OK, my story - I had a Kubota ZG327 that was great. What wasn't so great was my L3 and L4 discs that wore out and I had to have surgery on. Now, I just cut 4 acres of rough "yard" weekly and more likely it was the years of a desk job during the week combined with detailing cars on the weekends that chewed up my back. The surgeon was excellent and I trust him 100% and when he said stop detailing and riding that mower - I did. I sold the Kubota and bought a Scag SWZT 52". Now, 2 years later, I'm at the Scag dealer and sit on a Cheetah and a Tiger Cat with the suspension seat. Uh-Oh, I start to think about riding again. The dealer gave me a sweet deal on a trade - and the wife says she'll mow some if she can ride. So what would you do? Is the Tiger Cat that smooth or should I go mo money on the Cheetah or how bout a suspension seat in addition to the platform on the Cheetah (crazy?) I really appreciate any advice from ya'll who have experience with these machines. It's time to poop or get off the pot since the sales won't last forever.
Thanks folks!
That's an option I'll take if I get some positive feedback here. I'm in sales too and I don't want to waste mine and the dealers time. I know, everybody is different and what some may think is smooth, others would call rough as a cob. But, I figured if guys (girls too - I ain't sexist) that ride these machines for many hours a day, if most say they are good, then I'd go give it a try. If not, I'll keep walking and wait for the orthopedic Z with the 12" of suspension travel designed by ex motorcross racers!
My mom is 83 and has degenerative back disease and her favorite thing to do in life is mow on her SCAG Cheetah. Get the Cheetah and get the 61 inch deck so you can go slower and still cover some ground. Going slow makes the ride sooooooooo much better. Get the pneumatic tires for the front casters and run them LOW on air pressure. Good luck!
Wildcat, have you ever thought about getting a stander? Your knees (rather than your back) absorb the shock from bumps and jolts. You might ask your dealer what kind of deal he'd give you on a V-Ride.
The other suggestion would be to find a Ferris dealer and take a ride on an IS2100 or IS3200. I rode a Cheetah back-to-back with a Ferris IS2100, and the difference was night and day. The Cheetah rode better than a regular ZTR, but the Ferris was much, much smoother than the Cheetah.
Cheetah is softest Scag ride........if back is that big of an issue and for less money you can easily get a Ferris IS2100z or IS3100Z with suspension seat. That is the best/softest ride out there.......period. ICD deck is good but not Scag good in super wet conditions. Damp to dry its dang good though.
Thanks guys! I was planning on going and do some test drives tomorrow, then remembered my youngest has to go to open house at college - so - that's more important. I may just take off a half day Monday and try them out. The Ferris is not an option for me, no real dealer anywhere close - bummer!
They are primarily a Hustler dealer, with a couple Ferris now and then. The Scag dealer sells Kubota and Massey Ferguson tractors too, and the can get Snapper and Simplicity/ seems like Simplicity has the same suspension as the Ferris. But, again, they don't really stock them.
i have a cheetah and i test drove a ferris one day. the ride is about the same between both. i couldn't tell a difference. on the cheetah make sure you have the shock setting on the softest setting. it rides like a dream.
Mine did one time- the first week after ACL reconstruction. I sat on the front porch with my ice circulating cooler for my knee and "supervised". I gimped it in my leg brace the next week and fixed her lines. She said I'm too picky.
All that being said, I'm going to use your "you can ride" sales pitch to help sell her on upgrading my 61 Scag wb to a ZTR. A good salesman always plagiarizes a good pitch.
Well, wife wanted it to be some mommy/daughter time so they took off to the college open house. I got to say even though I can now go look at mowers, my feelings were bruised. And yes, the wife can run a Z mower pretty darn well. She had a good teacher! Well, off to go test drive and get numbers. Somebody pray...
I looked at the Toro a year ago and it looked impressive. However, dealer wanted over 10k for it and that wasn't the Mack daddy top of the line model. Hey, my last name Bell, not Dell! That fellow made a lot mo money
Thanks everybody! I did check out Triad and test drove a Ferris 700, I couldn't say that is any better than the Scag Tiger Cat I tested a hour earlier, but it was much cheaper. I know, not exactly an apples to apples comparison. But, I got home and fired up the SWZT and mowed for a little over a hour and decided that even though I could easily afford it, I - if I'm honest with myself, NEED to exercise more and this machine is perfect. It's weird too, I honestly didn't like the idea of someone else getting it and treating it bad. So, saved over 4K by keeping it and learned a bunch about the new Z's. I guess I can get that Glock with the MOS system now, now which one, the 9mm or the 40,,,,the 40 of course!
I can only tell you one thing. Our Tiger Cat 2 rides smoother than our Gravely 460 did with the air ride seat. Plus the seat cushion is far softer and not hard like the Gravely air ride seat. Most comfortable mower I have operated to date (38 now and started doing this when I was 14ish with my dad).
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