I Love my Hustler WB.

[Firebrand]

Well, all you guys raving about exmarks, and dixie choppers, I thought I'd give my opinion on the Hustler. I just purchased a 48 inch WB with the 17 hp Kawi. Before this I had a 36 inch Scag belt drive. I think this Hustler is great! I only have about 5 hours on it, but I have become an big fan. It is very easy to manuever, and making a 180 degree turn is a cinch, the H-bar steering system REALLY works awesome. It took me a little while to figure out the technique to turn without tearing the sod, but with practice you can make perfect turns. Also I had a Jumbo Grass Gobbler attached instead of the cloth Hustler bagger. The Grass Gobbler required some modification of the deck to work right. I also use a Velke brand sulky. The sulky bolted right on and works very well, it can jackknife in reverse if you go too fast, but I have found that you can steer the sulky in reverse if you are careful. Before I made my final decision I tested a Hustler ShortCut 1500 and a Scag 48 inch hydro. I liked the ShortCut but I didn't like the hassle with the bac vac emptying system, and the 25 hp Kohler problems made up my mind for me. I really liked my Scag 36 belt drive, but I thought the Scag 48 hydro was a real junker. I found it hard to maneuver and it seemed to lack the hydro pump power to climb moderate hills. I'm looking forward to putting it through it's paces next season. So I would encourage any of you to check this brand out before you buy.

[dhicks]

I have the same Hustler. I bought mine in August and it was the best purchase I could have made. Go Hustler!

[jcoat]

What did you guys end up paying?

[Rodg]

Just curious, did you try and ExMark?

[lawrence stone]

A trimmer trap sulky would be a better "fit" for your hydro 48 esp. if you are mowing wide areas with a 48" deck.

Also you can make a easy OCDC that works with the grass gobbler bracket. Use a manual choke cable control from pep boys.

Now put a gator and a hi lift on evry spindle and you will be rockin.

[Edited by lawrence stone on 11-09-2000 at 03:21 PM]

[dhicks]

I tried both the eXmark and the Toro Proline. At that time, eXmark had pistol grips and I cannot use pistol grips due to nero damage in my right arm. The Toro was easy to drive but I was not overly impressed with the cut. I do have a new Toro Z-Master 62" that I love. So nothing against Toro.

[Evan528]

dhicks, Just out of curiosity... what size deck was the toro walkbehind you tried. I have been very impressed by the quality of cut my 62 z master gives but have heard the 52 dosnt cut as nice.

[dhicks]

As for the size of deck on the Toro Proline, I think it was a 44" SF whatever. Matter of fact, I thought the Toro WB had a great cut until I tested the Hustler. Somebody asked about the price. I paid $4,650 for the Hustler. The Toro with the 15 HP Kohler (I think) was at $5,100. The 17 HP Toro was almost $5,700.00 While money was not an issue, the Hustler, at least for me, was the better mower.