Do you really think 1/8 acre even warrants a ZT? If I was you, I would pay more for equipment that didn't need to be in the shop so much in the first place. And I think you are failing to consider that warranties don't cover everything that breaks on your mower. Warranties cover defects from the factory, so just because it needs to go back to the shop for something you broke, doesn't mean it is going to be fixed for free. And what if it takes two weeks for the part you need to come in? What are you going to mow with in the mean time?

If you really want a ZT, just shop around for a new one. Right now is the best time to buy left over mowers, and most manufacturers are offering really cheap interest rates for financing.

 

I have a 52" toro ztr I use now to mow 30 homes per day which are 1/8 of an acre, if I used anything else id be dead half way through the day

Do you really think 1/8 acre even warrants a ZT? If I was you, I would pay more for equipment that didn't need to be in the shop so much in the first place. And I think you are failing to consider that warranties don't cover everything that breaks on your mower. Warranties cover defects from the factory, so just because it needs to go back to the shop for something you broke, doesn't mean it is going to be fixed for free. And what if it takes two weeks for the part you need to come in? What are you going to mow with in the mean time?

If you really want a ZT, just shop around for a new one. Right now is the best time to buy left over mowers, and most manufacturers are offering really cheap interest rates for financing.

 

I agree with JUAN DEERE. Don't go cheap. Sounds as if your spending extra already for that extra 4" of deck surface. Look around, dealer are wanting to move stuff out for the fall/winter and you mayfind yourself a good deal on a higher priced & better machine!

 

I have a 52" toro ztr I use now to mow 30 homes per day which are 1/8 of an acre, if I used anything else id be dead half way through the day

If you already have a 52" and a TORO at that, why are you looking for a cheap mower?

 

I am asking for additional crews, why should I pull my trailer with an escalade when a ford will do... Im looking for the lowest overhead for adding additional crews, if a cheap mower will cost me time then I dont need it, as far as time in the shop well that depends as thats what backups are for but not to the extent where its at the shop so often.

Like echo handhelds, its so low priced that using it for a year or 2 then throwing it away and replacing it is not a big deal. I dont need 3 ztrs on a trailer costing me more overhead, just 1 ztr and that cheapest functional at that, if 2 years down the road a $9k toro will have 2000 hrs and is garbage anyways then id rather throw away $4400 instead.

 

Hey man, why not splurge 3.5g's and get yourself a fixed deck 48" Toro w/ a velke. It will take you about a month of getting used to, but in my arsenal that's the most versatile machine I've ever found, I have two of them and rode this model exclusively from my 2nd year all the way to October of my 5th, at which point I bought a 60" Ztr and I still use the 48" more than the Z.

Because I started with two used 52's and the 48" fixed is faster, it's very quick and nimble, light, highly maneuverable, doesn't hardly ever get stuck and if it does it only weighs 300 lbs... Bit of a pita to learn because of the fixed deck but once you get used to it that is one b-b-b-bad mower. It's a stupid simple machine, easy to fix, very little in the way of expensive parts (manual engage vs. electric clutch) and it also fits through most single 4" gates.

And it's a Toro, you still have a grand left over so you can start saving for a real Z, buy one of those about your 4th-6th year.
You might can even find one in real nice shape used for around 2g, they tend to last 10-15 years from new.

If you already have a 52" and a TORO at that, why are you looking for a cheap mower?

What I'm saying.

 

First of all,as Juan Deere said it best: 1/8 acre props are not warranting a ZTR. A 48" wb will be as productive. Second, the mowers you are talking about (entry level commercial and home-owner models) may not make it 1000 hrs. without major problems that will not just cost you a day in the shop, but maybe a week or more. Keep asking questions! I think you are on the right path, but go commercial quality! If you haven't guessed, I am not a very big Cub Cadet fan!

 

employees will beat the equipment to death. you need the toughest you can possibly buy. the downtime alone on less expensive machines will cost you thousands per year. the difference in payment between a 4500 dollar machine and a 8000 dollar machine over three years is about a 100 bucks a month. the 4500 dollar machine won't last three years run by a crew unless it is a walkbehind.

 

Ok I dont need walk behinds, reason #1 im in florida , its very hot, a 2 man crew alternates from house to house on who gets on the z so that they dont kill themselves. #2 the less tired they are the better job they will do. #3 We try do the most houses per day possible (40 per day is what im looking for). average time it takes to mow a house is 8 minutes and nothing else will make that time.

As far as beating the machines up, well its 1 of the reasons im looking for in a way disposal ztr's, I know nothing about warranty so please help me out here, I was expecting warranty to cover say spindles, engine, hydros for the full 2 years? If thats the case then my point of view is I want to own them for 2 years only as it will have about 2000 hrs by then, I mean what good is a $9000 toro with 2000 hrs in 2 years from now.

 

Ive been doing this for 1 year, now have a bit over 100 accounts, im planning ahead for next year with hopes on adding 2 more crews.

A $4400 machine split in 2 years is only $2200 a year, after that the machine is either garbage or a backup machine or sold, either way $2200 per year is no big deal. Any amount is probably no big deal but yet all I want is to use machines up through warranty and get rid of them after that.

 

I take it that this is a business venture for you, and you will not be a part of your 2 man crew! My walk behind will mow circles around the mowers you were talking about and guess what??? I don't walk!!! 40 lawns a day with a POS ZTR. You probably won't get many referrals!!! Sounds like you have everything figured out! Sure, Florida is HOT during the summer, but what state isn't? Please, go to Home Depot and buy a mower. I'm sure they will also service it for you.

 

Even though I care on how fast I also care to make the job as easy as possible. Some will say a push mower will do 1/8 acre faster but even if it did I would not use it.

I asked about ztr's, not walk behinds, not push mowers....

I think the question was simple.

I take it that this is a business venture for you, and you will not be a part of your 2 man crew! My walk behind will mow circles around the mowers you were talking about and guess what??? I don't walk!!! 40 lawns a day with a POS ZTR. You probably won't get many referrals!!! Sounds like you have everything figured out! Sure, Florida is HOT during the summer, but what state isn't? Please, go to Home Depot and buy a mower. I'm sure they will also service it for you.

 

You are 100% right! Forget about ebay! Go to Lowes's and buy a John Deere EZ Track for around 3K. At this price you could toss them out for trash pick-up every 9 mos. or so.

 

Maybe im missing something here...
Houses are mowed pretty much 1 after the other, there is no 5 minute drive in between homes like most of you probably have to rest in between a bit. This is pretty much straight work, 8 hrs a day with almost no windshield time, no time to catch a breath.

 

I think in my first post it said COMMERCIAL

You are 100% right! Forget about ebay! Go to Lowes's and buy a John Deere EZ Track for around 3K. At this price you could toss them out for trash pick-up every 9 mos. or so.

 

I'm just trying to help. Your 1st post did say commercial, but $4400 would be very entry level commercial(commercial/home-owner). Is this a brand new machine? You mentioned a 2 yr. warranty! A 4K mower will not last very long cutting 40 lawns per day. This is just my opinion.

 

The enforcer is not an "entry level" zero turn. It is in the same line as most compact zero turns like the phazer and tiger cub and stuff.

Cud Cadet/Lesco has always been a couple of thousand dollars cheaper than other brands but have a great cut and are not crap.

The enforcer is similarly weighted to a larger framed and decked walk behind while providing slightly more horsepower and obsviously being a ztr...

I believe the the 54'' enforcer has a 23 hp kawasaki and weighs like 650 or something. I think that was even full of fluids. With the command cutting deck sounds like a decent deal.

I was actually looking into one for my first ztr because of the weight. My 54'' walkbehind weighs around 600 or so and leaves a light footprint. Lighter than my 37 inch toro which weighs around half that. THe ztr weighing only slightly more with bigger and wider tires should leave a similarly weighted footprint if not actually applying less pressure per square inch.

 

The Phazer is a entry level commercial mower and lucky to be classified at that. It is pretty much a Toro time-cutter with exmark stickers. If I'm wrong then please correct me. The Scag is in a different catagory. I'm not a huge SCAG fan, but I'm sure it is better built than the Phazer.

 

I am not trying to be cheap here as money isnt even an issue.

With employees running the machines, 2000 hrs is all id say a high end machine will last, who knows it could last forever but that will be after warranty is done for, so if it doesnt last forever I have to pay for everything else.

I can buy a $9000 mower, 2 years later it has 2000 hrs, warranty is done for and then im here having to pay for breakdowns after the 2 years are up.

Or I buy a $4400 mower, 2 years later it has 2000 hrs, 2 years later with the money I saved I could buy another new ztr under warranty again.

All I care is that it lasts 2 years and nothing more, Ok so maybe a "cheaper" ztr will break down after 1000 hrs... well thats one of the questions, isnt it under warranty? Sure belts and stuff like that are not, but they aernt in the $9k machines either.

 

You may be right?????????? I am very much into quality of cut. If my lawns don't look great, then I don't get any new customers. My area is very oversaturated with lawn care companies. It is very cut-throat as is Orlando, Lake Mary and many areas in central Florida. Check out the Husler sight here on lawnsight. The Mini-Z is a very good machine especially on bahia and st. augustine.

 

I understand what you are wanting to do, I am just not sure about the Enforcer being the right model. I would suggest either the Pup from Bad Boy or the Silver Eagle from Dixie Chopper. Both are the entry level commercial machines from their suppliers. Both have commerical decks and both have commercial drive systems (pumps and motors) rather than the integrated systems used on the big box store models.

One thing to think about as far as warranty, I think most list a time frame AND an hour limit, whichever is met first. Like the warranty for your car, 3 year or 36,000 miles. You may want to check this out before you assume it will be covered for both years.

 

If thats the case then my point of view is I want to own them for 2 years only as it will have about 2000 hrs by then, I mean what good is a $9000 toro with 2000 hrs in 2 years from now.

Wow!! I can't believe you would ask this. Toro's along with other comm equipment hold their value VERY well. You would still be able to sell it and get an extremely nice return on that investment. Take a look on eBay. You'll see what I'm talking about.

 

I am not trying to be cheap here as money isnt even an issue.

I can buy a $9000 mower, 2 years later it has 2000 hrs, warranty is done for and then im here having to pay for breakdowns after the 2 years are up.

Or I buy a $4400 mower, 2 years later it has 2000 hrs, 2 years later with the money I saved I could buy another new ztr under warranty again.

All I care is that it lasts 2 years and nothing more, Ok so maybe a "cheaper" ztr will break down after 1000 hrs... well thats one of the questions, isnt it under warranty? Sure belts and stuff like that are not, but they aernt in the $9k machines either.

Costs are part of the business. You have to account for them. They happen. And a warranty is not going to "save you" from repairs like you might think. The warranty is there for defects on the manufactures side, not from wear and tear and abuse from employees. You need to look at other areas to cut costs and reduce overhead instead of trying to half a$$ on your equipment.

 

Why dont you look around for a barely used ztr that someone bought and doesnt need? Find one that a guy bought and put 20 hours on this year and still has a 2 year warranty. Or just search around until the dealers have left over models and will discount them. I hope the yards are smooth and easy if you are planning on getting one of those small bouncy ztr's bc I dont think it would be fun. Like everyone else has said, a hydro walk behind will be just as fast on 1/8 acre yards but it is your money.

 

I know expenses are part of the business, I could go and buy every crew an f450 and a diesel ztr but do they need those?

Around here almost nobody has walk behinds mowing the same 1/8 acres, when im in a subdivision theres 10 other lcos in it also mowing. I run my business as a business with everything decaled up and employees uniformed.

Now my trucks are black, the enclosed trailers will be black, the enforcer is black would look nice and its also one of the lowest priced. Ive read alot of threads about the enforcer and seemed like it worked good for them.

I dont mow jungles but I do mow alot of houses per day though they are 1/8 acre so maybe im still abusing the machine less then 1 who mowes 5 acre properties. Ive looked at the exmarks, theres a 19hp for $5999, brand may be better but price is $1600 more with less HP.

If everyone thinks I need $8k machines then thats what I might end up getting as thats the reason for this thread.