Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Zero Turn Radius Riding Mower

Am considering a zero turn readius riding mower for the yard Only reason I want one is to mow the yard faster (about 1 1/2 acres). I tried my co-worker's John Deer last summer and it was great.....cut mowing time by about half. However, at over $6,000 I'll not be buying the J.D.

Any suggestions on brand? A 36" or 38" cut would work fine. I don't want to spend the money for a commercial mower. At Lowe's, I saw a Husqvarna (38") that looked nice ($2,600). I heard they bought out Yazoo and that it is basically a Yazoo with the Husqvarna name on it. At Sams Club, there is a Swisher (36" cut, never heard of these guys) that looks decent but isn't as heavy as the Husq. for $1,995 (more in my price range <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />).

Any suggestions? Know anything about the two brands I mentioned? Others? Best bang for the buck?

Were I work they sell the Husqvarna and Scag brands of zero turn mowers.
I work on them as a mechanic. Dont know the prices very well, but know about what they sell for. Both brand are real nice, they come with different engines, I'd recommend one with a Kawasaki engine if I were in the market, They seem to run better then the honda engines.

as far as price versis quality and size mower. here's some food for thought, take it with a grain of salt if you wish........

The comercial mowers that cost say 6000.00 on up to 12,000.00 are a fast cutting machine, You can cut at about 12-14 MPH dam fast I might ad. the reason is, is that the blades are turning much faster then your typical mower. These machines have several hydralic pumps to make it all go, and there built with heavy gauge steel, thats the price difference from the smaller ones.

On the cheaper home series zero turns such as the husky cz4815, there made all around cheaper, lighter sheet metal , less hydralic pumps, the blades dont turn as fast as the commercial ones, These smaller units are nice for going around objects such as trees, but dont cut near as fast as the bigger ones do, and are gonna need more maintence if pushed as hard as the bigger ones, as the parts are made lighter duty. With the slower blade speeds these put out, you wont cut near as fast as the commercial ones do. If I recall a cheaper husky zero turn sells for around 3500.00 to 4500.00 depending on options.

What ever you do, dont try out a commercial zero turn, and then buy a home owner version, you'll be disapointed. Try out what your gonna buy to see if its gonna fit your needs.

If money was no object, the scags seem to be better built then the huskys, and priced as such.

after you make your purchase, make sure your rear lug nuts are torqued to proper spec., and check them often, this area is one of the biggest problems with all zero turn mowers, they have a tendancy to loosen up and ruining the wheel and studs. The faster cutting speeds are hard on belts and pulleys. Otherwise they is fun and makes cutting the grass a treat.

Thanks for the info Hot Rod. You are probably right, I tried out a commercial and may be disappointed with a home version.

I know the JD I used used hydraulics to power the blades while all the home versions I've looked at have belt drive. IIRC, the Husq topped out at 6.5 mph.....not in the same class as the JD.

I'm guessing I could save a lot of time on the corners (vs my tractor style Honda) but the width of cut would be about the same and the speed, while a little better, wouldn't be close to the drastic difference noticed with the JD.

I have an Ariens 40" EZrider ztr mower. I like it very much. Mine has a 15.5 hp briggs motor. This series is also sold as Gravely (same company). They are hyrostat driven and cost around $3k. Dixon makes a ztr for about the same price, but only the much more expensive models use hydostat drives;the cheaper models are chain/belt driven.

I have a ztr mower under my deck. I would sell it cheap. If you pay a small fee and the shipping you can have it. I pushed it under the deck when it quit last year and haven't used it since. Sincerely RustyZipper <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> Oh yeah. I forgot. It has two flat tires. Anyone have an air bubble?

I have a Walker and man, what a mower. Personally I'd have no interest in a zeroturn mower that was'nt hydro drive.
Were it me, I'd be willing to spend $3000-$4000 and look for a used commercial job. Alot of landscapers trade them in every year or two and they will last a homeowner for a very long time. The fall is a good time to look for these as the shops don't care to hold them over the winter.

Also consider going with a larger deck on a conventional mower. On a given turn radius, the larger deck will have a smaller inside turn diameter. Lots of folks buy smaller decks under the assumption that it will "trim closer" - the reverse is actually true. If you need a smaller deck to fit through gates or trees that's different.

I won't spend thousands on a mower/tractor that isn't mostly tractor. My grass cutter is a JD 425 AWS that also serves as a snowthrower, blade, etc. It will even pull a single bottom plow for planting food plots. I put about 150-hours a year on the tractor and only a third of that is cutting grass.

Thanks for the input guys.



FVA, I'm sure I didn't make myself very clear but all the brands I've considered have the hydo drive.......however they all power the blades with a belt. Here is a pic of the Husq:







It's has a 15 HP Briggs & Stratton OHV, 38" cut, and Hydrostatic powered with dual drives, model CZ3815. It's priced at $2,699 at Lowes. Any opinions on this unit or price?



How about the Swisher brand.......any experience with them?

Well,
I worked lawn care with a family owned business this past summer for a couple of weeks. I don't know so much what price range they are in, but Dixie Choppers outperform the John Deeres 100% of the time, according to the people with more experience than myself. After using both, I agreed. Here's the website...

Dixie Choppers...

Good luck on your search. Oh yeah, and have fun with the new mower for me <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif" alt="" /> Make the right choice, and it is fun.