Hi guys been lurking here for weeks debating what my new mower would be and I want to thank everyone as I found a lot of helpful advice here in making my decision.
I moved from a nice little place by a state park that sat on one and a half acres so my old mowers were adequate. For 26 years I used a 1986 Bolens hydrostatic tractor with a 48 inch deck, that was thrown into the deal when I moved back from Washington DC and bought my first house. That mower was supplemented in the fall by attaching a cyclone rake. Great mower but pretty slow. We moved out by the park in '94 and I continued using the Bolens but was lusting a zero turn a neighbor had. I made the mistake of mentioning to my wife that I wanted to get a zero turn about 14 years ago, just a couple weeks before Fathers day. My intent was for me to go get what I wanted but she and the kids jumped the gun, went out to Sears and got me a Craftsman ZT7500 without asking exactly what I was thinking. Not what I would have bought... but what can you do, it was a Father's day present. So you smile, say thank you and make it work. lol And with all the trees I had and thin grass due to all the shade, really it has been pretty good, until the move.
With the new place I now have a good excuse to step up. Its a 25 acre mini farm. 12 acres tillable, woods and pond and about 7 to 8 acres needing mowing. That old Craftsman gets hot and is choking on the grass here, had to mow at a crawl and frequently stop and back up before it stalled out. It flat out could not handle the job anymore. After a lot of research here and elsewhere I decided to step up to the Scag Cheetah, 61 inch, FX850 Kawasaki Engine. It was delivered yesterday and all I can say is WOW. It moves fast and handles even the heavy grass without a hitch. I plan to head out shortly and finish the job today, clearly this will cut my time on the lawn by many hours, I am delighted. Thanks guys for your sage comments.
I moved from a nice little place by a state park that sat on one and a half acres so my old mowers were adequate. For 26 years I used a 1986 Bolens hydrostatic tractor with a 48 inch deck, that was thrown into the deal when I moved back from Washington DC and bought my first house. That mower was supplemented in the fall by attaching a cyclone rake. Great mower but pretty slow. We moved out by the park in '94 and I continued using the Bolens but was lusting a zero turn a neighbor had. I made the mistake of mentioning to my wife that I wanted to get a zero turn about 14 years ago, just a couple weeks before Fathers day. My intent was for me to go get what I wanted but she and the kids jumped the gun, went out to Sears and got me a Craftsman ZT7500 without asking exactly what I was thinking. Not what I would have bought... but what can you do, it was a Father's day present. So you smile, say thank you and make it work. lol And with all the trees I had and thin grass due to all the shade, really it has been pretty good, until the move.
With the new place I now have a good excuse to step up. Its a 25 acre mini farm. 12 acres tillable, woods and pond and about 7 to 8 acres needing mowing. That old Craftsman gets hot and is choking on the grass here, had to mow at a crawl and frequently stop and back up before it stalled out. It flat out could not handle the job anymore. After a lot of research here and elsewhere I decided to step up to the Scag Cheetah, 61 inch, FX850 Kawasaki Engine. It was delivered yesterday and all I can say is WOW. It moves fast and handles even the heavy grass without a hitch. I plan to head out shortly and finish the job today, clearly this will cut my time on the lawn by many hours, I am delighted. Thanks guys for your sage comments.
