Old, Reliable and Low Cost?

[cold1313]

I'm 2 or 3 years in a row now, where I can't (i.e. don't) get my mower out to cut the lawn around the house in the spring because my soil is so wet. My F3990 is going to be over 3,500lbs with me on it.

I won't get stuck but I don't want to rut the yard.

I hate to buy another piece of equipment, that is light weight, just to keep the grass manageable. Just to keep the grass to where the house doesn't look abandoned lol.

However, I was wondering if I could find a cheap, reliable mower to do this job? Something light weight. I see Cub Lo Boys and things like that on Craigslist but I don't know enough about those "older" tractors - or what to look for. Probably a few acres to cut.

I know some of the really desirable ones go for a good price.

Any thoughts?

 

[goeduck]

I am confused, the rated weight of an F3990 is 1716lbs.

Page 27
https://www.kubotausa.com/docs/defa...hure-77700-10438-lo-res.pdf?sfvrsn=df08885e_8

That looks like a GREAT machine. :thumbsup:

 

[tomplum]

I have a customer with one of that series. His is a 3 cylinder diesel.He had to buy a cheapo Craftsman rider because he can't get on his spongy lawn until close to April.

 

[cold1313]

I have 1,886lbs in my manual, without the mower deck. That's close to 500lbs for the 72" deck.

I'm assuming the weight is without fluids. Either way, it's heavy. I meant to hit 2,500lbs, not 3,500lbs...typo.

 

[cold1313]

That's my problem. Except I'm into May or June with the very wet Springs that I've had the last few years.

 

[rangerfredbob]

I'm sure a cub lowboy would work better than a riding mower, but an older riding mower could do too if you watch for a few things.

For riding mowers size matters, watch for ones with the bigger rear wheels (12" instead of 8") which helps a LOT on surface area for wet areas, but you can go a bit further, I put ATV tires on one of mine which made a huge difference since they are both wider and taller, and while being taller in the back it pulls up the rear of the deck helping it clear out on wet grass.

The next thing to watch for on riding mowers is blade length and deck setup. The favorite mower I've had which I need to fix one of these years was an '86 Montgomery Wards with a 16.5hp engine and a 44" deck that has two blades with a toothed belt between them since they overlap. With this setup the tall grass has some hang time in the deck area where some of the 3 blade decks have a short 13" blade in the middle with the same size pulley as the 16" blades on the end so the tip speed is lower and the grass is going through a shorter distance which makes you go slower which is annoying... Also, most riding mowers have a maximum deck lift of like 3" which in my experience doesn't work well with tall wet grass, the big wheel mowers have higher decks...