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While it arrived over a week after the initial estimate, it finally did arrive and I am pleased. I went with the 60 over the 54 because 1) I measured and it fit through everything in my yard, 2) it had the upgraded seat w/ arm rests, 3) it had the steel surround guard protecting the engine and 5) bigger is better, right?
Pro's: Great fit and finish, love the big Kawasaki engine, nice heavy duty steel welded deck, huge back and front wheels with much less turf being damaged, if any, than my Cub Cadet Z-turn, very comfortable, starts easily and runs smoothly, love the parking brake feature controlled by the steering bars, very smooth steering and easily adjustable deck w/o removing hands from steering bars.
Con's: Drive belt seems to vibrate and is somewhat noisier than expected when at fast throttle, mower very bouncy over uneven ground at higher speeds, hard to determine gas level and no ability to easily lift foot rest to quickly access deck for cleaning or maintenance.
Overall, I am very pleased and was able to get 10% off the advertised price of $4499 by searching for a coupon and signing up as a "mover" on the Lowe's site. I don't think there is anything comparable in the $4k range that I found while searching. While covered up with a sticker, there is already a cutout for an extra switch in the starter panel so I installed some halogen lights from Northern ($20) for any dusk related activities. My Cub Cadet Z-turn 44" (with the rusted out stamped deck) took me over an hour, I think I can do everything with this one in almost 1/2 the time.

Thats a very positive endorsement,we got some real bargain hunters on this forum!Sounds like you need the FF's to soften ride.

BrewCrew said:

and is somewhat noisier than expected when at fast throttle,

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I bought a RSD54 and had the rear guard installed. I found that the Throttle and Choke cables rattled against it (even wearing the paint) and made a real racket. You might check to see what the clearance is back there and see if you might be having the same issue.

I also found a rattle on my RSD 54 that I thought I'd pass on. The drive disconnect pull tabs/linkages on either side of the engine are bare metal and vibrate in their passthrough slots in the frame there. I plan to wrap them with a turn or two of electrical tape to hush that.

Nice tip on the tape!Per chance are you an audiophile as well?

Kremeneon said:

I also found a rattle on my RSD 54 that I thought I'd pass on. The drive disconnect pull tabs/linkages on either side of the engine are bare metal and vibrate in their passthrough slots in the frame there. I plan to wrap them with a turn or two of electrical tape to hush that.

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Heavy duty Heat shrink tube do the job?

chemingthroughtheleather said:

Nice tip on the tape!Per chance are you an audiophile as well?

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I do love audio, but have not kept up at all in the last 10 years or so.

Mtmellum said:

Heavy duty Heat shrink tube do the job?

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It might, but you would probably have to remove the linkage, I don't see it slipping over the loop end easily and shrinking down enough to fit through the slot in the frame.

BrewCrew said:

While covered up with a sticker, there is already a cutout for an extra switch in the starter panel so I installed some halogen lights from Northern ($20) for any dusk related activities.

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Care to post pictures of how you set this up and/or a link to the lights you bought? I'm very interested in doing the same and would love to see your set up. Thanks