Have a new property. What do I need to know about these? Home Depot John Deere is cheap but I'm guessing that's for a reason.

Anyone have one for sale?

I don't have one for sale. But I did just sell my Cub Cadet lawn tractor and bought a Bad Boy ZT Elite. Love it so far. There is a dealer near me and local service was the main reason for the buy. It eats up 3 acres in no time.

I'm a fan of my Kubota, and having a dealer close is always a good thing even though the only time I've used it is to buy the mulching kit and have them install it for me.

Tractor supply nearby has them. I'll check it out.

I want to get one, but my 20yr old craftsman lawn tractor won't die.

How many acres do you have? I've got an acre. Once the lawn tractor dies I'm considering a 36" stand on like this:

https://www.bradleymowers.com/products/bradley-36-stand-on-compact-mower-briggs-commercial-turf

Be careful with TS. I don't think they will service their mowers. I bought the Cub Cadet at the Hallettsville TS and they would not service it. And the other shop in town that does service mowers would not service anything bought at TS because they hated them.....so I was screwed for anything I could not do myself. Unless I wanted to take a long drive.

Not enough info in your question. How big is the area? How often will you mow it? Are you using the mower or have someone else who will be operating it (they won't treat it like you will)? Is budget a significant constraint? The John Deere website has a questionnaire that can help you find right size. Then you can look at similar sizes in other brands.

There are plenty of good ones out there. If sizable area or using for any farm use (like mowing around/under trees where shredder can't reach) I would recommend commercial grade in those brands that distinguish between commercial vs. residential (I don't know that Deere or Kubota distinguishes).
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I had a John Deere Z545 with 48" deck at a farm for years. It was used to mow about 1.5 acres of irrigated grass once per week for about 10 years. Never had a significant problem. Kept oil changed, blades sharpened, battery on tender. A friend of mine has always had Deere Z700 series and has had no problems at all.

schmellba99 mentioned Kubota. I've never been on one of their zero turns, but I had a compact diesel tractor made by Kubota with a little front end loader on it. Never had a single problem with that tractor. I can't say enough good about that particular Kubota product.

Tractor supply is just fine for certain items. Tractors and mowers need to come from a dealer if you want any service. Tractor Supply has no service at all for machines.

I just bought a Ryobi zero turn electric. I can't wait for the grass to grow long enough to use it. Love it.

Not having to do any engine maintenance or worry about gas/oil is a plus. 48 volt, 52 inch deck. It's a good bit quieter than gas.

Avoid big box stores if you can. I got the Hustler Raptor XD and it's been fantastic for a 1.5 acre lot

Oh snap the thing I love most! I have a Bad Boy Rogue - I mow a 20+ acres property with 8 acres of rough pasture that actually gets cut.

There are a lot of things to consider when buying a mower that are easily overlooked - and there's a lot more then just this list but it's a good starting point

- Type of engine - EFI / Carb / Diesel
- How easy to change oil and belts - example Ferris has 2 belts, mowers with the Briggs Oil Guard system have long intervals with easy changes
- Enough horsepower for the deck size you want

Deck:
- Stamped or Fabricated deck
- how many bolt heads under the deck you have to scrape around
- how easy is it to raise and lower the deck - and is it a good easy design
- adjustable baffling under the deck? Side discharge or rear discharge?
- How easy is removal of pulley covers on top of the deck for cleaning?
- How many grease zerks and where are they located - ease of maintenance
- visibility from operators seat

Hydraulics:

- Homeowner, commercial or industrial pumps?
- how smooth is operation
- how easy is servicing
- separate hydraulics and wheel motors or combined system?
-length, travel, and resistance of control arms

Suspension:
- does it have a suspension?
-suspension seat, is it too high or low? Comfortable position?

Misc:
- Cup holders? How many and how big?
- Gauges - what information do you get
- fuel capacity
- charging ports
- hitch?

Dealer:
- This to me is the most important thing - find a dealer close to you that you like - this is more important then what mower you go with. I STRONGLY recommend you don't buy from a big box store. Find a couple dealers by you and see what you like. Low end commercial mowers will our perform high end residential mowers (generally)
- Warranty? Different brands have different lengths of warranty


I went with a Bad Boy Rogue because I mow a LOT - I'll mow for 6+ hours at a time and it's comfortable and powerful. There's a dealer by me that is incredible and has helped me with some issues I've had along the way. Full disclosure, it was the best I could do in the price range I had. My place is pretty rough and if I could do it over again, I may have gone with a Ferris for the full suspension. It rides like a mule and I do get a bit beat on my Bad Boy. I'll be adding a suspension seat soon.

I'm not a commercial user, but I'm a mower enthusiast - I'm all in the mower groups, forums etc. I do lots of mowing and have a general idea of what most brands offer.

Bad Boy
Ferris
John Deere
Scag
Hustler
Dixie Chopper
Wright
Toro
eXmark
.... commercial brands

There's more - but anything with those brands, bought from a dealer - not TSC - should serve you well. Just make sure to spec the mower based on your use case. I wouldn't mow 20 Acres with a ZT elite, you'll overheat the deck spindles and burn through them. Your use case will be the biggest factor in what to buy. If you can provide your use case and budget I'd love to help you pick what may be a good fit for you.

SKAG

I wouldn't mow 20 acres with anything less than a tractor an at least a 12' mower, no way in hell would I use a ZTR for it.

I agree. If you have a lot of acreage, you don't want electric either. I have 20+ acres, but it's almost all thick forest with some trails I have to mow and a yard/field that's probably 2 acres or so. I can mow everything and have 30 - 40% still on the battery.

so full disclosure the mowable area is probably like 8 - edited first post for more clarity - I did it with a Kubota tractor with a 5ft Shredder before and it was so slow and tedious. I can knock out my 4.5 acre front pasture in just under 2 hours. It would take twice that on a tractor. My ZTR has completely replaced my tractor for all mowing that isn't brush cutting - fence lines, pasture, even up in the woods a bit. A tractor with a shredder is fine but I cut my mowing time in half moving to a ZTR. No regrets

Lots of people have recommended Ferris. Will be used for mostly cleaning up around trees. I would like the 60 inch deck to mow Too much acreage to mow much with it except the acres around house.

Neighbor has cattle lease, shreds and keeps fence lines. I want to mow the 7 acres around the house, and clean up around trees elsewhere on the property. Budget -5-7k.

Based on dealer advice looks like I need to go Kubota. Dealer close to home and property.

If you are serious about mowing and not wanting to spend all summer on the mower, you need a Hustler super 104. It knocks my 5.5 acres out in an hour, including blowing it off when I'm done. It comes factory with an air ride seat and after mowing a couple times i added the full flex forks kit (main frame and wings) and it greatly improves ride quality. It will glide over the bumps and i can keep the speed up. The efi motor has a lot of grunt to push it right along. You have to keep your mouth closed or you will be catching grasshoppers. This thing is bad. ass.





Next picture was taken earlier before we got grass established up around the house. Grass was trying to grow but we had a rather dry spring.

7 Acres is going to be a lot of mowing on a small mower. EskimoJoe has a good suggestion with that Hustler, that's a sexy machine! That deck is pretty freaking cool, and Hustler is a premium ZTR brand that makes fantastic mowers.

In your budget, with the amount of mowing you want to do, you'll be a bit hard pressed to find a perfect fit for your use case. 5-7k can get you a Bad Boy Maverick HD, that's probably the best mower under 8k. It's got a lot of commercial features at a solid price. There are people who mow 5+ acres with one in my Bad Boy groups and they're pretty happy with it. It's a lot of mower in a small package.

https://badboymowers.com/zero-turn-mowers/commercial/maverick-hd-lawn-mower

Though it's still a relatively small mower for what you're trying to do. I have a 60" deck and cut about the same amount you do - but there's more to it. A larger machine is more comfortable, doesn't get as strained, and can handle rougher terrain better. Bigger wheels don't fall into holes as far, stronger frames don't break at weak points, suspension seats are a must - I'm ordering mine soon. The new 2022 Bad Boys all come with one.

My budget started out 5-7k, and I ended up raising it to 10k so I could get a Rogue. It's the largest, most powerful machine in that price range. Sometimes you have to see the machines in person to really see the difference - but the Rogue is significantly larger and much better for the amount of mowing you want to do.

https://badboymowers.com/zero-turn-mowers/commercial/rogue-lawn-mower

I'm not super familiar with Kubota's line of products, I'm on a commercial mowing forum and it's just not a frequently used brand so it isn't one I cross shopped. They make fantastic stuff, and I have a Kubota tractor, but I'll need to do a bit of research to see what's the best fit for you. You could even go up to a 72" deck if you wanted to. I went with a 60 so I can fit in tighter spaces and get through all my gates.

If I could do it over again I may have even spent a little more and gone with a Ferris ISX2200 or ISX3300. That full suspension is something special. The Rogue I have has suspension on the rear, and rubber bushings on the front to absorb some shock. I wouldn't try mowing pastures with a solid frame mower and no suspension of any type - because you'll be beat up pretty quickly.

I tend to gravitate to Bad Boy since they offer some premium features on their mowers at a lower price point then Hustler and Scag. They aren't as established as the bigger players, but they're building a solid product and starting to really get a good reputation. I'm happy with mine.

So TL;DR I'll need to look into Kubota to see what their ZTRs look like. I didn't even cross shop them and I don't know any commercial guys using them. In your price point I'd recommend a Bad Boy Maverick HD, but would also think bumping the price up a little for your use case will be worth it in the long run. Getting a commercial mower will last you 15 years and thousands of hours. Buy once cry once.

If you're anywhere near Lavaca County I can recommend some good dealers that will let you demo a mower

I know I keep mentioning the Rogue, but that's because I went down this same journey as you and it's what I ended up with. Best bang for the buck I could find. Funny enough youtube recommended me this video from Tractor Bob a minute ago. Thanks, algorythm - but it's actually really informative

For 20 acres get a flail mower attachment for your tractor.

Thank you so much for the great advice. Property is close to La Grange. I'm heading over to the dealer this afternoon to see what's out there.

I heard you loud and clear full suspension is the key. Lots to do. Need to fence the cows off the 7 acres for one.

Shiner Mower Superstore is closeish enough to make it worth the trip. They carry Ferris, Bad Boy, Grasshopper, Wright, and some lower end options. It's where I got my Rogue - they've always treated me right. Sherman is the top guy there and he should take care of you. I generally don't push for one dealer / business over another but I will say the experience I've had from them warrants the rec. I would venture a guess you may be close enough for them to give you a demo, and at the very least they have enough different brands to see what you like.

We've got a few people in the Lavaca / Jackson / Fayette county area. Get together!

https://www.mowersuperstore.com/

I went and looked today at a dealer. Ferris all the way. For what I need the ISX 800 is great and a 60inch deck. $9,500.

Almost bought but I found a used IS 3100 in the price range with low hours. It has a 72inch deck. I'm going to check it out first.

That ISX800 is a hell of a machine. Those suspensions are something else. It would serve you well for sure. Ferris makes some very high quality mowers, and they're owned by Briggs and Stratton

My neighbor's son got given a Dixie Chopper that didn't run because the guy knew he liked to work on stuff. I helped him get it running and then he gave it to me. I know this is zero help to this thread but I just wanted to share my free mower.

That's a classic right there! Bet she's a real gem too. I have an appreciation for anything that burns fuel and makes fun noises. Maybe we need a thread for that lol

cryption said:

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That's a classic right there! Bet she's a real gem too. I have an appreciation for anything that burns fuel and makes fun noises. Maybe we need a thread for that lol

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I have about 15 things I could post on that thread. I will participate for sure.

I love the Scag seats! Such a cool setup

you and me both man - if it's got an engine I like it lol

Show us what you got! I can always appreciate seeing cool stuff

https://texags.com/forums/34/topics/3304293