"Maybe" in the market for one in the next several months. I'm talking about the ride on model. It would be used +/- 2 days/wk....pretty much 8 hrs day. Something durable (It'll be mine, but I won't be using it). I don't want to break the bank. But, I don't want to buy a residential machine, either. Thanks.
I'd go with a Skag if you have the coin to throw at one. Used 10 to 1 over any other brand here locally for walk behinds and the three big local dealers are JD, Grasshopper, and Gravely.....that says something to me. I've never owned one so can't attest to longevity, but I've used one some and they make a great finish cut. I've stuck with John Deere 7 series commercial zero turns for the past several years. Hold value extremely well and with regular maintinance I haven't had very many major problems (1 clutch and 2 thrown rods on a mower with 2000 plus hours). Are you doing a lot of very small residentials with this? Curious as to why you want this model specifically.
Trev: Yes. "Mostly" it'll be used for small, residential projects. I'm plannning on having 10-15 at any given time, and I'll need someone to mow them 2X/mo.. This could grow to many more properties, basically as my comfort level with this side of things grows. I won't have time to do any of it. I need a heavy duty unit (that I don't have to worry too much about minor abuse)....just in case it gets used more than I'm initially thinking. I looked at the scag and JD units last night. Are you kidding me???....lol $7K for a unit I can't sit down on?
LOL Yeah they don't come cheap and a solid used one is hard to come by cause it seems no one sells them. Go Price a new zero turn from either of those brands if you REALLY want sticker shock, lol.
During college I ran a crew and we used Toro. I mowed solely with the velkie, loved it as much as you can love mowing. We did 70+ yards a week, one being a "farm" with 5+ acres of mowing. The other mower we used was a Bobcat. I wouldn't think you'd go wrong with either. I bought and use a simplicity for my yard.
We have a JD 7 series zero turn mower, and we have not had any problems with it. I have always heard JD makes a mean lawnmower lol
I have, and it's insane. Not up on the stand-behind mowers, but there are plenty of commercial grade ZTRs to be had well below Scag, Kubota, and Ferris lines. If I were going to buy a new one today, I would be buying either a Bobcat FastCat Pro, or a Hustler Fastrak HD. Hijack over. Trev is right, though, Scag is VERY hard to beat. JD's replacement parts are pricey, but their commercial equipment is solid.
ExMark all day for commercial mowers. A ton of those other ones are all MTD. Your going to be breaking the bank for one that you can ride on, infact for the price of that one, you can get a good used zero turn mower, that you can sit on. I have a Gravely 270z at work, and I run all husqvarna equiptment, although I would prefer ECHO over husqvarna for lawn equiptment. I work cutting grass in my county, at our recreational complex, with 4 baseball lawns, a soccer field, a football field, and a gym.
Jeff, look at a Wright... when I wanted a mindless job this summer we mowed around 90 properties weekly and it was great. I had somewhere in the neighborhood of 50 laws a week in highschool and bought one then also, never a problem.
I say get a Dixie chopper and get it done real quick. That bein said, we got our grasshopper zero turn for about 3 grand used and it has worked like a charm....mowing 4 yards a week, including my own which is 12 acres, so it gets a licking. I just don't see the whole stand up mower purchase though, is there an advantage to them that I don't see?
http://www.ferrisindustries.com/ Really good commercial mower IMO. We have a couple of them at the golf course and I know several people that use them for small and big lawn care companies. One of mine had almost 5000 hours on it and really still runs good. Nickle and dime stuff along the way and regualar maintenance but still a beast. Oh yeah I have the 3 wheel riders not the model showed on webpage. Either way... good mower.
i have a brushhogg zero turn, two tanks, its a beast love it http://www.bushhog.com/product-line/zero-turn-mowers/24-zero-turn-mowers-professional-series.html
Like Matt said, the Bobcat fastcat pro would be what I would be looking at, commercial quality with a smaller price, I think they run 5500 or so, plus you can sit down. I absolutely hate a walk behind, jungle wheels or not, they suck. (compared to a sit down z-turn)
My only issue with spending that kinda coin is........abuse!...lol And hey, I'm talking about my SON doing the mowing. Hell, I know him. I'm up to 16 properties, as of this morning. 14 of those will require bi-monthly maintenance, once the grass starts growing. I can't help but fell like this number will double, by the time lawn maintenance weather gets here. Even if it stays at that number, that's the equivalent of almost a year's worth of lawn maintenance on a single lawn.........each month. I'm certain a residential mower isn't gonna handle this. Biggest thing I have to consider (unless you guys steer me a different way) is......local service for whatever I choose. So far, I know we have dealers for most of the brands mentioned. I've also been told the landscape contractors trade their equipment in this time of year. I may need to look at some of these units. Gonna check craigslist, too. I REALLY appreciate the info., guys. I know nothing about this stuff.
also give a ring to some local golf courses. they usually upgrade around now, and have some nice mowers
