need riding lawnmower recommendations pro and con

[Lee Barner]

i am looking at a place with about two acres of yard. right now i mow my place in 50 minutes with a push mower. ain't gonna cut it with the new place if we get it. i've already figured out john deere is over the budget.
thanks. lee

 

[gunsmith11]

Go to Home Depot,,especially now in the fall mowers will be on sale,,,I 8.5 to a 12 hp with a 38" should be all you need

 

[mwtdvm]

You get what you pay for..

I bought a JD from the JD dealer and when they delivered it the salesman said "This will last you the rest of your life". I was 60 and didn't really want to hear that but I fear he might be right. Search the net and also rely on your friends here.
Take a critical look at your yard and decide if you need a 0' turner or a conventional mower.. I have a wet spot to be avoided with anything. How big is your yard?
Start comparing prices and remember this is the end of the year and there are bargains to be had.
Good Luck!!

 

[tyusclan]

Get a zero turning radius mower. You will never be sorry. It will cut your cutting time in half at least. I have a Troy-bilt from Lowe's. The Cub Cadet at Home Depot is the exact same mower made by the exact same company. The only difference is the color and the name.

They're not commercial rated, but for homeowner use they do a good job., and will last for several years with proper care.

If you can swing it, get a Grasshopper or a Scag. They're commercial mowers, and if you use one for homeowner use, it'll be the last mower you ever have to buy.

 

[m657]

I've been running John Deere lawn tractors for over 20 years with superlative performance. My brother's JD just was rebuilt for the first time. He bought it in 1971 and cuts over an acre every week.

 

[Snowbandit]

Zero turns are good as long as you don't have any large hills. I bought one about a year ago and have had nothing but trouble on the hill in front of my house. I finally gave up and went back to using the old White. The Zero turn won't climb up the hill, is difficult to control going across the hill and is really terrifying going down. With the old White I can sit on the fender to keep it from rolling over and cut grass all day long.

 

[sourdough44]

Cub Cadet here, just to be different. In each line there are different quality/ price levels. A slighly used mower this time of the year may be the ticket. How you take care of it is the large long term factor.

 

[Goldstar225]

You can't go wrong with a John Deere, a quality piece of equipment. With that being said I'm a cheap son-of-a-gun and mowed my 1 1/2 acres for years with a murray rider. I finally bit the bullet and bought a Cub Cadet zero turn because of all the trees in my yard.

If you have to mow around a lot of stuff (trees, flower beds etc..) I'd urge you to get a zero turn. Mine cut my mowing time by 50%.

 

[Bassamatic]

Yeah, you are going to get all the guys pushing the green machine but I will tell you I bought a Sear's craftsman about 5 years ago and have used the crap out of that thing big time. Never put a penny into it and it starts right up every spring. I paid around $1500 for it. I mow about three acres total.

 

[ecam8000]

I bought a "once used" tractor from Lowes a couple years ago, for $600. Had grass in the tread and the leading edges of the blade were broken in. I found the store manager and asked if he would make a deal on this used tractor. It's an el cheapo, but it always starts, and the best thing is my girls fight over who get to mow the lawn next.

 

[ladder13]

I went thru this issue a couple weeks ago, rider vs zero turn, etc etc I bought a Deere x300, and could not be happier. Rides likes a car, feels like power steering, turns on a dime much to my surprise, gives a great cut, kawasaki motor. I also bought a bagger, no more grass clippings on the lawn looks so much cleaner. 4 year warranty to boot. When you consider it may cost a couple hundred more that the other mowers, what's that over the next 10-15 years? BTW, there's a 300 instant rebate on these mowers right now.

 

[Airpark]

Cut 1.3 acres once, sometimes twice a week. JD, LA-115, recommended by Consumer Report. Have had two others, none of which compare. Got mine at Lowe's. Got a Lowe's credit card for 10% off and they had them on sale for 10% off so got 20% off. It really is a great mower.

 

[CAJUNLAWYER]

What you need is a "lawyer" lawnmower
JohnDeere : ComfortGard™ Cab Tractors

 

[servmgr64]

For pure mowing get a "0" turn unit of the highest quality you can afford. I like Kubota but Deere & others are very good. My neighbor has a bobcat mower & it flys when mowing his 2.5 acres. I use a Kubota bx2350 for my 1.5 acres but also have a loader to assist with snow removal.
Scott

 

[Hofstet]

I compared zero turn to tractors two years ago and ended up buying a Deere 304 tractor with 48" mowing deck and 4 wheel steering. I believe it was around 1k less than the zero turn. Have been very happy with it (I mow 2 acres with a lot of trees)

 

[enfield]

I bought a new manual transmission Craftsman 3 years ago and it died this summer - went up in a puff of smoke. Looks like major engine repairs so I parked it under a tarp until I can find time to work on it. I cut 2 acres of rolling land.

John Deere is the highest rated riding mower in Consumer Reports. I went out and got an LA145 Deere, with a 48" deck, hydrostatic drive and electric blade clutch. The hydro drive reduces my mowing time as I'm not stopping to shift all the time. Also there is no drive belt to replace. The electric clutch is much more convenient than a manual clutch and it should require less maintenance. It's a fine piece of equipment and it's now obvious I wasted nearly $1000 on the Craftsman, depending on whether or not I can fix it and sell it.

My advice is to buy a Deere. It'll be cheaper in the long run.

Ditto on the Scag mowers -- expensive but worth it. I used to cut a campground with a Scag tricycle mower with a 60 inch deck. A beast of a mower!

 

[n4zov]

I don't have a specific recommendation except to buy from somebody who can provide service and parts in case you need them. Also the "name brand" mowers like John Deere sold at Lowe's, Home Depot and other large retailers are usually not the same ones sold by their dealers. They are a cheaper model that may not be as long lived or as serviceable.

 

[Stevie]

I mow approx. 5 acres with a Poulan 700EX 54" rider.

Poulan, Sears, and some others are actually made by the same company. The less expensive JD mowers are likewise made by someone other than Deere.

If you will have a bunch of trees or obsticals to mow around, a zero turn may be the way to go. I also own a Country Clipper Jazee II zero turn that my aunt in law uses to mow some property we own, but she lives on. It's a 48" mower, but it is a powerful 48" mower! I have used it on our 5 acres, and it will more than handle it, plus keep up with the larger 54" Poulan rider. An impressive mower.

Probably the most important feature of any riding mower, zero turn or tractor, is a dealer. Find yourself a good brand that has a dealer with a mechanic and parts ordering ability in your area. Not every place that sells mowers carrys parts, or has any technical support at all for the brands they might sell.

John Deere mowers I can tell you are pretty decent by model. Meaning some expensive models are great machines, and the cheaper Home Depot models of lesser quality. The various stores that sell the JD machines rely on a Deere dealer for the tech support/warrenty, and it pisses the JD boys off to have to deal with these mowers they did not sell!

The less expensive Deere riders are good mowers in themselves, but not as good as the really expensive JD mowers.

I used to work at a Deere dealership and have seen the resentment in person. I once went to Lowes to buy some wood pellet fuel, happened to be a work day, and was wearing my JD work shirt. The store manager walked up to me and asked where the trailer was!!? "Huh" I ask, Manager tells me I'm here to pick up all the JD mowers he has stacked up in back for warrenty work. He was sure dissapointed when I told him I was just shopping, and must be some other JD dealer coming to get his stack of busted mowers!

Really. Find yourself a dealer with parts and technical support, then buy from them. Brand would be a secondary issue with me. Lots of brands to choose from. Lots of places sell riders, but how many actually can support the product?

 

[Gun 4 Fun]

I don't have a specific recommendation except to buy from somebody who can provide service and parts in case you need them. Also the "name brand" mowers like John Deere sold at Lowe's, Home Depot and other large retailers are usually not the same ones sold by their dealers. They are a cheaper model that may not be as long lived or as serviceable.

Sorry, but that is flat out wrong. They're the exact same mower! The ones from Lowe's etc, come into a local dealer for prep, then get sent over the the big box stores. I have a friend that owned a Deere dealer ship for many years until one of the biggest Deere dealers in the state made him an offer he couldn't refuse. He told me the same thing about them. There is also anothe rumor that keeps being spread that the ones sold at Lowe's, Home Depot etc., are made by MTD. It just ain't true. Just another pantload spread by the uneducated. All Deere tractors are made by Deere! My dealer friend has been to the factory where they are made.

Lee- I have been running Deere tractors a long time, and I mow commercially with one of them. They will last you a long time, and you get what you pay for. I prefer the tractors made before 2007, but they are all good. I have a 1990 240 that looks like it's about a year old, and I use it every week for most of my commercial mowing. I bought it a couple of years ago, and I paid $1,000 for it. Just look for a good used one some where. I have bought far more of them used than new, and never had any trouble with any of them. You can't get a better engine than the Kawaski, so get one with that engine. They are horsepower rated at the output shaft, while the others, (even Kohler) have gone to no load bench rated horsepower which isn't even close to the same. If you ever look inside the Kaw's, at their parts, they are built a lot heavier. They are all commercially rated (the Kawasaki motor that is).

I am not pushing "my brand" because that is what I have. I am pushing the best tractor made, and that is why it's my "brand". I could have bough anything I wanted with my hard earned bucks, so I bought the best. I have never once regretted it, and there are more Deere dealerships around to give you service and supplies than any other brand, except maybe craftsman, and you couldn't give me one of those POS. Every time we go by our local Sears, there are at least 15 of them waiting to be repaired sitting under their awning, and they are all new within the last couple of years.

 

[jframe]

Lee, I ain't no expert, we live in an apartment, but my Dad bought a 12.5 horse 38" Murray thirteen years ago, and it works flawlessly. Of course, Murray is out of business, but most of the time mowers are like cars. They'll last as long as they are maintained properly. My Dad is a retired tool and die maker, so he tends to take THAT to the extreme, but this old mower fires right up every year at springtime, and works like a mule. Just my two cents.