Awrite, the logic is I can either pay dealer cost at all times, take a chance on how long it will take on getting fixed, and deal with downtime, not to mention driving to-from the dealer's and then having to call them 2-3 times / day to keep bugging them so it actually gets looked at before year's end... Things aren't quite that bad, but it does get better. Once I got into acquiring my own parts below dealer cost, and I got into tuning my machines and doing my own repairs, nowadays I even think of bringing my machine to the dealer and I am dreaming because they will not touch it... The dealers won't even touch warranty stuff of mine, even if I buy it from them, because IF I have to bring a machine to them they know I've already tried to fix it (translation: some major pita thing is always wrong with the stuff I bring in, this much I see from their side of the fence).
If a machine breaks today, I need another machine no later than tomorrow, 2-3 days at the absolute worst but really I would like a working mower right now, asap, this very hour and thank you. So, either I got 3,000 dollars sitting around so I can just buy another, but wait no, that doesn't work because with Toro there's a 1-2 month waiting period, see even that solution doesn't work.
Rent one? LOL! Maybe as an absolute last resort, they run me well over $100 / day just in fees.
There is one more issue: Mowers normally don't break idle, they almost always break while working, so chances are good to excellent someone's lawn is about half cut right about that time. Now how do I guarantee, when I bring in the replacement, that it will look right from the customer's end? Seriously, if two machines are not set to the exact same specs, if the cut is off by a 1/8 inch, even if the cut height is the same but one's a 48" and the other is a 21", it just don't look right.
It is for this reason I own a '98 48" proline and an '05 proline, both the exact same make and model, both set to the exact same specifications, not even a 1/16" difference... And when one breaks down, yeah I try and see if I can fix it then and there, but if I can't then I run it home and load up the other, I am usually back to cutting within 1-2 hours from the time of crap out. That right there saves me so much time, frustration and aggravation, I can deal with the broken machine when I get a chance.
When they're both in running order I use them interchangeably, one for a bit then the other, both get about 2-300 hours / year put on them, or so. Now I do have a 60" Ztr, but that's for acre+ lots and when I don't feel like working lol.
Cost-wise, it's what you make of it, I only load what I need on the trailer, you don't see me driving around with all my equipment...
For one it wouldn't fit if I tried, for another it affects my truck's fuel mileage considerably (10-20%), if I need to haul a bit of brush I have the space, and last but not least I HATE playing musical equipment with my stuff.
Don't forget the annual depreciation gets deducted from the gross for less tax liability, and if I ever sell my business then that's more value built into it, right now I'm looking at roughly 20 grand in every piece of equipment but include all the spare parts and supplies... Sure it devalues, that much I deduct as a loss every year.
Peace