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There are so many deck styles on zero turn mowers! Which is the strongest,and best cutting deck,and WHY ????

Scag has the Velocity Plus Cutter Deck.
Hustler has the VX4 deck.
Dixie Chopper has the Elite Cutting System Deck.
Wright has the Aero Core Deck.
Gravely has the X-Factor Deck.
John Deere has the 7 Iron Deck.

** These are just some of the most popular deck designs**

You forgot the best mowing deck, The Toro Turbo Force. The thing is they all make claims for being the best but I think it or a lot depends on the area you live in and type of grass you're going to be cutting. The thing I stay away from are the stamped decks because in my experience they don't hold up well or do well under certain circumstances..

wdrdoctor said:

There are so many deck styles on zero turn mowers! Which is the strongest,and best cutting deck,and WHY ????

Scag has the Velocity Plus Cutter Deck.
Hustler has the VX4 deck.
Dixie Chopper has the Elite Cutting System Deck.
Wright has the Aero Core Deck.
Gravely has the X-Factor Deck.
John Deere has the 7 Iron Deck.

** These are just some of the most popular deck designs**

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Most commercial decks are made strong and solid, however do not believe the stamped decks are no good blah, blah, blah.
A one piece stamped decked vs a fabricated multi-piece deck made from the same thickness of steel is stronger, so if you are looking at the John Deere 7Iron you are looking at a quality deck and mower.

I have heard several folks sing the praises of JD decks,particularly the seven.The quality of cut is supposedly unparalleled.Please give me insight into this assertion.

chemingthroughtheleather said:

I have heard several folks sing the praises of JD decks,particularly the seven.The quality of cut is supposedly unparalleled.Please give me insight into this assertion.

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Owned one for 4 years now and I have seen nothing to stand up to it.
I know here in my yard last year, we mowed a 50' to 60' pass with 4 commercial mowers and the 7 iron was the best looking cut and the grass.

What models is the seven available on,maybe you could also recommend a good used one.A friend told me to get a 318 if I see one in good shape? Just where are you in KY...I come from Hoptown.:wink:

Don't forget the Ferris ICD decks! JK every ZTR has these gimmick decks. I'm most impressed with JD 7 gauge decks because that must be an insanely thick deck overall. Do they reinforce the spindles with 7 gauge also?

Regardless of who makes it a 7ga deck is a 7 ga deck and a stamped deck is a stamped deck. I know the JD 7iron deck has been out for a couple of years but my question would be if there all that great and have the greatest cut in the world of mowers , why hasn't every other manufacturer like Toro, Scag Hustler and Exmark jumped on the ban wagon with one for commercial use. Most the manufacturers use stamped decks on there residential units and it wouldn't be a stretch to go to the commercial with one but for some reason they all seem to go with a fabricated.

The 60" 7 iron goes for @ $2,300.....that is some serious deck expenditure.It would be cool if decks were more interchangeable,but that would possibly make for less smack talk.

chemingthroughtheleather said:

The 60" 7 iron goes for @ $2,300.....that is some serious deck expenditure.It would be cool if decks were more interchangeable,but that would possibly make for less smack talk.

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Yeah but what percentage of that $2300 is for name? :smile:

A fabricated deck has got to be more expensive for the manufacturer to produce than a stamped deck. If the stamped decks were as good, all manufacturers would likely jump on the bandwagon. Just my $.02...:smile:
Bruce

Brucebotti said:

A fabricated deck has got to be more expensive for the manufacturer to produce than a stamped deck. If the stamped decks were as good, all manufacturers would likely jump on the bandwagon. Just my $.02...:smile:
Bruce

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I agree, the cost of welding and the various different pieces of steel to construct a fabricated deck far outweigh the cost of producing a 7-Iron stamped deck(once the ROI of the special equipment capable of stamping that heavy of a gauge is achieved, the cost of stamping a single sheet of 7gauge has got to be considerably less). As a Gravely owner with the X-Factor deck....I can only say that it exceeds my expectations for cut quality and comes with a lifetime warranty. Nuf said:0)

Is there anyone on this forum that owns a Snapper Pro - ICD Deck? Do these mowers offer an amazing cut quality?

wdrdoctor said:

Is there anyone on this forum that owns a Snapper Pro - ICD Deck? Do these mowers offer an amazing cut quality?

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My Ferris has an ICD deck and it is the best cutting mower I have ever owned. Also the first commercial mower I have owned, so that kind of sums it up. I have had a number of JR tractors with stamped decks, but didn't like them much

wdrdoctor said:

Is there anyone on this forum that owns a Snapper Pro - ICD Deck? Do these mowers offer an amazing cut quality?

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Check out user ddbtdd in the thread I am pasting a link to below. He owns a new Snapper Pro. BTW, Snapper & Ferris are both owned by Briggs & Stratton and that's probably why user Av8r has an ICD deck on his Ferris. If you go to the thread below you can click on user ddbtdd and send him a private message asking about his Snapper Pro:

http://www.lawnmowerforum.com/mower-equipment-buying-pricing/26087-what-ztr-dominates-your-area.html

wdrdoctor said:

Is there anyone on this forum that owns a Snapper Pro - ICD Deck? Do these mowers offer an amazing cut quality?

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No complaints from me with the ICD deck on my ferris no scalping and nice striping with the standard stripe kit on all ICD decks. Maybe not the absolute best deck but impressive none the less. As djdicetn said B&S owns Ferris, Snapper and also Simplicity. As far as I know anything 48" and above on these machines (Snapper Pro) is ICD could be wrong though.