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Hustler 48" Raptor SD
#1
M
micro
M
micro
I'm new to this, but just wanted to put in my opinion...I traded in a 6-year old Hustler 42" Sport a few months back on a new Raptor 48" SD. Big mistake! The Sport was a fine mower, but I needed a little bigger deck, and thought I was making an upgrade. This thing plugs the deck up constantly, whether the grass is wet (much worse then) or dry. The biggest problem was the reinforcing bar across the bottom of the discharge opening; it's now been cut off, but the problem remains. I can't mow more than 15 minutes without having to stop and dig grass out from under the deck. I've tried raising the discharge chute up, but this deck is cut away into the TOP somewhat, and it doesn't really help that much. The left-hand blade area clogs first, then the middle, then the right-hand side. It's a real mess, and when done mowing (about 3 and 1/2 hours), I have to jack it up and ALWAYS remove around two 5-gallon buckets of clippings. I've contacted Hustler about their lousy deck design, but the only response I've gotten from them was "It's what it is". Now I'm trying to work a deal to trade it for either another Hustler (Fastrak SD 42") or something else. The previous Sport 42" I had NEVER had this issue, so I'm thinking the 2-blade deck is the way to go...however; my neighbor has a Bad Boy 60" that he's had for years, and never has this issue. After looking over the Bad Boy mowers, I see that their discharge opening is much bigger than on any Hustler, so I'm leaning that direction.
I would like to know if anyone else has had this problem with this mower, and what you've done to resolve it. It's frustrating to put up with, and makes me dread mowing at all.
I would like to know if anyone else has had this problem with this mower, and what you've done to resolve it. It's frustrating to put up with, and makes me dread mowing at all.
#2
RetiredGuns
RetiredGuns
I don't think you will find that removing 10 gallons of grass from your deck is a common theme. I can only assume that you are mowing very wet or at least moist, long grass. The crappiest mower will throw dry grass. If you are mowing dry grass then either your blades are not spinning at full speed or there is another mechanical problem. Do you know if your mower is operating at the 18.6k BTS?
#3
djdicetn
I agree...most likely the OP isn't following the "1/3 rule". Never cut more than 1/3 of the total height of the grass(i.e. if the grass is 3" tall, set the deck at 2"...1" cut = 1/3 of the 3" height). My manual also states never cut more than 2" in one pass. If the OP is waiting until his grass is 5" tall and cutting at 2" that is most of his problem. Also, he needs to avoid cutting the grass if there has been rain in the last 48 hours and try to mow in the late afternoon after the sun has dried any dew from overnight. That will help the "moisture content" problem that adds to his dilemma. Another mistake some people make is mowing with the engine NOT at full throttle(thinking they will save gas). This is a definite No No!! Some grass buildup is unavoidable, but not to the extent that he described:0(
djdicetn
I don't think you will find that removing 10 gallons of grass from your deck is a common theme. I can only assume that you are mowing very wet or at least moist, long grass. The crappiest mower will throw dry grass. If you are mowing dry grass then either your blades are not spinning at full speed or there is another mechanical problem. Do you know if your mower is operating at the 18.6k BTS?
I agree...most likely the OP isn't following the "1/3 rule". Never cut more than 1/3 of the total height of the grass(i.e. if the grass is 3" tall, set the deck at 2"...1" cut = 1/3 of the 3" height). My manual also states never cut more than 2" in one pass. If the OP is waiting until his grass is 5" tall and cutting at 2" that is most of his problem. Also, he needs to avoid cutting the grass if there has been rain in the last 48 hours and try to mow in the late afternoon after the sun has dried any dew from overnight. That will help the "moisture content" problem that adds to his dilemma. Another mistake some people make is mowing with the engine NOT at full throttle(thinking they will save gas). This is a definite No No!! Some grass buildup is unavoidable, but not to the extent that he described:0(
#4
Nickwilkins
Nickwilkins
I have the fastrack SD 54" and have never had this problem. I have cut in all kinds of conditions, long, short, wet, dry. Some conditions are obviously worse than others, but nothing like what you are describing.
Sent from my iPhone using LMF
Sent from my iPhone using LMF
#5
K
Kremeneon
K
Kremeneon
I do agree on WTF is the reinforcing bar doing across the discharge, and why the chute cutout over the blade there? Why not just a rectangle opening at the edge like every other mower?
My RSD 54 clogged up just like you describe, until I did two things:
I raised the discharge chute just a little, to level or just above.
I installed Oregon gator G5 blades.
Now it cuts more grass, at a higher ground speed, doesn't clog, and throws smaller pieces of clippings much further (up to 20' or so with the chute at about a 30 degree up angle), instead of leaving a windrow right at the chute.
I mowed about 2 acres of knee high pasture grass out behind the house and it just threw a wall of chopped salad out the side with the chute angled up about 30 degrees. no clogging for the whole thing and when done there was only a little grass packed at the front lip of the deck and a little stripe all around at blade level.
My RSD 54 clogged up just like you describe, until I did two things:
I raised the discharge chute just a little, to level or just above.
I installed Oregon gator G5 blades.
Now it cuts more grass, at a higher ground speed, doesn't clog, and throws smaller pieces of clippings much further (up to 20' or so with the chute at about a 30 degree up angle), instead of leaving a windrow right at the chute.
I mowed about 2 acres of knee high pasture grass out behind the house and it just threw a wall of chopped salad out the side with the chute angled up about 30 degrees. no clogging for the whole thing and when done there was only a little grass packed at the front lip of the deck and a little stripe all around at blade level.
#6
M
micro
I'll try raising the discharge chute and putting on a set of the gator blades. I'm not doing anything different than the last 40 years of mowing with many other brands of mowers; I still believe it's a bad deck design, along with a discharge opening that is just too small, but we'll see. I always wait for the grass to dry out, if we have a rain, which doesn't happen much in KS this time of year, and never wait for it to get too high, as some have suggested. The only time I mow below 3 or 4 inches is late in the fall, when I'm cleaning up leaves.
M
micro
I do agree on WTF is the reinforcing bar doing across the discharge, and why the chute cutout over the blade there? Why not just a rectangle opening at the edge like every other mower?
My RSD 54 clogged up just like you describe, until I did two things:
I raised the discharge chute just a little, to level or just above.
I installed Oregon gator G5 blades.
Now it cuts more grass, at a higher ground speed, doesn't clog, and throws smaller pieces of clippings much further (up to 20' or so with the chute at about a 30 degree up angle), instead of leaving a windrow right at the chute.
I mowed about 2 acres of knee high pasture grass out behind the house and it just threw a wall of chopped salad out the side with the chute angled up about 30 degrees. no clogging for the whole thing and when done there was only a little grass packed at the front lip of the deck and a little stripe all around at blade level.
I'll try raising the discharge chute and putting on a set of the gator blades. I'm not doing anything different than the last 40 years of mowing with many other brands of mowers; I still believe it's a bad deck design, along with a discharge opening that is just too small, but we'll see. I always wait for the grass to dry out, if we have a rain, which doesn't happen much in KS this time of year, and never wait for it to get too high, as some have suggested. The only time I mow below 3 or 4 inches is late in the fall, when I'm cleaning up leaves.
#7
K
Kremeneon
K
Kremeneon
I agree there is something wrong with the deck and blade configuration as-delivered. it didn't work for me at all.
#8
DSepe
DSepe
They put a reinforcing bar across the discharge chute....good one hustler(Sarcasm). Also Bad Boy might not be a good choice as they have some very noted cut quality issues. What other dealers do you have nearby?
#9
M
micro
That's the thing; the Hustler dealer is 6 blocks away! Not too many other brands anywhere close (50+ mi.), except several small stores that have picked up various ZTR mower lines, but have no service dept. for after the sale. Not going there. My Hustler dealer has been great to work with, but is getting no support from the factory at all on this issue, and has said he's probably going to drop the Raptor line because of this and other issues with them, not to mention the fact that the big-box stores around are now selling the Raptor line, sometimes with various discounts or other sale prices that he can't match. Sounds to me like Hustler doesn't value their dealer network as they should. In fact, my dealer was their top-seller last year, and may be again this season. His being close is why I've done business with him, as he stocks everything needed for any mower he's sold. I'm just frustrated, but when it's all said and done, will probably end up trading this thing in on another Hustler; probably the Fastrak SD 42".
M
micro
They put a reinforcing bar across the discharge chute....good one hustler(Sarcasm). Also Bad Boy might not be a good choice as they have some very noted cut quality issues. What other dealers do you have nearby?
That's the thing; the Hustler dealer is 6 blocks away! Not too many other brands anywhere close (50+ mi.), except several small stores that have picked up various ZTR mower lines, but have no service dept. for after the sale. Not going there. My Hustler dealer has been great to work with, but is getting no support from the factory at all on this issue, and has said he's probably going to drop the Raptor line because of this and other issues with them, not to mention the fact that the big-box stores around are now selling the Raptor line, sometimes with various discounts or other sale prices that he can't match. Sounds to me like Hustler doesn't value their dealer network as they should. In fact, my dealer was their top-seller last year, and may be again this season. His being close is why I've done business with him, as he stocks everything needed for any mower he's sold. I'm just frustrated, but when it's all said and done, will probably end up trading this thing in on another Hustler; probably the Fastrak SD 42".
#10
R
RaptorSD
R
RaptorSD
Correct me if I'm wrong but I think the bar across deck is for a grass catcher? There's a lip welded to it that extents to the blade so clippings get deflected upwards, same reason for the relief cut in the top of the deck, I though it looked odd when I first noticed it.
Either way no problem here with the RSD deck clogging.
Either way no problem here with the RSD deck clogging.
#11
Big-Al
Big-Al
I've mowed with my Raptor sd 54 twice. 2nd time the grass was damp because of a weeks worth of rain. I had absolutely no issues not even clumping. But I don't put my deck real low. I think you might be mowing a little low. AL
#12
M
micro
I did put on some gator blades and raised the discharge chute up as suggested; also I verified the height I was cutting...that stupid lettering instead of actual measurements WAS part of the problem, as the conversion chart I was given was 1/2" off! I modified my settings, too, and just finished mowing...still quite a bit of deck buildup, and with the discharge chute raised up enough to not block clippings, it does much better. However, with the deck top cut out as it is, a lot of the drier grass clippings just end up on the operator.
I don't really care, as I've now traded it off; just not worth the hassle, but maybe the above will help someone else.
M
micro
I'll try raising the discharge chute and putting on a set of the gator blades. I'm not doing anything different than the last 40 years of mowing with many other brands of mowers; I still believe it's a bad deck design, along with a discharge opening that is just too small, but we'll see. I always wait for the grass to dry out, if we have a rain, which doesn't happen much in KS this time of year, and never wait for it to get too high, as some have suggested. The only time I mow below 3 or 4 inches is late in the fall, when I'm cleaning up leaves.
I did put on some gator blades and raised the discharge chute up as suggested; also I verified the height I was cutting...that stupid lettering instead of actual measurements WAS part of the problem, as the conversion chart I was given was 1/2" off! I modified my settings, too, and just finished mowing...still quite a bit of deck buildup, and with the discharge chute raised up enough to not block clippings, it does much better. However, with the deck top cut out as it is, a lot of the drier grass clippings just end up on the operator.
I don't really care, as I've now traded it off; just not worth the hassle, but maybe the above will help someone else.
#13
S
Shughes717
What did you trade it for? Any issues with the new mower?
S
Shughes717
I did put on some gator blades and raised the discharge chute up as suggested; also I verified the height I was cutting...that stupid lettering instead of actual measurements WAS part of the problem, as the conversion chart I was given was 1/2" off! I modified my settings, too, and just finished mowing...still quite a bit of deck buildup, and with the discharge chute raised up enough to not block clippings, it does much better. However, with the deck top cut out as it is, a lot of the drier grass clippings just end up on the operator.
I don't really care, as I've now traded it off; just not worth the hassle, but maybe the above will help someone else.
What did you trade it for? Any issues with the new mower?
#14
M
micro
M
micro
Well, I think I'll just remain quiet about what I've traded it for until I put some hours on it and get a feel for how it's going to work for me. Everyone seems to be prejudiced about their favorite brand, and loves to talk trash on all others; I'm just not in the mood to hear it at this point. Choices in my area are very limited, unless you want to buy from places that have no service after the sale, and there are many like that. I did choose to go with a regular dealer about 70 miles away, as I've had experience with them, and they were more than willing to listen to my problem and made me a deal I couldn't very well pass on. I'll update later on this fall.
#15
DJlawnboy
DJlawnboy
This guy gets it. The brand loyalty thing on here is absurd. I just went with the best price mower in my range because your basically buying the same mower from every company...different logos. It's all about best bang for buck.Well, I think I'll just remain quiet about what I've traded it for until I put some hours on it and get a feel for how it's going to work for me. Everyone seems to be prejudiced about their favorite brand, and loves to talk trash on all others; I'm just not in the mood to hear it at this point. Choices in my area are very limited, unless you want to buy from places that have no service after the sale, and there are many like that. I did choose to go with a regular dealer about 70 miles away, as I've had experience with them, and they were more than willing to listen to my problem and made me a deal I couldn't very well pass on. I'll update later on this fall.
#16
M
micro
M
micro
Just an update on my Raptor problems...I finally gave up on it, and couldn't afford the upgrade to a Hustler that wouldn't have (hopefully) the problems I was having. So...I traded it in, at a loss, of course, on a Bad Boy ZT Elite, early last summer. It's turned out to be one of the best decisions I've made, and I'm very happy with it. No discharge problems, and it's further cut my mowing time by an hour.
My neighbor has had a Bad Boy for several years, with no issues, so I decided to go with it. It's an awesome mower and is built much tougher than what I have had.
On the Raptor issue...turns out (learned this after I'd traded) that the factory had installed the wrong pulleys on the deck, so the blades were spinning much too slow, leading to the discharge problems I was having. Oh well, no regrets on trading it off.
My neighbor has had a Bad Boy for several years, with no issues, so I decided to go with it. It's an awesome mower and is built much tougher than what I have had.
On the Raptor issue...turns out (learned this after I'd traded) that the factory had installed the wrong pulleys on the deck, so the blades were spinning much too slow, leading to the discharge problems I was having. Oh well, no regrets on trading it off.
#17
M
mooch91
How'd you find this out? Any info you can share for others to help identify the issue you had?
Never know, if it happened to one, could be affecting others.
Thanks.
M
mooch91
On the Raptor issue...turns out (learned this after I'd traded) that the factory had installed the wrong pulleys on the deck, so the blades were spinning much too slow, leading to the discharge problems I was having. Oh well, no regrets on trading it off.
How'd you find this out? Any info you can share for others to help identify the issue you had?
Never know, if it happened to one, could be affecting others.
Thanks.
#18
M
micro
In retrospect, I maybe should have picked up on that possibility, as the mower never had that "sound" to it that is typical of the high blade-tip speed mowers.
M
micro
From the dealer where I had bought it. According to him, there had been several different mowers that had the wrong pulley sizes installed by mistake, so it wasn't just on mine alone.How'd you find this out? Any info you can share for others to help identify the issue you had?
Never know, if it happened to one, could be affecting others.
Thanks.
In retrospect, I maybe should have picked up on that possibility, as the mower never had that "sound" to it that is typical of the high blade-tip speed mowers.
#19
G
gasjr4wd
G
gasjr4wd
Keeping the thread alive... I just got the bagger unit for my Raptor SD 54" and... OMG, what a joke. Can they make the bags any smaller?!? I got the mower the end of the season and used it twice I think. We have a bunch of pine needles and a few trees with leaves... so I figured why not get a bagger for the new mower. Well, I get to go about 50-60', turn around and have to empty the bags. Oh, and it really fills just the one bag. The one side gets about half full. If I try two swipes, it clogs the tubes. These gotta be the smallest bags I've ever seen.