ZTR mower with front loader

[casolorz]

Is there a zero turn radius mower which can also have a front loader and some sort of blade attachment?
I am basically looking for something that I can mow 3 1/2 acres with, help on some landscaping projects and also be able to maintain a long gravel driveway.
Thanks for any suggestions.

--Carlos

 

[newt92]

Hey Casolorz, there are companies that make snow blades for zero turns, heres one for example Country ZTR Equipment and attachments, snow plows, blades, spreaders and aerators for zero turn radius mowers. I myself (now this is my own opnion now) would not recommend one, based on the hydro pumps are not designed for the extra stress. I have been running zero turns for years and have never pushed or pulled anything with them. You could pull like a small lawn trailer as long as there is not a heavy load in it. Like I said these are my own opinions. What brand do you have or are looking at?

Dennis

 

[casolorz]

I haven't looked heavily at brands or anything yet. I first started looking for a small sub compact tractor that would have a under mount mower but could also have nice attachments like a front loader but after asking around I have been told that a ZTR mower would be my best bet since I will be mostly mowing.
I will still like the mower to be able to do things like pull an aerator or seed spreader, etc.

What kind of ZTRs are the best? I have seen them where you have that open front and where they look normal but rear and front tires can turn.

Thanks,

--Carlos

 

[newt92]

Oh Carols, you are stirring a bee hive by asking what brand is best! I can comment on what I have owned. I have had 3 Kubota zero turns and they were great machines. Just the dealership decided not to take care of me when I had warranty issues on the last machine. I went from Kubota to Exmark which I now have 2 machines. Before I bought my first Kubota I did demo some other brands. My choice was based on the machine and the dealer support.

Questions, other than mowing the yard what else do you need to do? You mentioned the drive, you mean pushing snow? How deep does it get, what price range are you talking about? What equipment dealers are close to you? These are just questions so I and others on here need to know to help you.

Dennis

 

[JiminGa]

without knowing the info newt92 mentioned, it sounds like an aws gt may be your answer.

 

[casolorz]

Dennis, thank you for the reply, good point on the brands, I don't want to start a war

I guess I should explain a bit better what we want.
We are building later this year a new house on a 3 1/2 acre lot, we are in Kansas so we don't get much snow but we do get a little bit (this year a lot), maybe 2 or 3 times a year just a few inches.
My main priority is going to be the mowing of the lot. Aside from that I will be doing all the landscaping so there will be lots of soil moving, mulch moving, seeding, fertilizing, aerating, etc.
We are considering getting a dump trailer for our jeep so in theory the soil moving will be done by it, same goes for any big loads.

I am really starting to lean towards just getting a really good mower which will be comfortable and won't take 10 hours to mow with. I guess the main requirement of it will be to be able to pull certain attachments like seed spreaders, aerators, maybe a tiller? The snow removal won't be very heavy but our driveway is not going to be paved so I will need to do some occasional work to it.

As for price, well we aren't sure yet of whats there, I am guessing we won't go past 5k for a mower but if it was a sub compact tractor we probably wouldn't go past 12k with a front loader, but then again I am leaning towards the mower more and more.

Thanks,

--Carlos

 

[amigauser]

This site will tell you all you want to know and then some.

http://www.lawnsite.com/

 

[RobS]

I don't know much about these, but they do offer some implements in addition to the mower.

GrassHopper

 

[newt92]

Carlos, from what you describe, heres my opnion. Sounds like a large garden tractor or Sub Compact tractor might be better. On the garden tractor side a Simplicity Legacy or John Deere 400, 500, 700 series. You can run a 54", or 60" deck and have a loader as well. The loaders are quick tach and also you could get a 3pt on back to run a tiller, and will do everything you want to do. You could find used one in your price range very easy. You could go one step further and get a used SCT for not that much more money. Kubota, Deere, New Holland, CaseIH, or Cub Cadet. For only 3 1/2 acres, I think getting a tractor or garden tractor would be better buy, you could do so much vs. the zero turn are built to be basicly just a mower and thats it. The main advantage of the zero turns is the time saving, but you dont have that much to mow IMO.

Dennis

 

[frank_f15]

Is there a zero turn radius mower which can also have a front loader and some sort of blade attachment?
I am basically looking for something that I can mow 3 1/2 acres with, help on some landscaping projects and also be able to maintain a long gravel driveway.
Thanks for any suggestions.

--Carlos

I DONT think the ztr is your best option. think you need a small tractor and a mower.

 

[casolorz]

So I am seeing replies now against the ZTR but up until today all I got were replies against the small tractor (other forums mostly).

So if I went with a small tractor what are the best sugestions? something cheap, reliable, that can mow of course!

 

[the_sandman_454]

What does or will your lot look like? Will it be mostly open, or will there be a ton of trees and things to maneuver around? If it's mostly open, or even partly open, a compact or subcompact tractor will be the best bet, because you can have a loader, run a tiller, aerator, etc conveniently.

Of course you figure with the dump trailer and Jeep, you'll still have to find a way to load it in the first place, unless you're just going to make a bunch of trips back and forth to the place they're loading the dirt. After loading the trailer up by hand a time or two, you'll be ready to get a tractor/loader.

Now if after you get the majority of the big work done, you could probably sell the tractor for a good percentage of what you paid for it, and put that towards a quality ZTR.

 

[KentT]

Is there a zero turn radius mower which can also have a front loader and some sort of blade attachment?
I am basically looking for something that I can mow 3 1/2 acres with, help on some landscaping projects and also be able to maintain a long gravel driveway.
Thanks for any suggestions.

--Carlos

If you're willing and able to do all your own maintenance (no dealer support) then you may want to look at a Power Trac:

Products

Front-mount mower like a ZTR, much more maneuverable than a tractor, and lots of different landscaping attachments available...

 

[dqdave1]

A CUT will give you the most options. ZTR is for mowing only. Anything else will give you problems as these units were designed to do one thing; mow grass. A CUT is designed to do many things, all which you have listed. A upper 20 HP unit would serve you well. I would stay with brand names. If you are handy, a private sale will probably be lowest price. Buying a used machine from a dealer ( JD from JD dealer, Kubota from Kubota dealer, etc. ) will probably get you good service. Coming to this forum before buying - priceless-!

 

[powerstroke444e]

Over buy on the tractor size & worst case you will need a cheap walkbehind to get the tight spots. You will find a tractor & loader will be priceless when you doing landscaping. We have ZTR but got along just fine with a 72" finish mower for a long time. The ZTR (kubota ZD28) saves about 45min to 1hr on 8 acres of grass, but would never want to be with out a loader tractor or a 3pt hitch