I'm thinking about upgrading from Exmark 48in WB to my first ZTR. I have been looking at mowers in the $5k-$6k range and was wanting some opinions on these mowers. I only do 5 commercial accounts plus 2 acres of my own. I may try to double that next spring. Here is what I'm looking at: Tiger Cub 48in - Kaw 19hp - $5999 Cub Tank 48S - 19hp - stamped deck - $4999 Cub Tank 48 - Kaw 19hp - $5799 Ferris 1000z 62in - Kaw 23hp - $5999 John Deere 717 48in - Kaw 19hp - $6299 Exmark CT 48in - 18 Kohler - $5399 Also I live in the Central KY area (about 30 miles south of Louisville in Nelson County) and was wondering on Dealers any would suggest to visit or stay away from and how far is to far for a dealer. The Ferris because of the deck size and full 2 yr warranty(however not much word of mouth to go by) is probably the leader with Scag(because of reputation) next but they are all pretty close. Any opinions would be appreciated. Thanks...
Hey I just wanted to say that the Ferris Looks like the best deal, but you need to make sure that you are getting the same type of seat, stripping kit, ect. I have heard that there is a little bit of a reliablity issue with them, becuase of all the moving parts. I do not own one so you might try a search on them. Do you have any Exmark Or Gravely Dealers near you.
That's what worries me regarding the Ferris as well. There doesn't seem to be a lot of Ferris owners on this forum but from what I have found it is pretty good. The Ferris dealer said that Ferris are really big in St Louis area like Exmark and Scag are here. I Do have a local Exmark dealer but I have not had the best of dealings with him but that is mainly dealing with car repairs (He is an auto repair shop/Lawn Equipment Dealer) so I am a little leary. I know the Scag dealer here locally and he is a good guy as far as I know. The Ferris dealer is about 40 minutes away but he is a Platinum dealer. There is a Ferris dealer here but he has only been selling them for a year so he wasn't much help.
you might want to go to exmark site and compare, the reason I say that is the ct is a good mower but a single valve engine, the hp might be 800 dollars more but you get a lot more, twin valve engines for one and even if you only cut 10 yards up from 5 the twin valve motor will help.
Sorry to all of you who own Scags. I love their w/b, but their Z's..........you can keep those. The Scag dealer here always braggs about their reliability, but alot of the lco's here are selling them off due to too much down time. They've told me that they're either going with Exmark or Hustler.
Check out http://www.wrightmfg.com they offer seasonal discounts under what is called channel partner discounts. They have the sentar which is the shortest rider and the stander which is the shorter than any mower of its class. I have demoed the 52" stander with the 17hp and it was great it was more than what I need right now, but if you don't mind standing which is what are bodies are made for check out the stander. Demo all of your main selections before you unlode the cash to see which one your going to feel most comfortable on. Also I love my Exmark and you can get better deals from the star dealers than a regular service dealer, go to the website and find out where the closest star dealer is and try to get on his good side.
I just bought a John Deere 717 on Saturday and I love it so far!! I got mine for $5849 + tax.. I also demoed the Lazer Z CT, but thought it was alittle too small for what I need. It felt more like a homeowner model to me, which is what eXmark calls it anyway. The Cub Cadet felt the same as the Lazer CT.. Never got to demo a tiger cub. Didn't have any in stock and the sale price was still, in my opinion too expensive. The Ferris is not very comfortable unless you get the Independent Suspension model. Out of all of those I would recommend either the JD 717 or the eXmark (if you are tight on budget). You will also get a free striping kit with the eXmark. Here's a picture of my deere!
Try the CT,You can get the stiping roller and the foot deck lift, The deck is what they put on there lazerHP 48. John
