Best value SCAG for my situation?

[13brian]

I am curious about your mowing of the ex-horse pasture. The OP mentioned hoof pits. Is your pasture smooth enough to mow comfortably? It sounds crazy, but would it be any advantage to have the pasture rolled to smooth it out? I'm a village kid so be easy on me.

It is rough in spots to be sure and is not what I'd call comfortable, everywhere. But I can get it done in two hours. The bouncing is more from the vole structures (some reference them as moles) than leftover horse hoof pits. It can get so bad on the bouncing I will have to come to a complete stop. But, full speed can be more smooth than a slower pace, depends on the area.
So, I would like to have it rolled for that, but it would take a very heavy roller on moist soil and I am not sure how long it would last with the vole mounds and tracks.

 

[13brian]

I am curious about your mowing of the ex-horse pasture. The OP mentioned hoof pits. Is your pasture smooth enough to mow comfortably? It sounds crazy, but would it be any advantage to have the pasture rolled to smooth it out? I'm a village kid so be easy on me.

It is rough in spots to be sure and is not what I'd call comfortable, everywhere. But I can get it done in two hours. The bouncing is more from the vole structures (some reference them as moles) than leftover horse hoof pits. It can get so bad on the bouncing I will have to come to a complete stop. But, full speed can be more smooth than a slower pace, depends on the area.
So, I would like to have it rolled for that, but it would take a very heavy roller on moist soil and I am not sure how long it would last with the vole mounds and tracks.

 

[dustyboots]

Well, I just bought a Grasshopper 125V 61"

Kind of a surprise, but I'm visiting family in NE Oklahoma and went to look at mowers. Small dealer gave me a great price on the Grasshopper, and I couldn't pass it up. We'll see how it does. It will be a few weeks before I can get it down there and start mowing.

Regarding the comments about rolling to smooth the ground. I don't know. I've heard that it works and that it's a waste of time. Probably depends on soil, technique, etc. I'm just going to mow and see how it goes. I know that on the property up here it got smoother with time. We're near the AR border and it is hilly and rocky. Pulled out tons of rocks and over a couple of years it slowly smoothed out. My plan is to just give it a go and if it is really bad, look at rolling or whatever if I feel like it is really necessary.

Thanks again to all for your thoughts and suggestions!

 

[13brian]

Well, I just bought a Grasshopper 125V 61"

Kind of a surprise, but I'm visiting family in NE Oklahoma and went to look at mowers. Small dealer gave me a great price on the Grasshopper, and I couldn't pass it up. We'll see how it does. It will be a few weeks before I can get it down there and start mowing.

Regarding the comments about rolling to smooth the ground. I don't know. I've heard that it works and that it's a waste of time. Probably depends on soil, technique, etc. I'm just going to mow and see how it goes. I know that on the property up here it got smoother with time. We're near the AR border and it is hilly and rocky. Pulled out tons of rocks and over a couple of years it slowly smoothed out. My plan is to just give it a go and if it is really bad, look at rolling or whatever if I feel like it is really necessary.

Thanks again to all for your thoughts and suggestions!

Good luck, congrats on a great deal. I know Grasshoppers to be great machines. I hear the short wheelbase makes them pretty bouncy, I do hope it works out for you perfectly. Please keep us updated on your status.

 

[MParr]

Well, I just bought a Grasshopper 125V 61"

Kind of a surprise, but I'm visiting family in NE Oklahoma and went to look at mowers. Small dealer gave me a great price on the Grasshopper, and I couldn't pass it up. We'll see how it does. It will be a few weeks before I can get it down there and start mowing.

Regarding the comments about rolling to smooth the ground. I don't know. I've heard that it works and that it's a waste of time. Probably depends on soil, technique, etc. I'm just going to mow and see how it goes. I know that on the property up here it got smoother with time. We're near the AR border and it is hilly and rocky. Pulled out tons of rocks and over a couple of years it slowly smoothed out. My plan is to just give it a go and if it is really bad, look at rolling or whatever if I feel like it is really necessary.

Thanks again to all for your thoughts and suggestions!

I think that you will be happy with the Grasshopper.
I like the chain hung deck.
Going by their website, it’s equipped with the Kohler Confidant ZT740.
I have that engine on my Gravely and it’s been troubled free. Maintain the air filters as Kohler outlines in the engine manual. Get you some foam air filter oil for the pre-filter. It can be purchased in aerosol cans.

 

[Boit4866]

One thing I will tell you about the Kawasaki engines. They are a good engine. You need to really do as they reccomend and adjust the valves every 350 hours as this is the weakest area of the engine. If they would fix this weak link in the engine they would have the best engine in the industry.

I agree with Kawasaki engines being tough engines. My 2007 FH580V with nearly 1,200 hours on it is still going strong. Keeping the valves adjusted along with frequent oil/filters has been the key. I would recommend adjusting the valves at the first 30 hour mark, then 100 hours and 200 hours thereafter. I found that the lash was out of range a little at 30 hours due to normal wear-in. After that, my lash only needed a tiny adjustment. This has been my experience.

 

[bertsmobile1]

It is rough in spots to be sure and is not what I'd call comfortable, everywhere. But I can get it done in two hours. The bouncing is more from the vole structures (some reference them as moles) than leftover horse hoof pits. It can get so bad on the bouncing I will have to come to a complete stop. But, full speed can be more smooth than a slower pace, depends on the area.
So, I would like to have it rolled for that, but it would take a very heavy roller on moist soil and I am not sure how long it would last with the vole mounds and tracks.

Get it aerated
You should be able to hire the machines for a day
You want the ones that pull a plug out of the grass
These will smooth out rough places
You can do it every second year if you like
Concentrate on the really bad spots

The next question I always ask is why grass ?
There are literally millions of ground covers you can plant that do not need to be mowed and many will annoy the moles , like mustard .
A wild flower meadow looks amazing and requires almost no maintenance .
Let them all go to seed and they renew every year .
Some places will actually pay you to plant local native ground covers