SCAG Cheetah Review

[BE Ranch]

Honest review from a new SCAG Owner. Here is the review:

Previously owned (still do) a Toro Time Cutter 50". Way too small for a property I owned. It didn't cut the Bahia grass very well at all (usually had to go over it three times to get it cut). It was a rough ride and at 6 months the clutch got stuck and it caught on fire. This led me to look for something bigger. I ultimately purchased the SCAG Cheetah, 31HP Kawasaki, 60" mower.

I now have 10 hours on it. Here is the good/bad

Good:

- Best news it that it actually cuts the Bahia grass! First pass through the grass is gone, including some that was very tall.

- It is a beast. It cuts through tall grass, small trees, branches, etc very well. My property is largely bahia grass and I cut about 6-8 acres. It is bumpy with a lot of trees.

- Very powerful and the cutting clears the deck well?oes not get bogged down.

- It is definitely fast. Even on my rough terrain I can cut pretty quickly and get a lot done.

- Large fuel tank (15 gallons) is fantastic.

Negatives:

- I would prefer if the cuttings are smaller when leaving the cutter deck. For the taller grass and leaves I had to go back over the grass clippings on more than one occasion.

- The suspension wasn't as good as I expected. It is still a rough ride at times and I expected it to be a much smoother ride.

- Dusty, dirty ride! Expect to get 100% dirty if any of the area you will be cutting has dirt as a base layer. Each time I have gotten on it I have been filthy! It also then takes quite a bit of time afterward to clean it up.

- The control levers loosen while riding. I have found that I have to keep tightening the left control lever.

Not 100% what I expected but it does get the job done. It was tough to find a mower that can cut through Bahia grass?his one does it well so I will put up with the few negatives that it does have. I guess you can't have it all!

 

[zmister11]

Honest review from a new SCAG Owner. Here is the review:

Previously owned (still do) a Toro Time Cutter 50". Way too small for a property I owned. It didn't cut the Bahia grass very well at all (usually had to go over it three times to get it cut). It was a rough ride and at 6 months the clutch got stuck and it caught on fire. This led me to look for something bigger. I ultimately purchased the SCAG Cheetah, 31HP Kawasaki, 60" mower.

I now have 10 hours on it. Here is the good/bad

Good:

- Best news it that it actually cuts the Bahia grass! First pass through the grass is gone, including some that was very tall.

- It is a beast. It cuts through tall grass, small trees, branches, etc very well. My property is largely bahia grass and I cut about 6-8 acres. It is bumpy with a lot of trees.

- Very powerful and the cutting clears the deck well?oes not get bogged down.

- It is definitely fast. Even on my rough terrain I can cut pretty quickly and get a lot done.

- Large fuel tank (15 gallons) is fantastic.

Negatives:

- I would prefer if the cuttings are smaller when leaving the cutter deck. For the taller grass and leaves I had to go back over the grass clippings on more than one occasion.

- The suspension wasn't as good as I expected. It is still a rough ride at times and I expected it to be a much smoother ride.

- Dusty, dirty ride! Expect to get 100% dirty if any of the area you will be cutting has dirt as a base layer. Each time I have gotten on it I have been filthy! It also then takes quite a bit of time afterward to clean it up.

- The control levers loosen while riding. I have found that I have to keep tightening the left control lever.

Not 100% what I expected but it does get the job done. It was tough to find a mower that can cut through Bahia grass?his one does it well so I will put up with the few negatives that it does have. I guess you can't have it all!

Good review!

 

[Steve0853]

I have had a Scag Turf Tiger with 31 HP Kohler for a couple years, a Scag V-Ride 25 HP Kawasaki with 52 inch deck and also a Grasshopper 225 with a 25 HP Kohler for about 10 years. My comments are in BOLD.

Honest review from a new SCAG Owner. Here is the review:

Previously owned (still do) a Toro Time Cutter 50". Way too small for a property I owned. It didn't cut the Bahia grass very well at all (usually had to go over it three times to get it cut). It was a rough ride and at 6 months the clutch got stuck and it caught on fire. This led me to look for something bigger. I ultimately purchased the SCAG Cheetah, 31HP Kawasaki, 60" mower.

I now have 10 hours on it. Here is the good/bad

Good:

- Best news it that it actually cuts the Bahia grass! First pass through the grass is gone, including some that was very tall.

That IS good news, it's probably a function of new blades as well as having enough horsepower to really turn them.

- It is a beast. It cuts through tall grass, small trees, branches, etc very well. My property is largely bahia grass and I cut about 6-8 acres. It is bumpy with a lot of trees.

- Very powerful and the cutting clears the deck well? Does not get bogged down.

Yes. 31 REAL horsepower makes a big difference.


- It is definitely fast. Even on my rough terrain I can cut pretty quickly and get a lot done.

You now have a real sure fire commercial grade mower. The Time Cutter is basically a homeowner model. The Cheetahs will really cover the ground.


- Large fuel tank (15 gallons) is fantastic.
Turf Tiger only has a 10 gallon tank, but will cut all day with a full tank. Again that's just another sign that you have a sure fire commercial mower. Bad news....that's about $40.00 worth of gas to cut all day.
Negatives:

- I would prefer if the cuttings are smaller when leaving the cutter deck. For the taller grass and leaves I had to go back over the grass clippings on more than one occasion.

- The suspension wasn't as good as I expected. It is still a rough ride at times and I expected it to be a much smoother ride.

My TT is really rough, too, if the ground is not very smooth. My old Grasshopper rides like a 1960 Cadillac compared to the Turf Tiger. TT also has those heavy duty pumps, so it can be a little jumpy.

- Dusty, dirty ride! Expect to get 100% dirty if any of the area you will be cutting has dirt as a base layer. Each time I have gotten on it I have been filthy! It also then takes quite a bit of time afterward to clean it up.

That was true for both my Grasshopper and the Turf Tiger. Its a function of the big deck (Velocity 2?) and the power behind the blades.


- The control levers loosen while riding. I have found that I have to keep tightening the left control lever.

Not 100% what I expected but it does get the job done. It was tough to find a mower that can cut through Bahia grass?his one does it well so I will put up with the few negatives that it does have. I guess you can't have it all!

After 2 years, I think Scags are great. Any mower that can do one pass Bahia cutting is fabulous. Unless my blades are newly sharpened, I have to make two passes at Bahia most times.

 

[tigercat]

A note about dust.

Put a collection system on that baby. Now you have dust......:laughing:

 

[Mad Mackie]

No doubt about dust!!! I use my back pack blower to clean the dust of the machine and me before I get back into my van.
The amount of dust in the collection bags is amazing, the back pack blower is the only way to clean them up to an acceptable point!
Periodically I will use compressed air to clean my machines at home. Just bought a new 20 gallon air compressor as tank on my old one started rusting thru. It was only 30 years old, but I didn't drain is very often. The new compressor has a much easier to open drain valve, so maybe I'll drain it more often.
I have been much more aware of air compressor tank problems lately as a friend had his tank burst inside his backshop while his dad was there. The walls of the shop blew out and his elderly dad was seriously injured. A few miles away from me, a business had a compressor problem. A large, three phase air compressor tank burst, partially blowing the building apart, but burned the entire building down as the electrical power supply to the air compressor was damaged, shorting and causing a fire. Fortunately this happened at night as this business had a service garage, small restaurant and a package store all of which would have had people there during the day!
Mad Mackie in CT:laughing::biggrin::smile:

 

[mcdonell]

I have used my Cheetah for about 40 hours. It is a 61V deck with 27 hp Kawasaki. I really like the mower and it cuts well. Seems to have enough power but might could use a little more if I let the grass grow too tall. I sometimes have to slow down or cut a smaller path on the thick and high grass.

My only complaint is I have to stop to change mower height adjustment. Seems like there could be a better adjustment on the fly. Raising deck with pedal is difficult and inconsistent.

I cut my 3 acres is about 1.5 hours.

 

[Stargazr]

SCAG Cheetah 61" 34 HP Kohler Command Pro Review

OK, I'm 63 years, live in Louisiana, and cut 10 completely cleared acres of Bahiagrass, including around a house, large barn, garage, workshed, horse pasture, ditch, and stone driveway. Before purchasing the SCAG, I was using a 50" Cub Cadet RTZ 50 mower for edging and tight areas around the buildings, driveway, and ditch. I also have a Ford/New Holland Compact Diesel tractor, Model 1960 39HP to pull a PTO driven Countryline 60" finishing mower.
I'll give a comparison of my previous equipment vs. the SCAG.

Cutting time, speed;
Old equipment - 8 hours, max 5 mph (speed determined by iPhone app Speed Box, free at iTunes store) I OFTEN had to slow the tractor because of high/thick grass spots.
SCAG time - 3 hours 9-10 mph (I could cut faster, because the machine WAS NOT running at full speed) For the most of it, I only slowed down at a very FEW high spots.

Cut quality;
Old equipment - Fair. I would often have to go over some spots twice. This was a rear discharge finishing mower, so it ALWAYS left piles of hay as I cut.
SCAG - Very Good, but not perfect. The Bahiagrass is extremely resistant to cut, and it did leave SOME higher grass behind. It's a side discharge, I cut to the left, so it recuts the clippings as I go. NO HAY AT ALL left behind, so it looks much better.

Mower environment;
OLD equipment - very tiring to ride for 8 hours. Had to often look behind the mower to ensure the height settings didn't change causing the mower to be too high or too low. Tractor also sits up high, so avoiding tree branches was a constant issue.
SCAG - Very Good. Floating ride system definitely helps, but like BE RANCH stated, I also thought it would be better. Hitting branches and overhead items is now not an issue.

Noise;
Old equipment - Fairly loud. Tractor exhaust is located in the front, and into the air, near the operator seat. The finishing mower is being towed behind the tractor, so most of the noise is far enough away to not be an issue.
SCAG - LOUD. Everything is virtually a foot from you as you cut. The cutting system is loud, and the engine is not too loud, but it's very close to you.

Handling;
Old equipment - Poor Not maneuverable at all. Tractor ride is quite rough, had to watch my knees didn't get banged on the center console too. Shifting was a pain.
SCAG - Excellent. Like a dream come true. I have a Cub Cadet 50" ZT, and I always thought it turned well, but the SCAG has INCREDIBLE maneuverability. It' soooo fast too. I actually cannot run it wide open because my property is too rough.

Power;
Old equipment - Fair. I could only run at the recommended speed, or you will damage it. The entire setup was not very well suited for Bahia Grass cutting. it's 39 HP and had to power a 3500 pound tractor, and a 900 pound finishing mower.
SCAG - Excellent. 34HP EFI powering a 1300 pound mower leaves plenty of the power devoted to the cutting system.

In summary - It was a good investment. There are other mowers out there equally good, so I made my choice, with no regrets. Cutting my mowing time from 8 hours to 3 was the key for me. If you own a large piece of property and cut it, don't get ANYTHING but a commercial mower or you may regret it. By the way, the SCAG Cheetah 72" has the exact same frame, engine, everything as the 61", and the deck is so wide that even the dealer and distributor told me it's easy to hit things because its too wide and you tend to forget when using it.