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Hey y'all! Greetings from west TN. I am currently in the market for my first zero turn mower. I will be moving from my suburban home with .25 acre to the country with just under 3.5 acres. I have been looking at so many ZTR's that my head is spinning!:biggrin:

I came and joined here for advice and to talk lawn care. I have narrowed my choices down to these 5:
Scag Patriot 61 inch deck with either Kohler Command or Kawasaki FX
Exmark Radius E Series 60 inch deck with Exmark Engine
Spartan RT-HD 61 inch deck with Vanguard 26 HP

The next 2 are more of a want than a need and definitely more $$$$ :
Exmark Radius X Series 60 inch deck with Kawasaki FX730
Scag Tiger Cat 61 inch deck with Kawasaki FX850 or Kawasaki FT EFI

I appreciate any advice or recommendations.

Thanks in advance!!

Welcome from East TN. here.

I believe the Exmark w/Exmark branded engines are made for Toro & Exmark in china. but many say they have the bugs worked out & are doing good.

Which Dealers are gonna be near you ? That is important to consider as well imo..

7394 said:

Welcome from East TN. here.

I believe the Exmark w/Exmark branded engines are made for Toro & Exmark in china. but many say they have the bugs worked out & are doing good.

Which Dealers are gonna be near you ? That is important to consider as well imo..

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Thanks for the welcome!

I have read that the Toro/ Exmark engine is a Chinese made engine. The Exmark dealer told me that they rarely have problems out of those engines and they seem well built.

As for Dealers near me: The closest is the Huge John Deere dealership about a 5 minute drive from the house. I know they carry ZTR, as I have seen then up by the building, but the main stuff they carry is the large farm equipment, and I have yet to stop in and look. The Gravely/ Exmark and the Scag dealers are about a 40 minute drive from where I will be living, but the Scag dealership is 5 min from where I work. Both the Gravely/Exmark & the Scag dealer are long time dealers that have great support for residential or commercial customers.

Hi and welcome to the forum! :welcome:

I'm going to move this thread over to our buying and pricing section.

Thanks Catherine...


Wolf96-:thumbsup: I would suggest you try & test drive as many as you can.. & talk to the Dealers & see who feels like the best support for your needs.

Spartan, Gravely, eXmark, and Scag are all good. Go with the dealer that you can work with the best (location and customer service). I have Gravely, Toro, eXmark and Husqvarna within a reasonable distance. My choice of Gravely was due more to the dealer's great service, but the price was right also. He is 10 miles away and delivered mine free of charge so I wouldn't have to go home and hook up the trailer!

Catherine said:

Hi and welcome to the forum! :welcome:

I'm going to move this thread over to our buying and pricing section.

Click to expand...

Thank you!

7394 said:

Thanks Catherine...


Wolf96-:thumbsup: I would suggest you try & test drive as many as you can.. & talk to the Dealers & see who feels like the best support for your needs.

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Absolutely! I have test driven the Patriot and the Spartan and both were nice rides.

tbzep said:

Spartan, Gravely, eXmark, and Scag are all good. Go with the dealer that you can work with the best (location and customer service). I have Gravely, Toro, eXmark and Husqvarna within a reasonable distance. My choice of Gravely was due more to the dealer's great service, but the price was right also. He is 10 miles away and delivered mine free of charge so I wouldn't have to go home and hook up the trailer!

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Both the Gravely/Exmark and the Scag dealers will be easy to work with. John Deere is the closet by far at 5 minutes from the house, so I went and looked at their Z700 & Z900 series and test drove a Z740R and a Z915e. Both really nice ZTRs. John Deere will deliver to house free and if service is needed will pick up and deliver ZTR to house. Also, they said if I were to purchase a Z900 series, I would get a loaner ZTR if mine were in the shop.

Both of the Deere ZTRs are about $1000 more than the ones I was looking at, but it gives me more to think about. Ah decisions, decisions!!:confused2:

Wolf96 said:

Both the Gravely/Exmark and the Scag dealers will be easy to work with. John Deere is the closet by far at 5 minutes from the house, so I went and looked at their Z700 & Z900 series and test drove a Z740R and a Z915e. Both really nice ZTRs. John Deere will deliver to house free and if service is needed will pick up and deliver ZTR to house. Also, they said if I were to purchase a Z900 series, I would get a loaner ZTR if mine were in the shop.

Both of the Deere ZTRs are about $1000 more than the ones I was looking at, but it gives me more to think about. Ah decisions, decisions!!:confused2:

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Green paint is expensive. :confused2:

After much consideration, I made my decision and purchased a John Deere Z915 E with a 60 inch deck. It made short work of my 3.5 acres.:thumbsup:

Thanks to all for the advice!

:thumbsup: Enjoy your new machine..