[Hootsma]

My partner and I are ready to up grade our mower, but we disagree on the best possible combination.

Background:
50 - 60 Properties / 16 Gated
1/4 - 1/2 Acre
2 Person crew
36" W/B Snapper w/ sulke

We have been mower shopping for awhile and have settled on a Wright Sentar.

I would like to keep the W/B for gated props and purchase a 52" or 61" for the rest to get the most efficiency from a 2 person crew.

My partner disagrees and believes we can maximize our efficiency/bottom line by ditching the W/B and getting the 36" Sentar.

There is a $22/week difference in payments between the two options.

What do you'all think is the most efficient combination and why?

Thanks for your help.

 

[mowerman90]

Definately get the 61". While your partner is mowing with the walk behind in the back yards you can mow the front and then do all the trimming and edging. You won't believe how much more effecient it will be. You should then start to phase out all gated properties or ask the client to consider getting a larger gate. I split the cost of enlarging gates for 2 of my long time customers and did the install myself. Only took about 30 min and now I can use my larger machine for the whole yard.

 

[Shuter]

I have been shopping for a new mower and found the Sentar to have some design problems, and I was advised to not buy one, even by a dealer. The Stander may be something to look at. I went with another Toro Z turn.

 

[splatz100]

If you keep the walk you will be much more effecient

If you get the 36" sentar your in the same boat but moving faster and more comfortably, but not nearly as much productivity.

 

[Hootsma]

Shuter,

What design problems are you referring to? We demoed a 36" Sentar and didn't experience any obvious design flaws. Please elaborate.

 

[DLS1]

Do a search on "Sentar" on this site for problems.

 

[Mr. Magpie]

Efficiency made simple: Whatever combination keeps you two working quickly until you both finish your tasks at the same time, while being the cheapest of your options is the best course of action.

The rest is personal preference which none of us can help you with. Are you willing to spend extra money to not work as hard/long? WHat are your opportunity costs (time and money)? THere is no right answer here, only personal, specific, preference. The only rule is that if you expend more effort, money, time, ect. you must get a sufficient return on that investment, which even then boils down to preference.

Obviously, keep in mind associated costs and risk with a larger operation (more pieces of equipment).

I know you know this stuff, I am just trying to remind you of the reality of this type of op. It can be easy to lose sight of the relevant variables.

 

[Mr. Magpie]

Definately get the 61". While your partner is mowing with the walk behind in the back yards you can mow the front and then do all the trimming and edging. You won't believe how much more effecient it will be.

You speak as if all lawns are the same.

Are you talking about efficiency or speed?

 

[Brianslawn]

walker 18hp with 48" deck. i modified my walkers so they drive twice as fast as stock. we can do 25 an 8 hr day. once did 24 in 6 hrs.

 

[impactlandscaping]

Why not try a Stander? The 23HP /52" is a hard combo to beat. Personally, I think anything over a 52" fixed deck may tend to scalp more on uneven lawns. We have no problems with ours(48"'s), and almost doubled our production on most lawns.

 

[MowingInAZ]

Have you considered a Dixon ZTR for the job? I've found that they've been very cost-effective if you want to do a great job and get done fast.

 

[Scotts' Yard Care]

We demoed a 50" Dixon with the 25hp Kohler at our local dealer and that is a smooth and impressive machine. Full hydro with Parker pumps and a real industrial type air cleaner system. Just a smaller version of the same air cleaner system used on combines, backhoes and the like.

 

[Conservative]

Hello everyone, I am the partner spoken of in this thread. I would like to add some details to Hootsma's original post.

Our mower is a 13Hp 36" Commercial Honda belt-driven W/B with sulky (not a Snapper). It is 5 years old and we are the second owners. It has always been used in what would be considered a part-time business, but the hour meter is stuck at 596hrs, so I don't know how many hours it has on it. Honda is not in the commercial mower business anymore, so we were told.

It has a welded-on block-off plate and Gator blades. Clogging and dumping clippings onto driveways is a major frustration. A new habit of the mower is completely clogging up to the point that the blades stop and the belt smokes and the engine dies.

The 36 Sentar Sport is a huge step-up from what we have. 17Hp, ZTR, easy-reverse, mulch kit, quick height adjustments, electric start, no shifting, 7.5mph, etc., etc.

We are a 3-day per week operation and want it to stay that way. We just want to make as much as we can in those 3-days. Our partnership will also probably be ending in 2 more seasons, due to a probable military move.

Another detail is that our trailer is only 4-months old and is a 4x8. Its small size fits our equipment nicely, and with the short Sentar it will work even better. It is garage kept, so size does matter. If we go to a 2-mower set-up, we will need to replace it with a 5x12 trailer.

My position is that this mower should be replaced with another 36 first, unless we are willing to give up all fenced properties. I do not have confidence in its longevity, and I am getting very frustrated with it anyways (I should have never demo'd that Sentar ).

 

[impactlandscaping]

Sorry guys, I didn't see you were in Florida in the post earlier. Yeah, you'll need the Sentar doen there to be able to change cutting heights quickly from St. Augustine, Bermuda and Bahia. They are great mowers, and a 36 SS would definitely increase your production time, therefore increasing your $$$