Bad Boy Outlaw

[whiskeymike]

I have a Husqavarna RZ 5424 54 inch deck ZT with a Kawa 650 and I’m ready for an upgrade. I have 6.5 acres, mostly flat, but a bit rough. Unfortunately my grass gets higher than I would like and in some areas have Johnson grass, and the Husqy gets clogged up and bogged down. I go through belts way too often. And where The ground is rough, it kills my kidneys.

I saw a neighbor running a Bad Boy Outlaw yesterday and he was cutting through foot tall grass/weeds without slowing down. So I’m looking at those And have a few questions.

what other brands/models should I be looking at? Is there something clearly better for my purpose? My priorities are reliability, power, speed, comfort, repairability/maintenance.

what’s typically a good %off msrp?

I would assume 61” is the best bet?

 

[bertsmobile1]

IF your rough ground is causing kidney pain, anything with suspension is worthwhile looking at,
And unless his yard is exactly the same as your yard with the same grass then his mowing rate will not necessarily be your rate
But a bottle of his favourite booze should earn you a test drive of his mower on your property

 

[StarTech]

It can also be how he is cutting the grass. I recently had the use of a Hustler Super Z with a 60" deck and a 35hp engine. Even it slowed down on 4 foot Johnson grass with me cutting half the width of the deck. And Johnson grass is easier to cut than one foot tall crabgrass which I also cut. When the Johnson grass I was having to double cut also due some it just being knocked down.

ZTRs are meant to be lawnmowers and are not bush hogs.

If your lawn so rough that it is giving you pains then it will over time it will do the same to the mower. These mowers are not tanks, heavy construction equipment, or farm equipment.

 

[whiskeymike]

Yep, understand. Thanks. Grass is the same, mostly Texas weeds. And I don’t expect it to be a brush hog. It’s just some times it gets out of hand. We had a drought all summer so grass went dormant and it hardly grew at all in a couple months. Then the rain started 3 weeks ago and when it broke for a couple days I didn’t get out there and it rained again. Now I’m getting out there its about 6” tall and pretty thick with reeds with seeds popping up reaching higher. Then in a couple places in the back, a 20x30 area has Johnson popping up maybe 2 feet high. I’m fine with taking that slow and double tripple cutting. It’s a yard, not a pasture. We have clay and with drought and then downpours, it swells and contracts with some ridges and valleys. The husqy has no suspension, a firm seat and feels a bit like an old go kart if I get it going at a higher speed in some places.

My point is, I’d rather spend more to have the power and suspension to cut quicker and in more comfort.

I suspect the isolators, suspension seat,etc. will make a difference. I wonder how the step up in bad boy to the 3 link suspension makes a difference. But that gets into 12k, where I’d rather not go.

At the end of the day, the 2013 Husqavarna has been cutting it okay for 9 years and it still runs great. I’m just getting older and son is off to college, so mowing is falling back to me.

Any recommendations on the best level of bad boy, or a couple other brands with a solid model in this range to focus on?

Also any insight on how these are discounted? I requested a couple quotes from dealers, so hopefully I’ll get some insight from them soon. Just like to know how low you can commonly get them to go, percentage wise.

 

[MParr]

If you can get some Target 6 Plus (MSMA 6 Plus), it will take care of that Johnsongrass. Always follow the label directions.
If you really want to buy a Bad Boy mower, the dealer may bring you out a demonstrator to try out. It wouldn’t hurt to ask. At a minimum, the Bad Boy Maverick HD 60 would be worth looking at. They have the Easy Ride Suspension System and a suspension seat. The Honda GXV800EFI and Kohler Command CV752 produce the most horsepower (27hp for the Honda and 25hp for the Kohler).

 

[bertsmobile1]

Well I have a couple of questions that you should really think seriously about
Why are you mowing this 6.5 acres ?
What benefit is it to you apart from appreciating land value ?
As you have just stated , your acres are now a burden that has landed upon your shoulders , your back is not good because it can not support your organs which causes kidney pain when you mow and you are not growing younger or stronger so the task is just going to get more difficult as the years roll by so no matter what mower you have it is going to get harder & harder each year.
My workshop is on the urban fringe of Sydney & I live in the Blue Mountains which is basically a road through a world herritage park with some small towns scattered through it .
I watch my customers, many of which came from a 1/4 acre suburban block & think they can treat a 5 to 10 acre block the same way.
They become virtual slaves to the block of land and derrive no benefit from living here apart from capital appreciation .
In the 11 years I have been doing the repair run, I have helped about 20 of them transform the acres of weed mowing into a self sustaining bush block requiring nothing more than an occasional spray with the right herbicide .
Two of them got right into permaculture and one or both of the couples gave up their jobs to becomes permaculture farmers because they made more selling their organically grown produce that they did working 40 hours a week and doing 15 to 40 hours of commuting to & from their jobs in 3 to 4 hours a day and they can go on a 2 week holiday and not be faced with a jungle when they come back home .
Great for them but not so good for me because they went from 60 & 72" ride ons that were always breaking down to little 24" Greenfields that almost never break down.

I don't expect you to answer those questions here it is for you and your partner to have a big think about & make a plan that is right for you
One of my customers who is a big God botherer ended up with African refugees using his land to grow traditional foods on organised through his church
Costs him nothing , made some really good friends and now has a free supply of fruits & veggies
Another has planted a forest that is registered as a carbon sink and his carbon credits even at the current price will pay the remaining loan off over the next 20 years
One of the customers near the river has done the same, but less trees and is looking at becoming a Glamping site ( sort of up market camping where he supplies the camping equipment )

 

[whiskeymike]

If you can get some Target 6 Plus (MSMA 6 Plus), it will take care of that Johnsongrass. Always follow the label directions.
If you really want to buy a Bad Boy mower, the dealer may bring you out a demonstrator to try out. It wouldn’t hurt to ask. At a minimum, the Bad Boy Maverick HD 60 would be worth looking at. They have the Easy Ride Suspension System and a suspension seat. The Honda GXV800EFI and Kohler Command CV752 produce the most horsepower (27hp for the Honda and 25hp for the Kohler).

Thanks. Looks like I can get the MSMA online. I'll also check my tractor supply and local ag supply. I'll definitely check it out as it's been multiplying. I also need to find something that's safe around ponds/tanks thats for other brush(not Johnson Weed), but I haven't identified what is there yet.

I'll take a look at the Maverick HD, thanks for the suggestion. It seems to be about a $1000 less based on a promotion, but seems to be a very similar price point for MSRP. It's hard for me to tell the difference between the two as there's no compare option on the website that I can find.

 

[whiskeymike]

Well I have a couple of questions that you should really think seriously about
Why are you mowing this 6.5 acres ?
What benefit is it to you apart from appreciating land value ?
As you have just stated , your acres are now a burden that has landed upon your shoulders , your back is not good because it can not support your organs which causes kidney pain when you mow and you are not growing younger or stronger so the task is just going to get more difficult as the years roll by so no matter what mower you have it is going to get harder & harder each year.
My workshop is on the urban fringe of Sydney & I live in the Blue Mountains which is basically a road through a world herritage park with some small towns scattered through it .
I watch my customers, many of which came from a 1/4 acre suburban block & think they can treat a 5 to 10 acre block the same way.
They become virtual slaves to the block of land and derrive no benefit from living here apart from capital appreciation .
In the 11 years I have been doing the repair run, I have helped about 20 of them transform the acres of weed mowing into a self sustaining bush block requiring nothing more than an occasional spray with the right herbicide .
Two of them got right into permaculture and one or both of the couples gave up their jobs to becomes permaculture farmers because they made more selling their organically grown produce that they did working 40 hours a week and doing 15 to 40 hours of commuting to & from their jobs in 3 to 4 hours a day and they can go on a 2 week holiday and not be faced with a jungle when they come back home .
Great for them but not so good for me because they went from 60 & 72" ride ons that were always breaking down to little 24" Greenfields that almost never break down.

I don't expect you to answer those questions here it is for you and your partner to have a big think about & make a plan that is right for you
One of my customers who is a big God botherer ended up with African refugees using his land to grow traditional foods on organised through his church
Costs him nothing , made some really good friends and now has a free supply of fruits & veggies
Another has planted a forest that is registered as a carbon sink and his carbon credits even at the current price will pay the remaining loan off over the next 20 years
One of the customers near the river has done the same, but less trees and is looking at becoming a Glamping site ( sort of up market camping where he supplies the camping equipment )

All good points and things I think about regularly. We mainly have the land because of the quiet and space it provides. But to your points, I don't need or find 5 acres of lawn very useful. We have a 3/4 acre pond and have been growing the size of our garden over the last 5 years or so. I've been considering making xeriscaping areas, permaculture berms or plots for growing more food and taking away grass area.

The other option I've been considering is getting a tractor to develop garden plots and keep the mower I have. If I only had a few acres to mow, the current mower would be more than sufficient. It's just figuring out if I want to spend 10k on a new mower or 25k-30k on a used tractor. But the costs add up when adding irrigation and other things...

Thanks for the ideas.

 

[sgkent]

roundup on the Johnson grass or turn the cows and goats loose on it. That is really nasty heavy duty grass. Mowing bamboo might be easier on you. I had a lawn of it and it would stop the mower. Finally rounded it up, watered for a month, rounded up again, watered for a month, rounded up again, sowed the seed I wanted and spot treated the few that returned.

 

[bertsmobile1]

All good points and things I think about regularly. We mainly have the land because of the quiet and space it provides. But to your points, I don't need or find 5 acres of lawn very useful. We have a 3/4 acre pond and have been growing the size of our garden over the last 5 years or so. I've been considering making xeriscaping areas, permaculture berms or plots for growing more food and taking away grass area.

The other option I've been considering is getting a tractor to develop garden plots and keep the mower I have. If I only had a few acres to mow, the current mower would be more than sufficient. It's just figuring out if I want to spend 10k on a new mower or 25k-30k on a used tractor. But the costs add up when adding irrigation and other things...

Thanks for the ideas.

IF their is a local permaculture or native plants group , environmental restoration group , near by, join them .
Down here a lot of such groups have access to large labour force of volunteers + plant + equipment and even more important experteese
Down here if you are returning 2 acres or more then the Society for growing native plants will provide both the labour & the plants either for the cost of meals or at a nominal small cost .
Greening Australia will do the same but you are required to sign a covernant over the land for 25 years that it will remain in the new " green" state & not be redeveloped as the government subsidizes them.
This of course affects the property value but as of late it has been increasing the value rather than decreasing the as was the case 10 years ago .
And then there is LandCare Aust but they are more about public open space .
I understand your motives
Most of my customers are immigrants ( or their children ) from Europe and they all have the same reason for staying here "space,,, matey, the space "
As one of the Maltese ones put it , I like it that I don't know when all of my cousins or neighbours are having sex, farting , going to the toilet, argueing and what they are cooking every meal .
My workshop is in a corner of a friends 1000 (ish) acres being the old farmhouse that is subject to flooding they built a new house higher up which is the closest neighbour at 750 metres , there is 300 meter river paddock then a 400 meter park before the back of the nearest neighbour to the east, a 500 acre hay paddock on the other side of the road so yes I appreciate the solitude although the road gets about 4,000 vehicles a day .
Even better is the christmass tree plot that got away so I have a forest of 40' to 60' pines 100 metres away that is a delightful relief on the 45 deg (C) days as it can be as much as 15 deg cooler under them.
I see lots of older stand on loaders / diggers that are very cheap in the USA that could be used to do just about everything you would need to do, abeit slowly as most are just a 20 to 30 HP V twin hooked up to a single hydraulic pump.
Most come with a full compliment of impliments including both flail & rotary mowers / slashers .
I have 4 Kangas and 2 Dingos in the service run , they were originally the same company but the partners split up & one opened up in opposition .