Comparison Husqvarna GT48DXLS Compared to John Deere

[tradosaurus]

I have a engineer friend who worked for Husqvarna. I also did research last year on new ZT mowers. I settled with a Toro commercial size ZT. I would buy a John Deere before I bought a Husqvarna.

 

[Rock Crawler]

I have a engineer friend who worked for Husqvarna. I also did research last year on new ZT mowers. I settled with a Toro commercial size ZT. I would buy a John Deere before I bought a Husqvarna.

I'd buy a Deere as well if they had anything built with similar quality parts at a price point anywhere close to this. That sadly, does not exist.

 

[s219]

I'd buy a Deere as well if they had anything built with similar quality parts at a price point anywhere close to this. That sadly, does not exist.

The issue with Deere is that you need to step into an X500 to get some of the same features (like locking diff) and that is a big jump in price and probably overkill for just mowing. Everything else about the X300 series is comparable or better but they don't have the transmission/diff options many folks are looking for. At $3500 you are into X380 range when there is a rebate, but still no locking diff.

 

[Rock Crawler]

It's not the locking diff, it's the K66 that I'm paying for. Anything less and the transmission fails on my hills. I've played the game with the lesser Hydrostat transmissions that last 3 to 4 years and are dead. If JD is not using a G730 or K66, it's not an option for me.

 

[plowhog]

I have a low education friend who cannot read or write. But he told me a Deere X380 mower is $4,500 "pay sticker no dicker" and ** $1,200 more ** if you want the 7 bushel bagger. Total $5,700.

I bought a Husqvarna GT48DXLS for $3,000, and a 44 bushel Cyclone Rake Commercial PRO leaf vacuum for $1,700. Total $4,700. $1,000 less. Substantially more capable.

In the past year of use, the electric differential lock on the Husqvarna has been a valuable feature on wet lawns or uneven terrain-- especially towing a near full 44 bushel bagger. That option doesn't exist on the X380. Other than that they are virtually identical engine and transaxle.

 

[JMBrad]

Husqvarna is shipping out the very first run of the TS354XD tractors with the Kawasaki engine and K66 locking transmission this past week. I'm being told that I can buy one some time this coming week for $3,499+ tax.

Brought it home Monday, total cost with tax, $2755.25. After sitting on the TS models, I'm glad I found a GT48DXLS. I actually like the seat better than the high back. it fit me better. The high back seats don't have any lumbar support. The GT seat hit me just right.

Finally got to use it last night. What used to take me over an hour with a 42" only took me 45 mins with the GT. Not just a bigger deck, but mows faster too.

Now I need to find something to maintain my gravel drive with. I like the idea of the DR Power Grader, but not sure it's well executed. I think ABI's Gravel Grader is a better unit, but I'm sure it's expensive. The DR is on sale for 599.00 right now. ABI doesn't advertise pricing.

 

[man00]

The GT48DXLS out weights the X380 if it's built cheaper where does all the weight come from?

 

[Johnkn]

I have a 1.5 year old JD x380 with bagger, the POS power flow blower, etc. and absolutely hate it. Paid $5400 out the door, I have a friend who is a salesman there, not sure if my deal was anything special. The deck won't stay level and it leaves cut lines all over the lawn, it almost leaves as much grass on the lawn as it picks up, feels as though it has no suction and leaves the grass matted looking, and generally will not even pick up pencil-size twigs, what a joke. Every time I use it I feel like I would like to pour 5 gallons of gas on it and just burn it to the ground. In contrast my last tractor a Sears,Husqvarna lasted 15 years and was the best tractor I've ever owned. With the bagger and high lift blades it left nothing behind but a perfect, clean cut. I would love to hear from anyone with a new GT48 or TS348 with bagger on how it cuts and vacuums the lawn. I would sell this JD tomorrow if I thought the H was better and didn't leave twigs, grass and leaves behind.

 

[crazyal]

I have a 1.5 year old JD x380 with bagger, the POS power flow blower, etc. and absolutely hate it. Paid $5400 out the door, I have a friend who is a salesman there, not sure if my deal was anything special. The deck won't stay level and it leaves cut lines all over the lawn, it almost leaves as much grass on the lawn as it picks up, feels as though it has no suction and leaves the grass matted looking, and generally will not even pick up pencil-size twigs, what a joke. Every time I use it I feel like I would like to pour 5 gallons of gas on it and just burn it to the ground. In contrast my last tractor a Sears,Husqvarna lasted 15 years and was the best tractor I've ever owned. With the bagger and high lift blades it left nothing behind but a perfect, clean cut. I would love to hear from anyone with a new GT48 or TS348 with bagger on how it cuts and vacuums the lawn. I would sell this JD tomorrow if I thought the H was better and didn't leave twigs, grass and leaves behind.

Why would you put up with it? Bring it back to the dealer and make them fix it. You paid a lot of money and if you are not getting the dealer you bought it from to fix it right then find a different dealer. If you haven't brought it to them then it's all on you. This has nothing to do with it being a Deere, I would say the same thing about any brand.

 

[Johnkn]

LOL, because at 63 I'm old enough to know exactly how this will play out.

Take the tractor back to them, sits there for 2-3 weeks, I finally get the report back and 'we've had everyone look at it, everything is up to spec', mean time I have to rent something to mow the lawn or hope (lol) they will provide a loaner. I bring it home, same poor cutting/bagging quality, I take it back, same response, Ad nauseam. For a $100+k item I would go through those motions, for a $5k item (to me) its simply not worth the frustration, aggravation, and elevated blood pressure.

IMHO, that belt driven POS device is part of the problem, I believe it actually inhibits flow most of the time, the blades throw the clippings faster than the impellor turns.. I never had that POS on my last tractor and it usually was just fine, but if I cut the grass when wet it could clog a few times, but that was expected and it was on me..

Been there when trying to buy a new Sears tractor to replace my previous Sears (H) tractor 2 years ago, before throwing in the towel and buying this JD. You would LOVE to know that story.

And like a few of the guys here, I don't care how much research we do as consumers, how we believe we doing everything right and are purchasing the exact right tool for the job, make modifications that we believe will help our particular application based on everything we've learned in life, it does not always turn out as planned.

I would LOVE to know how the H tractors with baggers really perform. I've looked at most of the offerings, Kubota, CC, JD, H, etc. I'm just looking for a lawn cutting/bagging tool that performs.

 

[Rock Crawler]

Because of my experience with my Craftsman (Husqvarna) and its amazing cut quality as well as its power/performance/reliability... It would be really hard to talk me into another brand. We pulled paperwork on it last week and my model year in my signature is off by one year, we bought it in 2010. So 8 years and 600 hours and this photo is how it cuts while averaging 5.5 mph. It's fast, it cuts like a samurai, and unlike a wife... It hardly ever needs even the slightest attention. Fill it up with fresh Amsoil each year, sharpen the blades monthly and replace annually, grease it every 2nd or 3rd use, throttle it up to the max and let the thing eat!

 

[plowhog]

I would LOVE to know how the H tractors with baggers really perform. I've looked at most of the offerings, Kubota, CC, JD, H, etc. I'm just looking for a lawn cutting/bagging tool that performs.

I have the Husqvarna GT48DXLS. Also a Cyclone Rake and also the 7 bushel bagger that fits the mower. I'm pleased with the operation of all of them but I have noticed one quirk which is something you might check on your JD unit. The "vacuum" function into the Cyclone Rake bag doesn't work as well at a cut height of 2 1/2 inches or higher. At 2 inch cut height or less, it works really well. So you might try using your JD with power flow at a lower cut height and see if that improves the vacuum capability.

On my lawn, this works flawlessly except for one issue. One a moderately steep slope I can get scalping with a cut height of too low. So if I am cutting side slope I raise cut height to make up for this and lose a little vacuum suction. It's not really a big deal-- I could cut up/down if I was that worried about it-- this only is an issue when cutting on a sideslope going with the terrain.

I thought I would only use the Cyclone Rake in leaf season and use the smaller bagger over the summer for grass clippings. But I'm finding I just leave the Cyclone Rake attached and operational since it is such a better bagger. I can do my entire lawn and then go dump clippings just one time instead of 3-4 times like before. I like to dump the clippings a long way from the house so only making one trip is desirable.

With a full load in the Cyclone Rake bag you need to be a little careful about driving. If you get on too much side slope the weight of the trailer behind you can start steering you in directions you don't want to go ... LOL.

Good luck with trying lower cutting heights on your JD. I think their X380 mower is fine, but overpriced for today's market. I don't know anything about how the powerflow unit performs but I think the Cyclone Rake setup is pretty hard to beat.

 

[Rock Crawler]

Question, what's the reason you guys bag? I've never considered it, I just mow and go.

Are you letting your grass grow really thick and bagging it because you've lost control?

I cut every 4-5 days in this rain season, but you don't see any clippings, and I'm not mulching.

 

[plowhog]

My answer about bagging is easy. I'm surrounded with trees of many varieties, including oaks with diameters measured in feet. Lots of debris.

In leaf season, my lawn is covered in leaves that can quickly accumulate to more than a foot tall. One pass through with the mower and Cyclone Rake and it turns from a sea of leaves to a strip of bright green.

In summer, I like the look of a newly cut and vacuumed lawn. I can't cut on a regular schedule due to commitments elsewhere, so if I come back to cut 2 weeks later it's a big job. If you add some downed branches plus some tall grass, if I mulched and left it there it would look terrible.

 

[Johnkn]

My lawn looks similar to the pic Rock Crawler posted, I'm cutting every 5-6 days this time of season, I just prefer bagging. I only have about 1/2 acre in grass, the rest of the property is heavily wooded. Oh, I ordered a Cyclone Rake for my 380x last year to deal with my leaves. CR insisted it would work with the power flow system, I get it, no dice, no way to attach it. I called them back and the guy I spoke with that time admitted he didn't believe it would work on my application so I returned it. They insisted I put it back in the boxes. Remember assembling yours? Now imagine tearing it back apart and trying to put it back in all the boxes, another nightmare, especially the large frame box. And plowhog is correct, my 'vacuum' is somewhat better if I really lower the deck, but that's too short for my tastes. thanks all.

 

[crazyal]

Johnkn, it's your money, do with it as you please but assuming they aren't going to fix it is, at least in my eyes, throwing it away. You're going to take a big hit selling/ trading your x380. If it's not working right then that's only going to hurt your wallet even more. If you don't like the x380 then you certainly should get something else. The Husky mowers were tops on my list. I love the engineered deck. The pressed steel is much harder to repair when things start to rust in 10 to 20 years whereas the engineered one would be easy. If I didn't happen to find a low hour year old x500 I probably would have the GT48DXLS (if I could of found one). The few who have them seam to like them.

My x500 came with mulching blades but not the mulching kit for the deck. The result was that it wouldn't throw the cuttings out the chute very well. With the standard blades that problem was solved. I remember reading about another person with a Deere who didn't have the correct nuts on the deck lift arms and would always loosen up causing one side of the deck to drop. Once he got it to the dealer they figured it out and since then he was much happier.

 

[BrokeFarmerJohn]

It’s hard to find someone who hates their Husqvarna, I have owned 3 of them and used at least 1 or 2 more and liked them all. I bought a 19hp 42in ariens hydrostatic drive mower from Home Depot for my mom, I bush hogged trails and cut 3 acres weekly with that mower and it’s still going strong, bought it in 2011, just an oil change, every two years ariens sends out new blades, every 4-5 years it needs a battery and seems like every year it eats a deck drive belt, other than that it’s all original.

My first mower was Husqvarna when I bought my house (GT2454T gave $800 for it), used it for over a year, sold it for $1200, bought a GT52XLS for $1800 with 93 hours on it, sold it for $2000 with 100h on it and bought a 1999 JD 455 for $2400 with 1190h on the clock.

I love the yanmar diesel but I miss the Husqvarna’s, they seemed a bit more comfortable and fun to drive.

The yanmar has incredible torq and sips fuel, I’m happy with it but I was also happy with every Husqvarna mower I have ever owned or ran.

Seems like people have too high of expectations for their JD and get mad at the name when they snap into reality where people under estimate the Husqvarna because of the sticker price and it far exceeds their expectations.

 

[Pa Pa Jack]

I have been looking for a new mower. Went to look at JD mowers and it seems that all the dealers within about 75 miles only sell them because they have to. Couldn't really get any straight answers from any of them. Then I came across this post and thought what the heck. Most of my power tools are Husqvarna and they've been good to me. So I went to a couple dealers and found nothing that I liked. Lowes had a couple but they were an the small size and I prefer something a little beefier. Finally contacted a dealer near my sons home and he said he thought he had a couple that would suit my desires. So, I made the 70 mile trip and ended up buying a TS354XD.

Finally got it home by borrowing my son's trailer. Mine just seemed too big to haul all that way and it saved $125 delivery fee because I am outside their territory.

We have had a really bad wet spell for the past three weeks. Rains almost every night. That along with some health issues and suddenly I've got grass up to 24 inches tall. My grass is really an accumulation of various forms of vegetation. Nothing specific by when mowed it actually looks like grass. I normally cut most of it with the finish mower on my Mahidra but it is cumbersome getting between the house and 5 outbuildings.

The TS is amazing. I have never had a garden tractor that would go through this type of stuff so easily. It has the fabbed deck and blows cuttings further than any mower I've ever operated. Maneuverability and power to spare. Cruise control, which I don't use but had to try, hydro transmission, very comfy seat with arm rests, and a great looking cut . I love it. My wife said it's the first mower I've ever had that she can hear while she's i the house. It sounds like a jet on a carrier. Cool toy.

 

[17 Oaks]

I have been looking for a new mower. Went to look at JD mowers and it seems that all the dealers within about 75 miles only sell them because they have to. Couldn't really get any straight answers from any of them. Then I came across this post and thought what the heck. Most of my power tools are Husqvarna and they've been good to me. So I went to a couple dealers and found nothing that I liked. Lowes had a couple but they were an the small size and I prefer something a little beefier. Finally contacted a dealer near my sons home and he said he thought he had a couple that would suit my desires. So, I made the 70 mile trip and ended up buying a TS354XD.

Finally got it home by borrowing my son's trailer. Mine just seemed too big to haul all that way and it saved $125 delivery fee because I am outside their territory.

We have had a really bad wet spell for the past three weeks. Rains almost every night. That along with some health issues and suddenly I've got grass up to 24 inches tall. My grass is really an accumulation of various forms of vegetation. Nothing specific by when mowed it actually looks like grass. I normally cut most of it with the finish mower on my Mahidra but it is cumbersome getting between the house and 5 outbuildings.

The TS is amazing. I have never had a garden tractor that would go through this type of stuff so easily. It has the fabbed deck and blows cuttings further than any mower I've ever operated. Maneuverability and power to spare. Cruise control, which I don't use but had to try, hydro transmission, very comfy seat with arm rests, and a great looking cut . I love it. My wife said it's the first mower I've ever had that she can hear while she's i the house. It sounds like a jet on a carrier. Cool toy.

Thanks for your comment. The new TS Line has kicked it up several notches. I am now looking at the TS 3xxXD.

I have had the opportunity to set back and look at the market over several years. While I love my John Deere's and in fact own 2 of them, the reality is the Husq line offers for more bang for the buck. I do look forward to buying one hopefuly this year but it's looking dim. The weather has held me back on clearing the land in order to mow and if I don't finish my box scraping project before spring sets in then its wait till next winter..