2 flat acres, 10K budget... Which Zero Turn?

BobbyV43

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I recently built a house and have 2 acres to mow. It's a new lawn and is pretty bumpy in spots, which is something I will remedy. I'm looking for a zero turn mower that will give me great cut quality and comfort. I'm willing to spend up to 10k for a nice mower and I'd like the deck to be 60 inches. I spoke to a guy who cuts lawns for a living and he recommended the Scag Cheetah. I took a look ant them online and they are very nice. There are dealers for most major brands in my area, soI should be able to find pretty much anything. A couple neighbors have Hustlers and they seem to like them.

If you guys were in my situation, what would you buy and why?
 

reynoldston

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Ferris pro-cut 60
 

BobbyV43

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I looked at the Tiger Cut II and it seems like a nice machine. Right now I’m thinking the Cheetah might be overkill for me. I’m also looking at some of the Hustler machines. I also have the following dealers near me:

John Deere
Kubota
Spartan
Exmark
Ferris
 

neetan

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My I suggest you look at few things before you make the spend, Please remember you will enjoy the cutting and want to spend more time on it. Plus look at what attachments will work with what you have.

Now I know the budget is 10K, but you do not need to spend it all! Lets look at what will last you a long time with the least amount of issues. Understand Warranties, power train, and Drive train.

Longer warranties mean the product will out last the average consumers lifetime. Longer warranty means the company wants you to be "not thinking about it" 400 Hr. over 4 years is good~ now 1000hr over 3yr. not as good for you, but 500hr over 5 years is all ways better since your cutting will be around 100 hr a year?

Remembering that all the companies use the same product in they're driving systems, look for the best but do not over pay for something that you will never use. The hydro's you get help you a lot when it comes to life of the unit, the minimum I went with is the zt3100 which is the low end commercial ~ so my thought is 6hr a day for 8-10 years of regular use in commercial setting will give me 25-35 yr. of personal use plus still giving me a good resale after 10-15 years if I want. I paid $5800 so after 10 years of use I can still get between 2500-3500 on resale costing me 2800 or about $280 a year about $10-15 a week not bad if you look at this.

Now zero-turn are not snow blowers or lawn aerator, so what I did was due to the bumpy lawn I rented a motorized lawn roller and after a good rain that lasted a few days You would be amazed at how awesome my lawn is now.

I run a 48" which I believe give a better cut then a 60", more passes but more handling around objects plus allows you different cut pattern since my next door guy, has groves in the lawn due to the same pattern he cuts.

I have a Hustler Fastrack SD, with Honda 20.5hp and a 48" cut and ZT3100, I hope I helped and good luck.
 

willys55

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IMHO, if you don't mow for a living then a zero turn high speed mower is a waste of money, you can get pretty damn good ride on mower for less than half that, plus added features like a plow, snow blower, cab, lawn sweeper, rake and more. I have three acres to cut, and I do own a Toro Groundsmaster (That I bought back when we had the 20 acres in upstate NY).....I enjoy cutting the lawn with my Cub ride on(also has cup holder for the beer...LOL).
 

BobbyV43

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I’m not looking to spend 10k but that’s my max. I want something that will give me years of service. I’m also unsure of what deck size to get. There is an open area but there’s also landscaping and trees. So 52 or 61?
 

reynoldston

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The nice thing about the Ferris pro 60 is you can mow under them trees. It also turns almost as sharp as a 0 turn. The newer pro 60's also have the spring suspension. It will also use up that 10K for you. Mine is 17 years old and still going strong and has been very trouble free other then some small Kohler engine work. At the time I bough it I paid 8000 dollars which was a big price back in 2000 but it will last me my life time.
 

bertsmobile1

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I also think a massive deck is something you will live to regret, particularly if you have a lot of bumps which will cause the deck to scalp.
Have always liked the articulated out front mowers the decks on the Stiga Park & the Husky Rider pro series give a cut as good if not better then a reel mower and they are by far the quietist mowers I have ever serviced.
48" is the biggest deck in this format AFAIK and the Bio-Clip deck is great, one of the few mulching decks that really work properly
 

7394

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I would only add that this time of year, test as many as you can. You may be able to haggle a better deal on a 2017. Since the 2018's are arriving already.

Friend bought a mower w/ 60" deck, now he has to push mow more & the Big deck scalps more as Bert mentioned. Just food for thought.
 

Darryl G

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I suggest you check out the Exmark Radius. With 3 different series to choose from, E, S and X you can scale the features up or down to your liking.
 
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