I'm not knocking store bought mowers but if you use them commercially they won't last I don't care how good you take care of them.To give an example on an average, people mow there grass 25 times a year.And it takes you 2 hours to mow every week you only use in it 50 hours a year.And that's mowing your yard you know where all the hazards are so you don't tear up your deck.Now a commerercial mowers I ran mine a full 40 hours a week 25 weeks a year for a total 1000 hours a year and that with employees running into things and just not caring about the equipment and they last roughly 8 years.Like I said I'm not knocking everybodies home mowers but there ain't noway they'll hold up to that kind off work load.
I'm not knocking store bought mowers but if you use them commercially they won't last I don't care how good you take care of them.To give an example on an average, people mow there grass 25 times a year.And it takes you 2 hours to mow every week you only use in it 50 hours a year.And that's mowing your yard you know where all the hazards are so you don't tear up your deck.Now a commerercial mowers I ran mine a full 40 hours a week 25 weeks a year for a total 1000 hours a year and that with employees running the running into things and just not caring about the equipment and they last roughly 8 years.Like I said I'm not knocking everybodies home mowers but there ain't noway they'll hold up to that kind off work load.
Any store bought mower will last if youtakecareof them **** my dad has a walmart brand mower hes had for 10 years and the thing looks and runs like new still but the thing wouldn't last weekmowing grass commercially.I'm sure some people will beg to differ on my thought seems like the in things lately but i've been doing landscaping and lawn care for about 17 years now so Ido know a think or 2 about this subject
And one more little thing the 2 hours it takes you to just to cut your grass on a store bought mower it would take you 45 minutes on a commercial mower and probably have it weed wacked too.Like a said i'm not knocking anybody on this forum or there mowers.But in 17 years in the business the hasn't been tomany things i've haven't done or used.I'm just telling Indy what Iknow so he don't make the same mistakes I have.
reily, you may be correct, from the commercial heavy use stand point. I don't think Indy is into it that heavily. He is the only one using the equipment & knows the hazards of the lawns he is cutting. At 17, I think he is savy enough to do as he has been doing with a newer piece of equipment that won't break his piggy bank. I am certain that he will take care of whatever he decides & keep it running strong till he can upgrade it for what he will need later. He seems to be a good common sense kid, crap does &/or can happen, if it breaks, you fix it. I don't think he is looking to make a career out of it, he is just busy making extra $ to run his truck & to support his addiction-SNOWMOBILING.-Mezz
he'll probably put hand guards, mirrors, and a thousand stickers on it.
Originally Posted by mezz
reily, you may be correct, from the commercial heavy use stand point. I don't think Indy is into it that heavily. He is the only one using the equipment & knows the hazards of the lawns he is cutting. At 17, I think he is savy enough to do as he has been doing with a newer piece of equipment that won't break his piggy bank. I am certain that he will take care of whatever he decides & keep it running strong till he can upgrade it for what he will need later. He seems to be a good common sense kid, crap does &/or can happen, if it breaks, you fix it. I don't think he isn't looking to make a career out of it, he is just busy making extra $ to run his truck & to support his addiction-SNOWMOBILING.-Mezz
he'll probably put hand guards, mirrors, and a thousand stickers on it.
LOL. I'm thinking he'd like a stand up mower instead of one he has to sit down on.
Indy - have you checked the used market? Seems like there are always many of these kinds of mowers on craiglist. Maybe you're asking for problems going that route.
I used to cut grass in high school and college. I found a good way to get equipment is to get to know someone at a dealer, and then we get a decent trade-in, they can let you know
reily, you may be correct, from the commercial heavy use stand point. I don't think Indy is into it that heavily. He is the only one using the equipment & knows the hazards of the lawns he is cutting. At 17, I think he is savy enough to do as he has been doing with a newer piece of equipment that won't break his piggy bank. I am certain that he will take care of whatever he decides & keep it running strong till he can upgrade it for what he will need later. He seems to be a good common sense kid, crap does &/or can happen, if it breaks, you fix it. I don't think he isn't looking to make a career out of it, he is just busy making extra $ to run his truck & to support his addiction-SNOWMOBILING.-Mezz
Very well put Mezz, not looking for a career here, just mow 2-5 lawns per week on average plus my own and 3 small lawns in a neighboring town (which I wont be using this for). All of the lawns in my neighborhood if the grass isn't overly tall take about an hour and 15 minutes with only 45 minutes on the riding mower. Most are between 1/2 and 1 acre.
When I lived in Illinois my yard was 5.5 acres and I mower weekly. I searched and bought a Jacobsen Turf cat with a 23 hr diesel and 72" front deck. I ran that thing for 7 years and negotiated it into the price of the house when I sold the place. I paid $2600 for the machine and it has 1900 hrs, it ran as good as when I bought. By the way it was 10 years old when I got it
I have a friend in Illinois that has 2 smaller Grasshoppers. I could see if he may be willing to sell one. He also has 4 older JD but probably like what you got now.
If you take care of a unit like this it will a very long time.
Go with a zero turn, preferably commercial and used. 9 years ago I picked up a 25 +/- year old Ransome 3wheeler, 18hp Kohler w/ 61" WELDED deck. Things built like a tank. Not used to the wide deck, I clipped a tree at full speed. Impact ejected me side ways my from the seat, but not before shearing the bolts from the seat. No damage to the deck or mower, 8" of bark removed from the tree and I limped for 2 days.
Use to take me up to 3 hours with a 20hp 46" box store mower (POS) that replaced belts every 2 years and 1 motor (briggs) at 6 years. The antique does it in 45 minutes and doesn't care if it's wet. I put Halogen lights on it and mow at night I put new belts on 9 years ago and last fall they still looked great. Big cast iron pulleys on 25mm spindles with 6305 brgs w/ grease purge. Oh and HD Eaton hydro w/ separate reservoir.
Current Riders in fleet:
Above mention POS 11 yr 20hp (2nd motor) 46" (shift on the go) demoted to fertilizing and rolling yard (WI)
The Ransome 34+/-yr 18HP Kohler 61" tank used on 1 acre (WI)
HD garden tractor 19yr 19.5hp Kohler 48" hydro demoted to plowing snow & fertilizing (hydro slipping when warm) (IL)
Zero turn 1 yr 25hp 54" twin hydro mows 3/4 acre with LOTS of obstacles (IL)
Only negative I find with a Zero turn is side hilling can be challenging, unless it is a 3wheeler, then no problem
ok go to this fourm and ask your question http://www.lawnsite.com/
they could use a good chuckel
check the used mowers may be a good used turf tracer stand up in your range
I have nowhere to store a mower any larger than 42", I can MAYBE get by with a 48". Anything larger is out of the question due to transportation and storage. Not sure if I mentioned that earlier but that is my biggest problem. I've been looking on Craigslist for the past month and haven't found a thing local. Any older quality/commercial mower is $2500+. My limit is $1500 and thats pushing it...
I think this 36 http://www.lawnsite.com/showthread.php?t=374851 from above.
looks like a great mower has skully and bagger.if 1500 is your max offer 1250 spend 100 in fuel done deal prob last mower you will buy in your life.
I've got a 42" 18HP, Kohler, Full hydrostatic, 6 cut heights, full floating deck that's a snap to remove, Cub Cadet and have had no issues with it. I just couldn't justify buying the name "John Deere" or "Simplicity"
they are all made by mtd anyway
limited budget? go with a walk-behind or a hydro walk-behind
if you have a bit more to spend, look at a stand-on unit. Wright Stander was the original, but most commercial manf. make one now.
come to think of it, I have a 48" Encore WB that is ready to mow for $1000, sulky and catcher included. It would fit a small op perfectly!
Last edited by HardwaterHoosier; 03-30-2012 at 09:37 PM.
Picked up an almost brand new D140 22 hp V twin hydro 48" high seat 4 deck wheels, etc. for $1500 with 19 hrs. on it. It now has a scuff on the hood from our enclosed trailer (insert mad face)
Picked up an almost brand new D140 22 hp V twin hydro 48" high seat 4 deck wheels, etc. for $1500 with 19 hrs. on it. It now has a scuff on the hood from our enclosed trailer (insert mad face)
Congrats on the find. You'll be happy with that. Sorry to hear about the scuff, time for some elbow grease & polish, or you could slap a sticker over it, LOL, just kidding.-Mezz
Congrats on the find. You'll be happy with that. Sorry to hear about the scuff, time for some elbow grease & polish, or you could slap a sticker over it, LOL, just kidding.-Mezz
I seriously thought about putting a sticker over it! Thankfully it didn't scratch down to the plastic, just scuffed the green paint a little. The locking tab on the inside of the doors to tie down your sled also hit the headlight and snapped one of the plastic tabs. To tell you the truth, it's just as strong without the little tab, it was a poor design. So far I've mowed 1 lawn with it, cut my time spent on the riding mower in half. It cuts really nice, runs and drives smooth, and is very comfortable. I got a new China Special trailer yesterday from Northern Tool also LOL $530 5x8 since it wouldn't fit on our 4x8. It has a wire mesh deck and big ramp on the back. It seems decent, and since its all steel if anything breaks I can just weld it back up.
Picked up an almost brand new D140 22 hp V twin hydro 48" high seat 4 deck wheels, etc. for $1500 with 19 hrs. on it. It now has a scuff on the hood from our enclosed trailer (insert mad face)
Wow indy, you really slipping!! You've had the mower and trailer for how many days? And yet no pics?
Thought about taking one. I'm on spring break but it's not much of a break. I thankfully wasn't scheduled to work Tues-Fri but so far have been working on lawn mowers and finishing my sled every minute of the day i got. Still haven't found time to work on my truck like i wanted to. Next week wont find time either work tues/weds/fri and gotta find time to mow a few lawns AND have a parent meeting at a machine shop on thursday. Grr grr grr. Then my parents come home and say they have no time to do anything and ask why i havent washed the dishes! I mowed a "clients" lawn today, mowed my own lawn, cleaned all my equipment, put new deck belt and sharpened the blade on my old riding mower, put new deck belt, blades, and battery, and the complete tune up on a neighbor riding mower, put new blade on an extra mower i had, installed my new tool box on my truck, got the snowblower summerized and loaded, riding mower, push mower, dethatcher, and sled dolly loaded to take to my grandmas tomorrow, finally fogged my sled, and since I've eaten supper I got a buddys truck towed home and have been tearing it apart "attempting" to replace the fuel pump. Have the new pump in the tank, now to just get the tank back onto the nice rusty straps...
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Originally Posted by reiley99
