Just saw my first $80,000 lawnmower

[MoKelly]

Again, time is money. When an employee is costing you 50k to 100k per year or more you give them the tools to be productive.

You have a $100,000 employee riding an $80,000 mower.

Guess the price per lawn?

 

[Hay Dude]

yes I love my ZD1211 -- got it back in 2017. I actually use it instead of my brushhog on very "lumpy" land -- have had a few minor issues (pulley wheel failures on mower deck) and a major PTO failure but these were all operator-caused matter -- stupid New England rocks. I actually have a bunch of Kubota equipment -- amazing quality.

Like my 1211, too. I bought a second one and my helper and I cut a lot of HOA ground with them. Still have to laugh at how the traction on hills improved with the lower profile tires compared to my ZD-331.
I have a few quality nit-picks (decals peeling off, seat cover tore easily) but the basic machine is great for normal commericial lawn mowing.

 

[DK35vince]

It sounds like you just have bad luck with equipment, or are generally harder on it than one really needs to be. I ran the original blades on my ZTR for more than 15 years, almost exactly 1000 hours, and they still look good. I swapped them because I wanted a more aggressive blade, but could have easily run them another 15 years. I still have all three original 2007 spindles, and anti-scalp wheels. All of my original belts lasted 15 years (nearly 1000 hours), as well... in fact I'm still running the original 2007 primary pump drive belt at 1200 hours.


I've owned more than one mower or garden tractor with a 50+ year old engine, still running fine. I'm not sure why you'd expect an engine to self-destruct, just because it runs on gasoline.

My 1963 Cub Cadet, Kohler K301, still running fine when I sold it about 8 years ago. My 1971 Toro walk-behind, with a Briggs engine, still running fine after 53 years. I expect the 2007 Kawi on my ZTR will outlast my use of it.


Fact??? Not really. First, what do you call "regularly", because for me, the 300 hour recommended interval works out to every fourth or fifth year. I don't mind that.

As to actually needing to do it, I've never actually had to make any major adjustment, they're always still in the recommended range. I make small adjustments, just to put them right in the middle of the range, but could probably go 3 x 300 hours before they really need adjustments... because I change my oil and filter every year. I average 72 hours per year, but have had one year as heavy as 102 hours and a few in the 90's.


I guess we will see! I'm at 1200 hours now, and may be ready to give up mowing or move to another machine, by the time it hits 2000 hours in 11.5 years. Or... it may be just fine.


Good for you. I only mow my own yard.


Yes. There is an air intake screen and oil cooler that just get blown off with my leaf blower, when I'm blowing off the deck after each use. No extra time, I'm already blowing off the deck, seat, etc.

There are also three access panels in the shroud, that should be opened and blown out with compressed air every 100 hours. I do this once per year with my January maintenance, and it takes all of about 5 minutes.


You do know water just moves the heat to a radiator, which is air cooled? Plenty of tractors and other machines overheat, because their radiator is blocked with grass. You need to keep your machine breathing clear, no matter whether the engine is cooled directly by air, or if you're moving that heat to an air-cooled radiator.


Whatever you want, big guy. No one asked, and I suspect no one really cares about your unique situation, or mine. I'm just answering because you seemed to be responding to my post.

I've had my zero turn 11 years now.
I have yet to change a belt. They still look good.
As far as valve adjustments, takes 45 minutes for me to do a valve adjustment on my zero turns Kawasaki every 350 engine hours, certainly not a big deal in my book. (could do it in half that time if I didn't need to remove the rear bumper for more room)

 

[zzvyb6]

That's honestly not a bad deal, but at least more inline what I'd expect. And it cost you a day of work or vacation to do it.

zzvyb6's $3400 for a newer diesel machine with not a problem but one loose hose clamp is not typical, at least around here. And besides, I thought the OP was all about new machine pricing, not rare auction deals.

It's not rare at all. In at least 3 local monthly consignment auctions, There are at least 2, and many more if you are color blind. Plus the local FB Marketplace has dozens of the 61" versions. There are a few 72" ExMarks or Toros, and an occasional diesel. You can evaluate all before you buy. Funny how they all use a key comon with most CUTS, Z-Turns and Won't Turnovers.

 

[WinterDeere]

You have a $100,000 employee riding an $80,000 mower.

Guess the price per lawn?

That depends on the speed of the mower... and the employee.

People used to think it crazy I would approve $100k in design software + $10k workstation for each of my employees, arguing that's more than half their salary. But I was able to show any good employee armed with these tools was more productive than any two of them without. Net savings.

1. Unless you mow in extremely soft wet grass. Wouldn't it make more sense to spend $60-70k on a ~100hp cab with a $16k flexwing (JD FM4012), 144" (12')? You would have the ability to do other things too for just the cost of the implement!

Wow. Couldn't even imagine the quality of any lawn or sports field that has a 100 hp traversing it every 4th day. What's the average running weight of a machine of that size?

 

[ray66v]

How else are they supposed to mow the grass? A push mower? It would cost us WAY more to pay someone to take longer to mow with an inefficient machine than to use the right tool for the job.

I wasn't looking for a debate.

Just passing along the information that was given to me, for those who were wondering.

 

[jjp8182]

You have a $100,000 employee riding an $80,000 mower.

Guess the price per lawn?

...and showing up with 80k+ truck and a dedicated lawn maintenance trailer (that costs I don't know how much).

Yet there are people willing to pay ...... in some cases past the point where it'd be more cost effective to in-house the lawn care (even/especially for small lot home owners that could get by with a push mower).

 

[hiddentacocatneddih]

I would imagine jobs that big are big price per acre.

Gov/commercial contract type stuff.

I've seen one in use on an industrial site

 

[wilso]

That depends on the speed of the mower... and the employee.

People used to think it crazy I would approve $100k in design software + $10k workstation for each of my employees, arguing that's more than half their salary. But I was able to show any good employee armed with these tools was more productive than any two of them without. Net savings.

Glad to hear you've had success with that approach! I've seen the value that skilled landscapers with the right equipment can bring. Yes, the upfront investment may seem high, but the increased efficiency and productivity can lead to significant cost savings in the long run. I've worked with local landscapers in Lebanon PA https://integritylаndworks.com/landscaping-company-in-lebanon-pa/ who utilize advanced technology and tools to optimize their operations, providing high-quality services at competitive rates. The investment in their employees and equipment has clearly paid off.

 

[sandman2234]

The huge price of lawn care is also driving the cost of concrete up thru the roof. Used to be cheaper to just pour a slab and paint it green than to mow it once to three times every two weeks!
Now when I need concrete, the price of the mud is $200 a yard!
David from jax...who needs to go up on his mowing prices! The Church I mow 10 acres for has asked me several times about the price of my mowing. Either for their budgeting concerns or the fact that tractor maintenance and fuel costs are thru the roof. The guy that mows around the buildings has increased his price every year, while mine remains semi constant. Only variables on mine is when they change what I am doing.
David from jax

 

[walnutman]

What’s crazy isn’t spending 80k on a mower to make money. Crazy is spending 6+k on a mower and wasting tons of life cutting large lawns at home.

A lot of people enjoy it. I have about 3 acres of our 4 acre property that needs mowing. I enjoy it but if we get regular rains I do start to dread it.

 

[walnutman]

I test mowed a nice Ferris Zero Turn at my nearby NH dealership. When I asked about the 0% financing option they told me "you can do that a for an 8% premium on the purchase price"! - LOL!, WTH?
Made me reconsider my relationship with them. (It is where I bought an NH compact utility tractor, years ago.)

That's standard, Been like that forever. Auto dealerships do the same. The nice thing about the 8% markup is if you pay the 8% as a downpayment, you are no longer paying the bank interest for how ever many years.

 

[Paystar]

It's an Exmark Lazer Z 37hp diesel. No fancy cab with AC. Looks more or less like any other zero-turn I've seen.

I'm hoping someone who knows more about these things can answer a question for me. Is there ever an actual business case to be made for a mower that costs as much as my 75hp tractor? I just can't make sense of it.

People that are dumb enough to buy them and pay that price, LOL

 

[walnutman]

Apparently the OP has his numbers out of wack
First of all its a 96" cut and costs $54k.

LZS88CDYM96RW0 by Exmark - Lazer Z Diesel with 37 HP** Yanmar 3TNV88C Diesel Engine and 96" UltraCut Rear Discharge Deck | Western Auto LZS88CDYM96RW0 by Exmark - Lazer Z Diesel with 37 HP** Yanmar 3TNV88C Diesel Engine and 96" UltraCut Rear Discharge Deck | Western Auto

 

[stevem5215]

5 year warranty. Don't see any exclusion for commercial use so those guys would benefit I'd guess from beating it to the ground.

 

[walnutman]

5 year warranty. Don't see any exclusion for commercial use so those guys would benefit I'd guess from beating it to the ground.

I would say this is a commercial mower out of the gate.

 

[grsthegreat]

The site points out that theres a 130” diesel unit for over 80k. I know a few rich and stupid homeowners here that would probably buy one. One guy has a brand new skid steer , glass cab, rubber high track for clearing his 30’ driveway in the winter. Resides in new covered overhang rest of the time.

 

[walnutman]

The site points out that theres a 130” diesel unit for over 80k. I know a few rich and stupid homeowners here that would probably buy one. One guy has a brand new skid steer , glass cab, rubber high track for clearing his 30’ driveway in the winter. Resides in new covered overhang rest of the time.

View attachment 3979220

These are commercial mowers. Geared more towards pristine sprawling acreage. I dont see understand the OP's point.

 

[Fixastuff]

These are commercial mowers. Geared more towards pristine sprawling acreage. I dont see understand the OP's point.

The point is, “I couldn’t use this or make money with it, so that must mean no one else can, therefore it scares me and I must ridicule it”.

 

[KennyG]

Commercial work in general doesn't care about the capital costs, it's all about availability, efficiency and utilization. The internet says commercial mowing costs $30 to $150 per acre depending on size and location. The mowers being talked about mow about 10 acres an hour. If the operator is $30 per hour and the mowers burn a gallon to two an hour, the operating cost is a small fraction of the total cost. If you assume $50 an acre for mowing, you only have to mow less than 2000 acres to pay for the $80,000 mower. The mower is paid off in 200 hours of mowing.

It looks like a real bargain to me.