Time for new zero turn

[DuckDogDr]

Have narrowed down to 3 options. All 3 brands have dealers within a reasonable drive of both mine and my gf ‘s house in case we need parts and mower is at her place vs mine (we live an hour and a half apart); and right now all 3 are offering 0% financing…

Kubota, Ferris, Grasshopper or exmark

**found a grasshopper dealer **

Commercial / farm use. We each have 5 acres
All 3 are similarly priced so that is a moot point.
My land has a lot of rolling hills … each pretty steep.

I’m wanting a Kawasaki engine and 52/54 deck. Trailer won’t hold much wider.

2 Biggest things for me are reliability and ease of access to parts repair when crap goes bad…. I can turn wrenches … I just really don’t like to

 

[cfdjay]

Very rarely will you see a fleet of Ferris or Kubota for the landscapers around here. Exmark is the way to go commercially IMO. I personally have Scag and couldn't be happier. Super easy to work on and maintain.

 

[Wellsdw]

Exmark of the 3, hands down.
No scag dealers close by?

 

[WV Mountaineer]

You forgot hustler in your original poll. I used to cut grass as a business. They are great machines that in my opinion, out last a lot of the others.

Ferris would be my choice of the three. On a standup, it’s the choice. My friend rubs them and there is no competition in my opinion if you buy one that you stand on. Kubota is simply a work horse. I used one for a bit. Great machines as well. Of course, ex mark is the king of set on zero turns. They just keep going and going.




Oh, if it rolling and steep, buy a stand up or walk behind with a silky. A set on zero turn is rather helpless in comparison in any terrain over a slight grade.

 

[DuckDogDr]

Exmark of the 3, hands down.
No scag dealers close by?

No scag or grasshopper

 

[FLATHEAD]

I've had a Kubota for a few years.
My next will be a Scag.

 

[bigeyedfish]

I don't have any insight on which brand to choose, but we bought one with a 52" deck and a Kawasaki engine last summer. That combo has been perfect for us.

About 2 acres of our property gets mowed like a lawn, so we didn't go with a commercial unit. If I was mowing 5 acres at a time, I'd probably want something bigger and/or faster. I would probably use a finish mower behind the tractor at my house, but if you need to transport between properties, there isn't much sense in taking a mower and a tractor.

 

[Newtexican]

I’ve had my toro since 2008, and still going strong. I bought it from a commercial dealership as opposed to lowes or Home Depot.

 

[Sandstrom]

I make a living landscaping, Exmark / Toro would be my choice, although I would also highly consider the Ferris, I have heard great things and really like the idea of their suspension!! At the end of the day, dealer and parts support is key. Also %100 Kawasaki!!
Ryan

 

[timberlinehunter]

Not the hijack the thread but whats everyones thoughts on the John Deere Z500 series zero turns. They look like they check a lot of the boxes. They also seem to have dealerships all over the place too.


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[ResearchinStuff]

my neighborhood is split pretty even between prosumer exmarks and hustlers, both do the job fine. However, when the commercial guys come in with their commercial scags and ferris for the neighbors who don't cut their own, the cut speed and quality difference is noticeable. The absolute fastest seemed to be Ferris, but when I looked into the model that guy was using they were around 30k. At that price point, i'm sitting on my exmark and will be until it dies.

The other thing I'd recommend is trying to get >1/2 the hp as the deck cut width so you can still go all out even when it's grown a couple days longer than it should have.

 

[Sccritterkiller]

Can't provide any feed back for the models you are looking at. I have the Scagg 52" with Kawasaki 22hp for about 5 years...Great mower, very well built, very easy to service and work on really like the suspension seat. I can cut 3 acres in about 45 min.

 

[DuckDogDr]

my neighborhood is split pretty even between prosumer exmarks and hustlers, both do the job fine. However, when the commercial guys come in with their commercial scags and ferris for the neighbors who don't cut their own, the cut speed and quality difference is noticeable. The absolute fastest seemed to be Ferris, but when I looked into the model that guy was using they were around 30k. At that price point, i'm sitting on my exmark and will be until it dies.

The other thing I'd recommend is trying to get 2x the hp as the deck cut width so you can still go all out even when it's grown a couple days longer than it should have.

30k is definitely way above our price range $12k is going to me absolutely max and that’s probably overstating it.. we we’re hoping to keep around $7k

I have duck boats , diving trips and a ring to buy

 

[TxLite]

2x the hp as the deck cut width

Did you mean 1/2? I have a 725cc Kohler with a 42” deck which translates to 22hp for the 42”.

Also side question- my kohler has been fantastic and problem free for the last 5 years (I’m only cutting 1/2 an acre) but seems the Kawasaki swept the votes here. Is the Kawasaki that much more reliable or is it due to component availability?

 

[journeyman713]

Maybe include the Toro in your search.
The "My Ride" feature is awesome.
I run a 60", I like it a lot.

 

[SuperDUECE22]

ferris of the options you listed otherwise check these out

Altoz Commercial-Grade Equipment | Altoz, Inc.

Experience the Altoz difference with commercial-grade equipment. Precision, performance & engineering for residential, commercial & agriculture use.

altoz.com

 

[BugleMeTimber]

Not the hijack the thread but whats everyones thoughts on the John Deere Z500 series zero turns. They look like they check a lot of the boxes. They also seem to have dealerships all over the place too.


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I've got the Z515E w/54" deck and have had zero issues. Having the mulching option really makes the property look good and doesn't seem to be hard on fuel.

 

[CorbLand]

I landscaped when I was in high school, which was 10-15 years ago so take it for what's its worth but I mowed a lot of lawns/weed fields with an ExMark and I was a dumb teenager...never found a way to break the thing.

I dont know how steep the hills you will be mowing are but if its a good grade, its not hard to flip a zero turn over. Just something to think about.

 

[mckbcat2000]

I have a Ferris 3100 for my house on 3 acres. Love it. Suspension makes it so nice. I've used my Dad's Kubota 331 on numerous occasions. I tell people if the terrain is rough and you're using that Kubota you better strap your kidneys in, it's rough. However that Kubota with that diesel is a cutting machine! Whenever I need a new one I'll look at some other brands but the ride and cut I get from Ferris will most probably win out. Good luck.

 

[CCooper]

After a lot of deliberation ended up with a Bob-Cat now owned by Bobcat 61" commercial model and have been pretty dang happy with it. I really thought I wanted a Kubota when I started looking. The local Kubota dealer had about zero interest in giving me the time of day. Narrowed it down to the 3 machines I liked the best and bought based on customer service I received from the dealer when looking. The sales guy brought it out to my place for a demo and even came and picked it up for its first service when it was due.

I also highly recommend an accelerator bagger even if you don't intend to bag much. Pretty handy to take a couple laps with it to keep cuttings out of flowerbeds/ off driveway. I've been super impressed for how well they bag grass with a wide deck and no blower even when its wet.