I moved onto a 6 acre hobby farm last year and I bought a self propelled push mower. It's nice but it's a 3 hour job and I'm getting tired of it. Right now roughly 10-15% of my property is lawn and I want to expand that.
I need help choosing a riding mower. How many HP? What engine make? Who's got the best mower?
With 6 acres, I think you are going to want to look at a compact tractor. You can get them with a backhoe and loader, and any other 3pt attachments you might need. Very versatile, and worth the investment. The things you can accomplish when you go with a tractor over a lawn mower are mind boggling. :thumbsup:
Great place to read about them is over on tractorbynet.
A zero turn is the way to go. I cant say mine in the best to get but mowing at 4 miles an hour and zipping around trees is a time saver. Your three hours will go doun to less than one hour. I have a club cadet Tank. I have had few problems with it in the past 8 years and they have all been small ones. Never had to take mine into the dealer. I have a prob with the mower clutch at the moment but I am sure it will be a easy fix.
In choosing a mower... A lot has to do with how you feel about mowing...
I have always 'kind of' enjoyed mowing.. I have to admit since getting great reliable equipment I enjoy it a LOT more...
I think anyone that sort of likes mowing is going to like their mower.
Those that tend to dread mowing may not like theirs so much...
... If your happy with your mower... clap your hands.... Ha ha:biggrin:
Always try to enjoy the things you have to do...
and look forward for to the things you don't have to do... :smile:KennyV
#8
173abn
I would test drive several models to see which is more suited to your taste. Looks like you like kubota so I'd start there. I bought a ZTR front deck Grasshopper this spring and am mowing more than I probably have to but as Kenny says I like mowing and on a good machine like it even more now. let us know what you decide on. russ
I moved onto a 6 acre hobby farm last year and I bought a self propelled push mower. It's nice but it's a 3 hour job and I'm getting tired of it. Right now roughly 10-15% of my property is lawn and I want to expand that.
I need help choosing a riding mower. How many HP? What engine make? Who's got the best mower
You need help choosing a riding mower. How many HP? What engine make? Who's got the best mower? All are good questions and all are of personal preference. As far as who has the best mower some will say JD others will tell you Exmark and the list goes on.
If what you have is a 3 hour job a good 44" to 54" ZTR would cut your time in half. Depending on the terrain you're trying to mow a good Wide Area Walk Behind mower could be a good choice. As far as Motor type Kohler or Kawasaki would be my two choices, personally I stay as far away from B&S motors as I can.
Please keep in mind that all the information I am giving you is my personal preference and what I personally run, A Cub Cadet 44" Z Force ZTR with a Kohler 20 hp V Twin and a Cub Cadet G1336 WB with a 13hp Kawasaki V twin and I'm mowing 51 lawns weekly for the last two years and have never had a problem with either.
I would start with a Cub Cadet with a 44" cut to start with. Nothing fancy. Once you're finished with how big you want your lawn to be and it's matured, upgrade to a John Deere. Unless you're satisfied with your Cub.
Look for whatever brand is best supported by a dealer in your area. There is no substitute for first hand parts and service. Avoid the big box stores, no service and no parts. :smile:
If you want to look forward to cutting the grass; get yourself a Kubota 3030 Cab with a mid mount mower, these tractors have Air, Heat and a Radio if you want. I have 2 acres and we cut other lots for people, I really enjoy cutting the grass. :smile: I had to use the 20hp Scott mower last week because my son had the trailer, I won't do that again, it's hot out in the sun.:laughing:. Kubota all the way.
#13
Semiretired
You don't mention how steep the ditch is or how long. If you get a yard tractor you're not going to be happy when you try to mow that ditch if it's very steep at all. A good size(60"-72") commercial zero turn with lug tires would be the way to go. They have a nice wide wheel stance and enough weight to keep them glued to the ground. And by buying a commercial grade you'll be able to replace or repair parts more easily. homeowner grade equipment just isn't going to stand up to 6 acres of mowing like a commercial mower will. They are also, as a general rule, not usually made for you to easily work on, which means it'll cost you more for repairs at a shop.If you can find a used Scag STHM like I use you'll have a mower that you'll never have to worry about rolling over, has plenty of power, and can easily be worked on yourself. I replaced the turf tires on mine with atv tires and it will go anywhere I want it to go. If you search around on ebay and craigslit you'll find used ones for sale. One more thing I should mention is how a zero will shorten your mowing time. I talked my neighbor into buying one a few years ago and he just couldn't believe how much time it saved him.
do not buy a cub cadet if it breaks u will wait up to 6 weekks or more for parts as they sold out to overseas. parts are hard to get and expensive.
i ownn 14 1/2 acres i mow over 7 weekly i use my woods zero turn. it is the quickest to mow with.
i also have a 5 foot 3 pint hitch mower but use it very rare.
i would uggest u purchase the new badboy zero turn with a 26 or 27 hp kohlor engine. briggs & stratton is a ggod engine but do not get one with the vanguard model. that engine is very hard to get parts for also.
i would also suggest the deck to be at least 50 inches or larger.
when u look for the best mower look at the deck as it is first to go bad. the bad doy mover and woods both have thick welded decks. cub cadet and some others are just tin. junk.
do not buy a cub cadet if it breaks u will wait up to 6 weekks or more for parts as they sold out to overseas. parts are hard to get and expensive.
when u look for the best mower look at the deck as it is first to go bad. the bad doy mover and woods both have thick welded decks. cub cadet and some others are just tin. junk.
As far as parts for the Cub Cadet goes as I said before I own three and any type of parts I've needed I've been able to get in a day. As far as that goes the only Part I've ever needed for any of my Cub Cadets was a stator and got it taken care of the same day it went bad and as far as being expensive any parts for most any mower will not be cheap.
You can also buy any of the CC zero turns or walk behind mowers with a welded or fabricated decks as you can with most mowers, and as far as there stamped decks being tin and Junk I would definitely disagree.
I've run stamped decks on a number of different mowers over the years and the only deck that I've ever replaced has been on a John Deere mower which I mite add I'll never own again.
It's more a question of how much money do you want to spend and how much time do you want to spend mowing. Since you live in Canada and you already have a tractor that you don't want to use for the lawn, I'm assuming that cost is not a big concern. Seems to me living that far north a mower is going to sit for half the year or more, so i would think about a diesel. Thinking about a diesel.... you may want to consider the make of the tractor and see if the manufacturer has a mower. Kubota is always a good choice especially if you have a Kubota tractor and have to visit the dealer anyway. John Deere is another. A zero turm radius mower is the fastest way to get the grass low. But there are higher operating/ mainenence cast as this is a hydraulic or hydrostatic system.
You can get enough mower at any home improvement center for 6 acres that is currently 10-20% grass, that's not alot of lawn especailly in Canada. That's only a little more than an acre so you could easily get away with 12 to 18 HP. I think any mower with a briggs or kohler motor will be fine. Just make sure there is an outlet near you where you can get belts and filters. Remember these gas engines are going to have problems if they are not properly stored during the winter months and poor maintenence will shorten the service life.
