Buying help for ZTR in the $3,000-$5,000 range

[mts]

I am a ZTR newbie and have lived the last 20 years or so in a house I could push mow. My new house has a 1.5 acre lot that is mostly flat, but has a lot of trees, etc to mow around. I want something that will move along pretty well that has a decent sized deck to keep the mowing time down as much as possible. As a result, I think a ZTR would work well for me. Admittedly, I know very little about them. I've gone to a couple local dealers to look at some and I am getting pretty consistently pushed to riders costing $5,500k or more from Scag, Exmark and Ferris. The dealer comments are basically that ZTR's under that cost point are not quality units and won't last. My understanding is those are both really good brands, but my question is to get a quality unit with say a 50" ish deck, that will go 7-10mph, and that will handle one 1.5 acre lot reliably for many years, do I really have to go to that price point? Just seems like those units would be total overkill for what I need?

My last experience with a rider was the Snapper my dad owned and that thing ran like a top for 20+ years. To hear these dealers talk any ZTR under $5k will break within a couple years if you even look at it funny (I'm only slightly exaggerating here).

I believe in buying quality and will pay more to get it, but before I drop that kind of $$ I wanted to get some opinions from people that aren't trying to sell me one.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Paulz2821]

i think if i were you i would go with the Toro Timer Cutter MX5020. 50 inch deck. there is a thread about this below. for the money i think you'll be getting the best deal and you will be at the bottom end of your range. if you want to get at the higher end. i think you can get a snapper pro for around $5000. its still not "commercial" though. to get a NEW 50" or bigger ZTR commercial mower your talking 7-10plus grand. you could look on craigslist and find a good deal too. another option. i was in your situation and did this. i wasn't going to drop the money on a ZTR commercial but i wanted the commercial mower. i got a Red Hawk walk behind mower. its really nice and i think you can get a 48" for less then 2 grand. i'm very happy with mine so far. they make a stand on style one too if you don't want to walk for about $2800 i believe. the red hawk mower is ripped off the exmark. so its a good design. good luck with your decision.

 

[Popeye]

Last time I checked a Snapper Pro S50x was right at $4400 with Kawi FX600v Commercial engine. Has a ZT3100 transmission (commercial, has cut steel gears and few other upgrades from the homeowner ZT2800). Raw horsepower on Briggs and Kohler and Kawasaki can be misleading. Torque curves tell a better story. There are quite few posts online about troubles with the Courage engine. Kohler Command series is the commercial line that most "pros" prefer.
If you like the SnapperPro (which I have) go take a look and compare it to Timecutter and other "homeowner" mowers.

Quite a few lawn services around here run SnapperPro,Ferris and Scag. A few Toros mixed in.

 

[txzrider]

My snapper ZT went 12 years w/o any issues. Even then it was only a bearing for the intermediate shaft. I would have a tough time believing you need a full on commercial machine for only 1.5 acres. A high end residential like the MX that you mentioned along with good maintenance will go along way.

 

[Ric]

I am a ZTR newbie and have lived the last 20 years or so in a house I could push mow. My new house has a 1.5 acre lot that is mostly flat, but has a lot of trees, etc to mow around. I want something that will move along pretty well that has a decent sized deck to keep the mowing time down as much as possible. As a result, I think a ZTR would work well for me. Admittedly, I know very little about them. I've gone to a couple local dealers to look at some and I am getting pretty consistently pushed to riders costing $5,500k or more from Scag, Exmark and Ferris. The dealer comments are basically that ZTR's under that cost point are not quality units and won't last. My understanding is those are both really good brands, but my question is to get a quality unit with say a 50" ish deck, that will go 7-10mph, and that will handle one 1.5 acre lot reliably for many years, do I really have to go to that price point? Just seems like those units would be total overkill for what I need?

My last experience with a rider was the Snapper my dad owned and that thing ran like a top for 20+ years. To hear these dealers talk any ZTR under $5k will break within a couple years if you even look at it funny (I'm only slightly exaggerating here).

I believe in buying quality and will pay more to get it, but before I drop that kind of $$ I wanted to get some opinions from people that aren't trying to sell me one.

Thanks in advance.

What your dealers are telling you is true that a commercial mower will last you for years down the road if it's well maintained but so will a good High end residential mower.
When the dealer comments that ZTR's under that cost point are not quality units and won't last he's basically right. Mowers under that are in that range aren't quality mowers. Take the Cub Cadet RZT from Home Depot, great mower for someone who has a beautiful half acre lawn and is going to be used 30 minutes a week but in reality what have you got for basically $3400, a mower with a cheap frame, cheap stamped deck, a crappy EZT non serviceable drive and a bottom line engine with a three year or 120 hr warranty. Now step up to the commercial, heavier fab deck, better serviceable drives, commercial grades engines with a four year 2000hr warranty.
That's the reason they're pushing you into a $5500 or more for a mower is because that's where you start getting into the lower end of the commercial mowers. As far as the brand goes it doesn't have to be one of the mowers you mentioned to be a quality mower, there are others like Toro, Cub Cadet, Dixie, Hustler and others that make quality mowers and all have the same range types of mowers and pricing. It all comes down to how much you want to spend and what you think is over kill. Remember you get what you pay for.

 

[Popeye]

It all comes down to how much you want to spend and what you think is over kill. Remember you get what you pay for.

And that couple of hundred dollars you saved on the initial purchase can be eaten up real quick further down the road in repairs.

 

[Tindal]

I have had the husky MZ6128 for 2 years now and its a great machine 3400 hydro gear , 10 MPH . Chech it out , they make it with a 54 inch cut also . compair this to the rest and you will see why I bought it . i would buy it again in a heart beat . also at 5000.00 nothing compairs!!! less than that for the 54 inch with the fab deck.

 

[scott47429]

you can also look at some used mowers if you want cause alot of the time you can get alot more mower for alot less money the one o got is a Exmark 31 horse with a 72 incut with under 500 hours got it for 3200 buck and with the drought going on alot of the dealers are very willing to make a sale so work it to your advantage

 

[SUPERIOR MAINTENANCE]

I THINK YOU WOULD BE BEST BUYING A USED COMMERCIAK MOWER LOOKING IN THAT PRICE RANGE,THEY DONT HAVE ANY BIG DECK COMMERCIAL QUALITY MOWERS IN YOUR RANGE AND I TAKE IT YOU DONT WANT A LOWES OR HOME DEPOT QUALITY MOWER SO SCAN CRAIGSLIST AND LOOK FOR A LOW HOUR OR WELL TAKEN CARE OF OLDER ZERO TURN FROM SOMEBODY EITHER DOWNSIZING OR TRADING FOR NEWER EQUIPMENT

 

[Larry R]

I am a ZTR newbie and have lived the last 20 years or so in a house I could push mow. My new house has a 1.5 acre lot that is mostly flat, but has a lot of trees, etc to mow around. I want something that will move along pretty well that has a decent sized deck to keep the mowing time down as much as possible. As a result, I think a ZTR would work well for me. Admittedly, I know very little about them. I've gone to a couple local dealers to look at some and I am getting pretty consistently pushed to riders costing $5,500k or more from Scag, Exmark and Ferris. The dealer comments are basically that ZTR's under that cost point are not quality units and won't last. My understanding is those are both really good brands, but my question is to get a quality unit with say a 50" ish deck, that will go 7-10mph, and that will handle one 1.5 acre lot reliably for many years, do I really have to go to that price point? Just seems like those units would be total overkill for what I need?

My last experience with a rider was the Snapper my dad owned and that thing ran like a top for 20+ years. To hear these dealers talk any ZTR under $5k will break within a couple years if you even look at it funny (I'm only slightly exaggerating here).

I believe in buying quality and will pay more to get it, but before I drop that kind of $$ I wanted to get some opinions from people that aren't trying to sell me one.

Thanks in advance.

I bought a Hustler and like the mower, just don't pay an extra $500 for the Honda engine---mine is junk and stays in the shop. Save the money and headache and buy with a Kawasaki or Briggs. I have several Honda engines on other tools and they are great but the GVX530 is plagued with problems. Toro's are OK, Exmark is better, but my brother in law has had 3 large Toros in 5 years cutting his 3 yards. Snappers used to be good but are junk now since they started making them cheaper to compete with Murray and other 1 yr disposable mowers.