To buy a CUT for mowing or not

[gregjenny9502]

Hi all, been lurking here for a while for interesting reads and info.

Here is my current issue. Considering replacing my scag, WD and 656 ( see below) with one CUT to do everything I need to do (TYM T554 with cab AC Heat Hydrostatic fel - I am not tied to the TYM brand but I have a dealer close by and this is the size I am looking at. There is also a Kioti dealer nearby - I could even go used) Sorry this is wordy, I wanted to get all relevant information in.

I have an IH 656 row crop tractor (no cab) with an fel. I also have an Allis Chalmers WD that I previously used to mow my 3 acre yard with (3 point finishing mower 90 inch caroni). I bought a scag turf Tiger 61 inch zero turn a few years back to mow with - replacing the wd/finish mower combination. The scag currently has 250 hours on it, is fuel injected and water cooled with an expected life of 2000 hours. The tractors have been in my family since new and are very well maintained and restored. The tractors will out last me ( I am 45) at the rate I use them (656 probably 50 hours/ year, WD little to no usage) . They were my grandpa's and I used them on his farm from the time I was 7 or so. I have about 30 acres I maintain. 3 acres of yard I mow weekly in season ( little over an hour) (with the scag) , not much to mow around. 10 acres of hay / weed field with a 1 acre pond in the middle, I mow a few passes around the pond when I mow the yard, the rest of the acreage gets gets knocked down with a 5 foot bush hog once a year (IH 656). Keep drive way smooth (gravel) and free of snow (rarely here in So IL) when necessary with the 656 and a grader blade. The other 17 acres is woods/ creek bottom ground that I maintain paths around and clean up trees after storms. I use the fel on the 656 for light dirt work and all of the other handy things you can do with an fel.

My reasons for wanting to upgrade is # 1 - I am out of space in my barn. I would remove 3 things from the barn and replace them with one, # 2 - I have allergies and I would be able to mow inside an air conditioned cab instead of breathing in all the stuff the scag currently throws at me, # 3 summers seem to be hotter and winters colder each year, the climate controlled cab would be nice, # 4 - I would get a 4x4 so hopefully I would get stuck less often in the bottoms than with the 2 wheel drive IH 656 (neighbors bring their big JD over now when I Get stuck) .

Reasons to not upgrade # 1 - sentimental value of the 2 tractors. # 2 - cost of the new / or used CUT. # 3 - will be slower mowing versus the scag. # 4 - the actual cut quality will be lower than the scag # 5 there will be more trimming than with the scag. # 6 CUT less maneuverable than the scag.

In order to make this work financially, I would sell the 656, WD, and scag. I would definatley want to try this new set up out before I sold my other equipment in case I hated it.

Is anyone using a CUT of this size (specs say about 4,500 pounds) with a rear finish mower as your main mower and if so how do you like it? Especially if you came from a zero turn. I mowed with the WD and finish mower for years so I am experienced with it and know about how much time it will take. WD weighs 3,500 pounds and the weight was not a problem, no ruts or tracking of the yard ( ag tires), narrow front so it would turn pretty sharp. (My yard is clay and drains well so even after a lot of rain it usually does not get soft.) But with no power steering the WD would wear me out when I mowed. I can mow the yard a little faster with the scag, maybe 15 minutes faster, but i would trade 15 minutes for air conditioning while mowing.

Any opinions or advice will be welcomed. I am on the fence on what to do. The good thing is I don't have to do anything. I am just weighing my options at the moment.

Thanks in advance.

 

[MickeyDBC]

My tractor/mower combo weighs a little more than what you are looking at but I can only mow nice grass when the ground is very dry otherwise I leave ruts. Turf tires would help but then it would get stuck a lot easier. I can mow everything I need to in about 30 minutes with the tractor vs almost all day with the lawn tractor, but the weather has to be right (it is so wet right now that the tractor is leaving 4" deep ruts on the dirt road right now).

 

[mikester]

You will regret getting rid of the ZT to mow 3 acres with a CUT. Regularly using a 4,500 lbs CUT for mowing grass will be great for lawn compaction and making ruts. Forget the cab tractor if you have trees to mow under.

Buy a faster ZT of you are feeling like its too hot or if you want to save more time. I'm surprised you are only 15 minutes quicker on the ZT. My ZD326 is on the order of 70% faster and is a huge time saver.

I'd sell the two tractors, buy a nice cab CUT, and keep the ZT. You can always put a finishing mower on the CUT and sell the ZT.

 

[Turbys_1700]

I mowed my yard for 30 plus years with a small CUT and a rear finish mower.

My Yanmar YM 1700 weighed 1800#. I pulled a 5 foot Land Pride mower. It had loaded rice tires on the back with ribbed front tires. It worked great with little damage to the yard.

I later upgraded to a 3300# 1720 New Holland and 6 foot Woods rear finish mower. That unit had AG tires all the way around and was 4WD. It would rut the yard if I turned too sharp. Had to be careful but overall was fine.

Couple years ago I purchased a 6000# Workmaster 50 and used the Woods to finish mow. It had R4 tires. Very little damage to the yard. The R4's floated where the AG tires on the 1720 would dig in.

This spring I purchased a New Holland T4.75 and a Toro Groundsmaster to mow with...

My advise...

Get the tractor and keep the zero turn if at all possible...

 

[MossRoad]

Or, you could just keep everything that already works the way you want it to, and use a good dust mask for your allergies and some Carharts in the winter... You'd keep your sentimental machines. Use the money you save and build a pole barn addition to the back of your current building if you need more space. Actually, a pole barn addition, depending on size, will cost significantly less than that new tractor.

 

[shooterdon]

Or, you could just keep everything that already works the way you want it to, and use a good dust mask for your allergies and some Carharts in the winter... You'd keep your sentimental machines. Use the money you save and build a pole barn addition to the back of your current building if you need more space. Actually, a pole barn addition, depending on size, will cost significantly less than that new tractor.

Pretty good advice there. The only issue I see with what you have now is occasionally getting stuck. That can be a PITA with a tractor. So that would be the driving force for me. How often does it happen and can it be avoided?

One other thought. I have looked at a good sized car port (18x21) to provide protection from rain/snow/etc. I can have one delivered and installed in less than a day for well under $2000. For now, I put all my attachments on those cheap Harbor Freight dollies (for the York rake a made a frame mount and used two of those dollies) and stored them I a lot less space in my detached garage.

I have a MMM for my tractor (it weighs about 2000 lbs). I have turf tires but they will mark up my lawn more than I like. So I have kept my lawn tractor but will be looking to get a ZT as I have about two dozen trees to deal with on my 1 1/2 acres of grass.

 

[4570Man]

I went the other way and my ZTR is way better for mowing. Every time I have to mow on something else it’s nearly torture.

 

[gregjenny9502]

Thank you everyone for the advice. Some great thoughts. I thought the CUT would be too heavy for everyday mowing. This confirms my gut thought, keep the ZT and keep my eye out for a decent used CUT and sell the other 2 tractors once I get one bought.