Zero turn mower??

[zzvyb6]

I have a JD zero turn and have a few thoughts on the tire spin marks issue. I needed more traction for the side hills so I went out and bought a set of ATV high traction tires. The more agressive tread didn't really give me that much more traction, but sure tears up the lawn more. When I lowered the tire pressure to get extra traction, it got worse. These tires a a few inches wider, too. That means more tread is twisting through the grass, regardless of whether the tire is rotating or not.

I have some areas of grass over sand, too. There's definitely more spin action on the grass where its over sand.

Finally, the faster I go, the more likely I'll leave a mark. That's because the load transfer during cornering lifts the inside wheel, which looses traction.

If the other folk's grass has a more grippy topsoil, they run higher tire pressures, go more slowly and are heavier than you, they'll be less likely to leave spin marks.

 

[jcummins]

I can tear up the grass pretty good with my JD F620.
Here are a couple of "positive" suggestions that may help, based on my experience.

1 - Don't zero turn! Is there ever any need to, really? In soft, shady areas around trees where the grass is prone to getting chewed up, I do little 3 point turns so that I'm not pivoting on the inside drive wheel on the spot.

If you must do a true zero turn, you actually need to reverse the inside drive wheel so the machine can rotate about its centerline.

I have a ZD326..what he says is what I do. I can rip grass very easily. I've gotten very cautious in turning.

As to tracks, I try and mow in a different pattern every time I mow. It is heavy, it does leave a track if you mow the same way every time.

 

[ChuckinNH]

You might also wan to try a 4 wheel steer JD tractor. They leave a really small uncut circle, and don't tear up the turf. Depending on how many obstacles you have, it might also cut the mowing time over your current tractor.

 

[aczlan]

I am well aware of the fact that with one wheel not rotating and the other one rotating will cause damage.
The problem with the Kubota may be of machine design. The tires are wider then most other mowers I looked at.
I have a lot of ornamental trees that are about twenty foot tall and I would just slowly glide around them, in an almost straight line with deck app. 6" from trunk. I would then push mow or string trim next to tree.
After the first five or six mowings, My wife and I noticed "distinct" travel marks left by both rear tires. I started using my regular WheelHorse mower and the grass returned.

.
How soft is the ground under these trees? I have spent a few hours running Exmark, Husqvarna and Cub Cadet machines (both the ride on mid mount and the walk behind styles).
When on soft ground, they all would leave "tracks" (not ruts, but noticeable indentations where the wheels went) even when going straight.
I would guess that the marks are from the extra ground pressure of a 1500-2500 pound ZTR (rather than a 700-900 pound Wheel Horse)

All machines have their good and bad points---IMO a perfect machine that satisfies everyone, and their needs, cannot be produced.
The Walker mower, as some are aware, is constructed differently then the mid mount machines and I was just wondering if it would be better suited for my needs.
I guess I can have one of the local dealers demonstrate their operation.

I think you hit the nail on the head, the front mount deck mowers will do a nicer cut than MOST mid mount machines, but the tradeoff is that they don't pack on a trailer as well. Thus, commercial guys don't buy them as often.
One thing to note about the front mount mowers: I have a friend who has a front mount Grasshopper with a bagger on the back and when the bagger is installed (especially when it is full) he has traction problems. Too much weight on the rear casters and not enough on the drive wheels.

I would ask for a demo on YOUR property. Iif you are interested in a machine and the dealer knows you are not just wasting their time, you should be able to get a demo to see if it makes marks. I might be inclined to run it back and forth a dozen times to do a worst case test.

Aaron Z

 

[rswyan]

I am 64 years old and I have cut acres and acres of lawns and even run a small neighboorhood lawn service for a few years. Never had a complaint for my work.

Well ..... you're having one now, apparently .....

BTW, I have no doubts about your ability - the only thing I'm questioning is your technique.

THANKS for a "useful" reply

Well, in the interests of providing a little more "useful" answer than my previous commentary, let me see if I can understand the environment you are operating a little better.

The problem with the Kubota may be of machine design.

To some extent, it may very well be .......... I had a look at the ZD221 up on Kubota's website .... it's one of those two handled, control-stick jobs .....

I've never used a ZTR with that type of control setup, but personally I don't think I'd care for it .... might be the best thing since sliced bread if you are slammin' and jammin' cutting grass, in terms of speed and getting it done ..... but I'd prefer to have one hand free for whatever I'm drinking and/or if I happen to be smoking.

Our Simplicity ZTR has a steering wheel - not control-sticks .... dunno, but it seems to me that having a single input (the steering wheel) might enable some design and engineering to be built in, in terms of balancing the drive motors and perhaps prevent the user from doing some things, as far as working the controls, that could cause problems .....

Like I said, I really don't know - given the degree of sophistication on newer machines it could very well be that the mfg. has incorporated technology to avoid the above scenario.

Still, I would have to guess that provided the diameter of the circle you are trying to mow is not too acute (small), and provided you were moving slow enough, the grass would not be torn up.

In your original post you stated the following:

"Skid of [or ?] spin marks everywhere I turned"

and

"I realley liked the speed of the zero turn, it cut my mowing time in half."

Umm ... there's a reason that you reduced your mowing time by half - and it wasn't because you were moving slower - and it also probably wasn't because you were turning wider.

I have a lot of ornamental trees that are about twenty foot tall and I would just slowly glide around them, in an almost straight line with deck app. 6" from trunk. I would then push mow or string trim next to tree.

What is the diameter of the trunks of these trees ?

(IOW, what is the diameter of the circle you are trying to turn ?)

I started using my regular WheelHorse mower and the grass returned.

Is your WheelHorse mower capable of turning anywhere remotely near as tight as the Kubota ?

FWIW, when I mow, I generally try to mow long lines or rows, alternating directions - up in one direction, and then 180 degrees and back down in the other. For the most part, I try not to mow squares, circles, rectangles ... or any other geometric form ... other than just lines or rows. And I'm lucky because my yards are (mostly) suited to it.

My front yards (2, about 3 acres total) are mowed with a 72" MMM (Kubota B2910 with R4 tires, probably 1500 lbs or so) ... and my side and rear yards (1 acre total) are mowed with the Simplicity ZTR ....

Executing a tight, extended turn, at any kind of (decent) speed, with either unit, will rip up the grass - absolutely without fail.

Therefore I practice what might be called a 3-point turn: when coming to the end of a line or row, I turn to the left or right, stop, and turn (while backing up), stop again, and then turn (while proceeding forward) - executing a 180 degree turn.

The turn, if viewed from above, would look like a concave equilateral triangle (see attached image, and ignore black line thru center), where you were initially coming down into one of the points, and then once turned (after having backed up), exited out the same point, in the opposite direction.

With a hydrostatic transmission and a treadle pedal, it's a piece of cake.

This doesn't necessarily apply to your specific dilemma cutting around your ornamentals, but I include it for others as a workable technique to avoid tearing up the grass.

One of my solutions to avoid having to make turns which are too tight, is to put in mulch beds around plantings, which increase the radius of any curves I do have to cut. That may not be your cup of tea .... but it is a way to lessen having to make sharp turns. Some folks seem to like the look of them .... and it is less grass to cut.

All machines have their good and bad points---IMO a perfect machine that satisfies everyone, and their needs, cannot be produced.

Undoubtedly true.

The Walker mower, as some are aware, is constructed differently then the mid mount machines and I was just wondering if it would be better suited for my needs.

After looking at Walker's website, I see that they appear to very similar in design and size to my Simplicity - except that they use the double control-sticks, and do not use a wheel for steering ..... for that reason alone I'd probably have to pass.

Attached is an image of a Simplicity CFC 16 with the same size deck (46") as our's (our's is actually CFC 18) - it is a fairly light unit - just under 700 lbs, (the drive tire size is 18 x 9.50 - 8)