will get the job done fast and the fields will look great.