What good are walkbehinds?

[Doug406]

What are some advantages of a walk behind verses a ztr? I can't figure it out. This is a serious question. Lets leave the cost out, because we all know the price difference can be made up in no time. Are there some applications where a wb will perform better than a ztr??

[cutntrim]

Lower purchase cost, better on hills, takes up less trailer space, more manueverable in tight areas/get through narrower gates, lower maintenance costs, less machine weight (in trailer and on turf)...can't think of anything else right now.<p>----------<br>Dave in S.Ontario<br>www.cutntrim.com

[Doug406]

<br>Lower purchase cost,<br>: Yeh but 4mph does not compare to 8 with rider, less of a profit maker.<br> better on hills: completely dissagree, my 2 walk behinds don't even begin to compare to the toro z masters on sides of hills., takes up less trailer space,: very true. more manueverable in tight areas: not really because of the person operating from behind, even the handlebars get in the way, <br>/get through narrower gates,: this is the only reason I own the 36&quot;<br> lower maintenance costs,: agree I guess. less machine weight (in trailer and on turf) agree----------<p>

[Grasscape Inc]

no need for a hydro walk behind with the new mini z's avaliable

[MLS]

Doug,<p>I thought the same way you do for a long timeuntil we bought a 61&quot; Ferris WB. The thing is simply amazing. It will mow clean at around 7.5 mph and the other 1.5mph is easily made-up when you get in tight places. Don't get me wrong, I prefer to sit down on the job and probably always will but the Ferris has converted my partner to a WBer.<br><p><font size="1">Edited by: MLS

[jeffyr]

How big is the mini Z ?<br>What is the approx cost?

[grasscapeinc]

THey are about the same price as a hydro walk-behind. Maybe a little more.<br>The are just like the Zero-turn, but a smaller deck, and little less hp.<br>sch, tor, exmark, and dixie have them

[grasscapeinc]

THey are about the same price as a hydro walk-behind. Maybe a little more.<br>The are just like the Zero-turn, but a smaller deck, and little less hp.<br>scag, toro, exmark, and dixie have them

[bdemir]

Last ye4ar i purchased a turf tracer 60&quot; its great its fast its smoothits wonderful. But I could of got an exmark Lazer Z 48&quot; for the same price. I wish i did #1 because its a sit down not a stand up and now i am finding out that standing up for 10 to 14 hours is not cool #2 a because its a litlle faster than a walkbehind and that always helps when on big lits or pawement. Your workers will like it better mine choose the dixie over the exmark because of the sit down thing and i have to fight with them because the exmark cuts better on most grasses. I wish i had a lazer. Dont get me wring the walkbehind is great but not for riding all day. For me comfort is king then versatility.

[AB Lawn Care]

Walk-behinds in my opinion are a much better choice than a mini ztr.There just too many pro's to a walk-behind to list!I use to be a Walker nut.I used them on small and large lawns.That is a thing of the past!I will never use a zrt on small yards agian!<p>----------<br>from:Adam<br>AB Lawn Care

[Toroguy]

I think the riders give a more professional appearance, low ballers generally wont spend $5,000-9,000 on a piece of equipment. <p>A rider wouldnt work on half my current properties, but eventually I will grow into the need for one, thus lifting me up another notch in the lawn care food chain.<p>

[dylan]

Those new Hustler hydro WB's go 8mph. That will keep up with most riders if you have a sulky.

[Bobby]

Hey Adam, what size lawns are you doing? I've been considering the same move.Been running a WalkerMT42.I thought a walk-behind would be better on my back.The main thing I don't like about a walk-behind is backing up so slow.My lots are about 70by100<p>----------<br>Yesteryear L/S<br>Hollywood Fla

[lawrence stone]

You can't make money if your are in reverse.<p>You should never get yourself in a position where you need to use reverse unless you need to get the machine off the trailer when<br>facing downhill.

[Grasscape Inc]

hey bdemer.<br>Try selling your scag on Ebay

[little green guy]

to me the ideal setup is two riders and one walkbehind on the trailer because you need a walk behind for hills and gated yards and stuff. I see a couple of guys around me that have three lazers on the trailer, i guess if you can do that why not? There are also guys that i see with three 52&quot; walkbehinds on there trucks, that just dosn't make sence to me with the size of the yards around here.

[boozoo]

I'll add another advantage that's been hinted at: You get better exercise with a WB! Do you guys with the ZTR's remember your push mower days? I do, and I was never in better shape. Then came 6 years of Grasshoppers, and I made much better money, and am in much worse shape. I bought a Hustler 48&quot; WB last week and I love it! The advantages I see (and imagine - I haven't had it long) are: better on wet slopes, better on wet and fragile yards, better on small yards, good to have as a back-up and: I get to WALK!

[bdemir]

Grasscape,<p>That is a great idea! Is that a good place to sell mowers?

[paddy]

how do you like the hustler steering mechanism. I think i'm gonna drive to the hustler dealer soon, there shortcut with backvac looks pretty impressive

[boozoo]

Paddy, compared to the other walk-behind I tried (a Toro with &quot;t-bar&quot; steering) I found the hustler MUCH easier to learn - took me all of about 60 seconds. It's a joy to learn, whereas a friend of mine running a Toro says it takes about a month to get comfortable on the &quot;T-bar&quot;. For Riders: I don't know. I like the look fo the Hustler Shortcut also, and I've seen it make a very nice cut on certain lawns around town. It may be my next purchase, depending on the service I get on this one.

[Lazer]

I guess it depends on WHICH walk-behind and WHICH ZTR.<p>I have on my crews an Exmark/Toro Lazer/Z-Master and an Exmark 60&quot; Hydro WB on each.<p>I have 18&quot; tires on the WB's which makes them quite fast- I think they're 6-7mph with 16&quot; tires, so ground speed is close: 8mph for the WB and 9.5 for the riders.<p>Advantages of the WB: <br>Easily pick the deck up around countoured <br>areas.<br>Faster turns with less skid-marks than a rider. One full-speed whip and your back the other-way.<br>Better handling on hills. You step off the Jungle Wheels and walk alongside the mower on inclines a rider (with you on it) can't match.<p>Because I buy Toro 62&quot; Z-Masters for $1000 less than an Exmark WB w/ velke, I was planning on using all ZTRs in the future. After seeing their limitations, every crew will have at least 1 walk-behind.<br>