belt drive?

[snakasnee]

i have a chance to buy a toro 52 wb super cheap, but it is belt drive. should i hold out for hydro? is it that big of a deal?

[LHSlawnman86]

it all depends on what kind of peoperties you will be doing. belt drive is fine if you will be doing relatively flat and open mowing but if you will be doing small lots with many obstacles then hydro is good for you. also if you plan on using a velky then hydro is better.

good luck

[Jason Rose]

Is is a T-bar handle?

If it is, Iv'e been told and read that those Toros are the next best thing to a hydro. "The poor mans hydro" if you will...

Still have limitations and belts can slip in the wet but I see many people on here than have them. Personally, I have zero experience with them but I still wanted to pass that along.

[snakasnee]

the toro is a t-bar handle. thanks for sharing that. what john deer transmision drive? i have also run accross one of those.

[slebeau20]

Here's my two cents. If you have a climate where there's a lot of moisture in the air. Then the belts could slip once they get wet. I personally have a belt drive and I'm getting rid of it this year. They are great if your a small operation and can work around the weather. If not they're not worth the threat of the belt slipping. I'm purchasing a Wright Stander in a 36" for residentials this year.

[J Hisch]

If we purchase walk behinds again have 2 of them currently now (Scag 36"). I will never buy Hydro walk behind again. The extra cost dosent justify the expense to me. We have one belt and one hydro. Belts and sillpage, I havent experienced that. We replace them every year. The belt drive is older that the hydro also. 3years/ 2years

[snakasnee]

If we purchase walk behinds again have 2 of them currently now (Scag 36"). I will never buy Hydro walk behind again. The extra cost dosent justify the expense to me. We have one belt and one hydro. Belts and sillpage, I havent experienced that. We replace them every year. The belt drive is older that the hydro also. 3years/ 2years
i have heard that the hydros arent as smooth as the belts and are kind of jerky. did you experience any of that?

[Signature Landscaping1]

The hydros are jerky, the 52'' scag hydro at school is very jerky when making turns.

[creeksidelc]

I have a Proline belt drive 36. and it is great. Cut quality is awesome as well as speed and manuverability. I have not experienced slippage, and frequently mow in wet grass, and in hilly terrain.(North Georgia) It pulls me and the mower up hills just fine. I personally have also found the hydros to be jerky. I prefer belt drive. I did have a JD belt drive and it was horrible, so if you get a belt drive get a Toro. Good luck whatever you get.

[work_it]

As mentioned before; it all depends what you need the mower for. Hydros are great for steep hills and damp/wet conditions. Other than that my belt drive 48" Bunton does a good job.

[cuttinggrassiscool]

I'm no pro by far and i've never had a hydro walk behind, so you may not like my opinion much. However i have a smaller toro belt drive with t bar and have seen no problems at all with it. one thing i like is that to make tight turns you can really just slam it. the split second reaction time keeps it from tearing the grass as long as you dont go nuts. i would go for it. mines like ten years old and ive had it for two, tightened the belts once, it was rather easy too.

[beautifullawns]

I have a belt drive and don't understand how a hydro is better. The belt works great and saves money.

[PMLAWN]

It is all about the money. Hydro is cheaper!!

Now many will dispute that but if you are doing this as a hobby get a belt.
If you are doing this for a living than the only option you have is hydro.
A mower does not cost money. A mower makes money.
A mowers price is so small compared to the income it will generate that price is a non issue.
What is an issue is time. Time is all you have to sell. There are a lot of things you can do in business to adjust the level of success but the one thing no one can change is the amount of minutes in a day. So you have to pull the most amount of production out of each minute as possible. The best way to do this with a W/B is by having a hydro.
If all you do is mow wide open fields than it would be best to have a Z but for smaller lots with obstacles you need maneuverability and that means hydro.
Most belts are very bad at backing up and you will do a lot of pulling. And forget trying to back up a hill , which may be a lot in TN. And even if it does go back a little you still have to stop and switch gears to do it where a hydro is instant back and forth.
A hydro will be more productive and less tiring and therefore will cost less for you to own.
Also if a hydro is jerky, it is because the operator has not learned how to operate that mower yet.
My first mower was a belt, and it is a good mower but I learned fast that I needed a hydro. All new W/Bs have been hydro. Because we do this to make money.

The main reason I bought a belt was I had not yet found this site where people could set me straight.

[65hoss]

Its all about your needs. If you want a low maintenance low expense machine for gated areas only, the belt is the way to go. If you are looking for a front-line all out producer to make you a living, then the hydro is what you need. I prefer belts on my trailers but am seeing a need for a hydro due to some steep slopes and early morning cuttings. Some of my properties I start at 5:30-6am and the due can be really bad. The belts would be fine if it were not for the major slopes involved.