What cutting deck do I want??

[jbudimlya]

I'm a new forum member, I just purchased a 1999 JD 445 from my neighbor....it has 352 hours on it and it has been very well taken care of, he was an airplane mechanic.
The tractor has a 48 inch moving deck....it also came with a 47" snow thrower, weights and chains on large tires.
I have about 4 acres of field that I keep cut, and I am thinking that I would like to move up to either a 54" or 60" mowing deck.
I am looking for advice on which one to get?? Can this tractor handle a 60" mower deck for field cutting, or should I just get a 54" deck?

Any thoughts??

Thanks,
Jim

 

[RetiredCarGuy]

Welcome! It seems like you made a good find. Good luck and safety first on all you do.

A 445 may be just a bit small for 4 acres of field. Yes, it was built to take a 60 inch deck, but that is pushing the limit.

Shop and look for another larger deck 54 - 60, but also prepare sell it in the spring or trade up the 445 you have.

If you love it, you can also give it a first summer of cutting. Then decide!

 

[mddorange]

:welcome:
To the forum Jim. It has low hours for a 99 and you say it was well maintained. Bigger tractor is always nice, but if you don't mind spending more hours mowing, then you can get it done.

 

[jbudimlya]

I forgot to add that I am in Colorado, and mowing here (at 6400 feet) is a 3 times per year job.....I have been moving with a Husqvarna 48" lawn tractor....it is slow, but takes about 8 hours to cut everything. I am hoping that the JD445 with a 54" deck with reduce this somewhat.

 

[Yellowfever440]

The 425 engine would last longer with a smaller deck. The 445 has a very similar size motor with fuel injection and they last a little longer with a bigger deck but if your main concern is moving snow I would get the 60 since your not putting a ton of mowing hours on it.

 

[beenthere]

With my 425 and 455 (my son bought my 445 and uses it now), I prefer the mowing quality of the 54" decks. I bought a new X485 with a 54" deck and the mowing quality took a major dump. Not sure what Deere had in mind but it was a giant step backwards IMO.

I mow about 8 acres amongst a lot of trees and prefer the 54" for quality and getting around the trees... have AWS in all my lawn tractors.

Finding a 54" or 60" deck for the 445 to replace the 48" might be tough to do, but hopefully it works for you.

 

[jbudimlya]

Do you think that there is a market for my existing 48" deck?? It's in great shape but I will not have a need for both.

With my 425 and 455 (my son bought my 445 and uses it now), I prefer the mowing quality of the 54" decks. I bought a new X485 with a 54" deck and the mowing quality took a major dump. Not sure what Deere had in mind but it was a giant step backwards IMO.

I mow about 8 acres amongst a lot of trees and prefer the 54" for quality and getting around the trees... have AWS in all my lawn tractors.

Finding a 54" or 60" deck for the 445 to replace the 48" might be tough to do, but hopefully it works for you.

 

[beenthere]

Hopefully you can find a buyer. EBay might be your best bet. Being in good shape is a real plus.
I have lots of mowing hours on my two 54" decks and no sign of them being worn out.
Shipping the 48" very far, or someone travelling very far to get it will likely be the constraint you will have to face.
It is a small deck for a lot of tractor.

On another note being played here, there are a lot of satisfied 425 owners with 60" decks... my neighbor being one of them.

When I was searching for a 455 AWS diesel, I found a lot of them with 60" decks, but I wanted one with a 54" deck.
Found it 800 miles away, low hours, and great condition. Is my primo lawn mowing machine. I keep the 425 AWS with a MC519 cart on it for cleaning the lawn of leaves and occasionally grass. The X485 is resigned to the spray rig, broom, and other odd chores. Should sell it, but then I'd have to fill its space with something else.

 

[Dutch445]

i owned a 445 for years, and thru the years had the ability to use all 3 decks!
we moved a few times, and each time warranted a different deck size.
when i had 2+ acres to mow, it was the 60, and the tractor handled it
fine, and the 60 is a much heavier build than the 54/48. i can't say i
had cutting issues with the 60, but some complain about it on the 54, but
again i think individual conditions come into play.

 

[Gary Fowler]

That is a very long time to mow just 4 acres even with a 48" mower. You must have tons of obstacles to mow around. I can mow 6 acres in around 2 hours with my Ferris 54" zero turn and I have over 50 trees to mow around. You should be able to do 4 acres in 3-4 hours easily with that 445 and 48" deck. Try it before you spend a couple of grand on a new deck.

 

[beenthere]

Gary
+1

 

[jbudimlya]

Thanks Gary, my fields are not grass....they are "whatever" grows in this high desert area.....and my current tractor can not run flat out and handle the load ( even with very sharp blades); in addition, the ground is not even and it's a bit uncomfortable to go too fast when cutting with my current 400 lbs. machine. My hope is that the JD 445 with it's larger tires and more weight will be a bit smoother and be able to handle the load when the stuff gets tough cutting. I am prepared to buy a new 54" deck for $1600 if I believe; 1) that the tractor will do the job (yes), 2) that it is in good enough shape to last 5+ years without high maintenance levels, and 3) that it will cut somewhat faster then the current tractor.....and of course, the added 47" snow thrower seems to be making the plowing of my 250 ft. driveway a lot easier then the JD 28" hand snow thrower that I have been using. So far, for 2 snowfalls, the 47" snow thrower has worked fine. I do have experience with a B series Kubota with a 60" belly mower deck that I had in the New England area......and I expect that the JD is not going to be as good as the Kubota was....I am just hoping that it is better than the Husqvarna that I have.
All of your thoughts are appreciated.....thx

That is a very long time to mow just 4 acres even with a 48" mower. You must have tons of obstacles to mow around. I can mow 6 acres in around 2 hours with my Ferris 54" zero turn and I have over 50 trees to mow around. You should be able to do 4 acres in 3-4 hours easily with that 445 and 48" deck. Try it before you spend a couple of grand on a new deck.

 

[beenthere]

I think you will be very happy with the performance of the 54" deck on the 445.

I can mow very thick grass that is 8-10" high and get through it even when very juicy. Usually doesn't clog up in the deck, but find that stopping, turning the deck off, and then back on it will throw out that slug (cough it up) without digging anything out by hand.

I will be very surprised if you are disappointed in your purchase. And would expect a good many more than 5 years from this machine.

I use a heavy lawn roller early in the spring as soon as the frost goes out to roll the lawn. Helps to flatten out the effects of winter freezing and makes for smoother mowing.

Talking about mowing fast, reminds me of my son home for a while and wanting to mow the 8 acres of lawn. He asked how fast to run it, and thinking he was asking for engine rpm I said "run it "wide open". I meant wide open throttle. I could see him running wide open throttle and as fast as the ground speed would go as well. I asked him when he finished why he was driving so fast as it really wasn't that smooth. His answer was "you said wide open"

 

[Flying MXZ]

My dad has a 445 with the 60" deck and 2200+ hours only mowing. He complains a bit about an uneven cut but he is pretty fussy - it looks fine to me. In my opinion it has plenty of power for the 60" deck.

 

[fadzaev2]

I had a 54" deck on my 425, and my neighbor has a 60" on his.....he's had his since 1996, and it's been fine for him....still runs fine....mows a bout 3 acres. 54" was fine for me, but I moved up to an X734 with a 60" deck recently.