What you guys think about the mower brands? Troy Built, Cub Cadet, Juan Deere? I have 2.5 acres of grass/weeds in Northern AZ and sick of pushing it. Was thinking about going 46” but have some uneven terrain in the front, would a smaller cutting deck be better?
After reading this thread I have decided that there are no viable mower options for you under $12,000.
Therefore, I suggest that you fence in your 2.5 acres and establish a breeding population of goats to keep the vegetation down for you. When the herd gets too numerous, kill and eat the excess yourself or sell em to Mexicans.
Last edited by RJY66; 07/26/20.
"Men must be governed by God or they will be ruled by tyrants". --- William Penn
I haven't kept up with the new stuff for the last 10 years or so. Used to be Cub Cadet had three different lines, The cheap ones were typical box store junk. The 2000 and 3000 series were much better. Heavier gauge decks with swiveling deck wheels, shaft drive, better engines {Kohler and kawasaki }. I used to mow 16 acres a week. Had a 2186 Cub, an X530 JD and a Wheel Horse 312. Each got about 500 hrs a year on them. The JD was the turd of the bunch. Required a lot more maintenace and repairs than the other two, despite being the most expensive of the three by far. The shaft drive Cub was pretty good in comparison. The star was the Wheel Horse 312. That thing had 1500 hours on it when we got it and 4500 when we traded it in. In all those hours of use the only thing it needed was new belts once in awhile, a new cable, oil/filter changes and grease all the fittings once in awhile. The $8000.00 JD was a cheap POS in comparison. The damned thing had way too much plastic for the price. Even had a plastic tensioner pulley for the the drive belt which routinely broke every 80-100 hrs. and JD charged 20.00 for a new one. If you didn't replace it before it broke, it would take the 80.00 drive belt with it every time and sometimes the 60.00 deck belt too.
In the last 6 or so years things have changed big, All of MTD's stuff is about maximizing profit quality be damned. But their not alone most of the manufacturers are of the same mind, build it to get it through warranty and the rest is on the purchaser. A long time ago MTD built some pretty decent stuff but anymore it's just junk.
MTD even has done things like make their pulleys different enough to make it so a standard v-belt would not work well so the owner had to purchase MTD branded belts if he wanted them to last very long. As to the Cub Cadets you're right they made a few different series but the major parts were interchangeable. For instance the decks would be of a heavier gauge and some decks would have different wheels but the bearings in the spindles and pulleys would be the same but carry different part numbers, I always thought this and the belt thing a little shady.
Wheelhorse used to build a great tractor but it appears they only make Zero Turns now ( I just looked up their product line) I don't know what Toro was thinking, maybe the market demanded that move.
I'm surprised at the trouble you had with the JD x series, usually their rock solid, was it one of the first or second years of manufacture? A lot of manufactures, John Deere included don't do a whole lot of testing anymore they just build to known standards and let the consumer test it for them. The first couple of years are the worst for most L&G tractors.
Husqvarna used to be the top consumer grade tractor but even they have slipped into the abyss of tractor cheapness.
I'm absolutely disgusted with most stuff manufactured nowadays, that's why I run the old stuff, the new stuff just is not worth the money they want for it. I can take an old tractor and replace the engine, fix a few things neglected by the previous owner and have a much better tractor for less money.
I also do things like replace the drive pulley on the deck to speed up the blades so I can cut with a faster ground speed. I just replaced the pulley on a 300 series 50" deck. it originally came with a 7" pulley so I changed it to a 5" pulley, Lol, damn thing sounds like it's going to take off when the blades spin up but it can cut fast and it gives a really nice cut. I'll probably have to replace spindle bearings a little more often but I can handle that pretty easy.
Yeah, I think the X530 was pretty new to the market when I bought mine. I remember the salesman telling me it was their new flagship model when I bought it. I was pretty disappointed in that thing knowing how tough and dependable the older JD's were. I don't know what I'd buy if I were looking today. Going on my past experience I'd probably be looking for an old 300 series Wheel Horse in good shape with low hours on it. Thankfully, I don't have to worry about it anymore as I'm only mowing about an acre and a half now and the mower I have should last a long time with that little use. When I had the other tractors mentioned I was mowing a 16 acre cemetery every week under contract with the Village and needed something durable..
What you guys think about the mower brands? Troy Built, Cub Cadet, Juan Deere? I have 2.5 acres of grass/weeds in Northern AZ and sick of pushing it. Was thinking about going 46” but have some uneven terrain in the front, would a smaller cutting deck be better?
After reading this thread I have decided that there are no viable mower options for you under $12,000.
Therefore, I suggest that you fence in your 2.5 acres and establish a breeding population of goats to keep the vegetation down for you. When the herd gets too numerous, kill and eat the excess yourself or sell em to Mexicans.
That's what BobBrown/Renegade should do with that backyard jungle/eyesore of his.
What you guys think about the mower brands? Troy Built, Cub Cadet, Juan Deere? I have 2.5 acres of grass/weeds in Northern AZ and sick of pushing it. Was thinking about going 46” but have some uneven terrain in the front, would a smaller cutting deck be better?
After reading this thread I have decided that there are no viable mower options for you under $12,000.
Therefore, I suggest that you fence in your 2.5 acres and establish a breeding population of goats to keep the vegetation down for you. When the herd gets too numerous, kill and eat the excess yourself or sell em to Mexicans.
That is actually my plan if i have a huge area to be mowed Turn that grass into meat.
Regards,
deadlift_dude “The very first essential for success is a perpetually constant and regular employment of violence.” ----Fred Rogers
I'm not much of a mechanic. Having a dealer/service center close by would be my preference.
For me, it's either Kubota or John Deere. Both places in my local get excellent reviews. So, its a matter of buying the brand/model. Which riding mower or zero turn from these two is less problematic/dependable?
I've "downsized", so I only have 1 1/4 acre to mow.
I bought this tank, I believe a 1992 GT for 400.00 of CL in 2014 or 2015, a garden tractor with a 2 speed cast iron transaxle.
The kid would not budge on the price even though it was only running at half throttle and I noticed the air cleaner housing shaking like a cheap stripper. It did go forwards and backwards and the blades would spin so I bought it. The little sh ! t text me to see how I liked it and if it was running okay confirming he knew the junk had problems.
So I replied...
"yeah, it runs like a raped ape after I tightened the two manifold to head bolts in like five minutes, thanks for a smoking deal"
It cuts grass okay but it's a better brush hog and trailer puller. The Kohler 18hp cast iron twin lopes a bit at idle and sounds good too.
I would not buy a new late model riding lawn mower, they are junk including the new 08 Chub Cadet this GT replaced.
Ariens and JD are your best choices for longevity.
Kubota for me, pricey but I take care of it and it will last. Thicker metal on the count And a Kawasaki motor. Blade RPM is higher than the competition.
Neighbor had a little John Deere riding mower that left the most uneven cut on grass I believe I've ever seen of any mower. His didn't have rollers on the cutting deck that allowed it to followed the contour of the ground. I've since noticed some other brands of riding mower don't have the rollers, either.
Neighbor had a little John Deere riding mower that left the most uneven cut on grass I believe I've ever seen of any mower. His didn't have rollers on the cutting deck that allowed it to followed the contour of the ground. I've since noticed some other brands of riding mower don't have the rollers, either.
Deck design makes a big difference in the quality of cut you'll get and hence how good your lawn will look. John Deere sucks in that regard IME with several different ones over the years. The best cutting mower I ever had was the previously mentioned Cub Cadet 2186 with 44" mulching deck.. Chopped up the clippings so fine the lawn looked like astro turf. In the fall you could mulch your leaves with it and in one pass over a 6" bed of leaves it looked like you used a vacuum cleaner to suck them up. The JD's I've had always knocked down a fair bit of grass without cutting it off cleanly, even with freshly sharpened blades, due to piss poor design with poor suction and circulation.
I bought this tank, I believe a 1992 GT for 400.00 of CL in 2014 or 2015, a garden tractor with a 2 speed cast iron transaxle.
The kid would not budge on the price even though it was only running at half throttle and I noticed the air cleaner housing shaking like a cheap stripper. It did go forwards and backwards and the blades would spin so I bought it. The little sh ! t text me to see how I liked it and if it was running okay confirming he knew the junk had problems.
So I replied...
"yeah, it runs like a raped ape after I tightened the two manifold to head bolts in like five minutes, thanks for a smoking deal"
It cuts grass okay but it's a better brush hog and trailer puller. The Kohler 18hp cast iron twin lopes a bit at idle and sounds good too.
I would not buy a new late model riding lawn mower, they are junk including the new 08 Chub Cadet this GT replaced.
That thing has a "real" Kohler engine on it......an absolute beast. It could wear out no telling how many lawnmowers, then be rebuilt and do it again.
Last edited by RJY66; 07/26/20.
"Men must be governed by God or they will be ruled by tyrants". --- William Penn
Got tired of the low-end Sears and HD mowers and bought a 61" Scag Turf Tiger. It mows at jogging speed, and is great for keeping my target range cut as well.
I'm pretty happy with my Hustler Raptor Limited zero turn. I've put 200 hours on it in less than three seasons. I've replaced 2 spindles only because I hit stuff in the yard and wrecked them. I've also replaced the blade belt once and the drive belt once. The drive belt would have been okay but a stick popped up and threw the belt off the pulley. Before I realized what had happened the belt got rubbed pretty good by the shaft the pulley was on, so I replaced it. The motor and transmissions have held up good.
I'm mowing 4 acres with it,..most of it on a slight incline. I can do the whole place in 4 hours.
Bought my cub cadet new five years ago from the local dealer. It does what I expect. No complaints. Wanted a John Deere but their dealership here didn't want me to bother them.
Had a JD l120 tractor with 42" deck,wouldn't buy another jd mower. Last year bought a 54" huskvarna zero turn and it's great. Cuts close around trees and the best part is I can stretch my legs out.
John Deere X530 - Bot new April 2014 - 54" deck 3 blades - Has 736 hours on both - On the second set of blades - Mows eight (8) acres - regular maintenance - Tried three different zero turns, but have some hills that didn't suit them.
I have a 55” cut Bush Hog I bought used about 10 yrs ago. Cut 2.5 acres and it is a very solid machines. Had a John Deere 314 and blew two motors because I was mowing a hill and upper cylinder wasn’t getting enough oil as it wasn’t pressurized. Got a 14 hp Husky next. Tractor was great, deck a piece of [bleep]. Put $100 in it every year for 5 years and said fook it. Bit the bullet and bought the Bush Hog, totally different animal.
the various colors/flavors of MTD mowers are 10 year machines unless you are easy on stuff, which i'm not and my yard is not. i wore out a troybuilt in 10 years and am 11 years into a simplicity and it has needed a few deck parts. runs ok and tranny is still working. simplicity is middle of the road in ruggedness and cost.
Very pleased with my 42” Cub Cadet RZT-SX. I used a JD LT155 for 20 years and still use it to pull a cart around the yard. I wanted a Zero Turn with a bagger because of the pups running around the house. I’m use to a steering wheel so the Cub Cadet was a no brainer for me in the zero turn world.
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