Is Raptor SD overkill for homeowner with 1 acre?

I sure will.

$200 discount ends 7/5

Your gonna love it,205 hours and counting..thats many years for a one acre lawn a week..lol

Amen Tom

Mine now has 27 hours on it after 3 years with one acre.

See what I mean..lol..27 hours,Ill trade ya! Id really like to put 1k hours on mine,then sell it and get another mower.Not sure what kind yet,its a toss up between the Scag Liberty Z and another SD.Heck by then they may not make either.

The SD will easily last more than a lifetime of mowing for one property..only thing you would really have to worry about is dry rotting tires,belts and hoses,maybe a new battery every few years lol.

Thats kinda a shame how your warranty is up at 27 hours just cause the machine was sitting most of the time..guess that warranty is geared more toward the guy like me who puts 10 hours+ a week on it.

I hear you. I could have gotten by with a lawn tractor, but what fun is that.

Top98Percent said:

I've narrowed my choice to Hustler, now just have to choose which one.

I have 1 acre mowable, small incline in front yard (6' over 120'), flat the rest. A few trees, a shed and a pool to maneuver around.

Currently retiring a 42" lawn tractor, so anything is an improvement.

It seems to me the Raptor would be sufficient for my yard. I could swing the extra $$ for the SD, but not sure if it's really needed.

Reading through the posts, has me a little leary of the deck bolt issues on the Raptor.

Anyone have any experiences with a similar (or bigger) yard and the Raptor?

Thanks

T98

Click to expand...

You can never have too much money or too much Horsepower.

Darn right, more power

I was laughing at my research/justification/purchase progression after I pulled the trigger.

I knew I had to go to big blue for the 10% discount and to redeem a bunch of GC's I had been accumulating through a sales promo at work. Would have loved to go local, but local GC's weren't an option.

For your amusement:

Started out when I bought 5 tickets in a raffle for a 52" Raptor. Started looking at them and said, well for $100, I'm in if I win. (I didn't)
Didn't like the seat on the Raptor anyway, so I moved up to the Limited, pretty much for the seat and it looked better in my opinion, with the bigger front tires.
Started reading about the deck bolt issues on the Raptor, so I started looking at 54" SD. Better deck system, better seat, beefier build all around. I thought it drove better too. +$500 from the Limited. Ok, not bad.
Looked at SDX. Liked the open deck idea, but the rest of the "upgrades" didn't matter to me. Seat was a little better, but not worth the upgrade for someone not spending 8 hours in it. Pretty much decided on the SD at this point.
Then the Raptor sales event kicks in, everything is $200 lower than before, but the SDX is running $300 off from previous prices. +400 from the SD. Ok

Qualified for more GC's and at that point, SDX was well within reach. Done deal!

Now, just have to sell my 42" LT on CL to lower the final price even more...

Tom and Top,

I went out to my oldest brother's property to help him clean it up considering he is home on Hospice with no chance for improvement. He can't stand, let alone walk. Got out there and his family hasn't cleaned and mowed his rear yard this season at all. It was actually as he proclaimed waist high in about 2200 feet square. His front yard was only approximately 14 inches high. Since he hasn't been able to keep his yard there are tons of varieties of weeds now.

Thus, I took ole 1996 Yardman All Wheel Steer out and began doing what needed to be done. The little ole 16 hp Kohler Command didn't complain too awfully and I mowed with the guard down for an hour or so. I finally opened up the guard, was no longer windrowing to the extent of having rows 4 inches or more deep. After cutting the front and running with the deck guard open and dispersing all the massive wind rows, it looked pretty good.

While in the back yard, I found a hidden dog tie out stake and came from a 5 mph run to a complete stop. Backed up, thought I was going around it and whooooaaa, stopped again. I mowed about another hour and found yet another stake out sticking up about 3 inches in grass and weeds about 2 feet tall. Well, to get to the point of this story, the ole deck shook, yelled, complained and the belt came off the engine pulley spreading the retainers out to do so.

21 year old deck belt. If the Hustler lasts this long, it is going to have to be a good mower.

21 years.

I mow mine that's a little over an acre, and my sister-in-laws that's about an acre and a half with my Raptor SD 54". It cuts pretty good considering the grass we have here. I have about 90 hours on mine going on 3 years now.

@mhavanti I hear you. I have had a Poulan Pro LT for 17 years. 17hp Intek. Normal maintenance & blow it off after using it. Turn the key and it starts. A couple of neighbors have had 4 LT's in the same time period :confused2: The bar has been set high for the SDX.

Sorry to hear about your brother. Thoughts and prayers are with you and your family.