Mowing Need a mower and some persuasion.

[RayCo]

And there are times I have one of the kids running the LT with a trailer that I load up with the BX FEL - or mowing while I play in the dirt.

That is another good thing to consider. In a walkway project a week or two ago, I needed to have sand and 2A stone both nearby as I laid the pavers. I was very glad to have the second tractor with a little cart (that is conveniently the same length as the width of a BX loader bucket...) so I didn't have to use a wheelbarrow.

10 on Flickr - Photo Sharing!

 

[RobJ]

If you buy a riding mower you'll end up with one cheap riding mower and one expensive one.

I'd....

Buy a riding mower, sell the BX and get a bigger tractor for the other things.
Or
Keep the BX riding mower and buy a bigger tractor anyway!
Or
Sell the BX, get an L with a RFM and be real happy.

Hey it's only money, life is short!!

Rob

The one in the back is what you need.

 

[lovemywoods]

Rob,

I'm having barn envy!!!

 

[Rockyridge]

Another thing to consider is how much you like to mow lawn versus doing other things with you tractor.

Since my wife likes to do things outside I have discovered it make a lot of sense to have equipment that she can use. If you have to remove or put you mower back on half of the when you want to mow, you are going to be doing all of the mowing yourself, all of the time. With a second piece of equipment, especially one that is just start and mow, nothing else to do except fill with gas and check the oil, it is much easier for someone else to mow when they have time, leaving you more time to do the other things with your tractor.

Our mower is a 50 inch cut 22 HP Cub Cadet ZT with wheel weights that is wide and low so it is great for mowing steep areas. It will always slide sideways before it will ever tip over. It is hard to beat the maneuverability of a ZT mower.

 

[NuBota]

Rob,

I'm having barn envy!!!

Ditto! Looks like a Kubota show room - what a shop. Very nice Rob!

 

[LBrown59]

FWIW -
. I mow about an acre - lots of steep hills - I can get most with the BX (albeit moving a bit slower),
1*but can't mow across the hill like with the LT. gentler slopes on the LT)
I would consider full time mowing with the BX. But I perform both tasks on a weekly basis and
2* the "swap out" just doesn't seem worth the extra effort.

1*I was using a MTD 42'' deck for that .
Replaced it with a CC 54'' deck and now use a Kubota BX1500 with a 48''MMM.
2*Not worth it to me either.
3*

 

[Singlecoil]

Man, I go away from the computer for a couple of days and look what happens!

5 pages!

Well earlier I was convinced I needed the MMM, but after reading the last two pages and talking it over with the wife, I think we're getting a LT. The ability to tow a trailer with that is a huge advantage. We only have about an acre to mow, and since I'm on the road a lot the wife will be doing a fair amount of the mowing. I saw a Cub Cadet ZT at Home Depot yesterday for about $2900 with tax but that is too rich for our blood right now. It's basically just a big rectangle anyway so a ZT is probably overkill. If the MMM's weren't so expensive this would be a much easier decision, but when you can buy an entire mower for the same price...

....and the added bonus....
getting a smaller tractor will make the BX look big!

 

[RobJ]

Ditto! Looks like a Kubota show room - what a shop. Very nice Rob!

Hold on yall!!! NOT my barn!!!! Just a pic I found on the web, I think it is a dealer. All I can afford is what's in my avatar. Sorry for the confusion.

But if I had both, I'd sell the small one. Little to small for my tastes and needs. Of course if that was my shop I'd have a lot of other stuff to sell!!

Rob

 

[megaboz]

Man, I go away from the computer for a couple of days and look what happens!

5 pages!

Well earlier I was convinced I needed the MMM, but after reading the last two pages and talking it over with the wife, I think we're getting a LT. The ability to tow a trailer with that is a huge advantage. We only have about an acre to mow, and since I'm on the road a lot the wife will be doing a fair amount of the mowing. I saw a Cub Cadet ZT at Home Depot yesterday for about $2900 with tax but that is too rich for our blood right now. It's basically just a big rectangle anyway so a ZT is probably overkill. If the MMM's weren't so expensive this would be a much easier decision, but when you can buy an entire mower for the same price...

....and the added bonus....
getting a smaller tractor will make the BX look big!

If you only have an acre, the MMM is over kill. And taking it on and off will be a pain. I know a lot of people leave their MMM on, but I have caught two deck posts one car, 3 houses and 4 trees, not to mention getting high-cenetered with the darn thing on when using the bucket for little jobs. It is almost always in the way when you are not using it.

Taking the MMM on/off does get easier the more often you do it. Trust me, the firs time off was pretty simple. Putting on in the spring, well, it took me two days and case of beer to get over the first day. Here in the last month I have taken it off every week after I get done cutting grass. The last time though, I forgot to disconnect the drive shaft.

 

[NuBota]

Singlecoil, I'm not "dissing" the CC, JD or any of the brand names - because the are all great mowers. I started looking at them when I bought my LT 6 yrs ago. But then my farmer buddy, who has big AG equipment, told me to just by a Wal-mart special - that's what he uses. Bought the 20hp (Tecumseh), 42" Murray at Wal-mart - $1100 - and they gave me the name of the local repair shop - which I had dealt with before - good shop.
The sheet metal has sharp edges, deck requires some tools to remove and it ain't "pretty" - but it cuts well. I have steep hills, over 20 degrees on some, to mow - figured I'd burn the tranny up in a couple of years. Six years in, still runs strong. I have used it to haul stone, dirt, gravel up and down the hills. Used to haul four cords of Oak out of the woods - was sure I was going to kill it then.
Anyway, no major maintenance issues and I just PM it once a year - parts are cheap.
I'm not necessarily suggesting Murray (B&S bought them a couple years ago - not good for me since mine is Tecumseh), and I know there are tons of pros and cons and different experiences out there about the budget riders - but thought I'd share. And to punctuate the point - I also JUST got rid of (to make room for the BX - it still ran fine) a hand-me-down, 1976 11hp MTD, Hechinger branded, that I used for "bush hogging"

Just some additional thoughts to pile on......

-Eric