Help Needed - Looking to buy my 1st ZTR

[imamolder]

OK, here is the deal. I own a home in GA that has 1.5 acre of land that is mostly flat, but, and this is a big but, it has a pond that borders the entire length of the back yard with between 10 to 20 degree grade. Now, I just signed a lease on a home in AL with four acres that is bumpy, but no big hills.(I plan on going back to the GA home in 2 years or so).

My question is, what mower to buy? I have been looking and I have it down to a 4 brands, that I will list below. I would like to get some opinions of which is the better mower that will last and do better on the slope that I mentioned. I threw the cheaper model on the list because of the price and had some of the features of the higher end ones.

* Hustler Fastrak Super Duty 48" with a Kawasaki FX 22 HP engine. I got a price of $5700 plus tax. It has the ZT-3100 Drives on it.

* Ferris IS 700Z 52" with a Briggs Com Turf 28 HP engine. I got a price of $5700 plus tax on this unit as well. it has the ZT-3400 Drives on it.

* Bad Boy CZT Elite with a 48" or 54" deck and a Briggs Cyclonic or a Kawasaki FS 726cc engine. I have not go pricing on these yet.It has the ZT 3400 Drives.

Now, I looked at the Dixon Ultra 52 but after reading the bad comments online about the Kohler Courage engine I ruled it out. I am thinking about the Dixon Speed ZTR 48SE 9 $3500) or the Dixon Ram because they are a lot cheaper and with a fab welded deck and cast iron spindles and Kawasaki engines - do you think they will hold up?

I will not go over $5800 and would like to be between 4 & 5K,

Any help on this will be great.

 

[Carscw]

I find that the best thing in slopes (hills) is just a riding mower. I go cut yards for guys all the time that there ZTR or walkbehind can not mow the hill.
With the slope going down to the pond I am thinking you can't mow it up and down.

Where in ga are you? I will come cut it for you Lol

(( racing is the only sport that you need two balls ))

 

[imamolder]

I find that the best thing in slopes (hills) is just a riding mower. I go cut yards for guys all the time that there ZTR or walkbehind can not mow the hill.
With the slope going down to the pond I am thinking you can't mow it up and down.

Where in ga are you? I will come cut it for you Lol

(( racing is the only sport that you need two balls ))

My house is in Covington. I have a 99 model Scotts (John deere) that is still going strong, so I can still cut the slope with that if needed. I just would like to know which ztr is the best for my situation. As you can see from the 99 Scotts that I still have I keep my mowers a long time, so If my Scotts JD made it this long I want to be sure if I spend thousands more on a ztr it will last even longer. From what I can tell the Ferris is the only true commercial grade on my list, problem is I can't find specs on the frame and gauge of deck? I know Ferris is owned by Briggs / Snapper so I hope they did not cut corners on the Ferris line. I do not want a Home Cheepo throw away mower.

 

[djdicetn]

OK, here is the deal. I own a home in GA that has 1.5 acre of land that is mostly flat, but, and this is a big but, it has a pond that borders the entire length of the back yard with between 10 to 20 degree grade. Now, I just signed a lease on a home in AL with four acres that is bumpy, but no big hills.(I plan on going back to the GA home in 2 years or so).

My question is, what mower to buy? I have been looking and I have it down to a 4 brands, that I will list below. I would like to get some opinions of which is the better mower that will last and do better on the slope that I mentioned. I threw the cheaper model on the list because of the price and had some of the features of the higher end ones.

* Hustler Fastrak Super Duty 48" with a Kawasaki FX 22 HP engine. I got a price of $5700 plus tax. It has the ZT-3100 Drives on it.

* Ferris IS 700Z 52" with a Briggs Com Turf 28 HP engine. I got a price of $5700 plus tax on this unit as well. it has the ZT-3400 Drives on it.

* Bad Boy CZT Elite with a 48" or 54" deck and a Briggs Cyclonic or a Kawasaki FS 726cc engine. I have not go pricing on these yet.It has the ZT 3400 Drives.

Now, I looked at the Dixon Ultra 52 but after reading the bad comments online about the Kohler Courage engine I ruled it out. I am thinking about the Dixon Speed ZTR 48SE 9 $3500) or the Dixon Ram because they are a lot cheaper and with a fab welded deck and cast iron spindles and Kawasaki engines - do you think they will hold up?

I will not go over $5800 and would like to be between 4 & 5K,

Any help on this will be great.

imamolder,

(1)Hustler Fastrak Super Duty 48" with a Kawasaki FX 22 HP engine. I got a price of $5700 plus tax. It has the ZT-3100 Drives on it. - I made an offer on a 2012 54", dealer would not budge from $7,000 plus tax and it's got a ZT3100 tranny. Good machine, but didn't buy it(see below).
(2)Ferris IS 700Z 52" with a Briggs Com Turf 28 HP engine. I got a price of $5700 plus tax on this unit as well. it has the ZT-3400 Drives on it. - I did not include the Ferris ZTR's when I was shopping, but have only heard good things about them. I'm not high on B & S engines after a very bad experience with a 24hp Intek. At least this has the better Commercial grade ZT-3400 trannies.
(3)Bad Boy CZT Elite with a 48" or 54" deck and a Briggs Cyclonic or a Kawasaki FS 726cc engine. I have not go pricing on these yet.It has the ZT 3400 Drives. - Looks like the 48" has a $5799 MSRP(plus taxes). I made an offer on a 2012 54" Bad Boy Outlaw(dealers "best price" was $7,033 out-the-door. ROPS(even though "pictured" on the website) was $300 extra over that. The Kawasaki CZT's FS means "Heavy Duty".....FX is "Commercial". The Outlaw had the top-of-the-line ZT5400 trannies, but that didn't "sell me on it". The Outlaw has a MASSIVE 5gauge deck(you better have a real strong leg) and I think the CZT Elite has a 7gauge. And, CZT stands for Commercial Zero Turn and with a Kawa FS, that's disappointing.
(4)I looked at the Dixons(same reservations as you on the Ultra with the Kohler courgage), and I made an offer on a 2012 52" Dixon DX152(dealers best price was $6,391 OTD and I offered $6150). VERY good mower for the money, but all things considered(deck, spindles, warranties) the Gravely was already my "favorite" and the Dixon was my second choice. When the Gravely dealer accepted my counter-offer i didn't hesitate and have not looked back.

With your expectations of ZT-3400 trannies and "Commercial features" I'm afraid you will be disappointed with most Zero Turns that have those level of features with a $5,800 budget(and really wanting $4k-$5k). That's where I started and found out quickly that if I wanted a "Commercial" ZTR, I'd better raise the limit to $6K-$7K minimum(out-the-door). I got a very good deal on my 2012 52" Gravely Pro-Turn XDZ 100(Commercial entry level) for $6,800 OTD which had a MSRP for the 2012,s of $7199(plus tax) and the 2013 is $300 more than the 2012. User Carscw may have hit the nail on the head by suggesting with your budget that you consider a "high-end" lawn tractor. I recommend Husqvarna lawn tractors for the best bang for your buck and case in point...you can get a 48" model YT48XLS for $2899 that sports a Kawasaki(FR-Residential) engine, a hydro tranny with locking differential and a fabricated deck with a lifetime warranty(not many lawn tractors with a fab deck). A link to the Husqvarna site is below if you want to check them out. Good luck finding the right mower for you.

Garden Tractor Mower - Lawn mower and accessories, reviews, buying guide and comparison charts | Husqvarna

 

[Ric]

OK, here is the deal. I own a home in GA that has 1.5 acre of land that is mostly flat, but, and this is a big but, it has a pond that borders the entire length of the back yard with between 10 to 20 degree grade. Now, I just signed a lease on a home in AL with four acres that is bumpy, but no big hills.(I plan on going back to the GA home in 2 years or so).

My question is, what mower to buy? I have been looking and I have it down to a 4 brands, that I will list below. I would like to get some opinions of which is the better mower that will last and do better on the slope that I mentioned. I threw the cheaper model on the list because of the price and had some of the features of the higher end ones.

* Hustler Fastrak Super Duty 48" with a Kawasaki FX 22 HP engine. I got a price of $5700 plus tax. It has the ZT-3100 Drives on it.

* Ferris IS 700Z 52" with a Briggs Com Turf 28 HP engine. I got a price of $5700 plus tax on this unit as well. it has the ZT-3400 Drives on it.

* Bad Boy CZT Elite with a 48" or 54" deck and a Briggs Cyclonic or a Kawasaki FS 726cc engine. I have not go pricing on these yet.It has the ZT 3400 Drives.

Now, I looked at the Dixon Ultra 52 but after reading the bad comments online about the Kohler Courage engine I ruled it out. I am thinking about the Dixon Speed ZTR 48SE 9 $3500) or the Dixon Ram because they are a lot cheaper and with a fab welded deck and cast iron spindles and Kawasaki engines - do you think they will hold up?

I will not go over $5800 and would like to be between 4 & 5K,

Any help on this will be great.

The Maximum slope you can safely operate most ZTR mowers on is 15 degree and the same for most Lawn / Garden Tractors. If you are operating in more than 15 degrees a Stander of some type like the Toro Grandstand, Exmark Vantage or maybe a Wright would be the best alternative. Most of the Stander type mowers can safely operated on slopes and are rated to 20 degrees.

 

[djdicetn]

imamolder,

I missed the additional comments you made about considering Dixons(Speed ZTR & Ram). Keep in mind, that Dixon was purchased by Husqvarna a few years ago and the consensus I found was that the quality wasn't quite what it was before that(they are really "blue Husqvarnas"). Personally I'd be reluctant to go down-line from the Ultra(just wish they would put a Kawa FS on it:0) And you may want to re-check the specs on the spindles. That 2012 "Commercial" DX152 I was looking at had aluminum spindles....not cast iron(another reason why the Gravely won out over it). User Ric mows commercially and you can take his advice about the slope degrees to the bank....he knows what he is talking about.

 

[imamolder]

imamolder,

I missed the additional comments you made about considering Dixons(Speed ZTR & Ram). Keep in mind, that Dixon was purchased by Husqvarna a few years ago and the consensus I found was that the quality wasn't quite what it was before that(they are really "blue Husqvarnas"). Personally I'd be reluctant to go down-line from the Ultra(just wish they would put a Kawa FS on it:0) And you may want to re-check the specs on the spindles. That 2012 "Commercial" DX152 I was looking at had aluminum spindles....not cast iron(another reason why the Gravely won out over it). User Ric mows commercially and you can take his advice about the slope degrees to the bank....he knows what he is talking about.

Thanks for the reply. You can get the Dixon with the cast iron spindles, it is an option that is 300 more. I think I am leaning toward the Ferris as it is the only true commercial grade on my list and within my budget. I can still cut my slope with my old Scotts if need be. I have a Briggs Intec on my Scotts and it has served me well for 13 years without a single issue, maybe I got lucky??? I really want a ztr so I am not spending 4 hours on a Saturday cutting grass. I did look at the 4 wheel steering John Deere tractor but for what they want for it I can by a ztr. I also considered the Cub Cadet ztr with the front steering for the slope, but to get that in a commercial model it is 2K more than the Ferris.

 

[imamolder]

imamolder,

I missed the additional comments you made about considering Dixons(Speed ZTR & Ram). Keep in mind, that Dixon was purchased by Husqvarna a few years ago and the consensus I found was that the quality wasn't quite what it was before that(they are really "blue Husqvarnas"). Personally I'd be reluctant to go down-line from the Ultra(just wish they would put a Kawa FS on it:0) And you may want to re-check the specs on the spindles. That 2012 "Commercial" DX152 I was looking at had aluminum spindles....not cast iron(another reason why the Gravely won out over it). User Ric mows commercially and you can take his advice about the slope degrees to the bank....he knows what he is talking about.

Thanks for the reply, I am going to check out the Gravely as well. Btw, you can get the cast iron spindles,
It is an option on the Ram and the Ultra and I think it is standard on the residential speed ztr 48SE with a fab deck. If I were looking to by a 3500 dollar ztr I think that the Dixon Speed ztr 48SE can't be beat.

Oh, the aluminum spindles are good as long as they are machined and not cast.
If I were going to get cast spindles I would want iron.

 

[fry]

WOW.....i'm in the market for our 1st ZTR too .....and I didn't realize it was going to be so much work!!!!!
We have about a total of 4 acres. I'd like to stay with a 48 - 54 cut. My husband said something about a 60 cut in order to get bigger wheels.
Wonder if we can get bigger wheels on any model we buy???
My husband wants a BAD BOY, but i'm trying to research as many as I can.....and I had no idea there were so many.
I would love to hear more comments, what mowers people would buy and would NOT buy and why.
p.s....I LOVE cutting grass. I had a Snapper push mower for years that I LOVED...but that was years ago and I heard that the company may not be the same.

 

[LakeRat1]

Fry your Husband is right about the bigger wheels, and most of the Upper Class mowers have the larger wheels, that makes a Big difference in the ride, Check out Ex Mark, Gravely , Scag, The Bad Boy is also agood mower, they all make good mowers, once you get in to the higher class mowers, you need a mower that can be serviced close by, fine a good Dealer & you/Youll will be fine