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Is there any reason to not use the mower (John Deere Z850A) for uses other than mowing? I plan to tow a DR Power Grader behind the mower to maintain a half-mile gravel road. Are there any reasons not to do this?

Hey there - WELCOME to LMF!

I moved your thread to the General Mower Discussion Forum. :smile:

I THINK you'll be okay with that big ZTR you've got. You may want to change the hydro fluid and filter more frequently, and also keep a close eye on your air filter, since you'll be kicking up a lot of dust.:smile:

Benski -

Thanks for your reply. Your suggestions are noted. Yes, it is a dusty job in dry weather, so I try to do it just after a rain. Not only is it better for the mower, it is also better for the person on the mower plus it keeps the neighbors happier. One of my main concerns is overstressing the hydrostatic drives and causing premature failure. Although there is a hitch attachment on the back of the mower, I didn't see any specs on maximum pulling weight in the literature.

SalisburySenior said:

Benski -

Thanks for your reply. Your suggestions are noted. Yes, it is a dusty job in dry weather, so I try to do it just after a rain. Not only is it better for the mower, it is also better for the person on the mower plus it keeps the neighbors happier. One of my main concerns is overstressing the hydrostatic drives and causing premature failure. Although there is a hitch attachment on the back of the mower, I didn't see any specs on maximum pulling weight in the literature.

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What does the power grader weigh? Is it on wheels or just a ground engaging attachment that drags along the surface? What type of hitch does your tractor have? How much will you actually operate the grader, an hour a day, an hour a week, an hour a month?

Hitches are installed on lawn and garden tractors and zero turns to pull items like carts and sweepers, etc. I used the rear hitch on my Deere 318, which weighed about 1000 lbs. with mower deck installed, to pull a lawn cart that weighed 800 pound when filled with dirt, and also pulled around a 350 lb. FULL SIZE FARM DRAG for hours on end, and that required using full throttle. Yet the hydro fluid barely got warm !! If you can pull the grader without using full throttle, it is very unlikely you have to worry about any damage.

SalisburySenior said:

Is there any reason to not use the mower (John Deere Z850A) for uses other than mowing? I plan to tow a DR Power Grader behind the mower to maintain a half-mile gravel road. Are there any reasons not to do this?

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I just searched for the specs for both your JD and the DR Grader....your JD weighs about 1400 pounds, and because it's a commercial grade model, I am sure you will have no problem moving the larger size DR Grader (187 pounds) even if you weight the grader down. Could not find any towing capability specs for your JD online...boy, I sure am envious of your green machine....could use a zero turn myself.

JDgreen -

Thank you for your reply. I've been quite pleased with the preformance of the JD Z850A for both mowing and road maintenance. I also have a somewhat smaller (26 hp Sears lawn tractor) mower, but it wasn't up to the job of climbing the hills while mowing or pulling the power grader on the road. It's now used mainly to pull a 10 cu ft cart around with yard tools and to transport debris.

SalisburySenior said:

JDgreen -

Thank you for your reply. I've been quite pleased with the preformance of the JD Z850A for both mowing and road maintenance. I also have a somewhat smaller (26 hp Sears lawn tractor) mower, but it wasn't up to the job of climbing the hills while mowing or pulling the power grader on the road. It's now used mainly to pull a 10 cu ft cart around with yard tools and to transport debris.

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You are welcome...I have done a lot of RV and cargo trailer towing and the subject of towing really interests me. The manual for my Deere 4210 (weight about 3100 pounds with MMM) says it is capable of towing 8,000 pounds....not that I would try THAT much weight....