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i'm on my second zero turn,they cost more but i'll never go back to a tractor. wore a dixon out in 7 years,had b&s motor . total junk engine,blown head gasket twice. bought a bad boy mower in 2012 ,has 26 hp kawasaki. runs great. 3600.00

I have a Simplicity Broadmoor that I'm happy with. I don't have the acreage that you do but I collect leaves with it during the fall and it will be 8 years old this spring.

It has an 18HP single cylinder Kohler Command.

Dan

I have an earlier version of the same mower (20hp/46 in. cut) and I have been very satisfied. I got lucky though. My old mower crapped out with about two mowings left before frost and I intended to borrow a mower and then buy in the spring. I happened to be in the local Lowes and spotted a used mower out front. Some guy had bought it that spring and had purchased the extended warranty. He then proceeded to run over a concrete base of some sort and ruined the deck. Lowes gave him a new mower and sent the damaged mower in for repair. I wound up paying half of the new price and went home happy. Three years later it is still like new.

I have my daughter's old Craftsman LT-2000.

She had it for about 10 or 12 years,i have been running it for 5.
Only replaced deck belt and blades.
I paid what she needed to get for it 400.00,worth every penny.

speaking of mowers, my self propelled craftsman was blowing out oil as fast as I could put it in - still ran but the belt was slipping so I hit up craigslist last September and found a Honda mower for $50 a guy was selling - 5hp variable speed.

So I picked it up and this thing runs and looks brand new. I get to checking on it and the thing is over 20 years old.

Its a HR214 model. I liked it so much, I just started watching craigslist off and on and found another one for $40 at the end of the season last year. All it needed was the carb cleaned and it runs as good as the other one.

That is one heckuva mower.

When we lived in Kansas there was about 4 acres to mow. I had a 60" Hustler zero turn and it was a beast. Built like a tank. I bought it with the house and it was already 7 or 8 years old. Made mowing fun.

I've had a JD 160 manual trans mower since 1988 when I bought it. Aside from belts, blades and a few batteries, still going strong. Kawasaki motor. I've always had a concern about the small hydrostatic units. In the big stuff, there is adequate cooling, but a small fan or whatever doesn't mean long life. I'm older and wish it had power steering now, but I pump the front tires up hard and it's better! I do need a new seat though.....

Oh, I now about 1 1/2 acres, a little hilly, but not too bad. Lots of gardens my wife puts out to mow around...

Get a simplicity, IMO they mow the nicest (free float deck) and are bomb proof. If I was you i'd find a year or 2 old simplicity Broadmoor and not think about a tractor again for 20 to life.

Been mowing an acre or so with a 30in Dixon since 94. Two tranny rebuilds but you can't get those parts any longer. The 11hp Briggs IC's head bolts have never been touched.

Two years ago I found a two yo 42in Hustler with a bad engine (a HONDA!) for $800. I spent $1400 for a new 19hp Kawasaki. That thing is awesome.

Nothing runs like a deere

True enough. Having worked for that company for many years (large tractors) I can say the theme running through our company is "Quality", for all divisions.

Do the dealers for all Deere products

The "box store" Deeres suck balls, like all other box store mowers. The 4K "lawn tractors" are obselete. No lawn service uses them, they use Hustlers, or Skaggs, or Dixie Choppers, or their equivalent.

The ONLY reason for buying one of the 5K Deeres is you have several acres, a big chunk of which is too steep for a zero-turn.

My dog pen is bigger than that yard

Bought the same one two years ago. Couldn't be happier! 2 year warranty too.

I question tha quality of deere lately my moms 165 fron the 80s is still running. That mower has done their 1.5 acre lawn plus 2 rental property's and the church lawn when it's there turn. The old 165 still fires right up.. They have a new jd and it doesn't sim to be built as well. I'm running an old 265 myself

You'll be happy with that mower for the size lawn you have. I believe they are the same as the Craftman versions with similar specs. I have a Craftsmen 54" with a kohler engine that has over 400 hours on it. The only issues I have with mine are deck service related - but I have 3.5 acres with rocks that find it more often than I'd like and I mow and another 4-6 acres 2 or 3x per year behind mine as well. Part are easy to get and it's easy to work on.

Happy mowing.

Here's a riding mower from Montana.

I gave my Velcro gloves to deflave I got me a hottie and sheep are really a single man thing.

This.

If you are diligent about air & fuel filter maintenance, oil changes, and keeping the cooling fins/housing clean, almost any of the motors will outlast the frames. So look at everything that surrounds the motor.

The rest comes down to who will be operating/maintaining the thing. If the person who's parting with thousands of $ is the one in the seat, they tend to last much, MUCH longer. If it's their offspring, or a hired hand� not so much. In other words, an owner-operator can get by with a less expensive machine.

For mowing, I'd suggest a zero turn all day, every day.

Just my observations.

FC