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 | Chris
Join Date: Posts: 1 
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1999-06-02 4625
Hi All, last Oct I bought my first house on 2 acres and now tgetting out of hand. Time to pony up and buy a lawn tractor. I live in Redmond, a suburb of Seattle. The property; 1 acre level semi pasture, no brush, 1 acre landscaped with trees and the house to dodge and a couple small slopes of 20-30% grade, about 10 feet rise. My intention: Cutting the darned "lawn" (well, it's got a lot of tall weeds in that grass!) No snowblowing, hauling, grading, etc. Cutting only. I want a solid tractor that will stand up to mowing if maintained properly. I want a he grass is decently sized deck and enough power to cut it in about 2 hours if possible. I've heard to stay away from 1000-1500 buck Sears rigs because they won't hold up for 10 years of even mowing alone. Top price I'd *like* (hah!) to spend is about $3k. I do want a unit that will hold up and not be parts queen. Looked at JD and their $3000 dollar rig was pretty decent, 48" deck, seemed like a nice rig. Been reading about Kubotas here on this list, as well as ingersolls. Any thoughts on these or Toros, Hondas, etc? Basically I'm looking for solid options for this price range, and of course cheaper is better if the quality is there, but I know how that goes. The woman says I better get a mower by this weekend or my a** is grass, so I've been researching at lunch and visiting dealers. Any help so I don't buy a pig in a poke and can preserve the domestic tranquility is greatly appreciated!Thanks!
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| CDF
Join Date: Posts: 1
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1999-06-02 4630
My first thought is use the 3K as a down payment and finance the rest. I'm not saying you need a compact, but I do know from experience that a budgett beater lawnmower on the two acres you describe is gonna get beat up. Maybe you should be looking at the 300 series or 400 series JD. One thing that I found with three acres is there is always something to do with a tractor. The small one I bought soon after moving was nice to cut the grass with, but failed miserably when I had to remove storm damaged trees from the yard. It did not have the power to really plow snow even though it had a snow blade. I also had a small utility trailer(a must for anybody with a big yard)When I really loaded that up it strained the little tractor on my 20% grade. ....
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| bo
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1999-06-02 4636
20 years ago I bought a cub cadet, 16 hp with a 8hp leaf vacuum attachment. Cut over one acre and do it in 45 minutes with a 60 inch deck. Been beating the hell out of the tractor for 20 years and haven't put in $100 into it yet. Regular maintenance only Paid $4500 back then and never regretted it . Tractor is hydrostatic and pulled heavy trailer, plows snow ,cuts grass and any thing elelse I can think of . Today you'll pay 6-8 thousand but in the long run you'll beneftit. Bought a 870 Jd recently to do other heavy lifting and wanted a toy. ....
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| jeff in OH
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1999-06-02 4651
Since you have alot of acreage and you only want to cut grass you may want to look into a commercial zero-turn rider like eXmark or ferris. These machines were built to mow and have a higher quality of cut than any garden tractor. They cost a little bit more but would last a homeowner like yourself a couple of decades. Not only will a ZTR get your lawn mowed faster, they are fun as hell. As a dealer if you can test drive one and you will see what I mean. ....
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| Reggie
Join Date: Apr 2005 Posts: 0
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1999-06-02 4654
Don't buy until you take a look at Kubota G1800 hydrostatic drive withdiesel engine. Comes with regular steering or 4-wheel steering (if you have a lot of trees: it will cut a 20" dia. circle). We have hadours for about 6 yrs. and wife uses it daily in her commercial daylilybusiness as well as mowing (48 inch deck; larger ones available but 48 cut looks best to me) about 3 acres a couple of times a week in summer. Wife loves to mow so it must be a comfortable ride. What's betterthan a wife who likes to mow grass? She pulls a 17 cu ft trailer loaded with mulch, etc with no problems. Plenty of power for cutting heavy grass as fast as you can go. Even has cruise control and hydraulic lift for the deck. Good machine;pricey--but it will do the job on time every time. ....
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| Pete Johnson
Join Date: Posts: 1
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1999-06-02 4657
I went through the same thought process, looking for something to mow 4 acres.Things that I learned.Gear drive transmissions hold up much better in the long run(as opposed to belt drives) but more $$$Hydrostatic transmissions make the job more pleasant, as does power steeringDiesels hold up better, are cheaper to run, much less maintenence.This all adds up to a "mower" that is 2-3x what you are proposing..In addition, 4wd makes the tractor much more usable for other tasks.(ie snow removal, landscaping) as does a real 3 point hitchNow you are talking $10k+ (ie a compact diesel tractor).However, the resale value of these tractors (as opposed to mowers) is phenomenalGenerally they sell for nearly what you paid for them.(A 5 year old overused mower isn't worth very much.)Also, they will last nearly forever..So (I thought) take your pick, $3k every 5 or so years or $10k once.I was looking at a Kubota B7300 or JD455 ($10k +/-)BUT, somehow I managed to buy 24 acres instead of 4 acresso I ended up with $16k for a Kubota B1700 w/ loader, mower, brush hog(Which I realize is way more that you need).The point is you will find a lot of posts on this board about people have gone with a $3k machine for a few acresand have ended up buying something more substantial, later.I think you will find the general consensus is pay now or pay later(my wife still can't believe what I spent).Just my 2 centsPete ....
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| bob
Join Date: Posts: 1
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1999-06-02 4659
For only mowing I would second Jeff's suggestion....the commercial ztr mower will get the job done faster and safer than anything else mentioned. I have used a 25hp model with a 60" deck and couldn't believe the speed at which you can mow. This is also due to the maneuverability factor. They are also fun; my teenage kids WANT to mow with a ztr. BUT a ztr is only good for mowing. Forget box blades, front end loaders, post hole diggers and other toys. ....
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| Mike
Join Date: Posts: 1
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1999-06-02 4663
Amen,We just purchased a G1900S with 60" deck,and this is one mowing machine.My wife absolutely loves to run it.With the 60" deck you can mow around a 10" diameter,also has capability of 3-point hitch and rear PTO for adding other little goodies later on.You really owe it to yourself to demo one,you'll be amazed.I feel you're going to be hard-pressed to find a good lawnmower that's going to do all of that mowing,plus hold up for the long haul for $3000.00.Good luck. ....
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| Alan in TX
Join Date: Posts: 1
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1999-06-02 4671
A good forum for lawn tractors is http://www.gardenweb.com/forums/. There is a section for lawn mowers/tractors and there is a lot of info there. ....
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| Steve in Montana
Join Date: Posts: 1
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1999-06-03 4675
I'm sure you'll get plenty of help from this board, but here's my suggestion anyway. I bought a Snapper LT-16 lawn tractor with 48" deck for about $2k more than 10 yrs ago, and it his mowed my 2.5 acres rough pasture-come-lawn faithfully and well every summer weekend since. My application is very much as you describe, though it takes me 3- 3.5 hours, depending on how high the grass is. I guess the message is you don't need to buy the really spendy rigs to get satisfactory service. Also, I am glad I bought a "lawn tractor with mower deck" rather than a "riding lawn mower", as it seems to handle the rough ground very well...Just my two bits. Good luck to you. ....
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| Catfish
Join Date: Sep 2003 Posts: 15 Rhode Island
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1999-06-03 4695
I have an Ingersol, but it is significantly more expensive than your proposal and if your lawn is smooth you probably don't need that one so heavy-duty. A friend has a Simplicity. They are realitively inexpensive, yet the deck is really built to stand up to some heavy work. The dealer I bought my Ingersol from also sells Kubota tractors and lawn mowers. His people really make fun of the lawn equipment. They don't stand up well and are often in need of repair (according to them). Look into the Simplicity. ....
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| KC
Join Date: Posts: 1
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1999-06-04 4715
One thing I have learned that you get what you pay for in tractors, lawn tractors will wear out much fast than a good garden tractor. JD and Case make a very good garden tractor, my case new is around 6000 but it is built to stand the test of time. My tractor is a 78 and is just now starting to die! With a larger tractor you can get a 3 point hitch to add other attachments. Even a small compact diesel you can put a loader and pto driven attachments to the rear. I think you will find lots to do with your new tractor! Good Luck! ....
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| Kevin
Join Date: Feb 2002 Posts: 64 New Hampshire
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1999-06-05 4734
I agree with pete better to spend more now (if it can be afforded)than later I am looking for a new toy also. I still run a 76 case 446 w/ 3pt hitch but it is slowing down, I am looking to rebuild it for my teenage son to use, then he can leave dads new one alone The Diesels are what im lookin at i feel it will last me the rest of my life if i can get 23 years out of a case with a Onan engineHave fun!!!!! ....
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