What to buy

[KD'sLawns]

I have had my own lawn business for about a year now.
I am looking to get a new riding mower. I live in a small community and do not have much demand for a big mower, like 50" or bigger. Most of my customer's lawns that I can use a riding mower on like it to be bagged. I started out with an old MTD 38" cut. It was starting to wear out and I wanted to upgrade to something better. I have looked at the Snapper ZTR's, Dixon ZTR's, Craftsman ZTR's, and the Ariens ZTR's. I want to pay cash for the mower, but I only have about $3500.00 that I can spend. Can't afford any more payments! For that kind of money, which is the best mower that bags in the least amount of time. I know that the Craftsman is made by Ariens. But, I like that I could get the extended service.
Thanks for any help.

[Mowman]

KD,
Have you ever checked out a Walker? They have a very good bagging system. New one's are quite costly, but maybe you could find a good used one for the $3500.00 that you have saved. Or they also have a 42" Mulching deck. I bought a used Walker last year off the net from a broker in MO. It's just a Sidedischarge model. Around my area I can't take clipping to the landfill and don't have any place for them. I went from mulching to a SD and love it. Even if I have to double cut it doesn't take that much more time and the lawn looks bagged. If you would like the name of the broker I worked with let me know. Tell him what your looking for and how much you have to spend and I'm sure he can find you a good used mower. Hope this helps.
Mowman

[Richard Martin]

I would not buy <i>any</i> of those mowers! If you have $3500.00 to spend you should look into one of the gear drive walk-behinds. A Scag, Exmark or Bobcat 48" with a sulky and a Grass Gobbler bagger can be had for that kind of money and still leave you with change. You won't have to walk because you can stand on the sulky and ride. Any of the mowers I mentioned will last considerably longer than a homeowner ZTR and they will cut grass better and faster. If you cannot even stand there are sit/stand sulky's available.

If this option is unpleasing to you you can always pick up a used Wright Stander for the money you have.

[TLS]

KD,

I agree with Richard. You can buy a real nice brand new 48" belt drive walkbehind that will outperform the homeowner junk thats out there. Then get a stand on sulkie for the bigger lots. Check out some local dealers to see what they have to offer.

Good Luck

[Eric ELM]

I tried using a brand new home owner rider when I started mowing my first year. It was in the shop for repair way to much to make a living. This was long before Lawnsite.com was around to advise me what to do.

Take the word of the above posts, get a used commercial mower, it will hold up much better. For example, last spring my oldest Chopper had about 2,650 hours on it and by the end of the season it had 3,237 hours on it, so it put in a full season and it was a main mower. I spent a total of around $200 on repairs on it last year including belts, one spindle bearing, and engine work. It never missed a days work even though I had this work done. When I had to have engine work done on it, I drove it into the shop and stopped back in an hour to pick it up after I had finished my week of work, so I had 0 downtime with it all season.

As I said, with the Homeowner model I used to start with, it was in the shop many times and for days at a time. What I'm getting at, new isn't always the best and for sure, a home owner model isn't the best way to go.
I hope this helps.
Eric

[Green Finger]

BUT........ if you do want a rider. The ones you mention are not great. arien,dixon,and craftsman.

Check out the used equipment forum. They have a Walker, a Sufer by Dane and some more. But work with them on the price. (Don't show them your hand) negotiate.

[edward hedrick]

Try a Lesco a 48 hydro with a lesco sulky should be
about $3500. another would be a used scag Three wheel
ed

[lawnboy82]

yeah, your best bet would be to go with a new belt drive walk behind (48") get a sulky and a grass gobler, use that for a while, that should do well for you. i have used walkers, best machines around i think. they start at 10,000 for a commmercial model. maybe you can get one for 8,000 new. there is some guy by me selling a used one for 5,000. gonna need a new engine soon. so for your price i dont know what you could buy other than a new walk behind.

[Chopper Lover]

I know you want a rider, but I vote go with a walk behind and all the accessories already listed by everyone else. You will get a great quality mower for less money than a rider. With $3500 to spend you will probably have money left over to buy something else you need later down the road (like $2.00/gallon gasoline!)

Good Luck and keep us posted.
Mark

[leaflawnandlimb]

I agree with these guys, get a new walk behind or a used COMMERCIAL rider.

[lakegastonla]

The fact that you are using the mower commercially would either VOID or drastically reduce the warranty period for a homeowner machine. Get a commercial mower. DO NOT buy a used commercial mower to use as your main moneymaker! The pros usually sell them for a reason!! I would get a NEW belt drive walk-behind(2500 for a LESCO 48 inch 15hp kawi v-twin) , set of Jungle Wheels (Just a shade over 200), a shindaiwa tx-230 trimmer(on promo sale for 249) and a shindaiwa le-230 edger(300 bucks). Then I would buy a Shindaiwa eb-240 handheld blower.(249) You would have a NICE setup of ALL NEW equipment with DEALER SUPPORT!! When you are just starting out, you cannot put a price on having equipment you can count on. You should have a no-worries package that will not make any headaches for you! You will be the envy of all scrubs for counties surrounding your area!!

[snow]

If you want a machine for not too many yards and also want a trimmer and a backpack, you might want to look into a special like this one. <a href="http://www.landscapersupply.com/mowerpackage.html">http://www.landscapersupply.com/mowerpackage.html</a>. The special has a 48" landscapers supply mower, a kawasaki trimmer and blower for $2699, add a sulk for $200, and a bagger for $100= $2999. and you have some money to put in the bank or to get a push mower or some advertising money. They also have a 52" package for $3099 if you want something bigger than a 48".

hope this helps,

Bryan

[eslawns]

I have one of the Landscapers Supply mowers, a 48" belt drive WB, with a 2 wheel Velke. Total price was less than $2400. It's 3 years old, and has been trouble free. It makes a pretty nice cut. I bought it thinking it would last 3 years, and I could talk my wife into letting me get a Z. I don't think that's going to happen any time soon.

[Grateful11]

>I have one of the Landscapers Supply mowers, a 48" belt drive WB, with a 2 wheel Velke. Total price was less than $2400. It's 3 years old, and has been trouble free.

I've been waiting for someone to say that. I like the looks of those units and the price. They seem to have every part for it listed in the catalog. The only really big commercial type dealer we have is hard to deal with and personally, and it might be a mistake, I would just about as soon take a chance and go with someone like them instead of having to deal with some of the local dealers around here. These dealers around here must really make a lot of money because most of them treat their customers very poorly. If I treated my customers the way they treat me and others, I wouldn't be in business long.

[KD'sLawns]

Thanks for the advice guys, I think that I will check into a walk behind. Is a grass gobbler just a side attach bagger?
As for the trimmer, edger, and blower I have been using Echoes. Are Shindaiwa's that much better?

[Greenkeepers]

KD-

I agree with everyone here, get yourself a good commercial walk behind.. You can pick up an new Exmark 48" for 2500 + 200 for a sulky and your set. I'm assuming you have homeowner echo's.. These will get you buy so it depends on what you want to do with your spare $800. You will notice the difference with a commercial trimmer, residential blower will work for just blowing off the drive, walks etc...

[eslawns]

Originally posted by KD'sLawns
As for the trimmer, edger, and blower I have been using Echoes. Are Shindaiwa's that much better?


Everybody has their preference. As long as you get a commercail unit, you should be OK with whatever brand you get.

[Mike Nelson]

Looking for a z rider myself

I thought I would pass along this info.

Four years ago I bought two 48" belt driven walk behinds from Landscapers and can't ever say they have let me down one bit.I have the same guy mowing all the time and he alternates mowers or when he needs a helper they have the second one.If I am not mistaken the only thing that broke was the key switch or something to that effect.We had to also beef up the threaded rod that controls the steering,but that is about it.I only paid $1,9950.a piece.

Thinking about trying their z rider!

Good Luck
Mike

[tomoaktree]

When they say it's made for the homeowner, that's what it is for. Don't make the same mistake I did. Years back , I tried to save a buck or two buying the cheapest mower I could find and it was in the shop every other day.

[skyphoto]

Nobody ever mentions a grasshopper but if you have a dealer close by check with them on a used unit....They are a tough mower and can be bought used for a reasonable price....

PeacE!