Zero turn shopping is a real mental drain.....

Makes sense, but learning at 100% one handed is different. It was not hot out yesterday.

 

I can pop wheelie easily going uphill

 

Timemaster series is homeowner grade stuff for small lots.
Their more heavy duty lines are still a very popular choice for the commercial guys.
My first ZT was a 52" Timecutter...it was fine, except for the light duty hydros, that I rebuilt twice before selling it

 

Yep. Timemaster/ timecutter are homeowner grade.

If toro hadn't changed their employee discount deal, I'd probably have a toro ztr now, as a guy friend of mine works for them in the commercial zero turn dept as a hydraulic engineer.

 

I'm close to closing a deal on a used Bad Boy to keep out at the property. The homeowner grade Gravely my dad bought is and never was up to the task. Should pick it up Tuesday AM.

 

I’ve been looking at mowers lately, my 20 y/o Cub Cadet is having issues. Some top contenders are, another Cub Cadet, Bad Boy, Toro & Ariens.

I think I’ll start by getting my mower out of winter storage, put the deck on & try it out. Maybe I can limp through another year.

 

Are you migrating to a zero turn?

 

I was actually considering that zero-turn by CC with the steering wheel. It turns like a zero turn but has a conventional wheel. I could also go with a regular zero turn, just learn the new steering.

To back up some, I fished my mower out today, started right up. I greased the deck & put it on. My mower was operating fine. I think I’ll just try some TLC and see if I can make it through another Summer

Here’s my current mower, 2518 model.

.

 

Well that unit will not mow as quickly as a zero turn, but none of the residential units you can buy will last as long as your old cub. I would seriously reconsider buying the steering wheel cub ztr. Too much crap to break out go out of adjustment on those with the steering wheel. I've never driven a ztr until a couple of days ago and I figured it out so far pretty well. I'll be mowing any day now with the rain and temps rising.

 

The CC with the steering wheel is a complicated piece of......... I saw a video of it and while the engineering is impressive it's just not suited to a dirty mower.
Don't forget about Bobcat, made in Wisconsin and I'm pretty happy with mine. As a big clumsy guy I really appreciate the ability to stand anywhere on the deck including the belt guards.

 

X3...not great machines...Cub in general is not what it once was, just in general. My FIL has one of those Tank ZTRs, what a steaming pile!

 

My experience with my "steering wheel zero turn" Cub Cadet has been very positive. Sticks to a hill like no other zero turn will, which is very inportant to me, and is twelve years old this season with no repairs except a recent drive belt and spindle swap. Regular oil changes and one battery replacement. I couldn't mow the places I do with a regular zero-turn. But on flatter ground there's no doubt it is slower. You just have to pick the features that are important to you.

 

That's why I was looking at them too...

 

Buy one mower and another goes down.

FX850V Troubleshooting

 

If you want to stick to hills and have deep pockets ventracs are pretty impressive.

 

That's pretty impressive seeing how complex they are.

 

I honestly don't think they're all that complex - or at least mine isn't. Basically, the steering wheel turns the front wheels, whose gearing mechanism works the transaxle motion levers (one on each side) much the same way that the hand levers work. The only thing that's really more complicated is that you throw in the foot pedal for forward speed and reverse, which of course is all done by the hand lever on the "real" zero turns.

I don't mow commercially with mine, just my own yard, my mom's place, and often my son's when he's working out of town. All three are typical sized rural yards that take an hour to an hour and a half each. But I try to maintain my stuff and not beat it up, and I don't go bushhogging with this mower (well, at least not much). I'm sure it would fare worse at the hands of a teenager or commercial crew. LOL.

 

Oldest son is a JD fan like me but he also runs Bobcat equipment in his business. He tried both brands out and chose the Bobcat, unfortunately I can’t remember what his reasons were but I don’t think price was an issue. More likely that he has more Bobcat machines than JD and the JD dealer’s long time employees have retired due to the dealership changing hands from local family to a multi location dealer. Seems the only thing that the new employees know how to do is punch keys on a computer All the knowledge base left with the original employees.

 

My pockets aren't even remotely deep enough for that...not at all!!
We run those machines at work...they are made right across the street...I went to school with the family that started Ventrac...they sold out to Toro a couple years ago though.

 

Picked up this unit today. It has a whopping 12 hours on it.