SO, I was just in your boat, but I am not quite mowing as much as you, however I will eventually need to mow around 3 acres per week when we build the house we are planning to build sometime in the next few years.
I chose to stick to a 46 - 54" deck size, mainly because I have some trees to go around with other obstacles like driveway and curbs that I need to squeeze into, and the larger decks would make this harder. Plus my trailer is a 5x8 so anything over 60" wasn't going to fit on it.
After lots of research and some past experience, I narrowed down to the Toro line for under 5k. They offer what most would call a heavy residential model, the MX5050- 50" fab mower with a kohler 7000 engine. It comes with a 3 year warranty and the 2800 hydro drives, which is just about commercial grade but not quite, but it's only 4000 + tax. I was heavily considering ordering this mower online and having it delivered with no tax and free shipping, but I decided to reach a little deeper and get a more commercial unit. Exmark will offer their Quest line, very similar to the Toro, same company.
I ended up going with a Scag Freedom Z Pro which at a good deal is about 6000 out the door, the standard Freedom Z (5500.00 or so) is a direct competitor to the MX5050 Toro as far as build, however I'd rate the Scag at slightly better quail and the deck is fantastic, at least for me.
Some of my other runner up choices include:
Husqvarna also makes some good models like the MZ52LE (52") which is about 4200 retail, and has things like a foot operated deck lift (something I wanted) and a low profile stance. It also has the 3100 drives which are considered commercial quality. I have a few family members with similar Husqvarna mowers and they say they have had little to no issues with them.
Dixie Chopper also offers the Zee 2 line, which we see a lot down here commercially. It's comparable to the Toro in it's drives and engines, runs around 4300 + tax. They look a little boxy to me, but alot of people who own them praise them. The company was just acquired by a new company but remains under the DC name.
There is also Ariens, or Gravely, which sell their MaxZoom or ZT series mowers. The Ariens MaxZoom appears to be similar to that of the Gravely ZT HD, with the fab deck, 3100 drives, and good engine choices. The deck is warrantied for 5 years, and 3 on the mower overall. These units are very popular here in KY with homeowners and landowners. They get a 50/50 on either you love them or hate them, but most people I know ride a gravely. At just 4800.00 the Ariens Unit, probably one of the Gravely HD's also, deserve a test drive.
Hustler offers some price point mowers, but I wouldn't have gone with anything under the FasTrack, and the deck gets a lot of complaints on shoddy cutting, so I just bounced them from my list without even a test ride.
Anything with a Briggs and Stratton engine will tend to be a little cheaper, but I chose the Briggs engine and don't notice any issues with it's performance on my mower. No bogging or etc. Everything I own has a Briggs engine, so I don't worry that much about it just for weekly mowing.
My main concerns were, I wanted a foot operated deck lift and reset system, somewhat comfy seat, 3 year or better warranty, fabricated deck, good engine, close to a 50" cut, and a GOOD DEALER!
I was able to find that with the Scag. Gravely and Ariens also offer these options for about the same price.
Hope that helps some.
