My first lawn tractor - considering Cub 1050

kattigrr · Mar 31, 2006

Hi Everyone,

I have spent several hours on line researching tractors. I have a hilly yard (not steep), one acre in TN. After much debate between John Deere and Cub Cadet - I am leaning towards the Cub.

I prefer mulching to bagging, will need to pull a cart for lawn debris/firewood from time to time and don't want a tractor that will slip on hills.

I am looking at the LT1050 at Home Depot. It seems to have all of the features that I need. I like the Kohler engine, pressurized fuel system, and the wash out deck port. But I don't know much about this brand other than it was bought by MTD and the repair history has supposedly gotten better.

Does anyone have any experience with this tractor? I would appreciate any feedback /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Cool: I just found a Cub Cadet dealer in my area. I'm sure they will be more knowledgeable than HD.

Thank you!
Kattigrr

gamble77 · Apr 1, 2006

They are good machines for smaller lots like yours. The only thing I will caution you on is how the belt drive will work on the hills you boys have up there in TN. I would have your local dealer bring one out to your land and see how it performs before you plop down 2K on it. Good luck and keep us posted!

kattigrr · Apr 1, 2006

Thank you for responding! I am new to TN and definitely have a hilly yard. Nothing seems too steep but you never know so I will ask the dealers I am visiting about the belt drive. As far as I know all of the lower end machines have belt drives.

BTW: I'm a girl /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Off to Cub Cadet and JD for test drives,
Kattigrr

Spiffy · Apr 1, 2006

( Thank you for responding! I am new to TN and definitely have a hilly yard. Nothing seems too steep but you never know so I will ask the dealers I am visiting about the belt drive. As far as I know all of the lower end machines have belt drives.

BTW: I'm a girl )
Welcome aboard kattigrr (is that grr as in "I'm a mean dog stay away" or "I'm a party animal? Happily married here, so no ulterior intentions to the question, but a handle like that makes one curious! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif )

( Off to Cub Cadet and JD for test drives,
Kattigrr )

Anyway, "test drives"; you've already got one the most important things figured out!

If those TN hills are what I'm imagining, I'd want more weight than a LT and maybe some agressive tires if you're pulling anything even on an acre. Of course, if you hang around TBN long enough, you'll want a 50HP diesel burning 4000lb machine with a boom pole on the FEL (don't foget to counter weight it with the boxblade) just to get your mail! /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif Sorry don't mean to scare you, but just saying capability creep (and the cooresponding "price creep") can really catch up on a person; to some extent not a bad thing, as long as you keep realistic goals in mind.

The tradeoff being you'll likely sacrifice manuverability if you go to a GardenTractor instead of the LawnTractor. Also, with any hills I'm not a huge fan of stamped sectors on most of the sector-pinion steering systems almost all LTs/GTs seem to have even up to medium quality - of course, I like to strong arm the steering over ruts and crosswise on hills, so I tend to strip it [not always the sector, but various parts of the steering; that machine isn't a CC, but similar steering design to the LT serious CC,JD, etc.] almost everytime I use the little LT; my wife seldom seems to have that problem.

Have fun with the test drives! /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif Post some pictures of whatever you choose! /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

kattigrr · Apr 3, 2006

Welcome aboard kattigrr (is that grr as in "I'm a mean dog stay away" or "I'm a party animal? Happily married here, so no ulterior intentions to the question, but a handle like that makes one curious! )

 LOL - actually is was much more benign. I like tigers and my first name is kate. Being a software engineer, I wanted something people couldn't easily duplicate so I concatenated my name with my favorite animal. But partying can be fun and I do growl if someone tries to steal my power tools /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif 

Anyway, "test drives"; you've already got one the most important things figured out!

If those TN hills are what I'm imagining, I'd want more weight than a LT and maybe some agressive tires if you're pulling anything even on an acre. Of course, if you hang around TBN long enough, you'll want a 50HP diesel burning 4000lb machine with a boom pole on the FEL (don't foget to counter weight it with the boxblade) just to get your mail! Sorry don't mean to scare you, but just saying capability creep (and the cooresponding "price creep") can really catch up on a person; to some extent not a bad thing, as long as you keep realistic goals in mind.

The tradeoff being you'll likely sacrifice manuverability if you go to a GardenTractor instead of the LawnTractor. Also, with any hills I'm not a huge fan of stamped sectors on most of the sector-pinion steering systems almost all LTs/GTs seem to have even up to medium quality - of course, I like to strong arm the steering over ruts and crosswise on hills, so I tend to strip it [not always the sector, but various parts of the steering; that machine isn't a CC, but similar steering design to the LT serious CC,JD, etc.] almost everytime I use the little LT; my wife seldom seems to have that problem.

Have fun with the test drives! Post some pictures of whatever you choose!

Went to both Cadet and JD dealers and the JD people were much more impressive. They really knew their stuff. I asked questions generated from my research and got straight answers. I picked a 300 series tractor that they are bringing out to me for a trial on my yard. I have some very steep areas that I need to be able to mow. Also I need to be able to pull a cart with yard debris, firewood, and probably some landscaping stuff. Very impressed with them. The Cub didn't feel right for me and was very stiff. The dealers were nice people but didn't answer my questions in anything more than 2 or 3 words.

I'll post some pics when I get it /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif 

Thanks,
kattigrr

Spiffy · Apr 4, 2006

Too bad the CC guys weren't more helpful to keep your options and bargaining positions open. But, if they made your decision easier..... /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif

Is the 300 considered an LT or a GT or something different (I think JD changed their lawn&garden tractor line up this year, and I know nothing about them). Yes, please let us know how it tests out!