wanted opinions of owners of Ferris IS 600Z

HI!
Looking for anyone who has a Ferris IS 600Z.
We are considering it - but would love to contact someone who already has one.
We are being quoted between $5,800 - $6,000 for it....a lawnmower.
Can someone justify it for me? :smile:
It seems the most rugged, has the 'best" engine of all that we looked at , a Kawasaki FS600V.
My husband loves the shock system. The iCD cutting system sounds impressive.
Where I work, they have a LARGE area to mow - I noticed the people who mowed used Ferris mowers, I believe.
Did Ferris mowers used to be brown?....are some still brown?
Anyway, the grass looked very nicely cut and I can only imagine how many lawns the people cut with those mowers.
I would love to hear people opinions of why or why not I should buy this mower.:smile:
We hope to decide in a week.
Thank you!

fry said:

HI!
Looking for anyone who has a Ferris IS 600Z.
We are considering it - but would love to contact someone who already has one.
We are being quoted between $5,800 - $6,000 for it....a lawnmower.
Can someone justify it for me? :smile:
It seems the most rugged, has the 'best" engine of all that we looked at , a Kawasaki FS600V.
My husband loves the shock system. The iCD cutting system sounds impressive.
Where I work, they have a LARGE area to mow - I noticed the people who mowed used Ferris mowers, I believe.
Did Ferris mowers used to be brown?....are some still brown?
Anyway, the grass looked very nicely cut and I can only imagine how many lawns the people cut with those mowers.
I would love to hear people opinions of why or why not I should buy this mower.:smile:
We hope to decide in a week.
Thank you!

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Those brown ZTR's you are seeing are most likely Grasshoppers(very expensive Commercial units). I never even looked at the Ferris ZTR's when I was shopping and don't know much about them(except the parent company is Briggs & Stratton, which also manufacture Simplicity and Snapper mowers). I had a "bad experience" with a B & S Intek engine, but that doesn't mean their ZTR's and other mowers m,ade by B & S aren't good quality. Is the "shock system" similar to the "Flex Fork" systems that Hustler makes for a little smoother ride?? Personally, if I'm mowing the yard "smooth ride" isn't a major consideration as I'm not going to be riding on it for hours. I really can't advise you with no first-hand knowledge as to whether there's really something to those systems or whether it's a gimmick. Most manufacturers have something similar to the "iCD cutting system". On my Gravely their "X-Factor Deck" is the premier cutting system and for Toro's is the "Turbo Force Deck". Again, if it's a free-floating, 7-gauge deck on a $5k-$7k ZTR it's probably going to have a professional cut. It is something, though, you need to get a dealer to explain to you(particularly the baffles/chambers underneath the deck, blades cut overlap, blade tip speed and other "deck-related" factors that can influence performance).

I'm not familiar with the IS600Z, but I have 3 Ferris mowers and I think they're great machines. Briggs& Straton haven't owned Ferris too long. I believe as long as you get a Ferris with a Kawasaki engine, you'll do alright. I don't think B&S has been making 2 cylinder engines long enough to get it right. gregjo1948

Thank you for the replies. I was thinking the shock system was more for the machine;not the driver.....I was thinking the shock system would be friendly on the machine; less wear and tear on all the parts. I thought our grass was pretty even, but my husband told me in some places it is pretty bumpy. I thought maybe the shock system would mean more durable ; that the machine and all it's parts would have an easier ride....less stress on the machine and all the parts - maybe that is what i'm trying to say. I'm probably not making sense....sorry.

I know it's a stupid question, but is the suspension system for the rider?..or does it have benefits to the mower itself?

Right now i think it's between the Ferris and the Kubota - i realize it's totally different machines - not apples to apples - :frown: As much as we like the Gravely, the dealer is the farthest away....but is still on the list. Now, if I had a crystal ball to tell me which one last the longest!

gregjo1948 said:

I'm not familiar with the IS600Z, but I have 3 Ferris mowers and I think they're great machines. Briggs& Straton haven't owned Ferris too long. I believe as long as you get a Ferris with a Kawasaki engine, you'll do alright. I don't think B&S has been making 2 cylinder engines long enough to get it right. gregjo1948

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I agree......unless it's a B & S Intek which IMHO is the worst design change B & S ever did(the Vanguard was 3 times as good as those Inteks).

fry said:

Thank you for the replies. I was thinking the shock system was more for the machine;not the driver.....I was thinking the shock system would be friendly on the machine; less wear and tear on all the parts. I thought our grass was pretty even, but my husband told me in some places it is pretty bumpy. I thought maybe the shock system would mean more durable ; that the machine and all it's parts would have an easier ride....less stress on the machine and all the parts - maybe that is what i'm trying to say. I'm probably not making sense....sorry.

I know it's a stupid question, but is the suspension system for the rider?..or does it have benefits to the mower itself?

Right now i think it's between the Ferris and the Kubota - i realize it's totally different machines - not apples to apples - :frown: As much as we like the Gravely, the dealer is the farthest away....but is still on the list. Now, if I had a crystal ball to tell me which one last the longest!

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I really can't elude to the benefit(rider or machine) of some of the enhanced suspension systems(seems like I read in some threads that the Hustler Flex Fork upgrade was for "rider comfort"). Yeah, would be nice if the 3-4Year "Warranties" were 5-10year "Guarantees" instead:0)
Unfortunately ALL machines(autos, mowers, etc.) will eventually suffer wear & tear repairs at some point. And even with owners saying 'after 4 years this broke"....or "that broke" another slew of owners of that "same machine" will say "had mine 20 years with no problems". There really is no way(except, like you said a "crystal ball"......which we all know doesn't exist:0) to determine how long ours will last. Sometimes a mechanic(like user Rivets, ILLENGINE and others) can see a "pattern" of certain ZTR's having the same or similar malfunctions of certain components, but even then they see a handful of literally thousands of those specific machines that are "in the field" and many, many of them never have those problems.

In regards to the ? of beneficial to machine or operator, I would say both. The suspention takes out some of the abusive pounding that's uncomfortable on the operator and damaging on the machine. At the same time, you have the wear on the suspention parts to consider. I prefer the best ride because they're all going to fail; so why not enjoy the ride while it lasts? gregjo1948

I'm new here but I have just bought a brand new Ferris is700 which is very close to the same thing.I have cut my grass three times so far and love it! Rides great and very well built.

I'm also interested in this mower. I'm curious what the OP decided to get one. I looked at them today, and I'm pretty impressed.
I'm also wondering how good the customer service is with Ferris. I've never known anyone who has owned one so I'm not very familiar with them.

Thanks

Rowdyrabbit said:

I'm curious what the OP decided to get one.

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The OP ended up getting a Gravely Pro-Turn. :thumbsup: