SCAG vs BOBCAT review by owner

[supercuts]

i posted this before "scag vs bobcat my take" when i first bought my scag tt29efi kawi, 61" Velocity mower. i had only run/used bobcat up until that time. i love my bobcats and have had many. at first i really hated the scag and didnt know what the hype was about. now that ive completed my first season with it, here is my take with 400hrs on it.

to start, why i love the bobcat. predator pro 61" 33hp generac

bobcat pros
its very compact. much shorter than the Turf Tiger (TT) so uses much less trailer space. it has the same 16cc hydro drive pumps as the scag. feels like a sports car vs the scag which feels more like a dump truck. much less tail swing. stable on hills. great cut. easy to reach/fill fuel tanks. very easy deck height adjustments. very easy foot lift peddal to raise deck/deck feels light. fast in forward and reverse speed. great power. front deck antiscalp wheels place much better than scag and you can get much closer to objects like trees.

bobcat cons
sticks can throw belts off when they jab up under the mower. it only happens once or twice a year, but its a real pain to get the mower to the trailer to get one wheel up on the ramp to work under it adn fit your hands under..bla bla bla. spins tires easy. seat height is high

scag pros
cuts nice. throws grass better than bobcat. orginally i said the velocity deck clumped alot. it had a bagger so it had the shroud under the deck for the bagger which collected wet grass. once i had the right one on, it was great. holds hills the same as the bobcat. handled bumpy lawns better than the bobcat. the drive wheels seemed to almost have a delay unlike the bobcat which is very easy to spin the tires. low center of gravity fuel tank below the seat. very low seat compared to the bobcat-great for reaching under trees. great speed, forward and reverse.

scag cons
very difficult to adjust height compared to bobcat. deck is very heavy heavy on foot peddal. fuel fill is in a bad place and angled towards the battery( why not angle it forward so you can dump a can of gas in it without flipping the seat?). scag is very heavy and to me overbuilt. lets say the task is moving a lawn mower. a ford ranger would work. you dont need a ford superduty dually king ranch powerstoke diesel. to me, the scag is overkill like the superduty. weight may contribute, front caster yolks bend easily from curb hopping. front center deck anti-scap wheels stick out very far and you cant close to trees/bushes, etc compared to bobcat

in conclusion, i love my bobcats. the scag really grew on me to the point that it really comes down to prefference and price. the bobcats are so much cheaper, id have to buy more bobcats over scag. MSRP on the same TT is $14k, i can get the same bobcat predator pro with the 33hp for $7200, thats amost 1/2 the price. the scag has grown on me enough to where i really like using it. they guys didnt like it so i used it and now i have a hard time getting back on teh bobcat but mostly because the key and trottle is on the other side.

id love to hear comments and answer question so fire away

[grassman177]

great, thanks

[HenryB]

Sounds like the review on the Lawn-Advisor.com. I agree about the Scag being too long. Great review it's nice to get it from someone who owns both.

[BladeScape]

After demoing the TT....I really don't like the machine.

Feels like a complete SLUG compared to my Lazer.

Good Review....I like what I hear about the Bobcat brand.

[SNAPPER MAN]

Good review man. People either love or hate the scags. Me personally, I love em. I have a turf tiger and I love how big it is because it rides better and cuts incredible. To each is own. If we all liked the same thing there wouldn't be so many different mower brands.

[HenryB]

We demoed a Turf Tiger I thought it was OK my guys hated it. The only time they ever asked me to please not buy a piece of equipment. I don't know why there soo much either. Their WB's are archaic. Their still using 1980's tech.

[Hoy landscaping]

i love my TT. best investment i made

[MONTE]

Bobcat Predator pro's are $9500+ around here! Still cheaper than the scag and I actually like the quickness of the bobcat a lot like a older chopper.

[W.L.M.]

Originally Posted by HenryB

We demoed a Turf Tiger I thought it was OK my guys hated it. The only time they ever asked me to please not buy a piece of equipment. I don't know why there soo much either. Their WB's are archaic. Their still using 1980's tech.

Thats true that their designs are from the 80's, but he we are in 2010 (soon anyway) and those designs are no different to any other comparable machine. Those "archaic" (as you refer to them) designs set the industry standards back then and is what made commercial mowers what they are today. A walk behind is a walk behind and there isnt going to be much changing.

As for the original topic, I would agree with you that the TT is overbuilt but that is why you will see 10+ year old scags still out there working, I may be biased but I would be willing to bet that these cheap bobcat mowers wont be out making you any money in 10 or even 5 years from now.

[Hoy landscaping]

i always see parts bobcats, and used scags for sale. and the scags are a little broken in, but they all cut like new.