Best Zero Turn Mower Brands

[cpurvis]

Just my opinion, but I think the whole 'Fabricated Deck' thing is overblown marketing hype unless you plan on bashing into obstacles at full speed and need an armored lawnmower.

 

[7394]

Just my opinion, but I think the whole 'Fabricated Deck' thing is overblown marketing hype unless you plan on bashing into obstacles at full speed and need an armored lawnmower.

X 2 agreed.

 

[cruzenmike]

X 2 agreed.

What makes a fabricated deck "better" in most cases is the gauge of metal used to make it, not necessarily the fact that it is welded together instead of being stamped. My wife's grandfather has a John Deere with the 7-Iron stamped deck and I am quite certain that it performs just as well as anything Exmark or Scag puts on their commercial mowers. There is no reason why a stamped deck cannot last as long as any other part of a mower if care is used.

 

[bertsmobile1]

For a home owner who has a couple of acres, cleans their deck regularly and keeps the blades sharp, they will get a good long life from a pressed metal deck.
I have never had to weld a fabricated deck.
OTOH there are 22 perfectly good mowers in my graveyard because their decks have rotted out / cracked beyond repair or are twisted or deformed beyond repair.
I have been pirating parts from them for a long while, having given up the idea of finding a mower with a blown engine to make a good one.
Despite being 10 times the weight of a pressed deck the deck lift and hangers on fabricated decks do not flog out anywhere as often or much as the lighter pressed decks do.
I am forever welding up MTD decks ( pre Cub style fixing ) that litterally are getting run over by the right rear wheel because the tension spring is dragging it under the wheels.
Murray decks tend to split up the skirts so it is a std fix to weld 3/8" or 1/2" reo bar around the skirt of the deck to keep them together.
The only time I ever replace the spindle housings on a Fabricated deck is when they are totally worn out ( lower bearing housing worn away ) and many of these decks are pushing 5000 hours,
OTOH I fit around 20 AYP 3 bolt spindles. around 10 AYP 4 bolt splindles that have fractured every year.
Of the machines I repair the fabricated deck ones do a better ( cleaner) cut and because on most there is a lot more blade overlap they use a lot fewer blades .

And the longer the blades, the worse the deck cracking problem is.

Most home owners will go through 3 or 4 mowers in heir lifetime ( if they buy quality mowers ) as a serviceman I see around 200 each & every year so my sample size is a lot bigger thus more representative.
There is 1 and 1 only reason why mowers are fitted with pressed decks CHEAPNESS and cheapness is seldom the neculus for improvement.

 

[Tudorp]

I've only been using zero turn for a couple years, but I choose Hustler. I have done some research, and found that most of the consumer mowers regardless of brand use pretty much the same components. The difference being the cosmetic "design" of the machines. I chose Hustler because the frame, deck etc are pretty much the same as the commercial units and built better IMHO than most of the consumer machines. The consumer Hustlers still use the consumer components, (engines, hubs, Hydros etc), but the chassis and deck seem to be heavier built. So, that is what I went with. I prefer Kohler engines, but Kawasaki engines are supposed to be an upgrade from what I gather. Don't know much about Kaw motors, but have always had good luck with Kohler, so I went with what I knew. I am not really "brand" loyal to any of them, because nothing anymore is built like they used to build, but from what I learned, felt ok with going with Hustler. I am hard on mowers because I am 6'5" tall at 400 lbs, and I bull doze through stuff I probably shouldn't. Even so, been pleased so far with my Hustler and it seem to take my abuse pretty good.

 

[Timpiker]

Grasshopper. Love it love it love it... Deck moves up almost 90 degrees for cleaning. Best tractor mower I've had in almost 60 years.

 

[kinard]

I have a snapper 46" deck with 21.5 Kawasakl engine. Trouble free for the past 5 years. I would either buy another snapper or a toro. I don't think snapper makes the 46" deck with a kawasaki engine any longer. I have changed the blades (3 blades) once, change the oil regularly, and grease the spindle bearings, wheel bearings, etc. frequently. I have a replacement belt in case I need it. The problem with Toro is getting it repaired if you have trouble.

 

[piloto]

So I'm looking for a Zero turn Mower and started reading posts on here.
But I also using the internet for research but every time I try searches like Best Zero Turn Mower 2017 or 2018 I get results of
Poulan Pro
Husqvarna
Troy-bilt

Most of these lists don't even show brands that everyone is talking about on here like;
Gravely
Scag
Hustler
EXMark
Toro

Why don't these brands show up?

It is common for search engines I won't name to provide favorable results to those who buy advertising from them.

 

[jbuck0123@embarqmail.com]

For my two cents...I would not shop for the cheapest mower you can find (it doesn't sound like you are), and I certainly wouldn't buy the most expensive mower you can find either. I mow 10 acres with woods (read tree roots) and mow trails that run through tall brush areas. I am hard on mowers. I think the key is maintenance. You can buy a less expensive mower and if you take care of it then will last and serve you well. I have had great service from a MTD 52" ZT with a 26hp Kohler engine. I am sure many people will gasp in horror... Sure I replace blades and belts and fix the occasional minor issue, but it has been a great mower for the last 8 years for less than half of the price of the "big boys"... Show it some love and it will serve you well.

 

[piloto]

For a home owner who has a couple of acres, cleans their deck regularly and keeps the blades sharp, they will get a good long life from a pressed metal deck.
I have never had to weld a fabricated deck.
OTOH there are 22 perfectly good mowers in my graveyard because their decks have rotted out / cracked beyond repair or are twisted or deformed beyond repair.
I have been pirating parts from them for a long while, having given up the idea of finding a mower with a blown engine to make a good one.
Despite being 10 times the weight of a pressed deck the deck lift and hangers on fabricated decks do not flog out anywhere as often or much as the lighter pressed decks do.
I am forever welding up MTD decks ( pre Cub style fixing ) that litterally are getting run over by the right rear wheel because the tension spring is dragging it under the wheels.
Murray decks tend to split up the skirts so it is a std fix to weld 3/8" or 1/2" reo bar around the skirt of the deck to keep them together.
The only time I ever replace the spindle housings on a Fabricated deck is when they are totally worn out ( lower bearing housing worn away ) and many of these decks are pushing 5000 hours,
OTOH I fit around 20 AYP 3 bolt spindles. around 10 AYP 4 bolt splindles that have fractured every year.
Of the machines I repair the fabricated deck ones do a better ( cleaner) cut and because on most there is a lot more blade overlap they use a lot fewer blades .

And the longer the blades, the worse the deck cracking problem is.

Most home owners will go through 3 or 4 mowers in heir lifetime ( if they buy quality mowers ) as a serviceman I see around 200 each & every year so my sample size is a lot bigger thus more representative.
There is 1 and 1 only reason why mowers are fitted with pressed decks CHEAPNESS and cheapness is seldom the neculus for improvement.

Good analysis and report ! I have a Husq. GT48xlsi which has a fabricated deck with 3 blades. There is less stress on everything from the blades and I have less to worry about from corrosion. In my day of buying used mowers, I looked at a lot with thoroughly corroded decks. However, I bought this primarily for the locking differential, which has saved me from being stuck multiple times (as I previously often was on "standard" movers) P.S. I wouldn't trade it for a ZTR for the world. I need and appreciate the exercise I get from steering the Husky on my half treed half hilly acre.