Husqvarna M-ZT any good?

[Goddahavit]

Hello, all, I am a noobee researching and needing a mower as my old mower is toast.

I have decided on a zero turn,

I have demo a kubota kommander, and it was fine, it was the 48 in cut. for the price it seems welll built.

the dealer i usually deal with only sells toro( old mower died too soon-trannie) and husqvarna.

I will not give toro any additional money and it seems plenty of options from other companies.


This brings me to the m-zt 52 I have a pretty good price on one from him, where the kubota and ariens/gravley dealer will not move on pricing.

He does not have it an will need to order it so trying it is not an option.

Has anyone driven both the kubota kommander and the m.-zt52?

I know the trannie is better but how about the cut and overall finish, i have no experience with the Huskies...
My yard is not flat, and is 1.5 acres with trees and some hills, I slid the kubota into a pine tree, but I know I have a learning curve as to how to mow the banks, and such.

 

[RatRacer]

I have no big complaints with mine.
Adding a Kawi is the only way to make it better. It cuts very well, but motor gets boggy with grass 2" over cut height clogging the inlet air. I have a review of it further down this section. Fit and finish are standing up to the FL climate so far, but my use is about 20 min per cut.
Ask away if you want to know any specifics.

 

[lawn mower fanatic]

...I have a review of it further down this section...

Here: http://www.lawnmowerforum.com/husqvarna-dixon-forum/16355-m-zt-52-review.html

 

[Goddahavit]

I have no big complaints with mine.
Adding a Kawi is the only way to make it better. It cuts very well, but motor gets boggy with grass 2" over cut height clogging the inlet air. I have a review of it further down this section. Fit and finish are standing up to the FL climate so far, but my use is about 20 min per cut.
Ask away if you want to know any specifics.

Do you think that is the motor or the deck not clearing?
Any scalping? Does the muffler burn the grass if you stop? ( i read that someplace)

Are the controls twitchy or nice and controllable?

 

[RatRacer]

Do you think that is the motor or the deck not clearing?
Any scalping? Does the muffler burn the grass if you stop? ( i read that someplace)

Are the controls twitchy or nice and controllable?

It's the deck, but also the grass I have here is a stout, broad leafed, dense centipede type creeper, seriously contributing to the issue. (disclaimer: this occurs only when I skip a week, and we get rain almost every day)
I have not experienced any scalping at all, especially in the areas my tractor regularly did. (swale tops)
The exhaust, not radiated muffler heat, does burn the grass if a stop is longer than a minute. I've contacted Flowmaster to construct a dual exhaust to remedy this
Controls are dampened, so they ease back and forth fluidly. Small corrections can make it feel twitchy sometimes, but use experience overcomes that.

 

[Goddahavit]

It's the deck, but also the grass I have here is a stout, broad leafed, dense centipede type creeper, seriously contributing to the issue. (disclaimer: this occurs only when I skip a week, and we get rain almost every day)
I have not experienced any scalping at all, especially in the areas my tractor regularly did. (swale tops)
The exhaust, not radiated muffler heat, does burn the grass if a stop is longer than a minute. I've contacted Flowmaster to construct a dual exhaust to remedy this
Controls are dampened, so they ease back and forth fluidly. Small corrections can make it feel twitchy sometimes, but use experience overcomes that.

Is their any shield that could stop the burning of the grass?

 

[djdicetn]

Is their any shield that could stop the burning of the grass?

I actually recall reading a thread some time ago about a ZTR that was burning the grass and the manufacturer indeed had a "muffler shield" that could be installed to correct that. I have yet to master the forum "search feature" to be able to locate that thread and I can't recall whether it was a Cub Cadet, Toro, Ariens etc. ZTR. Also......based upon the bang-for-the-buck, if Husqvarna had marketed the M-ZT52 in 2012, it would have been a very strong contender for my money should I have settled for a high-end residential ZTR versus an entry-level commercial. Thanks RatRacer for all of the honest user-experience feedback you are providing on this ZTR(it still sounds like a very good machine to me).

 

[lawn mower fanatic]

I actually recall reading a thread some time ago about a ZTR that was burning the grass and the manufacturer indeed had a "muffler shield" that could be installed to correct that. I have yet to master the forum "search feature" to be able to locate that thread and I can't recall whether it was a Cub Cadet, Toro, Ariens etc. ZTR. Also......based upon the bang-for-the-buck, if Husqvarna had marketed the M-ZT52 in 2012, it would have been a very strong contender for my money should I have settled for a high-end residential ZTR versus an entry-level commercial. Thanks RatRacer for all of the honest user-experience feedback you are providing on this ZTR(it still sounds like a very good machine to me).

One of these threads?

• http://www.lawnmowerforum.com/general-mower-discussion/9724-gravely-42zt-burns-grass.html
• http://www.lawnmowerforum.com/john-deere-forum/16737-z425-muffler-heat-shield-burnt-grass.html
• http://www.lawnmowerforum.com/small-engine-mower-repair/9150-rzt-s-46-cub-cadet.html

 

[djdicetn]

One of these threads?

• http://www.lawnmowerforum.com/general-mower-discussion/9724-gravely-42zt-burns-grass.html
• http://www.lawnmowerforum.com/john-deere-forum/16737-z425-muffler-heat-shield-burnt-grass.html
• http://www.lawnmowerforum.com/small-engine-mower-repair/9150-rzt-s-46-cub-cadet.html

Thanks for looking that up lmf!!! Yeah, I remember reading the Cub Cadet thread, but the Gravely ZT 42 thread really caught my eye since I had just bought my Pro Turn 152. I checked mine out and it already had a shield on it. According to these threads there are several others(Toro's, Ariens, Ventrac) that have this problem. The Gravely ZT42 owner did get his fixed free by his Gravely dealer. It would be worth RatRacer contacting his dealer and/or Husqvarna to see if they have a heat shield for the M - ZT52 if he is having the same problem!!!

 

[Devious6]

I got a M-ZT 61 several months ago and am totally thrilled with it. I have not noticed a problem with it burning the grass but then I or ally shut don if I am getting off for more than just a few seconds to move something. This mower is a total winner for me.