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New Scag Owner!
#1
M
mormonsniper
M
mormonsniper
Purchased today. 2013 Turf Tiger. 29hp Kawasaki. Water/liquid cooled. 61 inc cut. <200 hours on the meter. ROPS. It still has about a year's worth of warranty left. $9000.00. I hope I didn't pay too much. Any recommendations?
#2
P
plateauman57
P
plateauman57
Sounds like a good deal to me. I have almost the same machine with same hours and Was thinking of selling mine for that and it's not liquid cooled. Going to go smaller is the only reason I'm selling.
#3
M
Mad Mackie
If you need manuals for this machine, they are available on the Scag website. Kawasaki manuals are available at kawpower.com.
If your Scag has been previously registered with Scag, the warranty is not transferable. I'm not sure about the engine warranty, you need to check in the Kawi owners manual.
Mad Mackie in CT:laughing::biggrin::smile:
M
Mad Mackie
Purchased today. 2013 Turf Tiger. 29hp Kawasaki. Water/liquid cooled. 61 inc cut. <200 hours on the meter. ROPS. It still has about a year's worth of warranty left. $9000.00. I hope I didn't pay too much. Any recommendations?
If you need manuals for this machine, they are available on the Scag website. Kawasaki manuals are available at kawpower.com.
If your Scag has been previously registered with Scag, the warranty is not transferable. I'm not sure about the engine warranty, you need to check in the Kawi owners manual.
Mad Mackie in CT:laughing::biggrin::smile:
#4
M
mormonsniper
M
mormonsniper
I'm not sure if it was registered. I also think the Kawasaki engine may be a 26hp instead of a 29hp. The unit was used comercially for less than a year I think. I'm just going to use it for my lawn
and to help out the other folks (older than eve ne) that may need help with their lawn. I think I have all the manuals. Chasing down OEM parts on the internet has been a challenge. I am fortunate I
have a repair facility with in about 3 miles. All I want is to have a few emergency parts on hand (belts, plugs, blades and so on).
and to help out the other folks (older than eve ne) that may need help with their lawn. I think I have all the manuals. Chasing down OEM parts on the internet has been a challenge. I am fortunate I
have a repair facility with in about 3 miles. All I want is to have a few emergency parts on hand (belts, plugs, blades and so on).
#5
M
Mad Mackie
M
Mad Mackie
You will need some tools to do blade changes and the front of the machine will need to raised up to do blade changes and under deck cleaning. I have a Mojack Pro ZTR jack that stays with my Hustler X-ONE. In my own shop I have a pit for auto/small truck repair and I use it to do the maintenance on my Scag Tiger Cub or customer machines.
The blade bolts go up thru the center of the spindles and they are at least 9.5" long and the nut on the top is torqued to 75 FTLBs. No matter what make of ZTR one has, blade replacement requires raising up the machine to get underneath for blade replacement.
Mad Mackie in CT:laughing::biggrin::smile:
The blade bolts go up thru the center of the spindles and they are at least 9.5" long and the nut on the top is torqued to 75 FTLBs. No matter what make of ZTR one has, blade replacement requires raising up the machine to get underneath for blade replacement.
Mad Mackie in CT:laughing::biggrin::smile:
#6
M
mormonsniper
M
mormonsniper
The fella I bought it from had it up on an automotive floor jack putting sharpened blades on the mower before he gave it to me. Saw him use an impact wrench to get the blades on with the bolt. The mower is a beast at 1350 pounds.
I will be a few hours on it learning how to drive it properly. I was able to do my 1 acre yard very quickly. I am pleased with it's speed and performance. The 61 inch cut is very good. I don't have to mow at 10 miles an hour to get the yard
done. The mower does need cleaning up. I've read that simple green is effective... and a good scrubbing along with it.
I will be a few hours on it learning how to drive it properly. I was able to do my 1 acre yard very quickly. I am pleased with it's speed and performance. The 61 inch cut is very good. I don't have to mow at 10 miles an hour to get the yard
done. The mower does need cleaning up. I've read that simple green is effective... and a good scrubbing along with it.
#7
M
Mad Mackie
M
Mad Mackie
Removing the blade bolt nuts with an air impact tool is OK, installing them with the same tool, not good!!!
#8
D
dnewton3
D
dnewton3
Welcome to the fold ...
I think you got a decent deal, but you also probably overbought. That much HP with liq cooling and a 61" deck for 1 acre? You probably could have got a smaller unit and saved money, and still be done quickly. I don't think you got ripped off by any means, but you have a lot of mower and maintenance that you'll not need. But, the deed is done, and if you're happy, that's what matters the most to you. Congratulations!
I think you got a decent deal, but you also probably overbought. That much HP with liq cooling and a 61" deck for 1 acre? You probably could have got a smaller unit and saved money, and still be done quickly. I don't think you got ripped off by any means, but you have a lot of mower and maintenance that you'll not need. But, the deed is done, and if you're happy, that's what matters the most to you. Congratulations!
#9
M
mormonsniper
M
mormonsniper
I've mowed my yard three times and my neighbors once. So far, I like it! I am still learning. The controls are pretty sensitive when compared to using a lawn tractor with a steering wheel. The 61 inch cut is the bomb. Any larger would be a problem I think. I am not worried about the maintenance. I enjoy making sure it is done. I'm getting ready to retire so I will have time to piddle. The mower is not critical to my income so all I really have to do is make sure it doesn't get torn up. Eventually someone will get a nice mower. Lets hope they take care of it after I'm done! :laughing:
ms
ms
#10
D
dnewton3
D
dnewton3
My comment about maintenance wasn't really about your time in the garage; being retired and having time to piddle about is a thing I yearn for! Allow me to clarify ...
I was commenting on two things. Maintenance and the relative cost of time.
The cost and efforts related specifically to liquid cooled equipment are one point of contention. At some point, you'll have coolant changes to deal with and hoses to change. Even some day, perhaps a water pump. The tight confines of the ZTRs make for some of this to be a PITB. And it all costs a lot more money versus the alternative. Certainly L/C engines tend to last a bit longer, and are a tad quieter, and can even be a bit more fuel efficient because they can run just a bit leaner. But a/c engines do very well, and generally take nothing more than plugs and oil/filter changes. L/C engines have those, but also have a whole host of stuff on top of it. Granted, you'll not have to change coolant every year, but eventually coolant and hoses and a pump will come due. Also, unless you're proactive and change out stuff before failure, L/C equipment has the ability to strand you. Never has an a/c engine stranded someone soley based upon a loss of cooling! I can see the value in L/C engines in commercial use. But your stated use (part time = not commercial) and smaller acreage just don't justify the "need" for L/C equipment. IMO, the efforts and risk outweigh the reward.
Also, your initial indication was you'd mow a 1 acre lot, but now you say you may do a bit more. I'll calculate on 1 acre and we can move out from there. The time difference saved by having a 61" deck versus a 52" deck is almost inconsequential when only mowing an acre or two. And as you said, you're retired, so it's not really fair to claim that you have infinite time for maintenance, but not for mowing ... if you have time to piddle, then you can piddle in the seat (no pun intended) as well as in the garage. But buying this much larger unit versus a decent TC with air cooled engine and 52" deck cost you big money. I estimate you could have got a smaller a/c powered unit for perhaps $2000 less. That's a big chunk of money that may only mean a savings of a few minutes worth of cut time per week.
Let's do some math on cut time.
- We'll presume an average speed of 5mph = 440 ft/min.
- If you were to mow 1 acre square, that's a tad under 44,000 square feet, so I based my calculation on a lot of 210'x210'.
The difference between a 61" mower deck and a 52" mower deck would only mean the bigger unit make only 8 fewer passes; it would be done 4 minutes sooner. That's it; just 4 minutes. Aren't you the guy that has time to piddle? For every acre you mow, you'll only save about 4 minutes with the larger deck for your 1 acre lot. Even if you are mowing for someone else, and add a few more acres (now mowing 3 acres), you'd only get done about 12 minutes quicker with the bigger deck. But you spent about $2000 to get a bigger deck to get done early? For a commerical operation running several crews serving many accounts over hundreds of acres, that means a lot. But for a guy who has time to piddle, is it worth two thouand bucks to get your own lawn done 4 minutes sooner?
So you purchased a unit that will cost a lot more money to maintain, and then you paid $2000 to get done 4 minutes early/acre each week, when you already have piddle time to spare anyway. That is why I said you overbought. I'm not tyring to pick on you or make you feel bad about the purchase. I hope I haven't offended you; that's not my intent. But perhaps this is a lesson that someone else could learn from? Maybe someone is out there trying to decide what to buy, and they can apply some calculations and find what would be a best fit for them?
As I said before, considering what you bought didn't get you ripped off; it was a fair purchase for the unit you now have.
And I also said, what matters most is that you're happy. Again, congratulations.
I was commenting on two things. Maintenance and the relative cost of time.
The cost and efforts related specifically to liquid cooled equipment are one point of contention. At some point, you'll have coolant changes to deal with and hoses to change. Even some day, perhaps a water pump. The tight confines of the ZTRs make for some of this to be a PITB. And it all costs a lot more money versus the alternative. Certainly L/C engines tend to last a bit longer, and are a tad quieter, and can even be a bit more fuel efficient because they can run just a bit leaner. But a/c engines do very well, and generally take nothing more than plugs and oil/filter changes. L/C engines have those, but also have a whole host of stuff on top of it. Granted, you'll not have to change coolant every year, but eventually coolant and hoses and a pump will come due. Also, unless you're proactive and change out stuff before failure, L/C equipment has the ability to strand you. Never has an a/c engine stranded someone soley based upon a loss of cooling! I can see the value in L/C engines in commercial use. But your stated use (part time = not commercial) and smaller acreage just don't justify the "need" for L/C equipment. IMO, the efforts and risk outweigh the reward.
Also, your initial indication was you'd mow a 1 acre lot, but now you say you may do a bit more. I'll calculate on 1 acre and we can move out from there. The time difference saved by having a 61" deck versus a 52" deck is almost inconsequential when only mowing an acre or two. And as you said, you're retired, so it's not really fair to claim that you have infinite time for maintenance, but not for mowing ... if you have time to piddle, then you can piddle in the seat (no pun intended) as well as in the garage. But buying this much larger unit versus a decent TC with air cooled engine and 52" deck cost you big money. I estimate you could have got a smaller a/c powered unit for perhaps $2000 less. That's a big chunk of money that may only mean a savings of a few minutes worth of cut time per week.
Let's do some math on cut time.
- We'll presume an average speed of 5mph = 440 ft/min.
- If you were to mow 1 acre square, that's a tad under 44,000 square feet, so I based my calculation on a lot of 210'x210'.
The difference between a 61" mower deck and a 52" mower deck would only mean the bigger unit make only 8 fewer passes; it would be done 4 minutes sooner. That's it; just 4 minutes. Aren't you the guy that has time to piddle? For every acre you mow, you'll only save about 4 minutes with the larger deck for your 1 acre lot. Even if you are mowing for someone else, and add a few more acres (now mowing 3 acres), you'd only get done about 12 minutes quicker with the bigger deck. But you spent about $2000 to get a bigger deck to get done early? For a commerical operation running several crews serving many accounts over hundreds of acres, that means a lot. But for a guy who has time to piddle, is it worth two thouand bucks to get your own lawn done 4 minutes sooner?
So you purchased a unit that will cost a lot more money to maintain, and then you paid $2000 to get done 4 minutes early/acre each week, when you already have piddle time to spare anyway. That is why I said you overbought. I'm not tyring to pick on you or make you feel bad about the purchase. I hope I haven't offended you; that's not my intent. But perhaps this is a lesson that someone else could learn from? Maybe someone is out there trying to decide what to buy, and they can apply some calculations and find what would be a best fit for them?
As I said before, considering what you bought didn't get you ripped off; it was a fair purchase for the unit you now have.
And I also said, what matters most is that you're happy. Again, congratulations.
#11
M
mormonsniper
M
mormonsniper
Yep way too much mower for my little yard. It use to take me some 3 hours or more to mow with my old Craftsman 46" tractor. I'm down to maybe a little over an hour AND I'm enjoying it. This wouldn't be the first time I've overbought.
There are a lot of things I have that I really don't need, but that's ok. I think as long as you are having fun then it really doesn't make any difference. Got to help my neighbor with her yard down the road. Her push mower went belly up after only two weeks. I like working on things. I've been in maintenance for over 35 years, mostly test equipment and biomedical equipment. I'm still trying to decide on retirement. I found a job I'd do for free and they're paying me to do it. It will be tough to retire, but I also know that it would give a younger guy with a family an excellent way to earn a living. I've been the old man of the shop before. Rolling around on the floor in the shop or heading up to surgery to help out with a kidney stone operation just isn't very exciting anymore... fluids on the floor and so on. The mower is great and works very well. I'll run it until I get too old and then let someone else cut my grass.
Blessings to all,
ms
There are a lot of things I have that I really don't need, but that's ok. I think as long as you are having fun then it really doesn't make any difference. Got to help my neighbor with her yard down the road. Her push mower went belly up after only two weeks. I like working on things. I've been in maintenance for over 35 years, mostly test equipment and biomedical equipment. I'm still trying to decide on retirement. I found a job I'd do for free and they're paying me to do it. It will be tough to retire, but I also know that it would give a younger guy with a family an excellent way to earn a living. I've been the old man of the shop before. Rolling around on the floor in the shop or heading up to surgery to help out with a kidney stone operation just isn't very exciting anymore... fluids on the floor and so on. The mower is great and works very well. I'll run it until I get too old and then let someone else cut my grass.
Blessings to all,
ms
#12
C
Champ
I'm with you. Just " over bought" a New Tiger Cat that I probably don't need to do what I'm doing. Love the fact that it is one of the best. Makes me feel good just looking at it. Enjoy.
C
Champ
Yep way too much mower for my little yard. It use to take me some 3 hours or more to mow with my old Craftsman 46" tractor. I'm down to maybe a little over an hour AND I'm enjoying it. This wouldn't be the first time I've overbought.
There are a lot of things I have that I really don't need, but that's ok. I think as long as you are having fun then it really doesn't make any difference. Got to help my neighbor with her yard down the road. Her push mower went belly up after only two weeks. I like working on things. I've been in maintenance for over 35 years, mostly test equipment and biomedical equipment. I'm still trying to decide on retirement. I found a job I'd do for free and they're paying me to do it. It will be tough to retire, but I also know that it would give a younger guy with a family an excellent way to earn a living. I've been the old man of the shop before. Rolling around on the floor in the shop or heading up to surgery to help out with a kidney stone operation just isn't very exciting anymore... fluids on the floor and so on. The mower is great and works very well. I'll run it until I get too old and then let someone else cut my grass.
Blessings to all,
ms
I'm with you. Just " over bought" a New Tiger Cat that I probably don't need to do what I'm doing. Love the fact that it is one of the best. Makes me feel good just looking at it. Enjoy.
#13
RedEyedRooster
RedEyedRooster
I also just bought a Scag 4/23/14, but I bought a Tiger Cat 52" with Kaw FX691V motor for $8000.00 after taxes. I mow 4.5 acres that is hilly and was worried I bought to small but have to say I'm impressed. Never drove a zero turn before and haven't mowed this year (grass between 5-9 inch) till I brought it home. I asked for some hearing protection for Christmas sense I cut wood for supplemental heat and ended up getting a pair of Howard Leight AM/FM radio ear muffs. So put about 2.5 gal. of gas in each side, put on my ear protection and took off. First I was going to go around the house (being lazy) then thought I'll just do the front yard (went pretty fast) then might as well do the back. Radio said rain tomorrow so I'll go around the barn, well might as well do the other half of the property where I planted 40 trees 5 years ago. It probably took 2hrs (guessing) not knowing what i was doing (I looked like Tony Stewart on a dirt track coming around those trees) grass was high in areas but never bogged down and yard has no clumps at all, amazing. I did use one side of the gas tanks ( full throttle @ 2hr stopping to pick up branches over 2" diameter) Now I'm looking at fertilizing my yard where before thought I couldn't keep up with the growth, lol. Man you all probably know but the hearing protection really made a difference ( I had a apple tree rake them off my ear once and couldn't wait to get them back in place). Really am impressed with the power, speed, and quality of cut with this unit.
#14
M
mormonsniper
Excellent! You mow a lot more than I do. I wear close fitting sunglasses because I wear contacts. I wear a boonie had and hearing protection. My Turf Tiger has the FD791D motor. I use about a gallon or so an acre (one cut of my yard). Much better gas mileage than my old Craftsman that had a 3.5 gallon tank. Now I look forward to mowing. We need some more rain here and I need to fertilize again.
M
mormonsniper
I also just bought a Scag 4/23/14, but I bought a Tiger Cat 52" with Kaw FX691V motor for $8000.00 after taxes. I mow 4.5 acres that is hilly and was worried I bought to small but have to say I'm impressed. Never drove a zero turn before and haven't mowed this year (grass between 5-9 inch) till I brought it home. I asked for some hearing protection for Christmas sense I cut wood for supplemental heat and ended up getting a pair of Howard Leight AM/FM radio ear muffs. So put about 2.5 gal. of gas in each side, put on my ear protection and took off. First I was going to go around the house (being lazy) then thought I'll just do the front yard (went pretty fast) then might as well do the back. Radio said rain tomorrow so I'll go around the barn, well might as well do the other half of the property where I planted 40 trees 5 years ago. It probably took 2hrs (guessing) not knowing what i was doing (I looked like Tony Stewart on a dirt track coming around those trees) grass was high in areas but never bogged down and yard has no clumps at all, amazing. I did use one side of the gas tanks ( full throttle @ 2hr stopping to pick up branches over 2" diameter) Now I'm looking at fertilizing my yard where before thought I couldn't keep up with the growth, lol. Man you all probably know but the hearing protection really made a difference ( I had a apple tree rake them off my ear once and couldn't wait to get them back in place). Really am impressed with the power, speed, and quality of cut with this unit.
Excellent! You mow a lot more than I do. I wear close fitting sunglasses because I wear contacts. I wear a boonie had and hearing protection. My Turf Tiger has the FD791D motor. I use about a gallon or so an acre (one cut of my yard). Much better gas mileage than my old Craftsman that had a 3.5 gallon tank. Now I look forward to mowing. We need some more rain here and I need to fertilize again.