Would you buy a 54" or 60" deck?

[shooterdon]

I got no response on my last post so will try this.

I am buying a ZT. Two acres, two dozen trees and a few other items to trim around.

There is only a $200 difference in price between a 54" and 60" deck. Which one would you get and why?

Thanks,

 

[sea2summit]

Do you have any gates you need it to fit through?
Doors to the shed? Does it fit in your truck?
How tight are the trees? I'd want more than a few inches on each side to spare as you zip around.
How flat is your lawn? 60" is gonna scalp pretty good if your not good and flat.

 

[AWSubie]

Bigger is better (faster mow time) when size is not an issue for passing through gates and getting between objects such as an above ground pool and a fence.

Storage limitations may also be a consideration if u want to keep the machine under cover.

Other than these two items I don’t know why you would want to go with a smaller machine.

 

[not2old]

I bought a used 54" because it was a bargain. I'm on an acre with several smaller lawn areas and would be better served with a smaller machine. It was my first rider and I had no experience. The reason I haven't is that most smaller machines come with weaker transaxles and It's harder to repair a pressed deck if it rusts out.

 

[ovrszd]

I'm not a Z turn owner so if I say something stupid just tell me.

Don't the Z turn decks suspend themselves? Front wheels are carrying the front of the deck rather than being suspended under the machine?

Best mowing deck I've had in the 54" size was suspended under a JD455. Best mowing deck I've had in the 60" size was self carried on four wheels under a Kubota B2910.

I currently mow with a 62" suspended deck under a JD2210. It won't carry water to the other two.

 

[Bullwinkle123]

I have two-ish acres of grass in a highly contoured property (stone walls, gardens, ornamental trees). I considered a 60" but there there are passages where it wouldn't fit nicely, where even the 54" is tight.

I'm quite happy with the 54". If I'm on a clear flat piece of yard then I'm just sailing across it at speeds that seem pretty exhilarating for a lawn mower, and if I'm doing the contoured edges, then I'm sweating the hair trigger responsiveness of the controls to make sure I don't use my tank of a mower to knock over a stone wall (or worse, drive off a retaining wall from the top).

if you just have wide open spaces, then the 60" or 54" is a minor decision. You're gonna zoom over that grass like there's no tomorrow and be done. All about how you want to manage money vs. small incremental time.

 

[Sawyer Rob]

My Grasshopper has a 61", only reason I would have smaller deck would be, because I didn't have enough hp, or because of a small gate, or scalping issues, and none of those are a problem here.

SR

 

[oosik]

I have an acre and a half of "lawn" that I mow. Last year I bought a new mower. The old one - 27 years old. I got a JD 570 with 48" mowing deck. A tad bit easier to navigate around all the trees, gates, fences, flower beds - etc, etc. The old mower had a 54" deck and had scalping issues on certain parts of the lawn. The new mower - not near that problem.

The new mower is more powerful and has more hp per inch of width. Helps when mowing the "lawn" that I have. A 3/4 acre meadow that I'm adding to my lawns. Three or four more years of mowing and it will look pretty good.

 

[zzvyb6]

Mine are all 72". I even do the fields with it. F935 diesel. Previous was 48". No turning back.

 

[BigBlue1]

As others have indicated, wider is better if you don't have any obstacles that would make a wider deck a problem. However, wider decks do have a drawback if your terrain is uneven. The wider they are the harder it is to get an even cut on or around hills and rolling ground. Edges can dip and cut shorter while the middle can leave grass longer. For instance, while mowing along a ditch next to a roadway. How much that matters is totally dependent on your situation.

Rob

 

[MoKelly]

I agree with the 60” deck assuming you have no storage space/trailer issues and the land doesn’t have berms which would cause scalping.

That said, for 2 acres I’m not sure it really makes a big amount of difference.

MoKelly

 

[lman]

I use a mower with a 144" deck. I do use a smaller zt for trimming. It's 60". I wouldn't want anything smaller that 60".

 

[MoKelly]

I use a mower with a 144" deck. I do use a smaller zt for trimming. It's 60". I wouldn't want anything smaller that 60".

Man - a 12 ft. path. Sweet.

I’m guessing it is not a ZT?

How fast can you go?

MoKelly

 

[lman]

I never checked the speedometer, fast enough to get 4 acres done in less than 2 hours.

 

[MoKelly]

I never checked the speedometer, fast enough to get 4 acres done in less than 2 hours.

View attachment 690381

Thanks. Nice picture.

I am averaging about 2.5 acres/hour on my 60 in. ZTR. Takes me roughly 5 hours to mow 13+- acres.

MoKelly

 

[ovrszd]

Man - a 12 ft. path. Sweet.

I’m guessing it is not a ZT?

How fast can you go?

MoKelly

I've saw some huge mowers, especially on government properties that are multiple gang machines. Z turn sortta. Always thought it would be cool to have one but my yard ain't big enough to turn it around.

I mow 2 miles of road banks. I do it with a 15' batwing. No ZT.....

 

[MoKelly]

We use 10 foot reel mowers on the golf courses down in Florida for the fairways. There are 2 courses and approx. 5.5 miles of fairways to mow.

MoKelly

 

[ovrszd]

We use 10 foot reel mowers on the golf courses down in Florida for the fairways. There are 2 courses and approx. 5.5 miles of fairways to mow.

MoKelly

Oh wow!!!! The fact that you measure it in miles rather than acres is significant.....

 

[shooterdon]

Thanks for the input gentlemen. I will check if they have a 144" deck but it might be special order...LOL. OMG...found it. I can get two 72" deck units. IIRC they were over $13k each.

Looks like I will see if the dealer will let me try out the 60" deck and allow me to trade it for the 54" deck if I have issues with it.

Looks like I will lose the "mine is bigger than yours" contest.

 

[neverfailyou]

I use a smaller deck ZT ... it might be 48inch but commercial duty build. That said, I have several acres of rural lawn/pasture to mow but can zip pretty fast with no scalping and maneuvering around many obstacles flower beds and trees. The critical dimension for me is the total width at the widest point not just the deck size or tire width.