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Which engines out there are preferred and which engines should one stay away from? You've got the Kaw FX, Kaw FS, Kohler Command Pro, Briggs Commercial Cyclonic, Kohler Confidant.

I've always heard that the Kaw's are better, but don't know much about the FX vs the FS. I've never had much luck with a Briggs, however, those were low end mowers.ss

poolecw said:

Which engines out there are preferred and which engines should one stay away from? You've got the Kaw FX, Kaw FS, Kohler Command Pro, Briggs Commercial Cyclonic, Kohler Confidant.

I've always heard that the Kaw's are better, but don't know much about the FX vs the FS. I've never had much luck with a Briggs, however, those were low end mowers.ss

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The Kawasaki series are FR=Residential duty, FS=Heavy duty and FX=Commercial duty. They are rated by the normal "hours" of expected service. The Kaws are considered the most durable and reliable on the market by most. The Kohler Courage series has had many problems reported and I had a bad experience with a Briggs & Stratton Intek(had a VERY good experience with a B & S Vanguard). I looked at a Bad Boy ZTR at TSC that have the new Kohler 7000 series and I was not impressed(seemed to look very cheap especially the valve covers). Most small engines, though, if properly maintained, will provide good service.

What mower are you considering? How much land are you mowing? A lot of questions. I have had about all and have had good luck with most. I now have a Kaw on my Toro but I don't have any negative responses to any of the above listed. All of mine have been good with proper maint.

Thanks for the replies.... I mow +/- 4 acres, 3/4 of which is former pasture (so very thick grass). Like I mentioned in an earlier post, I'm trying to get the most with about $7000 invested. I may go over a few hundered dollars to get that extra bit of value. Models that I'm looking at include the Toro Z Master 2000 and 3000, Badboy Outlaw, Scag Freedom, and Exmark Pioneer. I am visiting dealers this weekend, but I think all of these could be had around my price limit. The BB Outlaw has the heaviest deck among these, but it has the Kaw FS, wheras other mowers listed have the Kaw FX.

Also, would you go down in HP to get the Kaw over a Kohler?

poolecw said:

Thanks for the replies.... I mow +/- 4 acres, 3/4 of which is former pasture (so very thick grass). Like I mentioned in an earlier post, I'm trying to get the most with about $7000 invested. I may go over a few hundered dollars to get that extra bit of value. Models that I'm looking at include the Toro Z Master 2000 and 3000, Badboy Outlaw, Scag Freedom, and Exmark Pioneer. I am visiting dealers this weekend, but I think all of these could be had around my price limit. The BB Outlaw has the heaviest deck among these, but it has the Kaw FS, wheras other mowers listed have the Kaw FX.

Also, would you go down in HP to get the Kaw over a Kohler?

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I would recommend that you include the Gravely Pro-Turn in your comparisons. You can get the 60" with a KAW FS(Heavy Duty) for around $6,599(Model#991202). The HP is not what you should compare on engines, rather compare the torque specification. Yes, I would recommend the KAW over the Kohler. I looked at the Bad Boy Outlaw too and even though I was impressed with the overall build(5 gauge deck is massive) they seem to have mixed reviews. I got a great deal(in the Fall) on my 2012 Gravely Pro-Turn 152(100 XDZ series is one step up from the base Pro-Turn) and have never looked back. I paid $6,800 out-the-door which was approx. $1500 savings over the MSRP on the same model for 2013. The current MSRP for my model is $8,499 and it is on sale at my local dealer for $7,699. Below is a link to the base Pro-Turn if you want to check out its specs.

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Forget about engine brand go with the mower you like the best.

Everyone has a brand they like and one they don't

They each have their pros and cons.

I look at the deck how it is built and what blade spindles it has.
Then I look at the drive set up. Don't be fooled as some think bigger hydros are better. Not always the case.

When it comes to the engine I look at what one has the most torque at the highest RPMs Is not always the one with the highest torque rating.

If you take the time to research the 3 top engines you will see that they come out close to even in problems.

Say briggs sells 100 engines and 50 break
Kaw sells 10 and 5 break it is still 50%

You will see more people say the briggs failed because more people had them.