Shopping for a new lawnmower (Toro?)

Buckeye Oliver collector

Well-known Member
I think I'm going to be shopping for a new mower rather soon. Our old mower once again quit on us. We currently have a 23 hp Huskee Supreme (MTD) with 46 inch deck that is 10 years old. Its been a decnet mower but its getting worn out. I'm thinking of getting a zero turn this time around. Just getting tired of mowing an hour and a half every week plus trimming. I really like the looks of the Toro Timecutters. I'm leaning towards the SS4260 (74626) with the 21.5 hp Kawasaki and 42 inch deck. We don't need anything huge since we have maybe 2.5 acres. Hopefully I can shop around Saturday. We run Kawasaki and Kohler motors at work and I honestly like the Kawasaki better but they both seem good. Anyone have any opinions on Toro? I'm convinced MTD is out for us and John Deere as well. I'd like a Ferris or Bobcat but they are a little pricey. Thanks guys.
 
I've had my Toro Zmaster since 1999. Has worked flawlessly for me. I just replaced the two belts to the deck this year. Mine is a 62" cut. I really only wanted to get a 52" but I got such a good deal on this that I took it. Mine is a commercial mower with a 25hp Kohler and yes it was pricey but I bought it for longevity. 14 years and no problems that I didn't create myself.

There are a lot of good zero turns out there. Buying one in the middle of summer may not get you any discounts. May be able to find a better price in the fall.
 
If you got 10 years out of a MTD/Huskey then you are good at taking care of things and are mechanically inclined. For such people (like me too) I think your best deal would be a low houred trade in hi/end commercial mower. For a home owner who takes care of his stuff they are close to a forever deal. I am not familiar with Toro other than the line goes from Pro to almost discount store quality. Price new but shop the trade in lot is my suggestion.
 
I mow with a 72 inch mower and trim with a 48 inch. Wouldn't have anything smaller if your goal is to save time.

I use farm tractors to mow because I don't like the ruff ride of a ZTR not to mention the dirt and dust they stir up.

A mower spindle isn't that expensive. It's like saying I want a new car because I need to buy a new battery.

Ever consider getting an outrigger mower, one you can pull behind your rider. Years ago, I made an outrigger and my kids wouldn't mow with out it.
 
I have a Ferris 1500z, great mower cost a bit more its about 5 years old now.Fast, cut my mowing time by 50 %. Ride is better than most, NO DOWN time . Works best on level areas, I mow about 10ac once a month in summer.
 
wher you located,come test drive decide for yourself 30" all way up to 72" popular unit out doo rhas been speedztr 54" for $3250.00 let e know Dixon,Husqvarna and country clipper.
 
I would look for a mower that is known to hold up well and most importantly is a dealer that stands behind his mowers and the ease and availability of getting parts when needed.
 
I have a Toro Timecutter 5000 (the 50" model). I have had it almost 5 years now I think. Honestly it has done fairly well so far considering it is a homeowner model. Has the Kohler single cylinder motor. I have had one bearing give up in the deck, and probably one of the weakest links is the idler pulley which has a single shoulder bolt which broke (basically made a bolt to replace since they do not sell the bolt alone). I did replace the deck belt and blades this year, but that is normal wear items on any mower, and I damaged belt putting the deck back on after blade sharpening. I wish I had gone ahead and got a commercial mower in the fall or winter, but I got an exceptional price on it with about $500 off list, so I am not really complaining and I mow a LOT of rough terrain with it, and most is not level. I am thinking use it another year or so, then sell and go find a commercial to go as long as I will need one, but all in all, the Toro is holding up much better so far than the junk MTD it replaced. MTD used to build a decent homeowner mower, but not the case any longer, and MTD makes several different brands of mowers with just different color paint on them.
 
If I were looking for a zero turn, I would consider comfort and the ground I would be mowing. If it is rough you will need a decent seat suspension system and good floatation tires. Zero turns don"t have suspension. I recently helped a friend out mowing his lawn. He has a new Craftsman zero turn and a Cub Cadet lawn tractor. His ground is fairly rough due to worm mounds and gophers. His zero turn nearly beat me to death. I had to switch to his lawn tractor which was considerably smoother. I realize the Craftsman is not top of the line, but it made me place seat suspension, tires and ground type as factors to consider.
 
Glen, Ferris does have front & rear suspension that is adjustable for body weight and field conditions. I use to mow open field that is not smooth like city lawn.Does a good job and on straight runs joy sticks full forward 10mph.
 
Google Lansing Michigan Craigslist farm and garden, my sister in law has a low (less than 200) hour 60" Exmark with the desirable Ultracut deck 23hp Kohler for sale. She has drastically reduced the price as she has sold her home and is moving by the first of Aug. This mower is in really nice shape, I have driven it and sharpened and balanced the blades. It is a mowing fool!!
 
There ya go, learn something new everyday. I spoke with a Grasshopper rep who told me zero turns didn"t have suspension. That seemed to be confirmed by the research I did. I didn"t didn"t come across "Simplicity" or "Ferris". Are they commercial rigs or homeowner type? I was looking at a homeowner type to do about and acre of lawn. Looks like I might be back in the market.
 
Ferris is normally falls in commercial cat. Simplicity I'm not sure about but they are both made by same company-may be the same machine. I got mine from factory rep in Minn as could not find dealer in Mt. Its heavy about 1000 lbs made to last.I think might be a dealer in Spokane now.
 
We bought a low end Dixie Chopper 48" mower zero-turn mower this spring and are very please with it. It has plenty of power and does a nice job cutting. No suspension and is a bit bouncy on the rough ground we call a lawn at the farm. It is really great for mowing around trees and bushes. It shoulb be noted that steering can be a bit of a challenge , particularly around the edges of sloped areas with the requisite gopher holes etc.

You will find that you have to actively steer at all times where as with a riding lawnmower, you can use a knee to lock the sterring wheel on long straight runs.

If you are sensitive to vibration in your hands (like with carpal tunnel or tennis elbow issues) you may find it hard to use for long periods. My other half has tennis elbow issues and can only mow with it for short periods becasue of the vibration.
 
This spring, we got a Toro zero turn, 50" deck, 20 hp Kawasaki engine. My wife does all of our mowing, says it's her recreation, and she'd been using a 54" Poulan with a 24 hp Briggs engine.

The Toro cut her mowing time in half, and she commented on how nice it rides. No suspension, just good springs under the seat.

I haven't used it much, myself, but I like the sound of than Kawasaki engine.

It was kinda funny. We walked into Home Depot one Saturday afternoon on a completely different errand. We'd always talked about getting a zero turn, but never did. HD had this left over last year's model with $1,000 off the price. On a sale item, I didn't think my 10% military discount would apply, but the salesman checked it out, and the computer took another 10% off the price. By then, it would have been hard to walk away from it.
 
Thanks, found a dealer in Jordan Valley, Ore. about 70 miles from me and another in Pocatello, ID, 260 miles or so. Their info on their suspension was very informative. Thanks for the info.
 
Thanks for all the input guys. Is Bad Boy an MTD brand or is it something else? I'm going to go looking later today. Just pricing for now but I think we'll be needing something in the next week or two. We have relatively smooth ground so suspension is not a big issue for me. Really I am more restricted on deck size only because we always put the mower in a small backyard barn and can't fit anything much bigger than 46 inches.
 

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