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I didn't get an extension kit for the seat switch. So I just jumped it for now. I'm going to try to find an extension. If I can't find an extension connector I'll cut the plug off and make one myself.

I got the suspension kit on eBay. Seat Suspension Kit for Bad Boy Gravely Deere Toro Scag Hustler Exmark FF | eBay

It is quite effective for softening out the ride.

Seat Suspension Kit by John Danley, on Flickr

DSC_7537 by John Danley, on Flickr

John WD said:

I didn't get an extension kit for the seat switch. So I just jumped it for now. I'm going to try to find an extension. If I can't find an extension connector I'll cut the plug off and make one myself.

I got the suspension kit on eBay. Seat Suspension Kit for Bad Boy Gravely Deere Toro Scag Hustler Exmark FF | eBay

It is quite effective for softening out the ride.

Seat Suspension Kit by John Danley, on Flickr

DSC_7537 by John Danley, on Flickr

Click to expand...

Hmmmmmm.wonder if this is compatible with my Fast Trak SD?...13 or 14 model

On that eBay link there is a picture showing the measurements of the bolt pattern.

John WD said:

On that eBay link there is a picture showing the measurements of the bolt pattern.

Click to expand...

K...thanks

John WD. With the added seat height. Have you had any clearance issues with your lap and the steering levers? Would you recommend the lever extension kit? Thx

Rob45679 said:

John WD. With the added seat height. Have you had any clearance issues with your lap and the steering levers? Would you recommend the lever extension kit? Thx

Click to expand...

I was wondering the same thing...especially with one of thicker seats like I have on mine.

It does make it a little tight. I think I am going to add the extensions.

Very Cool.. Looks like it raises the seat up by about 4 inches, is that correct ?

7394 said:

Very Cool.. Looks like it raises the seat up by about 4 inches, is that correct ?

Click to expand...

Not that much. It raises the seat about 2 3/4".

2-3/4" is not too big a diff at all.. Thanks for the info.

very interesting.

Did you ever locate the seat connector extensions?? I want to order the seat

oldsaff said:

Did you ever locate the seat connector extensions?? I want to order the seat

Click to expand...

Make your own with standard Quick-Disconnect Terminals, You can get them at any hardware or auto parts store.
By the way I had to use 3/4 spacers between the suspension and the hinged seat plate, ( 7/8-14 nuts work great)

how much is it aprox.

Micah Haarhoff said:

how much is it aprox.

Click to expand...

About $150. Seat Suspension Kit for Bad Boy Gravely Deere Toro Scag Hustler Exmark FF | eBay

Not bad thxs

John WD said:

It does make it a little tight. I think I am going to add the extensions.

Click to expand...

I know this thread is old but I wondered if you ever decided to add the extensions or not and how they worked.

Thanks ... Rhett

RhettWS said:

I know this thread is old but I wondered if you ever decided to add the extensions or not and how they worked.

Thanks ... Rhett

Click to expand...

Rhett,

I am getting a new Raptor (the SD this time) but I added a suspension bracket on my last Raptor, and am very familiar with the extra parts I had to design myself (the spacers, the seat switch extension), and was not totally happy with it. This time I found the whole kit that even has brackets (instead of those unstable spacers) that allows the seat to slide forward/backward in addition to the suspension, and has pre-made extensions for the seat switch that gives it more of a factory look. I am getting my new mower in a week or two (ordered) and this kit (ordered). To me it is worth the extra 50 bucks to have a movable seat and all the parts ready to go. I am excited to have a new mower and a seat suspension kit that will be ready to go, quickly/immediately. I found the complete kit at seat warehouse, from Brad. On my Raptor the seat suspension is the only thing that gives you any real relief from the extremely bumpy ride - the tires are so small it is hard to run them at a low pressure, and the flex forks and flex seat bracket that Hustler sell are both unimpressive - the Raptor is a very light machine, and the flex forks (for me) never moved a bit, no matter what bumps I ran over.

Shane,

I like my Raptor SD. I got the flex forks from the get go and I really can't complain about the ride so far. The bulk of my yard is fairly smooth in relative terms where I can run it wide open if I want without bouncing too much. I keep all tires at 10 PSI. I do see the flex forks moving a bit but I'd admit it is hard to tell if they do much (nothing to compare with). In the really bumpy section of my yard there are too many obstacles to run very fast, so again, happy so far. I may spring for a seat suspension down the road but for now I am OK.

I only have one minor gripe and that is with the discharge opening. I anguished over it before I purchased but decided for the amount I need to cut the extra bucks were not worth it. The majority of the time (98%) there is no issue. On the occasional heavy salad cut it starts to clog a bit in that back corner. I've been thinking about taking a torch to it to open it a little more. Time will tell. Keep us posted on your new unit.

Thanks .......... Rhett

RhettWS said:

Shane,

I like my Raptor SD. I got the flex forks from the get go and I really can't complain about the ride so far. The bulk of my yard is fairly smooth in relative terms where I can run it wide open if I want without bouncing too much. I keep all tires at 10 PSI. I do see the flex forks moving a bit but I'd admit it is hard to tell if they do much (nothing to compare with). In the really bumpy section of my yard there are too many obstacles to run very fast, so again, happy so far. I may spring for a seat suspension down the road but for now I am OK.

I only have one minor gripe and that is with the discharge opening. I anguished over it before I purchased but decided for the amount I need to cut the extra bucks were not worth it. The majority of the time (98%) there is no issue. On the occasional heavy salad cut it starts to clog a bit in that back corner. I've been thinking about taking a torch to it to open it a little more. Time will tell. Keep us posted on your new unit.

Thanks .......... Rhett

Click to expand...

Thanks for the information - good to hear! I was not thrilled with the Raptor but I think I am going to like the SD. My yard is not very smooth (I was going to try 8 psi on the tires). I did get the forks for the Raptor, but it is lighter, and they never moved at all no matter how long I watched them. I am wondering if I got a defective pair (rubber bushings do go bad through time, and the package had a 4 year old date on them). I complained to Hustler Corporate, then 3 different people said they'd exchange them, then I paid a lot to ship them back.... short story, now they are not standing by them. I have to have something extra (the seat suspension), because my back is terrible.

I also had discharge problems with the (base) Raptor. There is a small gap in the front of the deck, and after every cut, I had to get under the deck, with a stick, and dig all of this discharge out of it (always took a while). I didn't want the deck to rust out, so I felt like I had to. If you can open it, that would be great (I was thinking of filling the gap in mine, with something, but I never really figured out what would be best)!

Well, thanks for the feedback, and soon we will all be on our Raptor's on a regular basis! Happy cutting!

I added one of those to my exmark recently, wish i would have done it years ago. The ride comfort is amazing.
no issues with leg clearance,

shanewoodsman said:

Rhett,

I am getting a new Raptor (the SD this time) but I added a suspension bracket on my last Raptor, and am very familiar with the extra parts I had to design myself (the spacers, the seat switch extension), and was not totally happy with it. This time I found the whole kit that even has brackets (instead of those unstable spacers) that allows the seat to slide forward/backward in addition to the suspension, and has pre-made extensions for the seat switch that gives it more of a factory look. I am getting my new mower in a week or two (ordered) and this kit (ordered). To me it is worth the extra 50 bucks to have a movable seat and all the parts ready to go. I am excited to have a new mower and a seat suspension kit that will be ready to go, quickly/immediately. I found the complete kit at seat warehouse, from Brad. On my Raptor the seat suspension is the only thing that gives you any real relief from the extremely bumpy ride - the tires are so small it is hard to run them at a low pressure, and the flex forks and flex seat bracket that Hustler sell are both unimpressive - the Raptor is a very light machine, and the flex forks (for me) never moved a bit, no matter what bumps I ran over.

Click to expand...

Can you be more specific about the part number for whole kit you ordered. I went to the web site but could not find any info on the kit, only the suspension unit. I have a Hustler Sport ( older model of the Raptor ) and need to upgrade, Thanks

Gabbyp said:

Can you be more specific about the part number for whole kit you ordered. I went to the web site but could not find any info on the kit, only the suspension unit. I have a Hustler Sport ( older model of the Raptor ) and need to upgrade, Thanks

Click to expand...

Just email or call Seat Warehouse and ask for Brad - he does this for Hustler owners - it was nice to have everything ready to go and not have to look for any special bolts, or anything like that. All you do is (when you get it) mount the suspension bracket and the seat wire extension to the base of the seat, then put the adjustable rails on the suspension bracket, then set it all on the seat plate, and bolt it down (and re-connect the seat wire) - good to go, and comfortable, at that point!

Called and they said one wasn't ready for the raptor sd and to call back today. Told me $199

Robbherring said:

Called and they said one wasn't ready for the raptor sd and to call back today. Told me $199

Click to expand...

That's it - 199 for everything you need, much less than a new seat - the SD seat isn't bad, but this makes it like a high-end seat. Any time you shop on the web, always ask for discounts, etc. = all they can say is no. Enjoy your more comfortable ride! I have a bad back and it has made all the difference for me!

Is the MaxPower seat suspension kit discounted through Seat Warehouse still the best option out there for taking the back-jarring bumps out of a rough yard? Or has something better emerged on the market since the last post on this thread 2+ years ago?

War-Eagle,

Get the Seat Warehouse kit. I didn't purchase the Raptor kit, I purchased another model and saved a bunch of money. I also purchased the slider at 23.94 shipped for a total of 110 for the seat kit, 23.94 for the slider. $134.94. Made my own seat safety switch extension harness.

I used two female and two male spade connectors, two pieces of wire approximately 10 inches each. One male and one female for each wire. After you solder in the connectors, cover the connectors with shrink wrap even if using sheathed connectors. Use a bit of dielectric grease on on the connectors so they resist weather and are assured a good connection.

Don't forget to add some fuel line around the seat deck opening to keep the seat safety switch harness from being frayed in the future.

I put up some videos on MaxsGarajMahal in YouTube you can check out on the subject. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zccECEfDis4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zccECEfDis4

Max

RhettWS said:

Shane,

I like my Raptor SD. I got the flex forks from the get go and I really can't complain about the ride so far. The bulk of my yard is fairly smooth in relative terms where I can run it wide open if I want without bouncing too much. I keep all tires at 10 PSI. I do see the flex forks moving a bit but I'd admit it is hard to tell if they do much (nothing to compare with). In the really bumpy section of my yard there are too many obstacles to run very fast, so again, happy so far. I may spring for a seat suspension down the road but for now I am OK.

I only have one minor gripe and that is with the discharge opening. I anguished over it before I purchased but decided for the amount I need to cut the extra bucks were not worth it. The majority of the time (98%) there is no issue. On the occasional heavy salad cut it starts to clog a bit in that back corner. I've been thinking about taking a torch to it to open it a little more. Time will tell. Keep us posted on your new unit.

Thanks .......... Rhett

Click to expand...

Rhett,

I did a discharge chute modification to the Raptor you may want to take a look at. After that was filmed, I made a mowing test video as well. I will add that link second.

See if that helps.

Max

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OUPaa8JoZJ8&t=1707s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NVRtDlBqpzo

RhettWS said:

... I keep all tires at 10 PSI. ...

Click to expand...

My wife thought our new Scag Liberty Z had a really stiff ride. Turned out the rear tires came from the dealership with 24 psi pressure in both rear tires - more than twice the recommended operating pressure. When I mentioned that to the dealer, he said something about, when the factory ships them, they strap them on their shipping crate then over-inflate the tires to snug up the straps. He said reducing the pressure back to recommended is not on their final prep "check list", and so they must have just forgot to check it before I picked it up. Anyway, when I dropped the rear tire pressure down to 10 psi, the softer ride put a smile on my wife's face.

War Eagle,

You're probably her hero all over again!

Max

Old thread is back to life, sort of.

Just got one of these suspension units from the Seat Warehouse. Installation was pretty easy (Fastrak) except for the wiring being a little difficult. Adjustment was easy, and it looks like there is about 1" travel. I may be wrong but it looks like the seat moves as a unit instead of being hinged on the front end. Whatever the case, I can tell this is going to help my ancient back in the future.

Will find out in about one week when I do my first mowing.

Did you get the kit with the slider or without? If it doesn't have the slider, you'll need to add at least 3/4" of spacers below the suspension kit in order for it to have sufficient downward travel. Otherwise it will bottom out on the seat deck causing a harsh ride as well as wear the paint from both the seat deck and the bottom of the suspension kit.

Know you'll enjoy that suspension kit. I would no longer ride mine without it.

Max

mhavanti said:

Did you get the kit with the slider or without? If it doesn't have the slider, you'll need to add at least 3/4" of spacers below the suspension kit in order for it to have sufficient downward travel. Otherwise it will bottom out on the seat deck causing a harsh ride as well as wear the paint from both the seat deck and the bottom of the suspension kit.

Know you'll enjoy that suspension kit. I would no longer ride mine without it.

Max

Click to expand...

I have the sliders that came with the mower, which I mounted to the suspension. I hope I am understanding you correctly. The seat now moves up and down about 1". Do I still need the spacers? I didn't check to see if it hits the mower deck, but I will when I get out to where it's stored tomorrow.

LG

Your seat had a slider already on it? If so, if it is 3/4" thick, it will be plenty sufficient to increase the distance between the bottom of the suspension seat kit and the top of the seat deck. If it isn't a full 3/4" it will require that distance at a minimum.

The seat will actually travel about 1 3/4" to 2" downward during hard bumps.

Hope that is helpful.

Max

mhavanti said:

LG

Your seat had a slider already on it? If so, if it is 3/4" thick, it will be plenty sufficient to increase the distance between the bottom of the suspension seat kit and the top of the seat deck. If it isn't a full 3/4" it will require that distance at a minimum.

The seat will actually travel about 1 3/4" to 2" downward during hard bumps.

Hope that is helpful.

Max

Click to expand...

Yes, the slider came with the mower. I just checked the slider vertical thickness, and it is about 1" at the back and more at the front. I can also see now that it moves down more than the 1" I thought, more like what you said (real hard to measure that by myself). Thanks for your help. I am pretty sure this is really going to improve the ride.

LG,

There is no doubt in my mind that you'll enjoy the mower much more than before. Now, get a set of flex forx and you'll be as set as you can be with a Hustler.

Max

I installed the Raptor model that included the slider. Install was easy and the mod made a big difference in ride quality on my rough yard. I also added the Hustler Flex Forks, which added even more compliance but didn't represent as big an improvement as the seat kit, IMO. The seat kit came with the switch wiring extension, but the blade connectors leave a small metal portion exposed, which if contact is made with a ground will trip the 15A fuse on the battery. This happened to me the first time I sat down on the seat with the engine running, so I added some insulation over the connectors and secured it to the seat frame so it wouldn't move around. The problem has not recurred.

Well, about a week ago I gave the suspension it's first test. It worked well.

The area I cut is rough as heck -- right next to farm fields with field "leftovers", etc., dropped here and there, moles working their magic, and on and on. Rough as heck. Before, without the suspension, I was on a bucking bronco with teeth jarring bumps almost constantly. Now, the bronco is still fairly healthy, but the teeth jarring bumps are now gone. Much better. I also put on the flex forks, which, I guess, help.

If I could do it again, I would, for sure.

LG,

Glad to hear your Bucking Bronco has slightly tamed. I assure you those flex forks are working much harder than you think. I've run my machine without them and with the seat suspension kit. Better, but, not nearly as good with them.

Now, get some dirt, grab a couple of wooden pallets, some concrete blocks tied to the pallets and drag them around the yard filling in the low spots. You could then remove the seat kit and forks and sell them to some other needy mower enthusiast. lol

Are you now a member of Hustler Mower Owner Group in Facebook yet?

Come join us.

Max

LeakyGasket said:

Well, about a week ago I gave the suspension it's first test. It worked well.

The area I cut is rough as heck -- right next to farm fields with field "leftovers", etc., dropped here and there, moles working their magic, and on and on. Rough as heck. Before, without the suspension, I was on a bucking bronco with teeth jarring bumps almost constantly. Now, the bronco is still fairly healthy, but the teeth jarring bumps are now gone. Much better. I also put on the flex forks, which, I guess, help.

If I could do it again, I would, for sure.

Click to expand...

Tire pressure can make a difference in ride also.
I run 8 PSI for a smoother ride.

DK35vince said:

Tire pressure can make a difference in ride also.
I run 8 PSI for a smoother ride.

Click to expand...

I agree and can't think of a reason to run them higher. Spec on my Raptor is 8-12 psi.

DK35vince said:

Tire pressure can make a difference in ride also.
I run 8 PSI for a smoother ride.

Click to expand...

Thanks, will check pressures.

If you have to cut on the side of an incline with a wider deck, you'll need to run that section with higher pressures to keep from scalping or as I call it, crop circles. The downhill side with low pressures will definitely cut into the last pass as the deck will cause the low side tires to flex more as the upper tires are unloading as well.

I realize this is an old thread, but I found it searching for a suspension solution for my 54" Hustler Raptor SD. For those not aware Seat Warehouse is now unfortunately closed. I was hoping to get sliders from them so I wouldn't have to use spacers, but it looks like my only option now is a suspension kit from Trac Seats:

Seat Suspension for Hustler Gravely John Deere Toro Scag Exmark Bad Boy Mower | eBay

This suspension will not fit all models. 🔺This suspension is designed to fit between your seat and the seat sliding rails. Low Profile Seat Suspension Kit. ✅ 1" suspension travel. It only takes us a few minutes to process, pull, label your order and update your account.

www.ebay.com

EDIT: Instead of using spacers I thought sliders might be a better option, unfortunately Trac Seats won't have any sliders in stock for a few months but suggested these on eBay:

"ADJUSTABLE SLIDE TRACKS FOR MILSCO XB180 & XB200 SEATS AND ZERO TURN MOWERS #QW" and they are only $35. Interestingly they come from a seller called "seatwarehouse" so perhaps their products will now be available on eBay.​