Hey everyone, we just bought a house on 7 acres with about 6 of them mowable. The previous owner is trying to sell his Simplicity Contender 61" zero turn mower, with a Briggs and Stratton engine, 724cc and 25hp. Are these quality mowers? He wants $4500 for it, but I was thinking of offering $3800. Are these fair prices? Is he wanting too much? Would I be better off buying a new mower for cheaper (if they are available cheaper in that size?) I appreciate any help.
Simplicity mowers
DaftDanky
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You can get some amazing used machines for $8000, top of the line commercial units that are overkill but would make quick work of your lawn and keep their value forever.
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No big box mowers! 6 acres is way too much for a big box mower, it's too much for a residential grade mower. Go for a commercial grade machine.
What do you guys think it would cost to pay someone to do that size yard? I was estimating like $300-400 based on rough Google searches asking that general question. Dropping $8k on a mower is a lot
@Cross Creek Lawn Care Why do you say it's too much for a residential grade mower? Do they overheat? Break down after X number of years with that much use? Etc.
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They just aren’t made for anything more than a couple acres for a few years, basically they are made to be thrown away, commercial grade stuff is made to last and be fixed when it’s broken, not thrown away and replaced. My dad has a Troy Bilt bronco and I have a hustler XONEI, the Troy Bilt is hard to work on and built very poorly, it pops tires multiple times a season, bends blades if you hit something like a stick, ( I mulch sticks with my Hustler). Getting a residential grade or big box machine for that much property is gonna cost you $3000-5000 and will last no longer than 5 or 6 years. That’s just throwing away your money.
I have done the research on paying someone to mow, it makes sense to hire someone if you have a lawn that’s bigger than can be accomplished with a push mower, but less than two acres, upwards of 2 acres and you’ll be paying enough to justify buying a nice machine. Around here you’d be charged $200 for your property by a new amigo and up to double that by someone who has been in the business a long time. After only a couple years you could save enough to justify the purchase of even an $8000 machine... not to mention that you will fully own a machine worth close to what you paid.
The Route id recommend for you is buying a used Full Commercial unit, search marketplace and Craigslist and try to find a mower with less than 500 hours, maybe more if it had been used residentially and make sure it looks clean, make sure the seller is polite and seems normal, look for service records, and just use common sense and trust your gut. Send us links and we will let you know what we think of them.
Hustler: XONE, XONEi Super Z and Super Z Hyperdrive
Scag: Tiger Cat, Cheetah, And turf tiger.
Ferris: ISX2200, ISX3300, ISX800 (A little less than full commercial in my opinion but still good) IS2100, and IS3200
John Deere: 900 series (Not Super familiar with the lineup)
The rest of the brands I am not familiar with, I would be happy to do research if you are interested in another brand.
I have done the research on paying someone to mow, it makes sense to hire someone if you have a lawn that’s bigger than can be accomplished with a push mower, but less than two acres, upwards of 2 acres and you’ll be paying enough to justify buying a nice machine. Around here you’d be charged $200 for your property by a new amigo and up to double that by someone who has been in the business a long time. After only a couple years you could save enough to justify the purchase of even an $8000 machine... not to mention that you will fully own a machine worth close to what you paid.
The Route id recommend for you is buying a used Full Commercial unit, search marketplace and Craigslist and try to find a mower with less than 500 hours, maybe more if it had been used residentially and make sure it looks clean, make sure the seller is polite and seems normal, look for service records, and just use common sense and trust your gut. Send us links and we will let you know what we think of them.
Hustler: XONE, XONEi Super Z and Super Z Hyperdrive
Scag: Tiger Cat, Cheetah, And turf tiger.
Ferris: ISX2200, ISX3300, ISX800 (A little less than full commercial in my opinion but still good) IS2100, and IS3200
John Deere: 900 series (Not Super familiar with the lineup)
The rest of the brands I am not familiar with, I would be happy to do research if you are interested in another brand.
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Let me know if you have any more questions.
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Every component on a commercial machine is just heavier duty. The frame is thicker metal. The engine is higher quality. The drive system is stronger. The deck is thicker metal. Some of them have suspension.
If you are mowing five acres you will want to do it quickly. The faster you mow the harder it is on the machine. It has to process the grass faster as well as absorb the bumps. A big box machine will fall apart a lot quicker.
That simplicity is a entry level commercial grade machine. It also has 4 wheel independent suspension. It will be able to handle the terrain much better than a residential grade mower. I'd buy it for around $3k assuming its got 500hrs or less.
If I were in your position I'd raise my budget and finance something new in the 8k range.
This will give you a mower that is designed for the task, comes with a warranty, and if properly maintained should last 20 years. My specific choice would be the Ferris isx800 61inch with the vanguard motor. This is their entry level commercial machine. It has 4wheel suspension for faster mowing while still maintaining a smooth ride.
If you are mowing five acres you will want to do it quickly. The faster you mow the harder it is on the machine. It has to process the grass faster as well as absorb the bumps. A big box machine will fall apart a lot quicker.
That simplicity is a entry level commercial grade machine. It also has 4 wheel independent suspension. It will be able to handle the terrain much better than a residential grade mower. I'd buy it for around $3k assuming its got 500hrs or less.
If I were in your position I'd raise my budget and finance something new in the 8k range.
This will give you a mower that is designed for the task, comes with a warranty, and if properly maintained should last 20 years. My specific choice would be the Ferris isx800 61inch with the vanguard motor. This is their entry level commercial machine. It has 4wheel suspension for faster mowing while still maintaining a smooth ride.
How many hours would be considered too much or a lot on a used machine? If I decided to look for a used one, should I be looking at something under 500 hours? 750 hours? etc.
At how many hours do larger issues (needs repairs/replacements) generally start to manifest?
At how many hours do larger issues (needs repairs/replacements) generally start to manifest?
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Depends on the mower... for hustlers id day 2500 plus hours... a Ferris id guess 2000 plus.
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I’d say under 500 is the way to go, plenty of deals to be had and you will put so few hours on it you won’t have to worry about it breaking.
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Where are you coming up with these numbers?
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Just an educated guess based on mower I’ve seen, mowers I’ve owned and dealers I’ve talked to.
I wouldn't buy a used mower with more than 2-300 hours tops. If I were looking at maintaining 6-7 acres I'd be looking full commercial and likely new. I'd be budgeting 8K and seeing what I could find.
I know these mowers go a lot longer than 2-300 hours, but that's about my limit.
I don't think a homeowner needs to worry about taking a machine to 2500 hours. I mow 2 acres every 4-7 days and our growing season i'm lucky to see 60 hours in a season. might be different in your area for growing season, but even double mowing time, that's still 20 years.
you need to decide if you want to be done quickly and halfway comfortably, or be mowing all day or ffor multiple days, or maintain a smaller area etc. That could change things.
But 6 acres of lawn, i'd be looking at 61+ for deck size and full commercial. The earlier suggestions in the thread were all good mowers. Even the simplicity mentioned earlier is a good mower, but at 8 years and i'm guessing it has a fair number of hours, 6-800 at least and I would probably be around that 2500-3K at best
I know these mowers go a lot longer than 2-300 hours, but that's about my limit.
I don't think a homeowner needs to worry about taking a machine to 2500 hours. I mow 2 acres every 4-7 days and our growing season i'm lucky to see 60 hours in a season. might be different in your area for growing season, but even double mowing time, that's still 20 years.
you need to decide if you want to be done quickly and halfway comfortably, or be mowing all day or ffor multiple days, or maintain a smaller area etc. That could change things.
But 6 acres of lawn, i'd be looking at 61+ for deck size and full commercial. The earlier suggestions in the thread were all good mowers. Even the simplicity mentioned earlier is a good mower, but at 8 years and i'm guessing it has a fair number of hours, 6-800 at least and I would probably be around that 2500-3K at best
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Excellent post! Thank you
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Why are you jumping on every thread with kubota?
Thank you for your response, as well as everyone else who took time out to answer.
I finally got around to asking him (been busy moving) and he said the mower has 150 hours on it. What does everyone think of the price (asking $4500 for it) with that many hours on it? $8k seems like a lot to spend on a mower, but I mean if it was absolutely, 100% necessary I could. But besides the house/down payment, I'm about to drop $150k+ on building out my business, and I hadn't anticipated an extra $8k+ on a mower.
Thanks again for all the feedback and I appreciate any further help.
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150 hours is practically new Still
Do you think $4500 is a fair price? Or should I try to offer $4k or something? He's a cool guy and he only lives like 10 mins away now, so I don't want to offend him by lowballing him too hard and then kind of sour any future relationship
150 isn’t much at all, but it doesn’t add up? It’s about 8 years old I thought I read. 6 acres is going to take some time. I’ll have about 150 hours on my 52” Ferris in 3 years on 2 acres. I only cut about 1x per week. Maybe more in spring (5 days) less now when dry ( over 2 weeks since last mow)
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