1200 hours on a X485?

[ishiboo]

I desperately need a new tractor for mowing... my D130 is on its last legs with a whopping 150 hours on it on its second K40. Perfectly flat ground. I have about 2-2.5 acres to mow, mostly open space.

Looking at a X485 with 1200 hours. I know it's 15X the tractor, but is that a lot of hours for a garden tractor? How much life is reasonably left? I only mow about 50 hours a year so it wouldn't add up to much... but I want some sale value left when I can afford a new machine.

 

[ishiboo]

Oh, and I'm looking at the X485 because I would like to pull some implements like a lawn sweeper/dethatcher and want the heavier duty transmission.

Also in the running are the 345, GT235/245/etc., GX345, X500/X534/X540, etc.

 

[beenthere]

I like my X485 tractor.. not the mower deck so much as it doesn't do a good job of cutting grass.. not near (or even close) to the job the 455 and 425 can do.. so I have them too. I'd say, if good maintenance has been done and continues, that you can trust it with those hours. But take a 445, 425, or 455 if you find one with those hours or less. IMO, better design than the X series due to the side panels and hood being better for dust exclusion than the one-piece hood design of the X's

 

[ishiboo]

What's wrong with the mower deck, and which deck do you have? This one has the 62c with the power flow cart. I don't need golf-course cut quality... I'd rather save time than have the perfect cut. I have too much grass and more on the way.

 

[beenthere]

I can speak only of the 54" decks.. no experience with the 62c. But my 54c gets no more use whatsoever since picking up the 425 and the 455.

 

[oldnslo]

2250 hrs and counting. This is what my son has on his X485 with 62C deck. Make sure the deck is leveled properly since that seems to have the mose effect on how well they cut.

Don't be surprised if it starts hard though, especially in the winter.

 

[Smoothas]

485 is a fine tractor, but its at least 15 years old, and it might be a little overkill for your needs. How are you only putting 50 hours a years on machine with 2.5 acres? And going through 2 transaxles in 150 hours doesn’t sound right either. You don’t say the price of the 485? Considering how tough you are on equipment, you need at least a X500 series, and of course if price is right the 485 is a lot of tractor, if it was well maintained

 

[ishiboo]

485 is a fine tractor, but its at least 15 years old, and it might be a little overkill for your needs. How are you only putting 50 hours a years on machine with 2.5 acres? And going through 2 transaxles in 150 hours doesn稚 sound right either. You don稚 say the price of the 485? Considering how tough you are on equipment, you need at least a X500 series, and of course if price is right the 485 is a lot of tractor, if it was well maintained

I'm only through one transaxle and not tough on equipment at all, it's on the second and it's fine... the dealership thinks there was something wrong with the first one. I think the low hours is a combination of the fact that part of the area is a field which stays somewhat damp until further into the year... I just saw I bought the tractor in 2011 so I've been averaging about 38 hours a mowing season. In addition, I had much less grass when I purchased it... I definitely added a lot of the grass in the last 3 years, including a full acre last year.

I actually purchased a GT235 with a 54" deck and power flow bagger today, put it through its paces mowing everything and it's a night and day improvement over the D130. I'm still going to keep an eye out for a newer, heavier tractor as I could use a diff lock from time to time on the slopes, but the price was right, it's in excellent condition, and I don't anticipate having any problems with my uses. No hour meter which is somewhat scary, but it drives like new, starts and runs AWESOME with no smoke, etc... couldn't be happier thus far.

Thanks all!

 

[Smoothas]

GT 235 is a great tractor with strong tranny, only concern is if it has plastic Cam?

 

[ishiboo]

GT 235 is a great tractor with strong tranny, only concern is if it has plastic Cam?

Well, I screwed up then. My understanding was the GT235 had the Kawa only since 2003, at which point the plastic cam situation had been resolved. I'll have to see. To be honest, I'm not even sure if it has the Briggs or the Kawasaki - it's JD branded but it looks like a Briggs to me.

 

[Deere Dude]

I know you just got a tractor and it sounds like a nice one.

Just my own experience here; About twenty years ago I had an older JD 420 witch is similar to a 485 and a 60" deck. I had about 2+ acres to mow and it worked out alright.

I got a real good deal on a new 200 series with cab and 54" deck. It was like $3000 at the time. After using the smaller 200 series for a summer, even though it was new, I decided to sell it and just keep the 420 with bigger deck.

There was absolutely nothing wrong with the 200 and sold it to a good friend and he still uses it today, but the difference in time it took to mow and the comfort it afforded I was much happier with the larger tractor.

Maybe the time spent was more psychological that reality, but it sure seemed a lot faster with an extra 6" of deck.

 

[ishiboo]

I know you just got a tractor and it sounds like a nice one.

Just my own experience here; About twenty years ago I had an older JD 420 witch is similar to a 485 and a 60" deck. I had about 2+ acres to mow and it worked out alright.

I got a real good deal on a new 200 series with cab and 54" deck. It was like $3000 at the time. After using the smaller 200 series for a summer, even though it was new, I decided to sell it and just keep the 420 with bigger deck.

There was absolutely nothing wrong with the 200 and sold it to a good friend and he still uses it today, but the difference in time it took to mow and the comfort it afforded I was much happier with the larger tractor.

Maybe the time spent was more psychological that reality, but it sure seemed a lot faster with an extra 6" of deck.

That's definitely a consideration and one of the primary reasons for moving from a 42" to a 54". I was looking at everything from 54" to 72" decks as speed is definitely a concern for me. The GT235 is more of a "stop gap" for this year as I plan on building a house on this lot early next year and am trying to save money. That will add ANOTHER ~2 acres of grass.

Last year I hired someone to mow with my D130 so I didn't have to, I just didn't have the time. The eventuality is next year I will probably buy something like a new/newish 72" ZTR or subcompact with a big deck, and keep the GT235 just for doing the perimeter... the 54" deck is already a bit big for the ditches on the north and east sides of the property.

 

[beenthere]

ish

The Briggs 350777 engine was used in the Deere GT235 until 2003, serial number 090000.

From tractordata.com

Kawasaki after that date...

 

[ishiboo]

ish


From tractordata.com

Kawasaki after that date...

Yeah... I have to go take a look. I'm pretty sure the plastic cam issue was fixed by the time the 235 had the Kawasaki though.

 

[Richard001]

I actually purchased a GT235 with a 54" deck and power flow bagger today, put it through its paces mowing everything and it's a night and day improvement over the D130.

No hour meter which is somewhat scary, but it drives like new, starts and runs AWESOME with no smoke, etc... couldn't be happier thus far.

Thanks all!

You may want to buy one of these mini tach's. Price is right, see link:
Sierra Small Engine Tach/Hourmeter Sierra Part #56969P - Overton's

Richard