zero turn recommendations

[Wall-eyes]

Few people I know have Grasshopper, Badboy, Exmark and Toro not sure price seem to be good. I just own green deer junk and swap attachments very easy and works great.

 

[Lycanthrope]

Do you mow a big farm yard?

Ive got 40 acres out of town that I hope to build on if interest rates ever come back down. my house area will be about 4 acres, but I also have 2 orchard areas right now that are about 3 acres that need to be mowed regularly. between my tree rows I want to keep mowed until they are established and everything else, Ive got maybe 10 to 15 acres Id like to keep reasonably manicured, doesnt need to be kept lawn short, but I dont want to let it grow wild. Unfortunately I cant have a large batwing mower because of the distance between rows in my orchard, but I want something that can move fairly quickly through plants that arent especially short. Ive been trying to keep up with a pull behind mower and my ATV, but its only a 44" cut and it bogs down pretty bad in heavy material, so I have to go slower than Id like to a lot of the time. Because of the way the orchard are laid out, I need a rear discharge deck and I cant really go much wider than about a 60 inch cut.

 

[Wall-eyes]

Ive got 40 acres out of town that I hope to build on if interest rates ever come back down. my house area will be about 4 acres, but I also have 2 orchard areas right now that are about 3 acres that need to be mowed regularly. between my tree rows I want to keep mowed until they are established and everything else, Ive got maybe 10 to 15 acres Id like to keep reasonably manicured, doesnt need to be kept lawn short, but I dont want to let it grow wild. Unfortunately I cant have a large batwing mower because of the distance between rows in my orchard, but I want something that can move fairly quickly through plants that arent especially short. Ive been trying to keep up with a pull behind mower and my ATV, but its only a 44" cut and it bogs down pretty bad in heavy material, so I have to go slower than Id like to a lot of the time. Because of the way the orchard are laid out, I need a rear discharge deck and I cant really go much wider than about a 60 inch cut.

Damn that is alot of mowing plant alfalfa or good grass and bail it and sell hay. Need to mow more often or is it to wet? You really need good big HP mower my junky JD I can mow 3' easy grass 60" deck

 

[guywhofishes]

good Lord Lyc… you have engineered yourself a huge PITA

not sure if anyone has mentioned it, but as you get older, mowing starts to suck more

 

[Lycanthrope]

good Lord Lyc… you have engineered yourself a huge PITA

not sure if anyone has mentioned it, but as you get older, mowing starts to suck more

Yeah, I wont mow everything forever, Ill back off the tree rows in another 5 years or so, once they are established and growing well. Will need to mow the yard and orchard areas long term however, and thats not a small area I guess, also will mow the driveway area going to the house I suppose, you can kinda tell how that will be in the pictures.

 

[guywhofishes]

I'm jealous of your forethought/planning. I truly suck at that.

 

[Wall-eyes]

Nice place you got going guess I did same 35 years ago. I have really nice crappy JD so get neighbor kids who just love it to mow with such fine piece of equipment that fight for it some days.

 

[Maddog]

I'm jealous of your forethought/planning. I truly suck at that.

x2

 

[Davey Crockett]

I found a vid of a Super A like what I use for tough jobs. They are smooth riding , lots of power and takes a very long day to burn 5 gallons of gas. My main mower for tight spots is a Model B with narrow front , it's almost zero turn, it will turn within it's length , the narrow front will turn sharp enough to stop the inside wheel and pivot around. I picked up a Super C , last summer that is bigger and more power but you can plow or till with any of them and they are tough and simple ,not much to go wrong. The word "Super" before the letter basically means they have hydraulic lift for mower and cultivator's. Ballpark price , $ 1500 if it's in good shape and good tires.

 

[Fester]

https://steinerturf.com
https://www.ventrac.com/?_gl=1*1acv...wUmUYtBRrgB2hH1BCU5Y0aFxQXSboDrIaApG5EALw_wcB

 

[1lessdog]

I gave up on the zero turn mowers, they are so rough riding. Last one was a JD 910 and it was so rough. I have two JD GX345. They are so smooth riding and quite and the power steer is so nice. A good used one will easily run 2500.00 to 3000.00. Mine have the Locking differentials that is nice on road ditches and mowing speed of 5 to 7 mph.

 

[mikef]

Ive got 40 acres out of town that I hope to build on if interest rates ever come back down. my house area will be about 4 acres, but I also have 2 orchard areas right now that are about 3 acres that need to be mowed regularly. between my tree rows I want to keep mowed until they are established and everything else, Ive got maybe 10 to 15 acres Id like to keep reasonably manicured, doesnt need to be kept lawn short, but I dont want to let it grow wild. Unfortunately I cant have a large batwing mower because of the distance between rows in my orchard, but I want something that can move fairly quickly through plants that arent especially short. Ive been trying to keep up with a pull behind mower and my ATV, but its only a 44" cut and it bogs down pretty bad in heavy material, so I have to go slower than Id like to a lot of the time. Because of the way the orchard are laid out, I need a rear discharge deck and I cant really go much wider than about a 60 inch cut.

Nice. Imo, you definitely want a liquid cooled engine, preferably diesel. And maybe an old swather and baler

 

[SLE]

I found a vid of a Super A like what I use for tough jobs. They are smooth riding , lots of power.........

Those are 21 HP with a 4 speed trans.......... They might be a lot of things, but they certainly don't have "lots of power" and are definitely not "smooth riding". I'll take my Gravley PT472 with 35 HP and air ride every day. Although its not double the HP, its probably 3-4 times the productivity.

When it comes to mowing, my goal is to not making mowing an all day affair. We have 5 acres of mow-able turf grass that I can knock out in an hour and a half, and then 1/2 hour of trimming. Total time with fueling the mower, checking oil, getting stuff out of the shed and putting it away, moving rain leaders, hoses, trimming, and mowing is less than two and half hours. with that said, I would estimate I'm burning about 3-4 gallons per hour depending how heavy and tall the grass is.

 

[SLE]

I gave up on the zero turn mowers, they are so rough riding. Last one was a JD 910 and it was so rough. I have two JD GX345. They are so smooth riding and quite and the power steer is so nice. A good used one will easily run 2500.00 to 3000.00. Mine have the Locking differentials that is nice on road ditches and mowing speed of 5 to 7 mph.

I hear the big Ferris zero turn mowers have a pretty decent ride. I will say, the air ride on my Gravley sure makes a gigantic difference compared to the same zero turn without. I sugguest trying one, it'll blow your mind. I'd be hard pressed to go back to not having air ride.......... these are some real first world problems.......

 

[wslayer]

The rough ride is why I stayed away from the zero turn, (and the noise right behind your ear), but air ride would have possibly changed my mind. Did traditional JD 54" so I could add snow blower attachment.

 

[guywhofishes]

https://ztrpuffer.com/

 

[riverview]

zero turns ride rougher than a tractor, but they are mowing machines and very good at what they are designed for. they have come along ways since the big mow.

 

[Wall-eyes]

I think the bad boy or gravely have a suspension. When I do mow it is fast and rougher than hell on guy for sure.

 

[Davey Crockett]

Those are 21 HP with a 4 speed trans.......... They might be a lot of things, but they certainly don't have "lots of power" and are definitely not "smooth riding". I'll take my Gravley PT472 with 35 HP and air ride every day. Although its not double the HP, its probably 3-4 times the productivity.

When it comes to mowing, my goal is to not making mowing an all day affair. We have 5 acres of mow-able turf grass that I can knock out in an hour and a half, and then 1/2 hour of trimming. Total time with fueling the mower, checking oil, getting stuff out of the shed and putting it away, moving rain leaders, hoses, trimming, and mowing is less than two and half hours. with that said, I would estimate I'm burning about 3-4 gallons per hour depending how heavy and tall the grass is.

If we hooked them up , I'd pull you backwards till you spin your tires off or say uncle. Haha Your right about them cutting grass though. I have a 72'' diesel zero turn that could really mow grass but it gave me a backache. PTO clutch for the deck went out $ 1200 part so I said screw that and bought a farmall with a mower and the ride is a lot better. The bonus was that it works like a charm to cultivate the garden. Then I started collecting them.

 

[Jigaman]

People mention the rough ride which I agree with on my two JD zero turns. Has anyone here tried rolling your lawn with one of those lawn rolling cylinders willed with water? Did it help to make it smoother?