Beast 54ZB Commercial ZTR

[Brentster]

I think I'm witnessing history in the making.

[GMLC]

Gordon and I have swaped contact info. I will try to keep everyone up to date.

[71gearhead]

Originally Posted by GordonwJackson

Hi GMLC, and 71gearhead:

I can tell both of you are very interested in BEAST mowers.

If I were to suggest a "throw down" challenge between your favorite mower and a BEAST mower...would you accept and attend with your mower?

I suggest a very simple scoring method that rates cut quality, speed, hill climbing ability, resistance to abuse, cost, and overall value. These are all things we could objectively measure in one day.

You must be willing to subject your mower to the very same test sequence (including abuse) as the BEAST mower and we will find a 3rd party to keep score.

If you think this is a good idea we can work out the logistics over the next few weeks to arrange something in your local area. Of course we will want to post all results on this site for all to see. What do you think?

Maybe other lawnsite members would like to try this too? All I ask is that you are a true Pro mower user...and lets discuss.

I look forward to your feedback.

Gordon

I accept but I'm not a pro. And the test will look like this: Drop off a Beast with a 54" deck and whatever motor you feel works best at my house. I will run it side by side with my Hustler Fastrak with a 24 hp FS-series Kawasaki and a 54" deck for the warranty period of the engines which is three years. After drawing a full circle around the complete ownership experience including performance, quality and costs, I will report back on this experience and we can judge it.

Okay, that might be interpreted as sarcasm but that is what a real test looks like that might convey the total ownership experience, not one off runs or whatever.

The Beast mower does interest me because it's a product of three things I like, marketing, steel and design. Same reason I owned a Trabant while living in the Czech Republic, the experience alone was interesting.

[nepatsfan]

I want to see some drag races. That is how you test a commercial mower

[dmodem]

This isn't meant to bash the Z-Beast, but I recently purchased one, used it for approximately 4 hours, subsequently returned it to HD, and purchased a Hustler. The Z-beast's right side hydro suddenly became very inefficient during routine mowing and it was apparent something bad was happening as the hydro and subsequent components were clanging very loudly under the engine deck. I inspected and checked the tension on the belts, and made minor adjustments, but the noise never went away nor the hydro ever worked any better. Although there was possibly only a further minor adjustment necesary, I went though all of the normal adjustments and came to the realization that a problem shouldn't surface in the first 3 - 4 hours of use. Additionally, when the mower left me sit, I noticed one bolt had been completely lost from one area of the mower and one was on the verge of falling out until I tightened it. Several more needed tightening as well.
Still a good price and good looking mower, but price and looks won't cut grass.

[samendolaro]

How long ago did you return it ?

What do you mean by the right side became inefficient ?

Originally Posted by dmodem

The Z-beast's right side hydro suddenly became very inefficient during routine mowing.

[twinturb089]

wow, this is getting more exciting than bully beat down!i have to give gxi some credit here.although my owning experience has been a short one with the beast. i admire the loyalty,the phone calls and the strive to make me happy with my beast.i still have my 54 beast,and will be recieving my exmark lazer z today. before i return the beast this weekend i am going to use my neighbors 3 acres (completely flat but grasss is about 6-7 " high), and my 2 acres (very hilly) grass only about 4", as my own little test area. i have only ever owned a toro z5000 (had a lot of chassis flex)so i dont really know what a good mower is.i want to compare myself the pros and cons of each.easabilty in mowing,speed,cut,gas consumption etc.who knows????? maybe i am expecting too much from my mower??

[TWerner]

Originally Posted by 71gearhead

I accept but I'm not a pro. And the test will look like this: Drop off a Beast with a 54" deck and whatever motor you feel works best at my house. I will run it side by side with my Hustler Fastrak with a 24 hp FS-series Kawasaki and a 54" deck for the warranty period of the engines which is three years. After drawing a full circle around the complete ownership experience including performance, quality and costs, I will report back on this experience and we can judge it.

Nice try, but no, that's not was a fair test would look like. A long term test like you propose would have to be done by someone who didn't own either mower. Basically, several mfgrs would have to give one or two machines to a large company and the company would have to use all the machines and keep records of performance, repairs, costs etc. One guy asking for a free mower for a few years is not a test. The proposal doesn't sound sarcastic, it sounds like someone with a bias against the machine asking for the impossible.

GMLC's proposal with Gordon, on the other hand, to run the machines together for a few days, is a reasonable way to prove the Beasts performance can potentially equal a commercial mower's performance. If it can do that, then once the birthing pains (what I'm calling these current issues) are resolved, then we'll see over time how it holds up.

Whether or not GXi should get to work on the machine to check for loose bolts and stuff, beyond what the HD would do is a question. I think it's fair to give them an hour to prep the machine. For $1800+ in savings, you can reasonably say someone should be willing to go over the machine with a socket set and torque wrench before they run it.

I would not allow them to extra-prep it with loc-tite or such, but I don't think they will ask to do that.

Very interested to see this happen.
Todd

[IS500Z]

Originally Posted by TWerner

Nice try, but no, that's not was a fair test would look like. A long term test like you propose would have to be done by someone who didn't own either mower. Basically, several mfgrs would have to give one or two machines to a large company and the company would have to use all the machines and keep records of performance, repairs, costs etc. One guy asking for a free mower for a few years is not a test. The proposal doesn't sound sarcastic, it sounds like someone with a bias against the machine asking for the impossible.

Not only a potential bias against one machine but an obvious preference for the other mower in the 'evaluation'. How much more in the Hustler camp could one be than turning around and owning a second mower from Hustler when the first one went up in flames, literally. The results of the proposed 'test' could already be written. If anything comes of any of this except talk the company's proposal seems a reasonable first start. It would also be nice to compare the mower to products offered by other manufacturers in a similar price point, not to ones costing several thousands more.

[samendolaro]

Originally Posted by IS500Z

It would also be nice to compare the mower to products offered by other manufacturers in a similar price point, not to ones costing several thousands more.

You won't find another commercial mower in their price range.

I think GXI's point is that they are marketing this towards Commercial users. They have residential mowers . They want to show that their mowers which are $1000's less are in the same league. If they were to compare it to a residential mower it would always be compared with residential and not commercial mowers.

Thats why Gordon specifically said "PRO" mowers. Many people here don't consider these as"Commercial Quality" mowers and I think GXI would like to put that idea to rest.

The test can't tell us how the mower will perform over time (only real time will tell) , but it can say how the mowers are working today out of the box.