Tractor weight vs. finish mowing

[jc21]

So, how heavy of a tractor have you guys used and not had bad problems with lawn rutting or how heavy was "too heavy" for you for finish mowing? .... I want to know if buying that next size up is going to cause me any additional issues other than financial

My two cents ... it depends. I think it really is site specific; a tractor than works just fine one place may cause damage somewhere else. A friend back east tells me his JD 3320 TLB tears up his lawn pretty easily, especially if there's been a recent rain. On my "lawn" that 3320 wouldn't bother at all. There are big ag tractors (8000 series JD and similar size CaseIH) that cross places I mow near our property to get to the fields that do surprisingly little damage. Minimal rutting and a mowing or two later, you'd never know they had been there but on the other hand there were spots on my folk's place back in Maine that a little Ariens YT-11 lawn tractor would tear up.

Type of soil and how well it drains, vegetation, terrain (hills, low spots, nearby creeks and/or ponds etc.) all enter into it. Around here the orange and green dealers will let you try before you buy- if your dealers do the same I'd go as big as you and your budget can stand/want to and work down from there.

 

[DK35vince]

Bigger tractors typically have bigger tires too. So that said, I doubt you would see an appreciable difference in anything the sizes you mentioned.

I mow with a zero turn that weighs 1600# and my tractor with loaded rears weighs over 4000#.
I notice no difference in rutting/soil compaction between the 2 .
With the larger tires on the tractor the ground pressure/PSI are probably very similar.

 

[mo1]

I ended up buying an older Massey Ferguson 1030 MFWD with a loader. It came with R1 ag tires, 7.00-14s in the front and 11.2-24s in the back. I estimate the weight of the tractor is about 4000 pounds with the loader (which I leave on as a counterweight) and the 750 pound 6 foot 3 point rear finish mower I got to mow the yard. I mowed for the first time earlier this week and I could barely even tell where I drove over the grass. It looked like somebody drove a riding lawnmower or ZTR on the grass. I guess I didn't need to worry at all!

 

[RoyJackson]

I ended up buying an older Massey Ferguson 1030 MFWD with a loader. It came with R1 ag tires, 7.00-14s in the front and 11.2-24s in the back. I estimate the weight of the tractor is about 4000 pounds with the loader (which I leave on as a counterweight) and the 750 pound 6 foot 3 point rear finish mower I got to mow the yard. I mowed for the first time earlier this week and I could barely even tell where I drove over the grass. It looked like somebody drove a riding lawnmower or ZTR on the grass. I guess I didn't need to worry at all!

What you do have to consider is your septic system...especially your drain field. The weight of the tractor with R-1 tire (narrower then R-3 or R-4 tires) could result in damage.
Just something to think about...if you have a septic tank and drain field.

 

[mo1]

What you do have to consider is your septic system...especially your drain field. The weight of the tractor with R-1 tire (narrower then R-3 or R-4 tires) could result in damage.
Just something to think about...if you have a septic tank and drain field.

We have a septic tank feeding a lagoon, both of which are located well behind where the yard stops and the woods begins. There is no drain field as it is too rocky; that's what the lagoon is for.