Steering sensitivity

ljms

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Just bought a new Grasshopper late fall of 2021. I haven't used it a whole lot yet. It is a 524V, 42" deck. I have driven and used a couple other zero turn lawnmowers, John Deere, Cub Cadet Ultima, and Kubota. The one thing that I have noticed on the Grass Hopper is the sensitivity of steering. I have a heck of a time mowing in a straight line with it. Are the hydrostats or the linkage adjustable? I have looked into the owners manual and there is nothing that addresses that issue. That was not a problem on the other mowers. Perhaps with a few more hours I will get used to it. I know my wife will never be able to mow with it due to this steering situation.
LaVern
 

Rivets

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Give this a try. I’ve always told people new to Z-turns to grab the handles so their thumbs are rubbing each other. This way you will instantly know if one hand is moving when you don’t want it to. Keep your eyes looking ahead and rely on your sense of touch. After you learn the sensitivity of your unit you can move your hands farther out This has worked for most of my customers. Each brand and model steers a little differently.
 

Rivets

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Just thought of a second thing to check. Has the dealer properly set the sticks so it will drive straight when the stick are across from each other. If they are not set properly it will drive you crazy.
 

ljms

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Rivets, Thanks for reply. The machine is setup properly as far as I can tell. The problem I am having is the seemingly minute touches that changes the direction. On my son's Ultima, which I used for an entire summer, I was easily able to mow in a straight line using one hand on both levers. I guess I was wondering if perhaps on the hydrostatic drives themselves there were adjustment, maybe adjustable flow valves? Shy of that, I'll just have to get used to it. I think I have less than 10 hrs. on it, more seat time should help. Thanks for your replies.
LaVern
 

ljms

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Just a thought. Could my problem with steering be due to the narrowness of the deck? The other ZTs were 48 and 54" wide cuts. The decks were wider than the wheel width, whereas this being 42", is the same width as the wheels, and sticks out the front more than the width of the deck. I chose the narrower version because the landscaping over the years has filled in and left narrower cutting room. Again, just a thought.
LaVern
 

bertsmobile1

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Not familiar with your mower
Most ZTR's have an air shock on the control arms to provide resistance
If there are some on yours , move them fully in both directions swiftly
If there is no resistance then the shocks are faulty
Others have a series of holes where the linkages from the tranny connect
If yours are like that move the linkage to the highest hole so the leverage is minimised
 

ljms

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Just checking back in with my experience so far this year. I've had a quite a bit seat time in by now. It's getting better, but still mowing along a chain link fence line and along ditches can be problematic. Fence not that bad, just hitting it a bit. The ditch though still makes me nervous. I do think the main difference is the width od deck in relationship to tire width. With the previous ZTs they were 48 and 54 inches. This gave extra reach out the side where the tires were not so close to the maximum cutting width of deck allowed the tires to run further away from the fence or ditch. Guess I'm going to need more time using my line trimmer. Any I just want too thank everybody for their responses to my post.
LaVern
 
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