Which Brand Zero Turn to Buy

[magnum308]

I am in the market for a zero turn mower deck 54" or bigger.

I have 5 acres, around 2 acres around the house and then the remainder (back block) 3 acres with some reasonable steep slopes and and can be a bit rough. So looking for advice on which is the best brand/make to do both lawn around the house and also the back block. Had a guy here (a commercial mower) with a less than 12 month old Hustler XD 54" but he broke an engine mount on my back block and said he won't mow that again. Never had that issue with others, one using a Gravely 48". But the guy with the Hustler, it's the second time he's broken an engine mount in its short life, previously on someone else's property. So I'm thinking it might be a Hustler issue not due my block.

Heard good things about Toro but aside from that I'm a novice. Had looked at Hustler at a farm show here (Darling Downs, Qld, Australia), but a bit weary of them now. Just want it as a "residential" mower to do my property, I'm not doing it commercially.

Oh, by the way I am in Queensland, Australia. So would appreciate some Aussie recommendations.

 

[Hal12]

Neither my snapper or the dixon (both 03') handle slopes that well. I read where none do on fairly steep hills. Has something to do with weight distrubtion. That being said I'd certainly want a model with good, close mechanical support. I did a chat on lowes the other day..wanted to know who services the mowers they sell. Didn't know...referred me to their warranty's dept where ever that is. I'm looking at a country clipper for next season. 48 inch cut..toggle steering. Store is 15 minutes from the house.

 

[7394]

FWIW: Warranty work after big box store purchase would go to closest authorized dealer. And since it wasn't initally bought there, they will not be in a rush to get to it imo.

 

[bertsmobile1]

Residential - Commercial is a design quality level
Residentials are designed to mow 2 hours a week for 30 weeks a year on average
Commercials are designed to mow 6 hours a day 5 days a week for 30 weeks a year so are substantially more robust.
Residentials are designed for a suburban level block
Commercials are designed to take whatever you throw at them .
Chalk & cheese so forget about buying a residential, you will kill it in no time flat, particularly if you have some branch dropping gum trees around the place .
5 acres is a lot to rake every time you want to mow
Where you are you probably mow every week all year round when not in drought so a commercial is worth the extra .
Being in Qld you might like to look at the Cox range as they are made down the road at Arcadia Ridge.
I do not know if their ZTR range are actually made in OZ line their tractors or a rebadged import as down in Sydney I am yet to lay hands on one .
The Z Master Toro is well worth the extra over the Time Cutter although I am not a fan of the kohler powered Titans as I have needed to drill out the jets on all 3 that I service to prevent lean burn overheating and it is a lot cooler hear than up there .
As others have warned, do not go to Bunnings or Mitre 10 and be a bit careful if buying through a stock & station agency as for instance they import Murray branded mowers direct from China that are total trash .
Slopes on ZTR's are a big problem from a stability point of view and if you get some thing with a vertical shaft engine also lack of oil flow causing siezures.
I am yet to find any Husqvarna that has a proper blade spindle , all too weak & prone to breaking .
Quality spindle housing have grease nipples so you can lubricate them or even tapered roller bearings so they can take the loads better
On 5 acres you should have space for a reasonable sized shed so my advice would be get a pair of mowers
We mow 1000 acres of pasture & orchards with a fleet of 2000 series Cub Cadet tractor style mowers that are now hitting 30 years old .
These are Commercial mowers, all bought used for under $ 1500 each.
Being in Qld you should be able to get your hands on some Greenfields Fast Cuts and that would be my choice for the rough stuff.
Swing back blades and standard belts so you are looking at $ 65 for a blade & belt kit comparred to $ 190 to $ 300 for any other mower with bar blades & kevlar belts
Disc drive costs $ 200 for new cork & bearings including labour , a hydro is $ 1000 just for the drop in pump/motor unit alone .
The Cox cone drive is about the same price and both of them will run forever .
I for one would be looking for a pair of old mowers
A second hand commercial mower will make light work of your yard in retirement.
Now if you want to spend money then go for a diesel powered commercial Deer or Kubota
Down side is most of the Deers run pressed metal decks but the advantage is all the other things you can do with it .
A used 2000 or 3000 series Cub Cadet is also worth looking at .
Don't get hyptomised by the big decks. They are fine for the flat or gently undulating but a disaster on the steep slopes or rough.
I have a 24" / 8Hp Cox Compact from 1984 that out cuts most 42" ZTR's because I know how to use it .
If you want local model specific information, I do answer private messages but general stuff should stay on the forum .

 

[magnum308]

Thanks for the responses and the great info. Perhaps a bit more details on my plans for this property, mowing wise.

My plan now is to get a mower for around the house (2-2.5 acres) and get a contractor in to do the back block (that's were the slopes and some rough areas are) 4 or 5 times a year. Here we're in the high country (600M elevation) on the Darling Downs and so winter lawn growth even if it's a wet winter is negligible. In fact, this year I mowed last before winter on 8 May (a cold winter here and early) and then the next mow was on 14 August. So there's around 3 months when there is very little, if any, mowing. Other times most often I usually mow no more frequently than fortnightly, but occasionally in a rainy season, weekly. This year has been a wet year but the total hours I have mowed (with a 54") from April 2020 to May 2021 was 34.2 hours. The house yard (incl our top block about ¾ acre and flat) is no more than 3 hours and more like 2.5 hours. Had a guy here this week to mow the house yard (incl the top block) with a Hustler XD 54" and he did it in 2 hours.

So really not looking for a mower to do slopes or rough stuff now.

 

[magnum308]

Just an explanation, my previous mowers are Cub Cadets LT1018 (42") and GT3200 (54"). Both use quite an amount of oil, 42" has a decompression device failure and the 54" diff/transmission has a cracked housing and leaking all the oil as well as needed an engine reconditioning (Kohler Command 25), the right cylinder badly using oil. So really don't was to spend serious money on either as they have both had plenty of work and a pretty hard life too by the looks of it.

 

[bertsmobile1]

Well that makes a big difference
If the 54" deck does the job without scalping all over the place then a ZTR is worth looking at
However I would still look at a commercial mower with the deck hanging on substantial chains with a solid stabilizer ( or two ) at the rear
A good thick fabricated deck is worth the extra
And again I would be looking at a commercial , used or new .
2.5 acres is a bit big for a fast cut unless you can find an old twin disc model .
Stay away from Husqvarna , yet to see one I would pay 2 bob for .
There is a reason why they are flooding the media with advertisements and it is not because they have more mowers than they know what to do with.
Toro Z master would be good, the bigger JD's , Scags tend to hold up but since they went to the "tiger eye" ( or similar ) management unit they should be avoided as they modules fail regularly and cost a fortune down here.
Same story for any model with a "no key" system. I make a small fortune ripping them out and replacing them with a standard keyed ignition.
again the modules go for $ 200 to $ 400 depending upon which one & some have failed in as little as 2 years.
kawakasi engines are lot more expensive parts wise than Kohlers which are dearer than Briggs but I no longer fit B & S engines because parts are impossible to get .
Have a good look at the layout particularly access to the oil filter which you will be changing annually as a lot are near impossible to get at and when you do will pour oil down all over the drive belts .
Watch the sales reps go white if you walk in with an oil filter wrench in your hand
JD's tend to be designed rather that tossed together from whatever parts are availible at the tim.
Make sure the hydros have replaceable filters any you can get to them.
Mowers with real brakes ( disc or drum ) will last better than those with brakes inside the drives as the brake material will contaminate the oil requiring frequent changing
Take the brake shoes to a motorcycle shop that repairs motorcycles and get a set for replacement as the came brakes for a motorcycle can be a cheap as $ 25 wheel while some of the mowers will charge you over $ 100 a wheel .
Finally get one with a 2 element Donaldson style air filter .
With the amount of mowing you do you will only need to replace the outer filter every 5 years.
The air filters on all domestic Kawakasis is shocking and leak dust like a sieve but luckily RGS do a conversion for FR & FS series engines.
Ariens/ Gravely are doing good deals to try & re-establish themselves but apart from the stander, not impressed with the quality of any of them.
If you want to catch then get a Walker best by a country mile but they do require a lot more maintenance that other brands because they are built better so have grease nipples every where .
The swing back blade deck is really great and gives an excellent cut

 

[magnum308]

Thanks all for your good comments and advice. As I have not been mowing due to two dead mowers I haven't been here for a bit. I have been using mowing contractors since then but have trouble with them usually at the end of winter, they go on to other things due to lack of business in winter here. I have that issue ATM. Had a "reliable" guy for a year or more but he's just up and left me high and dry just when I needed him. This is the biggest issue here they do this even as a business for a while but then go on to other things. So even with having our yard mowed, I still think I'll have my own mower just for times like this. Also when the lawn doesn't really need a mow but you need to tidy up a bit and pick up fallen leaves.

Not having used a ZTR previously and there is a chance that occasionally I might have to mow our back block with some significant slopes, I have been looking at the Cab cadet Z Force 54". They say the steering wheel (AKA 4 wheel steering) give it a greater capacity on slopes plus I wouldn't need the "learning curve" for the lap bar mowers. I also note that these mowers are a step above the pure residential mowers and incorporate some features of their commercial mowers. I'd buy it new and I see some good deals available so it should get full warranty.

Thoughts and comments on this machine would be appreciated.

 

[MParr]

What were the contractors using for the back block?

 

[magnum308]

The current one uses a Toro Timecutter 42" and a previous one did too. They seemed to work well.