I used a Murray I bought new for 11 years. When it gave out my wife gave permission to buy a better one. Looked at zero turn and could use one with my 1.2 acre wooded lot but just couldn't justify the extra $1000 to myself for one. Got a John Deere model 105 and been very happy with it. Came with a dump trailor that comes in handy around the yard. It is taller and that took a little getting used to and trimming of trees/bushes. Do the maintenance myself.
I'm just going to leave that right there.
When you really need to get the lawn cut quickly
I have 5 acres to mow and I bought a 60" Gravely ZT after destroying lesser mowers. If you start looking at the real commercial mowers, be prepared for some sticker shock. They cost as much as a nice car.
I grew up using John Deere farm equipment and it pains me to say this, but they seemed awfully proud of that green paint when I was looking at mowers. I believe the Ferris mowers are the only ones to actually have suspensions, but other than that there doesn't seem to be enough of a difference between the commercial mowers to make a fuss about. If you're buying a new mower from an implement dealer, I'd recommend putting brand allegiances aside and getting the best deal you can (of course!) on a mower with good dealer support in your area.
My $0.02 .
Gravely is an MTD brand now, and their quality has suffered.
And how on earth do you destroy mowers so fast? We've gotten 1200 hours out of $1000 lawn mowers. Sure, the decks are 99% patch at that point, but they still run just fine.
Derick Freese wrote: Gravely is an MTD brand now, and their quality has suffered.
That's unfortunate. I've had mine for several years and AFAIK Ariens had nothing to do with MTD at that time.
And how on earth do you destroy mowers so fast? We've gotten 1200 hours out of $1000 lawn mowers. Sure, the decks are 99% patch at that point, but they still run just fine.
As I'm sure you know, 1200 hours is nothing for a commercial mower. If the decks are already heavily patched at that point, I think that just about says it all. If your point is that a homeowner doesn't "need" a commercial mower, I can only say that its all about choices and priorities.
Your philosophy:
Derick Freese wrote:I want the cheapest running mower I can find. A $50 mower is really what I'm looking for.
apparently differs from the OP's philosophy:
Zomby woff wrote: ......I never thought I'd say this, but I'd prefer to buy new, and keep it forever.
That's cool. I'm just trying to say what I'd do, in fact what I DID, in the same situation. YMMV.
I have heard wonderful things about Simplicity mowers, and was eagerly looking for one. Would have picked one up if I found one nearby.
Patched decks? What the heck are you people mowing? Are they rusted out?
My JD deck is 8 years old and it might be missing some paint, but it's got no holes. Can't imagine how I'd put a hole in it. Can someone enlighten me?
curtis73 wrote: Zero turn is wonderful, don't get me wrong, but they are just mowers. With acreage, he might need a tractor for something else than just mowing... like when one of those trees gets trimmed and he needs to haul the wood, or he needs to attach a PTO tiller when the wife wants a garden, or a snow blade... or a small bucket... or a stump that needs to be pulled... or a car that needs to be moved. Need access to your plumbing? Go rent a backhoe attachment for the day. Need to level off a pad to build a shed? Rent a blade for the day. Need to run electric to the new shed? Rent a ditch witch attachment for the day. A mower is a mower. A tractor is a million things, including a mower.
You're right, but it becomes a matter of cost at some point. My neighbor, who has 3.5 acres like I do, bought a nice John Deere tractor. He's got the tiller attachment, small trailer, etc...to go with it. It's a beautiful tractor...he's even tilled our monster size garden for us in 10 minutes flat...but at the same time I shudder to even think what he might have spent on the whole thing. He probably paid 3 or 4 times more than I do, if not more. My zero turn can tow if I put a receiver on it. I rent a tiller from the local hardware store for $40 when I need one. Don't have a need for a backhoe at this point 
but if I ever need something like that, I'd go rent it.
If you need something that will spend 95% of it's time mowing the grass, a zero turn is unbeatable, especially for the money. If it's going to spend most of it's time doing other work, then I'd agree a tractor may be a good option if you've got the cash.
In reply to Zomby woof:
I have about the same amount of grass to cut. I never buy residential quality equipment. I buy lightly used commercial stuff. I currently have a Toro commercial 52" walk-behind and a Ransomes 60" zero turn. I do all the maintenance, and they never break down. I also have a Ford 3000. I considered equipping it to mow, but I have a lot of trees to cut around, and I have a lot of use for the tractor with Ag tires on it. Putting turf tires on it, buying the mower deck, and then having to have another mower to trim with was too much of a compromise, so I didn't do it.
I've had a Honda Harmony riding mower for about 13 years. The engine has been faultess. The only problems have been with the transmission, which is a Spicer unit and not Honda. The Harmony mower is Hondas attempt to compete with Snapper, because when I was buying this mower, their prices were throguh the ceiling on their regular mowers. I paid more for this mower when I bought it than I would spend on a mower today. I like Hondas, but don't know if I would buy another. Our local dealer doesn't even keep any in stock. I woudl try to find a used Cub Cadet that was still Cub Cadet.
BTW, doesn't MTD make most of the mowers sold today under all sorts of brand names?
Zomby woof wrote: Got that covered with a loader. I need a lawn mower. I'm going to the JD dealership tomorrow to have a look. I never thought I'd say this, but I'd prefer to buy new, and keep it forever. The Husqvarna's are very nice, too.
Check out Kubotas too.
Almost forgot, DO NOT go into a dedicated lawn and garden forum and tell them your story. They equate spending less than 4 grand on a riding mower for your size lot the same as we'd look down upon someone shortening a driveshaft using a hacksaw and super glue. Even at 4 grand, you're still into shortening it with a bandsaw and JB weld territory. Those guys are nuts.
I don't know if any riding mowers are Honda-powered, but my Craftsman/Honda push mower has been great. I treat it like any other Honda: I run it hard, put it away wet, and never take care of it. It starts and runs every time without any hesitation.
As for riding mowers, I have 1/6 of an acre, so this is what I recently acquired for riding:
I'm thinking about an upgrade to a 10HP motor, perhaps a turbo and megasquirt...
pinchvalve wrote: As for riding mowers, I have 1/6 of an acre, so this is what I recently acquired for riding:
I would humbly suggest you look into wider tires as well.
huge-O-chavez wrote:
I have an irrational love for stuff like that. Of course, my yards are so small that the grass has to get pretty tall to want to bother with the electric push mower instead of the old school all-human-power reel mower.
Ever since semi-accidentally attending a plowing competition in Ireland I find myself occasionally wondering about building a radio-controlled tractor with mowing attachment to drive around the yard...
I think the thing that sets the Dixie's apart from everything else in the market is the mower deck. See, I grew up here in central Indiana and know the guy that started Dixie. THe big thing you find on ALL Dixies (no matter if it's commercial grade or residential) is the deep mower decks and the over driven blades. The blades spin faster, the deck has more room to shove out all that grass.
pinchvalve wrote: I don't know if any riding mowers are Honda-powered, but my Craftsman/Honda push mower has been great. I treat it like any other Honda: I run it hard, put it away wet, and never take care of it. It starts and runs every time without any hesitation. As for riding mowers, I have 1/6 of an acre, so this is what I recently acquired for riding:
Full concours-level restoration and nothing less.
Another vote here for taking a hard look at a Deere.............
I've got one of the early Sabre mowers. Got it in '99 when we moved out to the country and onto 2.5 acres. The missus almost had a heart attack when I started looking at mowers that were over $3k new. The mower has a Kohler Command motor (25 HP) and a 54" deck. It gets annual maintenance (take off the deck, take off the hood, take off the seat and body, power wash, get all the grass out of the nooks and crannies, clean, relube, reassemble), but other than that I treat it like it owes me money. Going on 12 years and it never fails to start, just does what I need it to.
Paint is getting a little thin in spots......thinking it needs a repaint in JD Blitz Black!
I thought the same as you -- spend a little more up front, buy new and keep it forever. So far, my plan is working out.....
Florida "soil" is hard on mower decks. Think mowing over abrasive media instead of dirt.
I know 1200 hours on a commercial mower is nothing. Like I said, my dad keeps one around because a $1000 consumer mower works pretty well for small lawns and for the young kids that he has around running them. His main mower is a commercial Toro. He has 1000 hours on it now and has only ever had to replace the spindles on the deck. Such a solid mower.
I want a $50 mower so that I can run it until the deck punches through and then I can convert it to a pit cart.
RACE EM!!
Derick Freese wrote: Florida "soil" is hard on mower decks. Think mowing over abrasive media instead of dirt.
Truer words were never spoken. And don't forget the ant mounds.
I had a mid sized Deere tractor to go along with my zero turn Deere mower for about 2 years.
The tractor is wonderful for all kinds of other jobs and you can get all kinds of attachments to do a plethora of other jobs,BUT there is a huge cost differential.
Many of the neighbors went with the small tractors, and found they were useless. You can't really push much dirt with the front blade, the back hoes are too small to actually do work with and the suck at mowing.
Bobzilla wrote: Dixie Chopper. Done. Trust me, once you own one you'll never buy anythign else.
Hustler Super Z 72" here......the dixie is just a bit too different. 5 acre yard with many trees takes me around 40 minutes at worst.......the hustler will cut anything as fast as you can keep on the seat
After a few weeks of research, tonight I went for a new John Deere D170.
54" cut, 725 cc Briggs 26 horse motor, bigger wheels, and a big fuel tank with gauge. If it were for me, I might have been inclined to go with the Husqvarna... but it wasn't... so I didn't.
Wife's away next week, so I'm picking up a liter of John Deere green, and painting the little cargo trailer she'll use around the yard with it.
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