Ferris Questions

The wife is looking to purchase a new mow. She has looked at Scag, John Deere and Ferris. She is leaning towards the Ferris. We Mow 12 to 14 acres a week. We have a 72" XMart. Any good and bad about the Ferris? Is one engine better then the other? Any help is most welcomed. Thank you. Al
 
I have owned a Ferris 61 inch cut mower for years. 1460 hours now with no major problems at all. I did clean the carb last year. I have followed the chart in the manual to service the unit. Plugs and fuel filters changed regularly. The Kawasaki engine has been bullet proof so far. I would buy another Ferris if I needed another.
 
The Ferris is also the same as Simplicity just paint color so if you have Simplicity dealer in area All are owned by Brigss and Stratton They have an industrial line with fuel injection or go for the diesel Ride is better than anything else out there sz
 
Well, just my opinion, we mow several acres of berries and a huge yard, with Kohler's. I change oil and filter and plugs etc regularly, not a problem with Kohler. Oldest mower is a old Troy-Bilt, 16 years old or so, everything on the mower had cracked and fell off and been replaced, but that old Kohler engine starts first thing every spring, runs powerfully, idles good, not a problem. Have to keep the mice out, and do maintenance, but I'm very happy. 1500 hours or so.
 
I have owned Simplicity Zero's for 25+ years, but recently traded to Ferris. I like the suspension (all zero's ride ruff, but the suspension does help) and they can indeed be purchased with a Briggs engine. The new Ferris actually mowes better than the 7 yr old Simplicity. It seems to keep discharge grass in a finer size and doesn't clump as bad if you let it get a bit too tall. I mow @ 2 acres with a 52" deck, very hilly and it takes me @ 1 hr and 10 minutes. Very seldom running at the fastest ground speed. The new design is much easier to maintain than the Simplicity I had. Good mower.
 
I bought the IS700Z 61" back in March because I was tired of getting bounced around and had spent a lot of time and money in pursuit of a solution to that problem with other mowers. It had the upgrade seat which I recommend (light and dark grey and some red as I recall, real soft and thick foam). Like most seats its non-porous plastic (vinyl) so I lay a piece of "kitchen shelf sponge liner" between me and the seat. That product is somewhat sticky so it holds it's position on the seat yet gives you some air where you need it.

Like my DR Pro Z and Hustler Fastrak ZTs, a foot pedal lifts the deck with a simple flick of a lever to allow for dropping the deck. Raising is spring loaded and foot pressure is all that's needed

I modified it:

Red 48x52" Tuff Top from Rural King (.com) $207.97. The red is a dark red like the Ferris and is a perfect match. It's very large and you can adjust it just over your head (as desired) and you get tremendous shade over most of the day's sun angles. Very rugged. Running under small tree limb, driving by rows of cedar trees....no problem.

Added some soft springs (Cub Cadet and Toro ZTs use them) under the seat where no springs were installed. I have the PN if you are interested. The springs add a few inches to the rear of the seat which pitches the seat to more of an upright position, rather than sloped back, which I find uncomfortable over long mowing periods as is the OEM seat slant. My Hustler seat has that slope too and I don't like it.

Added 22x11x10 Golf Cart traction tires since I do a lot of hillside mowing. After the fact, OEM Turfs are an upgraded turf, lots of tread and I don't see much traction difference between the two. Mower likes to push forward, not pull backwards...simple physics....weight of the machine is helping to push the tires into the turf going forward. Going backwards, the tires are trying to drag the mower behind it and as such the weight effect on the tires is minimal.

Lowered the air pressure to 10 psig rears and 7 fronts.

I find that that mower is designed for fast travel to get maximum usage out of the spring system...like on an automobile on a rough road....go slowly and you bounce up and down. Go faster and the suspension system absorbs the bumps.

On really rough terrain (of which I have plenty) I lean forward in the seat such that my back isn't against the back rest. Since you are at the center of the suspension system (fulcrum), you are at the pivot point where there is minimum variation. With nothing but your butt in the seat and legs relaxed, the ride is uncommonly smooth.

I bought the Vanguard 26 vs the Kawasaki after reading up on what BS put into the engine and the 2 stage air filtration system. Engine has more than enough power and I usually run it at ? throttle, going up 30 degree pond banks and in high grass. Very happy with the engine. Never even considered the K and didn't research it's capabilities nor faults.

On the larger width mowers there is a lot of mass in the deck assy to get rolling so you can't baby the rpms and expect blade engagement like you get on smaller mowers. This machine needs to be at half throttle or better to engage without killing the engine. The drive belts are kevlar so they are designed to take the load.

Lots of safety features designed in and some are a PIA but they are there for a reason. There is a "system" to mounting and dismounting, and starting. Things like handle bar position, parking brake position, PTO position and whether or not your butt is in the seat all matter. Once you do it a few times it, like anything else becomes second nature.

I didn't try any other mowers, I went to buy what I bought. With my personal experiences in what I have and my online shopping, I was convinced and still am that what I bought is what I wanted and needed.

HTH, Good Luck,
Mark
 
where are you located come test drive, yes they do ride better, i also put the full suspension seat on them 2100 or 3200 series all i been selling. i have a72 inch unit that is being sold as demo unit have aprox 80 hrs on it . also have 60 with the dry sump motor o factory disc was reps demo unit. let me know
 
southeast iowa, cash always works,have couple demo units or cash deals on any other unit here. i would suggest ferris 3200 with 72 inch deck, with theses options suspension seat, non flat front tires, do you want lights?. guess just depends how bad you want for travel.
 
Thanks Texasmark1. The wife gained the most information from your post. Thank you. The next rainy day we are going shopping for a a Ferris mower. Building Fence right now, sun is shining, must keep working on it.
 
Awright! Went to a lot of work for you and no response. Figured it was worth at least a thanks. Lots of luck with your new purchase.
 

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