Turf Tiger II vs Tiger Cat

[jekjr]

Monday we had the opportunity to run a new Turf Tiger II for a few hours. We were on a large property and ran it with two Tiger Cats.

The Tiger Cats in my opinion and one of my workers as well had a better cut than the Turf Tiger II. Obviously the Turf Tiger with the 61"deck wold cover more ground than the Tiger Cat with a 52" deck but the cut was not better.

Also cutting areas where the ground was rough or there were tight places the Tiger Cat is much faster because it is so quick and maneuverable compared to the turf Tiger II.

I have demonstrated the Turf Tiger more than one time and own three Tiger Cats. In my opinion the difference in the two dollars wise is a waste of money. We cut incredible amounts of grass with the Tiger Cats and they are incredible when it comes to cutting grass.

I have never seen a mower that will cut stemmed grass like Pensacola Bahia as good as they will. We have very few problems overall with ours considering how hard they are run. My oldest if going on three years old and I run it daily myself. It has had to have some metal work done on the deck but I am satisfied with how it cuts.

 

[John R]

I looked at the Turf Tiger, and settled on the Tiger Cat II.
No regrets

 

[jekjr]

I looked at the Turf Tiger, and settled on the Tiger Cat II.
No regrets

I honestly can't see paying the extra dollars for the Turf Tiger. The Tiger Cat is an incredible cutting machine. I have run them side by side. Course our Tiger Cats have 52" decks. The Turf Tigers I have run all had 61" decks.

The Turf Tiger with the 61" deck will cover more ground in a day than the Tiger Cat with the 52". However the quality in my humble opinion is not quite as good.

We cut slightly over 4 acres Friday with two Tiger Cats in about an hour and a fifteen minutes. It was beautiful.

 

[55TBird]

Whether the higher cost of one machine vs. another is worth it would be determined over time wouldn't it? I just bought a 61" Turf Tiger II because I wanted this to be the last mower I ever owned. I did a lot of research and the most compelling was that a significant majority of professionals seem to be hauling Turf Tigers on their trailers. My last mower lasted 13 years but I spent a lot on maintenance and repairs. In fact, I had to spent $2,000 on repairs before I could mow for the first time this year. After the first mowing it wouldn't start. I had had enough and fortunately could now afford to buy the mower I wanted.

My old mower (not a Scag) cost half of what a Turf Tiger costs but in the end I thought I wasted a ton of money buying less mower than I should have. I believe you get what you pay for, especially with equipment.

I'm sure a Tiger Cat is a helluva good mower, but I'm certainly not going to say I wasted my money buying a Turf Tiger. Time will tell I suppose.

 

[jekjr]

Whether the higher cost of one machine vs. another is worth it would be determined over time wouldn't it? I just bought a 61" Turf Tiger II because I wanted this to be the last mower I ever owned. I did a lot of research and the most compelling was that a significant majority of professionals seem to be hauling Turf Tigers on their trailers. My last mower lasted 13 years but I spent a lot on maintenance and repairs. In fact, I had to spent $2,000 on repairs before I could mow for the first time this year. After the first mowing it wouldn't start. I had had enough and fortunately could now afford to buy the mower I wanted.

My old mower (not a Scag) cost half of what a Turf Tiger costs but in the end I thought I wasted a ton of money buying less mower than I should have. I believe you get what you pay for, especially with equipment.

I'm sure a Tiger Cat is a helluva good mower, but I'm certainly not going to say I wasted my money buying a Turf Tiger. Time will tell I suppose.

I do not think it is a waste of money really but we run Three Tiger Cats and cut an incredible amount of grass. After using the Tiger Cats for hundreds of hours I honestly can't see how the Turf Tiger is that much better.

I have a friend that has a Tiger Cub which is the mower that they made before the Tiger Cat that is like 20 years old and still does an incredible job.

 

[Sweats]

I just have to wonder if the Turf Tiger wouldn't hold up to tough conditions, such as lousy terrain and abusive operators, better than the Tiger Cat series. I wonder this because although my Tiger Cat II seems pretty resilient to the hell I've presented it thusfar, it's a new machine and eventually, fatigue HAS to become an issue. One answer is to just go slower. Sure, I'm already trying to do that, but what if it was built more stout, could I push it a little, and that's where the question of whether to go with the Cat or the Tiger comes into play. Can a Turf Tiger withstand abuse, whatever the cause, better than the Cat? Probably, I think.

 

[55TBird]

I do not think it is a waste of money really but we run Three Tiger Cats and cut an incredible amount of grass. After using the Tiger Cats for hundreds of hours I honestly can't see how the Turf Tiger is that much better.

I have a friend that has a Tiger Cub which is the mower that they made before the Tiger Cat that is like 20 years old and still does an incredible job.

When mowing is your business and equipment is a big expense you have to weigh the cost against the benefit. You obviously know what works best for you because you are doing it every day. Since mowing isn't a business for me, the cost would only be a factor if I couldn't afford it. Luckily I have reached the point in my life where I can buy the mower I have always wanted. And I have always wanted a Turf Tiger. When you look at the Tiger Cat and the Turf Tiger they are very similar high-end Scags and if I had not had my sights set on a TT and had compared and tested both models, I may have bought a Tiger Cub. It's not too different from my younger days, wanting a Chevelle SS with stripes when a Malibu would do the same job for a little less money. And, I'm not ashamed to admit that I've always loved the tiger stripe fenders.

 

[Sweats]

Well stated. Good luck.

 

[jekjr]

I just have to wonder if the Turf Tiger wouldn't hold up to tough conditions, such as lousy terrain and abusive operators, better than the Tiger Cat series. I wonder this because although my Tiger Cat II seems pretty resilient to the hell I've presented it thusfar, it's a new machine and eventually, fatigue HAS to become an issue. One answer is to just go slower. Sure, I'm already trying to do that, but what if it was built more stout, could I push it a little, and that's where the question of whether to go with the Cat or the Tiger comes into play. Can a Turf Tiger withstand abuse, whatever the cause, better than the Cat? Probably, I think.

I honestly do not know if they will or not. I know that the ones we run have been gone through some mighty tough situations and do so daily. Rough ground, most grass we cut in our area is on 2 week schedules and therefore it is hard running. I have seen Tiger Cats cutting bahia grass that was so tall that it came out the discharge rolling instead of blowing out and they still cut it slick in one pass.

I have never cut that tall of grass with a Turf Tiger but would think it will do the same thing.

I know we ran Kubota mowers to start with and none of the ones I had would cut tall grass clean in one pass. I am not sure about many of the others. I would like to see a Bob Cat in those conditions because some of our competitors run them and the do a good job as well as some of the Hustlers I have seen.