Recommend me a zero turn mower

[JLane330]

I would also recommend an accelerator bagging attachment- skip the blower/ bagger if going bigger than 50”. If you are looking to pick grass up.

Can you tell me more about this? Interested in moving from a regular riding lawn mower (with bagger) to zero turn with collection. We feed the yard clippings our cows and want collection.

Any good rear discharge mower WITH collection? This would make mowing around trees and other objects easier without the collection system sticking out the side. Only looking for a deck in the 48" wide range. I mow the pastures with our farm tractor when needed, so really only need the mower for about 1/2 acre of yard.

 

[huntabsarokee]

I went through this 2 summers ago. I have 2 acres of grass and decided I needed a zero turn. I spent a little over 5K on a zero turn that was a few steps up vs a residential zero turn but of course not a full blown contractor grade zero turn. Not sure I would do it again vs buying a high end traditional 48" mower. On my 2 acres the zero turn saved me about 15 minutes mowing time dropping down to about an hour. Now I have a lot less trimming to do now. Gas use more than doubled due to a bigger engine running at higher RPMs. I have a few damp spots in my yard and its really easy to start to rip up the grass with the zero turn. No I ended up tossing in some rye here and there on a regular basis.

I think my zero turn will last a long time because of its build but my old JD with a 48" deck and Kawasaki engine lasted 18 years until I decided I needed a zero turn. Yeah if I was mowing multiple yards or for a business its a no brainer but for 2.5 acres not so sure.

 

[Perrin713]

Ferris is they are available in your area. Full suspension with air ride seat. I can safely drink a beer and mow with no spilled or flat beer.

 

[Nick87]

Scag

 

[Gutshot007]

My brother runs kubota equipment and pays for it. First of all I hate mowing grass. My philosophy has changed some treating a zero turn lawmower like washing machines or dishwasher. They're disposal in 5 years. Then get another one. Husky 54 inch $2700. Mine mows stumps, rocks and sticks ! I can't see that much cash tied up in something that just mows grass. Maybe a sub compact tractor that plows, tills etc. Just my 2 cents

 

[CCooper]

Can you tell me more about this? Interested in moving from a regular riding lawn mower (with bagger) to zero turn with collection. We feed the yard clippings our cows and want collection.

Any good rear discharge mower WITH collection? This would make mowing around trees and other objects easier without the collection system sticking out the side. Only looking for a deck in the 48" wide range. I mow the pastures with our farm tractor when needed, so really only need the mower for about 1/2 acre of yard.

When I purchased my new mower last year (Bobcat 3500 Commercial) I moved from a standard tractor style 48" cut Deere with a blower and bagger that bagged grass very well, even when wet. My grass is always wet where I live because its either raining or I'm irrigating. I backordered the commercial bagger and blower for the new mower and dint receive it until the fall. It worked fantastic for leaf collection, but the whole blower, bagger attachment, and front suitcase weights needed for balance really added some weight to the mower which was already heavy causing rutting in my lawn. Fast forward to this spring and I learned when the grass is thick and wet the 60" deck generates more clippings even at low speeds than the blower can process casing almost instant plugging. A buddy let me try his accelerator bagger when I was having problems to try out. It worked so well I ordered one the next day and haven't had a plug since. They are super simple but flat work, and can be ordered in several different bushel capacities.

For rear/ center discharge collection I think you're looking at a Walker or a Grasshopper, there may be others? $$$$

 

[go4thegusto]

I have owned most brands and now run Walkers....amazing machines.

 

[JLane330]

When I purchased my new mower last year (Bobcat 3500 Commercial) I moved from a standard tractor style 48" cut Deere with a blower and bagger that bagged grass very well, even when wet. My grass is always wet where I live because its either raining or I'm irrigating. I backordered the commercial bagger and blower for the new mower and dint receive it until the fall. It worked fantastic for leaf collection, but the whole blower, bagger attachment, and front suitcase weights needed for balance really added some weight to the mower which was already heavy causing rutting in my lawn. Fast forward to this spring and I learned when the grass is thick and wet the 60" deck generates more clippings even at low speeds than the blower can process casing almost instant plugging. A buddy let me try his accelerator bagger when I was having problems to try out. It worked so well I ordered one the next day and haven't had a plug since. They are super simple but flat work, and can be ordered in several different bushel capacities.

For rear/ center discharge collection I think you're looking at a Walker or a Grasshopper, there may be others? $$$$

Am I understanding correctly that an accelerator bagger is an accessory (aluminum box looking collector)? We too deal with wet grass most of the time due to how we flood irrigate. Our current riding lawn mower has issues with plugging up at times. Those accelerator baggers eliminate the tube, which I can imagine would eliminate clogging, but at the expense of width and bag capacity. Not sure there's a perfect solution out there, but I'll look into the Walker and Grasshopper mowers. If they really are $$$$, that'll be a tough sell considering how small an area we mow.
Thanks for the feedback and info!

 

[sodaksooner]

I only mow about an acre and have had my hustler 42" for 6 or 7 years. It has the 21 horse Kawasaki. Only problems I have ever had are minor hydro unit adjustments and I blow through front tires pretty regularly. I also check tire pressures fairly often as it doesn't like huge tire pressure differentials. Ive never even had to adjust the deck.

 

[CCooper]

Am I understanding correctly that an accelerator bagger is an accessory (aluminum box looking collector)? We too deal with wet grass most of the time due to how we flood irrigate. Our current riding lawn mower has issues with plugging up at times. Those accelerator baggers eliminate the tube, which I can imagine would eliminate clogging, but at the expense of width and bag capacity. Not sure there's a perfect solution out there, but I'll look into the Walker and Grasshopper mowers. If they really are $$$$, that'll be a tough sell considering how small an area we mow.
Thanks for the feedback and info!

Based on my current mower configuration with and without the blower/ bagger I gained zero width switching to the accelerator from my initial setup and only lost about a bushel of capacity.

 

[D.Rose]

Ended up with a Scag Tiger Cat 2 with the Yamaha MX825. This is the first year they've came out with that engine but from my experience with everything Yamaha it should be pretty solid. Very happy with the mower and hope for many years of dependable use.

 

[camelcluch]

For a finish mower you will hard to beat the walker. The grass collection is where it sets itself apart. Solid machines. My wife also owns a Bad Boy and that has been a solid machine but doesn’t do nearly the job the Walker does.

 

[MallardSX2]

Scag turf Tiger II.

They are the benchmark IMHO. I have 2 of them.