ZTR vs Tractor

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I recently purchased a home with 2/3 of an acre of St. Augustine grass and have been mowing the property with my old 21" Honda self propelled walk behind mower. The property is well landscaped and has a pool, plant beds fence and driveway obstacles. I love the Honda mower but it is taking me too long to mow with the small deck. I am looking for a mower that will reduce mowing time while still providing an excellent cut. Either high end residential or low end commercial.

I recently visited a reputable local commercial lawn equipment dealer and they recommended a John Deere 42" X300 tractor or a Scag Freedom Z 36" ZTR. I am torn between the tractor with its versatility to tow other garden equipment and the quicker mowing ZTR. Not sure I can tow with the ZTR? I believe the dealer also carries eXmark.

Do any of you own the Deere X300 or Scag Freedom Z 36" that can provide feedback on quality of equipment, cut, durability and ease of maintenance? Also any feedback on tractor vs ZTR. I appreciate your feedback.

[MS_SURVEYOR]

The difference in time taken to mow between a LT and a ZTR is about a little more that half the time. Ztr's turn around in less space faster. Thus more time is spent mowing than turning around. Lets try this. I mow my mother in law's lawn. It's about an acre and a half with a lot of trees, landscape areas, and fences. I usually mow it with my 46 inch Saber LT hydro. It's a fairly nice mower. Cuts a pretty lawn. Takes me about an hour and a half. Yesterday I had my 52 inch ZTR loaded on my trailer because I mowed another lawn down the road for a fee. It took me 40 minutes from start to finish. That's less than half.

So I know a ZTR will mow faster. The Scag Freedom Z is a nice mower. I'd think about the 42 inch deck if gates aren't a problem. 6 more inches makes a big difference on area mowed in one pass. Scagg makes a hitch for the Freedom Z. The tow weight limit is 250 lbs.

Here's the Manual on the Freedom Z. The towing info is on page 18.

Freedom Z Manual