Small ztr traction on dry "level"

   / Small ztr traction on dry "level" #41  
Hello all. I've researched this and I know it's been beaten but my issue is a little different. I just bought a husqvarna z242f. I only have a half acre so I don't need anything more or so I thought. My yard is pretty level. I have no wet spots and the only hill I have I've only done with a push mower. However I can't be on the slightest of grade with this husky and not slide or spin. Doing the long up and down runs in my yard the tractor wants to go to the left down hill. This is maybe 3 or 4 inches of slope per 4 foot. Hardly a hill. I find myself just skidding my right tire the whole way down the yard trying to go straight. Getting close to my pool made me question if I was going to drive it into the pool. Had to stop once and consider what direction I was going to try to make the front end not drop down and slam into the side of it. I also got stuck once trying to turn on complete flat ground. Wasn't trying to spin it just turn. Had to shut the deck off and back straight over my landscaping to get out of it. It's really unusable and I left ruts everywhere in my yard yesterday. Now this was my first time on it but I couldn't even practice doing a k turn or anything because it ending up taking 5 or more steps due to spinning to get pointed the right way. It has small 18x8.5-8 turfs on it. I thought that would be ok. The machine weighs just under 600lbs and I'm only 150lbs. Tires have 9 psi in them now. Any advice would be appreciated. I will never use this in the wet and I've kept my gt5000 to pull my cart and well do anything other than mow with.
Hi Frankr2994, I too had issues with a Husqvarna Zero turn mower getting stuck and sliding on flat or near flat surfaces. My mower was a z4217. After several years of putting up with the Husqvarna and its short comings, the right side hydraulics failed and I had a legitimate reason to replace it. Bought a Kubota Z122EBR-48 and my problems were solved, holds the ground even on steep side hills and three years later has yet to miss a beat! Definitely the best decision I have made in a long time. Probably not the answer your looking for but worked for me.
P.S. I gave the Husqvarna to my least favorite brother-in-law so it was a win-win all way around!!!
 
   / Small ztr traction on dry "level"
  • Thread Starter
#42  
Well I mowed today for the first time with the knobbies. Almost eliminated all slipping. At the very least I have enough traction to learn how to operate the machine. As most of you pointed out there is some operator error. To do a k turn I must use both sticks equal to get a straight reverse going then with one stick still reversing move the other forward to turn. The turn must always start with a tire being driven forward. To start any turn by reversing a wheel it always results in tearing up the lawn. There are still a couple spots in my yard that no matter what I spin. The weight of the machine and the ground being a little uneven play into it. I can deal with this as the ground was wet this early afternoon from all the rain earlier this week. Bright side is I don't really care about skidding the turf up a bit. I bought a kid for my quad and that tears the hell out of the lawn. Especially when I'm showing him how to kick the ass end out. But anyways once I really get the hang of it I should only spin now and again. I did get to mow right next to some slopes with confidence today and I did not have to push mow for the first time ever. Huge plus. I was going to spend 500 on replacing my husqvarna push mower with an aluminum toro but now I think I'll just scrap it and not buy another. The only other thing I guess I'll have to live with is the deck. Throws grass way better than my craftsman GT however there are no gauge wheels just a nose roller. So I get high and low spots in the lawn where the gt would ride up and down them for a more even cut. The gt also clumped grass all over the place and looked like ass so I'll take that as a win too. Couldn't be more impressed on the difference between a stamped deck and a deep fabricated one. Night and day in clearing and being able to keep rpm up while going fast through tall wet grass.
 
   / Small ztr traction on dry "level"
  • Thread Starter
#43  
Edit: I did not buy a kid for my quad....quad for my kid lol.
 
 
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