Buying new Ride on Mower. Most reliable?
Mar 31st 2019, 1:34 pm
#31
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Re: Buying new Ride on Mower. Most reliable?
There are a number of brands of commercial z-turn mowers and they are somewhat regional in both manufacture and/or distribution. Therefore the "best" one for you might be different from the best one for someone just a few miles away or in the next town, so I wouldn't waste much time trying track down some particular brand that some people are pushing, repeatedly. 
Look for the local commercial landscaping equipment dealers and see what they are selling - it could be one of the brands discussed above, though I suspect not Cub Cadet, nor probably JD, but ones I have seen local to me are Scag, Bad Boy, and Dixie Chopper, and when I finally decide to replace my rapidly aging Craftsman, it will probably be one of those as they have a local dealer, not something recommended by someone 1,000 miles away.
FWIW most commercial mowers seem to have either a Kawasaki or a Kohler engine, and there doesn't appear to be much to choose between them - if they're ubiquitous in commercial mowers they're going to be reliable, powerful enough to get the job done, and easily serviceable.
Look for the local commercial landscaping equipment dealers and see what they are selling - it could be one of the brands discussed above, though I suspect not Cub Cadet, nor probably JD, but ones I have seen local to me are Scag, Bad Boy, and Dixie Chopper, and when I finally decide to replace my rapidly aging Craftsman, it will probably be one of those as they have a local dealer, not something recommended by someone 1,000 miles away.
FWIW most commercial mowers seem to have either a Kawasaki or a Kohler engine, and there doesn't appear to be much to choose between them - if they're ubiquitous in commercial mowers they're going to be reliable, powerful enough to get the job done, and easily serviceable.
Mar 31st 2019, 1:47 pm
#32
Joined: Dec 2001
Location: Dixie, ex UK
Posts: 52,441
Re: Buying new Ride on Mower. Most reliable?
That's not what I am taking about, those would only be needed by people mowing sports fields, and are huge and not widely distributed - there are probably only a handful of distributors of such large machines in any one state, or at very least they would have to be special ordered.
... You can buy a good mower made by a company that makes primarily commercial mowers for 3 to 4 thousand that are much better than the junk sold by the big box stores. ...
That is what I am taking about - visit a local dealer to see which brand they sell - as I said, they are much of a muchness, with Kohler or Kawasaki engines, and a 48"-72" heavy-gauge steel deck width. I doubt you will get one for much less than about $4k, once you have added in tax, but it will enable you to cut much more quickly and with appropriate maintenance (primarily oil changes) a commercial grade mower will last pretty much forever for a homeowner, as they are designed to be run for hours a day, five days a week.
Last edited by Pulaski; Mar 31st 2019 at 1:50 pm.
Apr 6th 2019, 6:28 pm
#33
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Re: Buying new Ride on Mower. Most reliable?
I was online today looking for new blades for my two mowers and found a couple interesting lawn mower facts. I have a Gravely commercial walk behind and a Hustler Raptor zero turn. Gravely is celebrating their 100th year in business making commercial lawn mowers. Hustler invented the zero turn mower in 1964.
Apr 6th 2019, 8:32 pm
#34
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Re: Buying new Ride on Mower. Most reliable?
Nothing runs like a Deere.
Apr 7th 2019, 2:31 am
#35
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Re: Buying new Ride on Mower. Most reliable?
I don't know about today, but I was told by a dealer that most tractor mowers were all made by one of two companies and badged for the various brands (yes, that includes John Deere)!
Apr 7th 2019, 1:37 pm
#37
Joined: Dec 2001
Location: Dixie, ex UK
Posts: 52,441
Re: Buying new Ride on Mower. Most reliable?
I think it is different for the commercial zero turns - Scag, Hustler, Bad Boy, Bobcat, Dixie Chopper, etc. But there may be some overlap there too, and it wouldn't surprise me if someone is manufacturing the chassis and decks and selling them for the individual companies to paint and fit out with engine, controls and seat. It would certainly explain why they are mostly running a choice of the same Kohler or Kawasaki engines.
Last edited by Pulaski; Apr 7th 2019 at 1:43 pm.
Apr 7th 2019, 1:49 pm
#38
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Re: Buying new Ride on Mower. Most reliable?
Last edited by caretaker; Apr 7th 2019 at 2:29 pm.
Apr 7th 2019, 2:25 pm
#39
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Re: Buying new Ride on Mower. Most reliable?
Older mowers tend to be made heavier than newer ones. If the deck and chassis is still in good shape and working order it might be worth while to buy a new engine, Just make sure the engine shaft is same size as old engine. There are many suppliers for Kawasaki and Kohler engines. This might be an especially good way to go as you may be moving in a few years.
Apr 7th 2019, 3:06 pm
#40
Joined: Dec 2001
Location: Dixie, ex UK
Posts: 52,441
Re: Buying new Ride on Mower. Most reliable?
Older mowers tend to be made heavier than newer ones. If the deck and chassis is still in good shape and working order it might be worth while to buy a new engine, Just make sure the engine shaft is same size as old engine. There are many suppliers for Kawasaki and Kohler engines. This might be an especially good way to go as you may be moving in a few years.
Generally you need to go with the closest possible match to the original, but in some cases there is a generic engine that replaces the extremely similar engines used for different brands of mower. I went looking for a replacement B&S engine and found something like 10 or 12 engines that had almost identical model numbers, and included was a generic engine that was the appropriate replacement for all the ones sold to the various manufacturers .
There may also be some limited opportunity to upgrade - so one of my mowers had a 5.5hp B&S engine that I replaced with a 6.75hp "professional" B&S engine that is not only more powerful, but is super-easy to start.
Last edited by Pulaski; Apr 7th 2019 at 3:20 pm.
Apr 11th 2019, 6:10 am
#41
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Joined: Oct 2005
Location: US of A, TN
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Re: Buying new Ride on Mower. Most reliable?
As someone more at home with computers and electronics than I am motors I’m giving serious thought to buying a Ryobi zero turn mower, the limited reviews they have all seem positive. For the price I could get a gas powered zero turn but they seem to be pushing the Ryobi as low maintenance and frankly if it does go wrong I probably have a better chance of fixing it than I do an engine.
Apr 11th 2019, 11:19 am
#42
Joined: Dec 2001
Location: Dixie, ex UK
Posts: 52,441
Re: Buying new Ride on Mower. Most reliable?
As someone more at home with computers and electronics than I am motors I’m giving serious thought to buying a Ryobi zero turn mower, the limited reviews they have all seem positive. For the price I could get a gas powered zero turn but they seem to be pushing the Ryobi as low maintenance and frankly if it does go wrong I probably have a better chance of fixing it than I do an engine.
Apr 11th 2019, 2:09 pm
#43
You aint seen me, right?
Joined: Oct 2005
Location: US of A, TN
Posts: 3,573
Re: Buying new Ride on Mower. Most reliable?
I hadn't heard that there is an electric zero turn, though I guess I am not surprised. What would concern me is the life of the batteries and the price and availability of replacements. My thoughts are based on what it costs to buy a new battery for an cordless drill - often half the price or more of a new drill/battery combo. And if the lead time for ordering new batteries was a month mid-season, you might have little alternative to buying a replacement mower, or adding to the cost by paying for several weeks of mowing service.
Apr 11th 2019, 2:20 pm
#44
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Re: Buying new Ride on Mower. Most reliable?
Apparently they are going mainstream. Gravely makes a battery powered for commercial market. Just for info purposes I would stop by a Gravely dealer and check out their battery zero turn. Not necessarily to buy one but to see and learn what a commercial battery zero turn is like made by a company in business for 100 years.
