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Big Dog Rex 34"

#1

Paiste18

Paiste18

Hello All,

I have been looking for a competent mower for my lawn. I have a self propelled mower and trying to get it to move through thick St. Augustine grass is just ridiculous. So after 3 years of basically pushing the mower all over the place I decided to see if there was an alternative. I called a few places and was looking at a few walk behinds at Home Depot. I don't need something big. The smallest I could find was a walk behind 33" Dewalt at Home depot for 1799. The problem is these have MTD written all over them and everything that has MTD on it that I have bought is a piece of junk. So this guy told me about a zero turn Big Dog Rex 34". I mean when he said zero turn I was thinking that's way more than I need. I have a .25 acres. But I did some research and I can't find MTD anywhere on these. These are made by Excel. An American company which was appealing to me. Of course the 7 years warranty sounds great too, but limited warranties don't make me feel totally secure. The price was a little more than the Dewalt at Home Depot (2,060), but great financing options with 0% and a stupid low 40 bucks a month. I never bought from a mower place but they will set it up and deliver it for free.

My issue is I have never hear of Big Dog, is this a good company? Is this a solid product to invest my money in? Because anymore it seems all these small machines are just cheap, unreliable, Chinese crap. The one I'm looking at has the 10hp Briggs. Didn't they just go out of business? Can anyone shed any light on this product? I would hate to invest in it and have nothing but issues with no customer support. I just can't find too much on it. Especially that is recent information. Thanks

Here is the link if you want to reference them: https://www.bigdogmowerco.com/zero-turn-mowers?usage=residential


#2

Charlie8d

Charlie8d

I know a little about them, but nothing about their reliability. They are made by Excel, I was told. That one has a 10 hp B & S, which I believe is Chinese made ?? I know someone who has one & he complains about lack of power. He also has St. Augustine grass. If he cuts it more often & doesn’t let it get too tall, it is ok. I would opt for the next model above that one, an Alpha 34”.
Note :
If you are a vet , you get 10% off.


#3

B

Born2Mow

When I bought my first ZTM, a Hustler 34" Dash, the salesman pointed over to a Big Dog and said something to the effect that it was the exact same as the Hustler, except loaded with accessories... and $1000 more. From this I took it that it was a division of Hustler, but I never researched it. Now, Hustler IS made in the USA. I really enjoyed my 34" Dash series and you might look at that.

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You are correct, the MTD is really worthless in my part of the country. The deck really only has 2 positions (low and lower), but there are 6 blade height positions on the control handle !! In Georgia we can cut short in the spring, but by August if we don't get the blade up over 3", the lawn will get burned up. My BIL owns one and I've replaced the blades twice already this year because he keeps finding stumps.

I think while you're looking you should look at a Hustler Dash. It's a solid mower. The major drawback is the low weight won't let it hold to hills or embankments. But the deck REALLY does move up and down to ~10 positions from 2 up to 4 inches. A foot pedal allows emergency deck lifts over rocks and stumps.

www.hustlerturf.com

Hustler Dash® | Residential Zero-Turn Mower

The Hustler Dash is the most compact zero-turn mower in out lineup. With 34" or 42" deck sizes, the Dash is ideal for 1/2 to 3/4 acre properties. Starting at $2,399.
www.hustlerturf.com www.hustlerturf.com

Hope this helps.


#4

O

olegrunt11B

The BigDog brand is actually making quite a name for itself. I spent 3 months researching what my new zero-turn was going to be, I was between BadBoy, BigDog, and Airens. It is not just an over priced Hustler, don't get me wrong though a Hustler is a respectable machine. However the BigDog has different build standard, frame and deck lower gauged steel and welded better. The deck is fabricated welded which is more durable than a stamped deck. I made by choice based on budget, build quality, and availability. It came down between the BadBoy MZ Magnum 48'' and the BigDog Alpha. I ended up with the BigDog Alpha 42''! The main decider was availability, what I lost in BadBoys build quality I made up for in availability. I got the BigDog within a week and was told BadBoy had no foreseeable incoming date. BigDog still has a great frame and strong deck. Cuts and stripes great!


#5

B

bertsmobile1

olegrunt11B said:
The BigDog brand is actually making quite a name for itself. I spent 3 months researching what my new zero-turn was going to be, I was between BadBoy, BigDog, and Airens. It is not just an over priced Hustler, don't get me wrong though a Hustler is a respectable machine. However the BigDog has different build standard, frame and deck lower gauged steel and welded better. The deck is fabricated welded which is more durable than a stamped deck. I made by choice based on budget, build quality, and availability. It came down between the BadBoy MZ Magnum 48'' and the BigDog Alpha. I ended up with the BigDog Alpha 42''! The main decider was availability, what I lost in BadBoys build quality I made up for in availability. I got the BigDog within a week and was told BadBoy had no foreseeable incoming date. BigDog still has a great frame and strong deck. Cuts and stripes great!
Click to expand...
Well both Big Dog & Hustler come out of the same factory, the Excel factory in Kansas
I doubt there would be too much difference between the Big Dogs & the equivalent sized Hustlers.
It would just be economical to make 2 totally different mowers.
However what Excel do to keep quality up is have a good profit sharing scheme so every employee benefits financially if they do their job efficiently and well
This makes a massive difference on the shop floor & eliminates the Friday arvo slack specials & the Monday morning hangover specials .
I did note that they are activily recruiting right now


#6

W

WillieW

Paiste18 said:
Hello All,

I have been looking for a competent mower for my lawn. I have a self propelled mower and trying to get it to move through thick St. Augustine grass is just ridiculous. So after 3 years of basically pushing the mower all over the place I decided to see if there was an alternative. I called a few places and was looking at a few walk behinds at Home Depot. I don't need something big. The smallest I could find was a walk behind 33" Dewalt at Home depot for 1799. The problem is these have MTD written all over them and everything that has MTD on it that I have bought is a piece of junk. So this guy told me about a zero turn Big Dog Rex 34". I mean when he said zero turn I was thinking that's way more than I need. I have a .25 acres. But I did some research and I can't find MTD anywhere on these. These are made by Excel. An American company which was appealing to me. Of course the 7 years warranty sounds great too, but limited warranties don't make me feel totally secure. The price was a little more than the Dewalt at Home Depot (2,060), but great financing options with 0% and a stupid low 40 bucks a month. I never bought from a mower place but they will set it up and deliver it for free.

My issue is I have never hear of Big Dog, is this a good company? Is this a solid product to invest my money in? Because anymore it seems all these small machines are just cheap, unreliable, Chinese crap. The one I'm looking at has the 10hp Briggs. Didn't they just go out of business? Can anyone shed any light on this product? I would hate to invest in it and have nothing but issues with no customer support. I just can't find too much on it. Especially that is recent information. Thanks

Here is the link if you want to reference them: https://www.bigdogmowerco.com/zero-turn-mowers?usage=residential
Click to expand...


#7

W

WillieW

I am just finishing up my 2nd summer with my Rex MP and can't say enough good about it. Mine has the Kawasaki engine but I think the new ones have a B&S. No problems at all. the zero turn shortens the mowing time and with power to spare. The price was great and at the time I bought it they offered a 10% discount for military or ex-military.


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