Best Commercial Mower Walk-behind

[LawnMan19]

Originally Posted by ashgrove landscaping

Ferris is the best dont listen to anyone else they are stupid

Yeah, Ferris hands down the best hydro walk behind out their the height of cut system is the quickest and easiest to use period. And you can't beat the price.

[ddixon7]

Originally Posted by Armsden&Son

Hmmmmmm. No comparison? None? That's pretty weird there Ddixon7... OH! I know why! You must have those little girly girl hands right? "Ouch! my hands hurt from this belt drive! Boo Hoo !!!!! And Efficiency? What are you crazy! Any machine, and I mean any machine is only as efficient as it's operator..... That being said, I would blow smoke on you using a 36 scag! I would let you use any 36 that you want and you would still lose big time.... Hey, I don't hate hydros or anything but to make a blanket statement that all hydros are more efficient than belts is just irresponsible when someone is coming here looking for legit information....

Haha chill out man. I am with you an the girly hands part. A lot of people (and I don't understand it either) don't like pistol grips or ECS because they can't stand squeezing triggers. The hydro and belt drive are about the same on your hands so that is not the point. The point is, if you have to mow a lot of grass, then a hydro is what you need because every time you have to turn a belt, you have to pull the mower back so you don't pivot the turning tire. You can control your speed a lot better because you can just put it on the highest setting and squeeze the triggers to your desired speed on a hydro, instead of messing with the gears on a belt. If he is mowing just a few back yards then yes, keep the belt. I have been in business a long time man. I have used a WIDE variety of walk behinds so I know what I am talking about a little bit...

But, I stand behind my statement that if given the choice, I, and most people would take a hydro unit over a belt unit. Because of pain? No, because I'm trying to knock out my list as efficiently as possible.

[Armsden&Son]

Fair enough, sorry about that! I guess I just get passionate about mowers! haha! In all honesty I am just set in my ways and I have been using that little 36 for so long with such great results that I un-neededly attack hydros... Funny you do mention the pull back because that was the hardest part for me to get down when I learned how to do it many moons ago... And you are absolutely correct in saying that the hydros eliminate that movement...

[SIRKY]

Originally Posted by Armsden&Son

Fair enough, sorry about that! I guess I just get passionate about mowers! haha! In all honesty I am just set in my ways and I have been using that little 36 for so long with such great results that I un-neededly attack hydros... Funny you do mention the pull back because that was the hardest part for me to get down when I learned how to do it many moons ago... And you are absolutely correct in saying that the hydros eliminate that movement...

The hydros do eliminate that method but when you compare prices between a hydro 36 and a belt 36 your a better off getting a 36 belt and the rest hydros cause they are light and easy to swing around, and you dont use a 36 enough to justify the price.

[mach14604]

I guess my big issue I am looking at this point is.... is it worth the cost to go to a 36 hydro and not go to a bigger deck. I want a bigger deck but i have too many gated accounts to go away from the 36inch. So I would be going from a 36 gear to a 36 hydro. Is it a upward move or more lateral move and pissing away money at the same time going with the 36inch hydro.

[Lefty in PA]

Are you aware Scag is rolling out a new hydro to replace pro-v. I've been looking into a 36 hydro - Talked with my Scag dealer, he said the new machines should be showing up a dealers within a month. 48"and 52" will have the option of floating deck, they plan to have floating deck for 36" by late summer. He hasn't seen one but was told the controls are similar to ECS. I'd love to get my girly hands on one.

[Leland Lawn]

I have 2 Toro 36" hydro's with fixed decks. I have a jungle wheels sulky on the newer of the 2. I would have liked floating, but the height adjustment just wasn't something I wanted to deal with. Plus around here it's super hilly and the fixed deck provides more control when somewhat sideways on a hillside. The controls do take quite a while to teach, due to being the complicated pistol grip design. But after about a month of work on a machine, I see a guy cruising around at full speed (6mph) all day.

The Turbo Force deck does great in all conditions, but I prefer not to bag with it. Only because the bag fills up way to fast. I really like how heavy duty the mowers are, and my dealer is amazing. I noticed last week when I was there grabbing some parts, that the Toro 60" walk behinds have the same hydro pumps and motors as my little 36's, which makes me really happy that they didn't cheap out!!

[Joel D]

My thought process would go as follows:

1. Is what I have still in good working shape?
2. Can I afford a bigger WB? (few hundred bucks more than a 36)
3. Is my trailer big enough for 2 mowers?

If you answer yes to these questions and still want a new mower you should probably get a 48 or 52 WB hydro. It will save time on most of your accounts, and you will still have the 36 for the gates, but not be dealing with it all the time.

As far as a suggestion for a brand I would recommend the Hustler Trimstar. It is super easy to operate, cuts great, stripes awesome, handles hills good, and I don't see how and deck control system good be better because you move one pin and pull a lever that you don't have to bend over to deal with, and it pulled me on a sulky easily (I'm 260 lbs). I was mowing 2 acres, trimming, edging, and back in the truck within 45 minutes. Not bad for a WB.

[clydebusa]

If you haven't figured it out by now all of these threads that are "what would be the best" (equipment,truck,trimmer) is a waste of time. Demo some of what is out there and make your own choice. In the end any big name mower will work and will serve you well!

[Larson Lawn Care]

It's always good to ask others that have used the machines for pros and cons, that way maybe you can narrow your results down and save time instead of taking every major brand out for a test drive.
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