Zero turn mowers

[mforsta]

Who's got one? Let me here the likes, dislikes and recommendations. I'm looking at buying one and want some input on the good, bad and ugly.

 

[whbonney26]

I have a Kubota. I looked at most all of them before deciding to buy the Kubota. Kubota also offers 0% interest for the life of the loan if you finance it.

 

[dantheman]

Bad Boy . Kohler engine . 3 yrs trouble free .

 

[DAVE_M]

Stick with a Kohler engine.

I’m partial to Cub Cadet for personal use.

I’m close to five years without an issue. Routine maintenance is simple.

 

[BluewaterLa]

Wanted the Kubota Diesel model, they just got too proud for the price in my mind.
Went looking at other brands and came to the decision to buy a John Deere zero turn.
Reason for this was the construction of the body being much better and the deck is made much better / thicker metals.
Great warranty on the machine, reputation is solid, Performance is great and the dealer was super knowledgeable on their products.
Was sitting between two models both at good price points. Thought of going with the slightly smaller less expensive model and with two acres of land was told that going with the larger one would be a better choice for durability as the smaller one was for 1 acre or less more of a home model where as the larger one was stepping up closer to commercial.

Not a single regret or issue in two years with 60 hours on the machine.
There is a difference in small yard residential, large yard residential and Commercial use machines.

 

[sandman7925]

Scag is widely considered the best in the landscaping industry. Now they do not make residential mowers but their smaller commercial ones are still better than other manufacturers residential mowers.
However, JD, gravely, exmark make good mowers too.
Whatever you get it needs to be stored out of the weather or you will have problems down the road.

In the landscaping world Bad boy mowers are widely considered to be garbage.

 

[mforsta]

Thanks for info so far. I forgot to mention this will be for my personal residential mowing, around an acre of grass.

 

[shrxfn]

I have a bad boy that has been mowing 5 acres for quite a few years. It will chew through anything. Just sharpen the blades, change the oil and keep it lubed. Although for just an acre a zero-turn seems like overkill a good lawn tractor will do it the same for way cheaper.

 

[dantheman]

One acre . Forget the high dollar machines like Scag . Too expensive to buy and the cost of parts is exorbitant . Landscaping guys tend to be mower snobs ..

 

[Cwooddd]

Trust me, the Kohler brand is your go-to guy, they're a hundred percent durable.Been using mine for about two and a half years now

 

[drill sgt]

Hello neighbor. Gravely zt34 here. Bought in 2015 . Totally flooded in the 2016 flood. Dealer wanted a minimun $400.00 to dry out but by replacing oil and filter twice myself and now all is good. Small yard in subdivision. For acreage would consider a comerical model or even a used trade up for a newer model. Cut my actual mowing time almost 1/2 vs old lawn tractor mower. Residential built to different mechanical standard than a comercial model. .............................................. drill sgt.

 

[flyboy]

I dont own a zero turn mower but my brother has two. One I believe is a gravely and the other was a cub cadet that he replaced with a big dog. The cub cadet he had, he had issues with it from day one once the warranty expired on it. Problems were the hydraulic drive system, deck spindles, safety switch problems, and other issues that I can not remember. His statement was that since it was painted yellow it was fitting because his was a lemon.

 

[sksshooter]

On my second gravely. First on was 12 years old when it flooded in 2016. I flushed the kohler out jumped a couple of safety switches that shorted and kept on cutting for another year with it before i purchased another home. We still had the property from our previous house so i went from cutting 2 acres to 5.5 and the old tired mower was ready for a break. I purchased a gravely commercial proturn 252 with 29hp kholer efi motor and havent looked back. Currently sitting right at 200 trouble free hours on it. A full on commercial mower is a bit much for 1 qcre but gravely has nice high end residential models with servicable hydro drives, 10 gauge deck etc. I will say in the 13 ish years i had my first gravely i never replaced a spindle. I did have to put an idler pully and a belt on it but otherwise just changed the oil and blades. Scag, makes a decent residential model but its a bit over priced for the options when i looked at them. Another one that has come on strong is spartans. I would stay clear of the box store mowers if at all possible they just arent made well and for very little more money you can buy a brand name residential models from a better company.

 

[Nicktran337]

Gravely Compact 44 Pro with 19 HP kawasaki. Been a very good mower.

 

[lowell66dart]

I have a Cub Cadet commercial model. It's there zero turn with a steering wheel. I have a ditch on my property and the steering wheel makes it easy. Flat ground I can steer one handed. It's going on eight years old with around 600 hours. I cut rural, rough areas. I do alot of things with it I shouldn't. Tough mower.

 

[riverrat66]

My 1st was a xmark 42 inch. No problems at all until 2016. I bought land on higher ground and traded up to the xmark 60 inch commercial model. Welded deck and better seat. Im cutting 10 acres with it and its awesome. When the 4 horsemen of the apocalypse come to destroy the world, they will be riding xmark.

 

[lesgeaux]

Gravely Compact 44 Pro with 19 HP kawasaki. Been a very good mower.

Gravely 42 with Kawasaki motor. Premo. 7 years and still going strong. They are a good choice. other likely as well. Transmission never a problem.

 

[Nicktran337]

1757705[/URL]]Gravely 42 with Kawasaki motor. Premo. 7 years and still going strong. They are a good choice. other likely as well. Transmission never a problem.

The Japanese own the small engine market.

 

[sandman7925]

Also, if you want commercial quality but don’t want to pay the premium consider a commercial walk behind. My zero turn rider is a scag but I also have a JD walk behind. Walk behinds tend to give a better cut, lighter so they leave a smaller footprint on you lawn, can climb hills like a billy goat, and in my opinion are just cool to operate. And they are hydraulic nowadays and you can purchase a scully for them to ride behind them. And with the way you can manipulate them you can get under bushes better and get closer to objects which means less trimming with a weed eater.

 

[pangris1]

One acre . Forget the high dollar machines like Scag . Too expensive to buy and the cost of parts is exorbitant . Landscaping guys tend to be mower snobs ..

I have a Scag and a Kubota, among other grass cutting implements, dealing with a lot of grass across a property or two.

The Scag Cheetah is a hell of a machine. Mine has the fuel injected engine. It is my favorite of the bunch. The Kubota is a fine machine.

My lawn guy had a Gravely and a lot of experience on other machines. I asked him to use my Scag when he cut here to keep it run. When he bought another machine, he also bought a Scag based on his experience cutting our property with my mower. He said the speed and comfort was worth it.

I have zero ego tied up in my lawn equipment. They all came with the properties. My experience with repairs/maintenance has been that they are reasonable and typical for both the Scag and Kubota.