Looking at first new Commercial Mower, I have questions.

[uttitanfan]

Been reading a lot on the forums trying to decide what to buy. I have had throw aways the last few mowers. There is a Bush Hog dealer not to far from me. Why are there few if any discussions on this mower? I can't find anything to touch it bang for buck. HDZ 3361 for $7900. 33hp Kohler EFI, 61" cut, 7 gage deck, 24" rear tires, 9 gal under seat gas tank, led headlamp, keyless start, 18k+ blade speed, HG 5400 transaxels, 14 mph (felt faster), Suspension seat, isolater bushings. Any other brand with those specs is over 10k. So far I have test driven a Scag, the Bush hog, and a Gravely. The Hog rode much nicer. What am I missing here?

 

[bertsmobile1]

Because like Spartan, they are such small players there are not enough of them to mention and definately not enough to warrant their own sub section.
You might like to try these types of pages.
Free reviews are worth exactly what you pay for them
Subscription reviews like the two here will always be more objective
Consummer reviews
choice

Free sites like product review always are a bit dodgey as they are not tested by people who have any technical training.

Now two of these site are Aust ones but in a market driven economy like the USA I would imagine there would be hundreds of such sites.
Next, commercial mowers are usually bought by mowing companies.
When you have been mowing 10 hours a day the last thing you want to do is spend another 3 or more hours repairs your mower.
A lot of them don't even do any maintenance on them, they just bring them to some one like me to service very regularly.

The bulk of the people on this forum are home owners , may of who have never done any work on mower in their life
They are not likely to have a Bush Hog in fact most want to know which is the best 10¢ mower on the market.

Finally Bush Hog do not have 25,000 retail agents all paying $ 100 to $ 1000 a month for the priveledge of hanging an "Authorised Bush Hog Agent" sign in their window.
Thus Bush Hog does not have a $ 10,000,000 advertising budget
SO very few people go looking for them.

 

[uttitanfan]

thank you for the reply, what is your opinion on the stats i gave vs price. Bush hog is very reputable when i am from in the cutting bisiness, just not familiar with the mowers

 

[bertsmobile1]

They are not imported into Australia & I have never worked on one.
Thus I have no opinion on it.
If you mow commercially then you should be familiar with the places that wear & cause grief
So check those places.
Check the welds that are not easily visible, check for replacable bushes in wear areas , check for greasable joints then check the cost & availability of service parts

 

[cruzenmike]

If you are looking for the "most bang for your buck" mower than yes, you have found it. If that is all that matters to you then buy it. If you want a machine that will last you many years, give you less troubles and have a better dealer network to support your service needs, do yourself a favor and go out and buy the most expensive Exmark or Scag that you can afford with the deck size that fits your desired use. It might very well be that your intended use only warrants a $5k mower, but at $10k there are literally 50 machines or more that will do the job well so long as your can rationalize the choice you make.

 

[upupandaway]

uttitanfan, I looked at a Bush Hog when i was looking for a zero turn. BH is better known for its large mowers being pulled with tractors to cut large fields such as commonly seen cutting the sides of highways.
They looked pretty solid. Comparable construction to other commercial zero turns.

Free reviews are worth exactly what you pay for them

I love Echo's reviews. They only post good reviews but if u look at other sites outside Echo, there are plenty of not happy customers.

 

[primerbulb120]

I don't have any info to offer on Bush Hog in particular... but currently Snapper Pro is widely considered to be the best bang for your buck when it comes to commercial ZTR's. Basically a Ferris without suspension. Might want to check them out if you haven't already...