Looking at buying small ztr.......

Hi everyone We just found this site and what a pleasure it is. We're considering buying a small 34" cut ztr rider and we're looking hard at the Ariens with Intek B&S engine and hydro drive. Anyone with opinions on this machine? Thanks for any replies

 

I demo'd last year a Gravely (ariens is made by Gravely...I think) small Z..I think it was 36 or 34 inches. Great little machine and I wanted it for gated properties ...cutslarger areas almost as fast as my 52" Exmark because of it being so light , you can make the turns much faster without tearing up the turf. The dealer could not give me a good tradein value for my almost new 36 hydro walk-behind. I'd buy this mini-Z mower in a heartbeat if/when I can get a decent tradein value for it.

Ask to demo it for a day....my dealer gave it to me for a weekend.

 

I was very interested to find that Gravely and Ariens are the same company and apparently the machines are identical other than paint too I went to the Ariens site and they'll even sell you one over the net although we have located a dealer and are planning to check it out Monday. This little mower should answer all of our problems and for a good price too. I'm glad to know that you were impressed with it and from another post it seems other pros
think well of this machine.

 

Don't make your mind up so fast. You need to check out the Hustler FasTrak and FasTrack Mini. They have great prices and a 3 or 4 year residential warranty. Check out these links!

Hustler FasTrak: http://hustlerturfequipment.com/products/fastrak.html

Hustler FasTrak Mini: http://hustlerturfequipment.com/products/miniFastrak.html

Hustler Prices: http://www.lawnsite.com/showthread.php?t=79709

Also, you can get on the Lawn Site's Hustler forum if you have any problems. Their customer support is insane. Their products are also built much stronger and are much more durable than the Gravely. Their warranty says it all, the best in the business!

 

Scag has a 36" Z turn now. Take a look.

 

Scag would be top on my list, ariens makes a 34 inch 14 hp local dealer was them around 2 k.

 

I appreciate the info very much. I'm dealing with some tight areas and some very narrow gates and the Ariens/Gravely is a fairly heavy design with a 34" deck. It's right at 2300 bucks at my dealer and is in my price range. I'll sure look at the sites posted above before making any final decision.

 

The Intek is not a bad engine, however, if you are planning on mowing tall grass or a thick summer grass like hybrid bermuda at high speeds I would look for a different engine. The engine does not give out, but you can hear it sputter a little bit.