New Forum member introduction

[BILRUD]

Hello, I don't know how much information you wanted about me an my mower. I have a Ferris IS700Z, an am very disappointed with it.
I am A retired Senior Master SGT.USAF, an Retired Farmer, an now a elected Arkansas Constable for my township. I live in the country
on farm five miles from town, an 3/4 mile from where I was borned 68 years ago an lived until I spread my wings got married an later Joined
the AR Army NG, after 8+years an Staff SGT. I decided to start over an joined the USAF. That was my calling, I retired with 29yr. 1mo.& 27 Days.
I also do backhoe an other work free of charge helping my Neighbors an Community.
I have L4800 Kubota, an IH 1486 tractor I have owned JD lawnmowers, an still have a 20 hp Murray an Dutch Allis, mower's they both have done a great job
an are still in good shape I keep them in shop one is 12yrs old an the other Allis 15 years old. I just wanted to upgrade to ZT an was told Ferris was the best
an was told by salesman when i questioned only two gauge wheels on deck! he said he guaranteed it would not Scalp,an stressed the 4 wheel suspension an heavy deck
an at the high price I believed him, after 2hrs of mowing I took it back an wanted to upgrade an pay more But owner said all sales final an that he didn't own the mowers
he just sold them for Ferris, an he would have call them an come out an mow an take pictures an send to them.I know according to AR. Law that was wrong. reguardless
of all sales final even if they had A sign which they didn't I wouldn't of bought anything there, but A Item is supposed to do what it was sold to do. But I just don't have the fight
left in me at age 68 to take them to court. In my Owners Manual it refers to a Roller on back of Deck which mine don't have It has a thick Rubber guard to keep anything from flying out back
which the salesman told me it was to smooth grass out, I DIDN'T think at the time there is no grass to smooth at the back its already been thrown out the side shout!!
well I probably give more info than you wanted to hear.
BILRUD

 

[Shughes717]

Hello, I don't know how much information you wanted about me an my mower. I have a Ferris IS700Z, an am very disappointed with it.
I am A retired Senior Master SGT.USAF, an Retired Farmer, an now a elected Arkansas Constable for my township. I live in the country
on farm five miles from town, an 3/4 mile from where I was borned 68 years ago an lived until I spread my wings got married an later Joined
the AR Army NG, after 8+years an Staff SGT. I decided to start over an joined the USAF. That was my calling, I retired with 29yr. 1mo.& 27 Days.
I also do backhoe an other work free of charge helping my Neighbors an Community.
I have L4800 Kubota, an IH 1486 tractor I have owned JD lawnmowers, an still have a 20 hp Murray an Dutch Allis, mower's they both have done a great job
an are still in good shape I keep them in shop one is 12yrs old an the other Allis 15 years old. I just wanted to upgrade to ZT an was told Ferris was the best
an was told by salesman when i questioned only two gauge wheels on deck! he said he guaranteed it would not Scalp,an stressed the 4 wheel suspension an heavy deck
an at the high price I believed him, after 2hrs of mowing I took it back an wanted to upgrade an pay more But owner said all sales final an that he didn't own the mowers
he just sold them for Ferris, an he would have call them an come out an mow an take pictures an send to them.I know according to AR. Law that was wrong. reguardless
of all sales final even if they had A sign which they didn't I wouldn't of bought anything there, but A Item is supposed to do what it was sold to do. But I just don't have the fight
left in me at age 68 to take them to court. In my Owners Manual it refers to a Roller on back of Deck which mine don't have It has a thick Rubber guard to keep anything from flying out back
which the salesman told me it was to smooth grass out, I DIDN'T think at the time there is no grass to smooth at the back its already been thrown out the side shout!!
well I probably give more info than you wanted to hear.
BILRUD

The rubber flap on the back is for striping. Striping is what happens when you mow back and forth and the deck lays the cut grass over in the direction you are mowing. That's what your dealer means by smoothing the grass. Sounds like the deck needs leveling. I have a snapper pro s150xt with the same deck and get a great cut. Mine is a 48" and has 4 anti scalping wheels.

 

[Shughes717]

Can you tell us the problems you are having that makes you disappointed with your zero turn mower? We may be able to help. Most of the time the problem with them is inexperience with ztr mowers. They are a completely different animal than tractor mowers. You own a good mower. There are several on here that have a lot of knowledge and are very helpful.

 

[BILRUD]

yes, the deck digs in anywhere the ground is not level, an back of deck drops down an blades scalp down to dirt when crossing a low spot or a low spor where water drains from Yard there's nothing on back of deck to prevent it my owners manual refers to the rollers on back of deck an shows a picture of rollers an how to lubricate them if I remember right, I have 11hrs on mower now I had thought of building brackets an installing them myself until I saw the rollers, can the rollers an bracket be purchased some where to fit my mower since it wasn't installed at factory?
No 2 complaint is the grass build up under Deck,it don't have a wash out connector on top of deck to hook water hose an wash out old grass at one spot under deck where grass should blow from deck there's a bolt sticking down where grass hangs at Hex bolt with threads protruding the nut it looks like it should of been a carriage bolt sticking through to top side with round side under deck,.


no3 do they make guage wheels that swivel like front tires do that would stop them from digging up dirt an grass when making sharp turns an ground not 100% level I think I seen one on a John Deere

 

[djdicetn]

yes, the deck digs in anywhere the ground is not level, an back of deck drops down an blades scalp down to dirt when crossing a low spot or a low spor where water drains from Yard there's nothing on back of deck to prevent it my owners manual refers to the rollers on back of deck an shows a picture of rollers an how to lubricate them if I remember right, I have 11hrs on mower now I had thought of building brackets an installing them myself until I saw the rollers, can the rollers an bracket be purchased some where to fit my mower since it wasn't installed at factory?
No 2 complaint is the grass build up under Deck,it don't have a wash out connector on top of deck to hook water hose an wash out old grass at one spot under deck where grass should blow from deck there's a bolt sticking down where grass hangs at Hex bolt with threads protruding the nut it looks like it should of been a carriage bolt sticking through to top side with round side under deck,.


no3 do they make guage wheels that swivel like front tires do that would stop them from digging up dirt an grass when making sharp turns an ground not 100% level I think I seen one on a John Deere

Most of this sounds like the deck height you are using when mowing. Have you jacked up the mower where you can see the underside of the deck completely?? Some decks(like my Gravely Pro-Turn 100 XDZ's X-Factor deck) have the rear anti-scalp wheels "inside" the deck at the rear rather than on the outside like most front anti-scalp weels. Yo may want to check to see if yours are located there. It's hard to believe that a ZTR made by a reputable brand like Ferris doesn't have rear anti-scalp wheels. Also, the anti-scalp wheels on the deck should almost never touch the ground and your description sounds like you are trying to cut the grass at like 1" or so:0( What type of grass do you have?? Have you tried raising the deck some to see if that helps the scalping?

Any ZTR mower owner has to deal with the grass buildup under the decks and the wash ports are not what they are cracked up to be. My own experience will testify that there really aren't any products available to spray the belly of the deck with that will effectively prevent the build up(spraying Pam cooking oil is an urban legend and I have tried teflon-based sprays to no avail). I can sy, though, that when I added a Gravely OEM mulch kit to my ZTR it reduced the build up by more than half and after installing a striping kit and raising my deck height by an additional inch to get a more pronounced striping effect it barely has any build up at all(takes me about 5-10 minutes with a putty knife with the deck raised to the highest setting to clean it out). So raising your cutting height may help the build up and if you want to invest in a mulch kit that would probably help some more. But the most common mistake people make is cutting their grass too short. Most types of grass need to be cut no shorter than 2.5"-3" and many feel like they will have to mow more often if they don't cut it short, but that's not the case. I have mostly fescue with some clover and a little bit of crabgrass and I mow at 3" and it looks great. I was mowing at 2" before installing the mulch kit and striping kit. You may also want to check your deck to ensure that it is level and has the correct pitch(most mfr's recommend that the front blade tip be 1/8"-1/4" lower than the rear blade tip(center blade facing North/South). Also make sure that the tire inflation is correct on all tires before checking/adjusting the deck leveling. I hope that you find some of this info helpful and can get your Ferris performing to your expectations!!!

 

[Shughes717]

yes, the deck digs in anywhere the ground is not level, an back of deck drops down an blades scalp down to dirt when crossing a low spot or a low spor where water drains from Yard there's nothing on back of deck to prevent it my owners manual refers to the rollers on back of deck an shows a picture of rollers an how to lubricate them if I remember right, I have 11hrs on mower now I had thought of building brackets an installing them myself until I saw the rollers, can the rollers an bracket be purchased some where to fit my mower since it wasn't installed at factory?
No 2 complaint is the grass build up under Deck,it don't have a wash out connector on top of deck to hook water hose an wash out old grass at one spot under deck where grass should blow from deck there's a bolt sticking down where grass hangs at Hex bolt with threads protruding the nut it looks like it should of been a carriage bolt sticking through to top side with round side under deck,.


no3 do they make guage wheels that swivel like front tires do that would stop them from digging up dirt an grass when making sharp turns an ground not 100% level I think I seen one on a John Deere

I agree with djdicetn. It sounds as though you you either have your anti scalp wheels too low or you are mowing too low. You can adjust the anti scalp wheels up to a higher setting if need be. They should only touch the ground if you hit a low place to prevent scalping. They should never touch the ground more than a few seconds. There are no rear anti scalping wheels, but as long as you are not going in reverse while mowing rough terrain it will make no difference. My lawn is rough as well, but I don't have an issue with scalping. The underside of the deck should be cleaned at least every 4th mowing. I clean mine every second mowing. Invest in a mow jack it will help. If you only have 11 hours on your mower and you have heavy build up under the deck then it sounds as though the grass is very wet, or you have the deck setting way too low causing dirt to build up with the grass. The icd deck is a very good cutting deck when set right. You may be causing divets when making zero turns as well. It takes some practice to make a zero turn without damaging the grass. You have to keep both back wheels moving. If you just push one lever forward then the inside tire will cause a nasty divet. The easiest way to make a zero turn is to stop at the end and back up just a little. As soon as you start rolling backwards pull one lever back and push the other forwards a little. That will alleviate most of your turf damage. Once you learn your mower you will see that it will cut faster and nicer than any mower you have ever had.

 

[djdicetn]

I agree with djdicetn. It sounds as though you you either have your anti scalp wheels too low or you are mowing too low. You can adjust the anti scalp wheels up to a higher setting if need be. They should only touch the ground if you hit a low place to prevent scalping. They should never touch the ground more than a few seconds. There are no rear anti scalping wheels, but as long as you are not going in reverse while mowing rough terrain it will make no difference. My lawn is rough as well, but I don't have an issue with scalping. The underside of the deck should be cleaned at least every 4th mowing. I clean mine every second mowing. Invest in a mow jack it will help. If you only have 11 hours on your mower and you have heavy build up under the deck then it sounds as though the grass is very wet, or you have the deck setting way too low causing dirt to build up with the grass. The icd deck is a very good cutting deck when set right. You may be causing divets when making zero turns as well. It takes some practice to make a zero turn without damaging the grass. You have to keep both back wheels moving. If you just push one lever forward then the inside tire will cause a nasty divet. The easiest way to make a zero turn is to stop at the end and back up just a little. As soon as you start rolling backwards pull one lever back and push the other forwards a little. That will alleviate most of your turf damage. Once you learn your mower you will see that it will cut faster and nicer than any mower you have ever had.

Thanks for the correction about the IS700Z NOT having rear anti-scalp wheels(I reserve the right to be wrong....and have been on occasion:0)

The OP can suppress the urge to chasten me about questioning his determination that it was missing rear anti-scalp wheels!! Is it possible that the Dealer gave him an Owners Manual that either was not for the IS700Z or maybe included other similar models that do have them(I am assuming you say that none of the ICD decks have rear anti-scalp wheels)? The rest of the details you provided are spot on and I agree if the OP checks/makes some adjustments to some of the things we pointed out that it should only take some tweaking in the right area to make him very happy with that Ferris.

I must say, though, the double-welded bracket front left and right anti-scalp wheels and the deck-underbelly centered dual wheels on the rear of my Gravely X-Factor deck were a major feature that swayed me to the Gravely. Like you stated, my front and rear anti-scalp wheel brackets have three holes to set the height. The manual recommends putting them in the topmost holes for all applications except the most severe hilly terrain. Scalping is one thing that I can honestly say is non-existent with my ZTR and to be honest the ICD deck(if none of them have the rear anti-scalp wheels) would have been somewhat of a turnoff for me if I were shopping ZTR's and looked at the Ferris. I got pretty decent at avoiding divots when doing a zero turn, but I began using the Y turn and have gotten used to changing directions that way. It is still a lot easier and quicker than the limited turning characteristics of a lawn tractor:0)

 

[Briana]

Welcome to LawnWorld! Sorry to hear about your mower troubles! Hopefully some of the guys here can help you out.

Take care.

:welcome:

 

[djdicetn]

Welcome to LawnWorld! Sorry to hear about your mower troubles! Hopefully some of the guys here can help you out.

Take care.

:welcome:

Soooooooooo.....Briana, when is your "Mower:" info gonna change from "Looking To Buy:0)"?? Or are you just trying to remain impartial to any specific brand????? Maybe if you tell us your requirements, we can make some purchase recommendations to you:0)

 

[Shughes717]

Thanks for the correction about the IS700Z NOT having rear anti-scalp wheels(I reserve the right to be wrong....and have been on occasion:0)

The OP can suppress the urge to chasten me about questioning his determination that it was missing rear anti-scalp wheels!! Is it possible that the Dealer gave him an Owners Manual that either was not for the IS700Z or maybe included other similar models that do have them(I am assuming you say that none of the ICD decks have rear anti-scalp wheels)? The rest of the details you provided are spot on and I agree if the OP checks/makes some adjustments to some of the things we pointed out that it should only take some tweaking in the right area to make him very happy with that Ferris.

I must say, though, the double-welded bracket front left and right anti-scalp wheels and the deck-underbelly centered dual wheels on the rear of my Gravely X-Factor deck were a major feature that swayed me to the Gravely. Like you stated, my front and rear anti-scalp wheel brackets have three holes to set the height. The manual recommends putting them in the topmost holes for all applications except the most severe hilly terrain. Scalping is one thing that I can honestly say is non-existent with my ZTR and to be honest the ICD deck(if none of them have the rear anti-scalp wheels) would have been somewhat of a turnoff for me if I were shopping ZTR's and looked at the Ferris. I got pretty decent at avoiding divots when doing a zero turn, but I began using the Y turn and have gotten used to changing directions that way. It is still a lot easier and quicker than the limited turning characteristics of a lawn tractor:0)

Everyone has their reasons for choosing the mowers they chose. I have never had a problem with scalping either and I don't have rear anti scalping wheels. The point I was attempting to make about the zero turn was to keep both back wheels moving. The y turn is also a good way to prevent divets.