The 2518 is my first MTD Cub Cadet.
And my thoughts on Cub Cadet for what it's worth. I've been a fan since my 1200 (which I bought due to my interest in International Scouts) so I thought I would try a new one. I've looked around a lot and around here Deere is king.
I grew up on a farm so we don't call lawn mowers "tractors" and that's basically all I want, something to reliably mow the grass. It's an appliance, and I have a hard time spending over $5000 on an appliance. I'm a big quality nut, so consider that with my comments to follow.
I was looking at a "garden tractor" minimum due to the basic shoddiness across the line of "lawn tractors". The same basic design regardless of manufacturer, vertical shaft engine sitting on fairly thin steel unibody type frame, to pulley arrangement below driving the transmission and deck. Plastic and pot metal parts throughout particularly in the steering gear. Horsepower is the obvious selling point 25+ when I would prefer a smaller better quality engine. Although probably the least potential problem area, the pressed on drive wheels (no lugs, assuming a splined shaft) are common and just look cheap.
I started looking at the cub cadet 2500 series. The lowest price by far of the available "garden tractors". One paper it looks great. Shaft drive, a horizontal shaft engine, power to the rear to the transmission and to the front to the deck, just like my old 1200. It's easy to see that this is balance, and balance is better for an engine. Foot hydro is great, the reverse pedal is awful. I didn't like the new hood arrangement and reports of melting just shows a lack of testing, effort, desire to produce something better, or maybe all three.
My 2518 still has the steel hood which I like better but it is very thin and apparently not very well painted. The bumper and is also very thin, particularly for a part supposing to be a bumper. On the other end the hitch area, though thicker and more substantial, still seems a little on the light side. The reverse hydro pedal is very cheap in appearance and in an awkward position. I see that this is upgraded on the 3000 series.
When compared to a John Deere the Deere just seems more polished and of higher build standard. Kind of like the feeling I got from my first Honda compared to my previous Chevrolet. Unlike the Honda the Deere does sell at a substantial premium to it's competitors.
I think Cub Cadet goes about 3/4 of the way to producing a really nice machine. They push the shaft drive thing a little much I think. The groundwork is there. The design is sound and just needs a little polishing. Why not put a little thicker steel hear and there? Do away with the cheap looking rear end cover and mount a hitch point to the axle housing itself.
Even if the price goes up a little they would gain a lot of market share. Even a customer new to the market can see the little differences in fit and finish. In fact these are probably the most apparent differences. Lack of attention to the little stuff makes you wonder about attention to the bigger stuff.
I would not spend $4000 for a new 2500 series mower. But I nearly spent $5000 on a Deere x500. That is until I found my $2000 2518.
And my thoughts on Cub Cadet for what it's worth. I've been a fan since my 1200 (which I bought due to my interest in International Scouts) so I thought I would try a new one. I've looked around a lot and around here Deere is king.
I grew up on a farm so we don't call lawn mowers "tractors" and that's basically all I want, something to reliably mow the grass. It's an appliance, and I have a hard time spending over $5000 on an appliance. I'm a big quality nut, so consider that with my comments to follow.
I was looking at a "garden tractor" minimum due to the basic shoddiness across the line of "lawn tractors". The same basic design regardless of manufacturer, vertical shaft engine sitting on fairly thin steel unibody type frame, to pulley arrangement below driving the transmission and deck. Plastic and pot metal parts throughout particularly in the steering gear. Horsepower is the obvious selling point 25+ when I would prefer a smaller better quality engine. Although probably the least potential problem area, the pressed on drive wheels (no lugs, assuming a splined shaft) are common and just look cheap.
I started looking at the cub cadet 2500 series. The lowest price by far of the available "garden tractors". One paper it looks great. Shaft drive, a horizontal shaft engine, power to the rear to the transmission and to the front to the deck, just like my old 1200. It's easy to see that this is balance, and balance is better for an engine. Foot hydro is great, the reverse pedal is awful. I didn't like the new hood arrangement and reports of melting just shows a lack of testing, effort, desire to produce something better, or maybe all three.
My 2518 still has the steel hood which I like better but it is very thin and apparently not very well painted. The bumper and is also very thin, particularly for a part supposing to be a bumper. On the other end the hitch area, though thicker and more substantial, still seems a little on the light side. The reverse hydro pedal is very cheap in appearance and in an awkward position. I see that this is upgraded on the 3000 series.
When compared to a John Deere the Deere just seems more polished and of higher build standard. Kind of like the feeling I got from my first Honda compared to my previous Chevrolet. Unlike the Honda the Deere does sell at a substantial premium to it's competitors.
I think Cub Cadet goes about 3/4 of the way to producing a really nice machine. They push the shaft drive thing a little much I think. The groundwork is there. The design is sound and just needs a little polishing. Why not put a little thicker steel hear and there? Do away with the cheap looking rear end cover and mount a hitch point to the axle housing itself.
Even if the price goes up a little they would gain a lot of market share. Even a customer new to the market can see the little differences in fit and finish. In fact these are probably the most apparent differences. Lack of attention to the little stuff makes you wonder about attention to the bigger stuff.
I would not spend $4000 for a new 2500 series mower. But I nearly spent $5000 on a Deere x500. That is until I found my $2000 2518.
