Riding mower recommendations

9hp Snapper; 28" deck.....I have two of these riding mowers, one is electric start the other pull start and they have served me well. Am thinking of getting rid of them and buying a brand new lawn tractor. I'm on about 3/4 acres with grass in front and back. I use the Snappers to mow but also often tow a small dump trailer around to move stuff. One of my biggest issues is trying to bend over my large belly to pull up the blade engagement lever. Surely there is a better way! Without starting a war, wanted to ask opinions of what might be a good machine to buy. Maybe 32 - 42" deck. I don't want to get the Snappers fixed up or made new. Want a new machine. Thanks for any opinions?
 
I wouldn't look at any lawn tractor. They are all junk in my opinion. The John Deere's are not made any better than those cheap MTD mowers. I would only buy a
zero turn. I was just looking at a Bad Boy 42" today at the farm supply store. I think it was $2999.99. Had a Kohler engine. I forget the size.

Two years ago I bought a Toro 32" zero turn for my cemetery mowing job. It has 160hrs on it now. Been a good mower with no trouble. I paid $2399 for it. For the
price difference compared to the BAD Boy. I would buy the BB. Much heavier deck and wider plus a better engine.

My dad was a Snapper dealer for years. Those rear engine riders were very good mowers. I dad currently owns at least six. One is a 1969.
 
Stay away from the current rear engine riders. Neither MTD nor Husqvarna (their 'Weed Eater' brand) rear engine riders are as good when
new as your old Snapper(s) currently are.

Stay away from Husqvarna's YTA series. Their transmissions are plastic and they are junk.

I am not currently aware of any ride tractors that are less than 42" wide, unless MTD still offers one. I am no fan of MTD products.

Tractor style Husqvarna (Other than the above mentioned YTAs), Cub Cadet and John Deere (Be aware Deere offered one with a plastic
transmission also. I don't know of they still do.) are among the best I see in the shop where I work.
 
Most new lawn tractors are designed to last three years. Just so you dont expect todays tractors to last like the ones built in the seventies.
 
You will never find a regular modern riding mower as reliable as an old rear engine Snapper. The little Bad Boy zero turn is a good option,
but putting a pull rope on the blade engagement lever might be a simple option. We stiff old bad back geezers have to be inventive.
 
any new unit will do you fine sounds like you just need it to have electric clutch instead of lever. sounds like you might be needing to
sit on some units to test fit first for your tummy. most all of them have the same stuff under the skins anyway. i only have 3 ztr units
left here. but we have customers pull with them all time.
 
Thanks for everyone's responses so far. I need to clarify that I have a 46" constraint in the width of the arbor/gate to the back yard so have to limit my search to a 42" rider. That probably narrows the field a bit.
 
Three years??? My newest ones are thirty three years old.
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Your mowers were built back when they built them to last. They are heavier built than the commercial mowers are today. Today if you bought a new MTD ( Many Troubles Daily) a Craftsman or any brand sold in a discount store or hardware store you are lucky to get four years. MTD sells mowers under several different names. They are all junk.

I have a Toro ss3225 I bought new in 2019 at the Toro dealer. So far it's been trouble free. I use it to mow a three acre cemetery. Dad thinks I should trade it off this year. Dad's a old Snapper dealer. Has about 8 old RER's dating from 1969 up to about 95.
 
I took my pull start Snapper to a repair shop Saturday to get the fuel flow problem solved. I think I'm gonna keep that one as a backup. I'm pretty sure it's 15+ years old and has served me well. The other Snapper was an electric start but otherwise much like the pull start mower. Both have 9hp B&D's. Unfortunately, the electric start was the one in which I think I have broken a crank, blown a piston or some other serious damage. I donated it to a nearby mower repair place and they were happy to get it. Said they would probably drop a new engine in it. The owner said he also had two 28" Snappers and said they were the best he had ever owned or worked on. He said the busted one was built in 2001 so it has had some good years use.
 
I'm still using a 1969 48 inch deck, got one I rebuilt hanging on the wall but can't wear that old one out.
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To follow up on my riding mower question....I decided on a Cub Cadet XT1, 42" mower. Got it at Home Depot with a $100 discount because I opened a credit card account with them. Soon as tax refund comes in will pay it off and cancel the account. Rolled it down the ramp from the back of my truck, cranked it up and mowed the yard. Unlike the Snapper, it did an excellent job of trimming the grass and did not bog down in heavy rye grass in the back yard. The mower is larger than my 28" Snapper so will take a bit of getting used to. I'm gonna keep my Snapper since it goes through the 46" gate with ease and will be handy for towing my little dump trailer. Thanks to everyone for your input on this decision.
 

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