How many Hours on Your Raptor/SD??

[L454S]

2 years and 56 hours, lot at home is about an acre. Love it.

 

[Carscw]

A lot of guys around here run the SD
I do not like them because of the deck. But glad to see that they are done with the over priced junk Kawasaki engine.
The kohler has a more usable power curve.

 

[Good 1 Brian]

Got my Raptor SD in March now have 9 hours on I never enjoyed cutting grass so much hopefully will get many of good years on it I know one member on this forum has nothing good to say about them but I feel the dealer is the biggest problem

I got mind from a family dealer that been around for 50 years if I have any issues I'm sure they will support me on getting things corrected but hopefully I won't have any if I do they will pick it up and return it at no cost if it's warranty work
Picking the right dealer is just as important as picking the right mower

My son-in-law is looking at a Scag Liberty mower that in the same line as the Raptor also with the Kohler 7000 Series Pro in his case the dealer is closer to him

 

[577jersey]

Glad to see all the replies!!
I will put this RSD to the test this Summer thats for sure,,I wont beat it up but I will put a couple hundred hours on it Im sure of that

Keep the posts coming,,I really enjoy debating about engines and mowers,the do's and donts also..

Like I said I am really taking it easy on this mower because i can see its not built like my Bobcat.

Tom

 

[Ric]

Ric... not trying to be a smart aleck but just because you wouldn't run a raptor SD in a commercial situation doesn't mean somebody else might not. Not everybody starting off a lawn service can afford a $9,000 commercial unit. If they bought a commercial unit for $9,000 and ran it for a year it would be worth about $6,000.
someone can buy a raptor sd for $4,000 and run it for 2 years and it would probably still be worth 1500 to 2000. Years ago when I worked at a John Deere dealership we sold a small Countryside Cemetery a tin can Sabre for $1,600 because they had no budget. It actually lasted them about 3 to 4 years and at 1,000 hours finally spit the hydro because it was getting pretty hot going forward and backward around all the gravestones ...everything else about it was still pretty sound. They were actually pretty thrilled with the service they got for the price..... and by that time they had a little more in their budget for a better unit which they bought from us.
One day I even stumbled across a YouTube video where a commercial operator was running a regular Raptor with a 42 inch deck and mulch kit for specialty mowing in small yards.....it happens!

You don't have to pay 9K for a commercial mower to start a lawn-care business. There are good commercial rigs that you can get cheaper. You can get a Fastrak SD 48 with a Kawasaki 23 and 3400 drives for under 6k and you can get it for cheaper if you have cash or if you finance you can generally get a better price and with the 48 months @ 0 interest why not finance.
If you stay away from the big name brands and look at some of the other brands like Husqvarna, Cub Cadet and others you can buy cheaper entry level commercial rigs for less money. Like I said been there done that... I started with residential mowers and I can tell you it isn't worth it, nine times out of ten you end up spending more money in the long run in repairs than what the mower is worth.

 

[577jersey]

Well I hope to use this RSD for at least two or so years,,then sell it and get another,I got the zero for 48 and it will be payed off this July I hope,I put $2600 down,,maybe Ill go for the Fast Track next like you mentioned brother,,sounds like a great machine,I do have quite a few lawns and got the SD so I could sit down for a while,,I have a bad hip and bouncing around on a velke is rough on it.

Tom

 

[kraky]

Boy if you can get a fast-track SD for under 6 grand you're doing really good. I just paid $5899 for a fast-track / 54 and thought that was a fair deal but I've only got one dealer close by. I was never a fan of Husqvarna mowers.... Seems like as soon as somebody puts a 3400 Hydo in their unit they start calling them commercial. What's the difference between the fs and fr Kawasaki engines besides a little better air cleaner?

 

[577jersey]

Boy if you can get a fast-track SD for under 6 grand you're doing really good. I just paid $5899 for a fast-track / 54 and thought that was a fair deal but I've only got one dealer close by. I was never a fan of Husqvarna mowers.... Seems like as soon as somebody puts a 3400 Hydo in their unit they start calling them commercial. What's the difference between the fs and fr Kawasaki engines besides a little better air cleaner?

So my FR is pretty much the same guts as an FS,,thats good to know,,I do have a pre filter on the way,,maybe Ill have that guy who makes stickers make me up an FS sticker..lol

 

[577jersey]

A lot of guys around here run the SD
I do not like them because of the deck. But glad to see that they are done with the over priced junk Kawasaki engine.
The kohler has a more usable power curve.

Yeah I agree,the deck needs to meet up with my 4-1/2" angle grinder,,tired of blowing wind rows out with my blower when Im done cutting
Its not a bad deck but the discharge opening is horrible!!!! I have to wait 300 hours to cut it!!!! lol

 

[kraky]

I didn't mean to imply that fs and fr engines are identical except for air cleaners I was asking if they are....