shad061
02-09-2012, 04:02 PM
I am glad I found this forum. Hopefully those with experience can provide some advice. I just purchased a property with 6 acres and 100 yards of driveway. 2 are heavily wooded and need to be cleaned up. The other 4 are mowable. I have been trying to weigh the pros and cons of each option since I simply can't afford a ZTR and an 8N at the moment.
My original thoughts where to go with the 8N so I could plow the drive, pull a trailer, run a chipper, mow, etc... At this point though it does not look like we will be getting much snow in Ohio this year so the plow is not an immediate requirement. There is a nice 8N for sale a few miles away that has been freshly blasted, painted and tuned up for $1500. It's a strong runner as is but I am a mechanic so servicing the beast should not be an issue. There is also a 60" rear deck that was just rebuilt for $400 down the road. I have some concerns about the tires tearing up the yard so i'll probably have to buy turf tires too. I also would like to be able to stripe the yard this summer. I'm sure it's possible to put some rollers on the back of the deck but I may have to fab that. The other downside to the tractor is that I will have a few areas on the property that I will have to trim with a push mower.
I was told that the 8N may be a bit large for this size of property. So I was looking at some slightly small tractors and in order to get anything with the PTO that I want I would have to spend a few thousand more and at that point might be better off getting the ZTR.
My second thought was a ZTR as opposed to the tractor. I know I can pull a trailer and put a plow blade on the ZTR but that does not sound like a great idea since they were not designed for that and the repairs are expensive. The most affordable 60" ZTR options around seam to be in the $6k -$8k range. I love the idea of a ZTR and being able to mow my lawn at 10Mph. I do count my time as very valuable. If do buy a ZTR for the spring, I'm sure I'll have to buy a tractor anyway further down the road.
I guess my question is; What would you do and why? How much longer might it take to mow with the 8n as opposed to the ZTR?
I would love to hear your thoughts.
-Ben
My original thoughts where to go with the 8N so I could plow the drive, pull a trailer, run a chipper, mow, etc... At this point though it does not look like we will be getting much snow in Ohio this year so the plow is not an immediate requirement. There is a nice 8N for sale a few miles away that has been freshly blasted, painted and tuned up for $1500. It's a strong runner as is but I am a mechanic so servicing the beast should not be an issue. There is also a 60" rear deck that was just rebuilt for $400 down the road. I have some concerns about the tires tearing up the yard so i'll probably have to buy turf tires too. I also would like to be able to stripe the yard this summer. I'm sure it's possible to put some rollers on the back of the deck but I may have to fab that. The other downside to the tractor is that I will have a few areas on the property that I will have to trim with a push mower.
I was told that the 8N may be a bit large for this size of property. So I was looking at some slightly small tractors and in order to get anything with the PTO that I want I would have to spend a few thousand more and at that point might be better off getting the ZTR.
My second thought was a ZTR as opposed to the tractor. I know I can pull a trailer and put a plow blade on the ZTR but that does not sound like a great idea since they were not designed for that and the repairs are expensive. The most affordable 60" ZTR options around seam to be in the $6k -$8k range. I love the idea of a ZTR and being able to mow my lawn at 10Mph. I do count my time as very valuable. If do buy a ZTR for the spring, I'm sure I'll have to buy a tractor anyway further down the road.
I guess my question is; What would you do and why? How much longer might it take to mow with the 8n as opposed to the ZTR?
I would love to hear your thoughts.
-Ben