Buying Advice Tractor vs zero turn

[dragoneggs]

Well you just beat the ZT by a little bit by using a lot bigger deck. Point proven on how much more efficient they are. I bet I could equal if not beat your time with my 72” zero turn. If it was a fair match of equal decks the ZT would lap your time. If you want to make a lopsided comparison the other way get a 96” zero turn vs a 58” tractor mower and see what kind of difference there is.

Yep, if you’re not comparing apples to apples the logic isn’t logical.

 

[DK35vince]

Well you just beat the ZT by a little bit by using a lot bigger deck. Point proven on how much more efficient they are. I bet I could equal if not beat your time with my 72 zero turn. If it was a fair match of equal decks the ZT would lap your time. If you want to make a lopsided comparison the other way get a 96 zero turn vs a 58 tractor mower and see what kind of difference there is.

I mow 8 acres.
My 35HP tractor with 84" deck takes me around 3 1/4 hours to mow it. (2.46 acres per hour average).
I can mow the same lot with my 35 HP 72" deck zero turn in 2 hours. ( 4 acres per hour average on our lot)
The difference is huge. When I say our zero turn mows circles around the tractor I'm not kidding. It will mow at 14 MPH.

 

[dragoneggs]

I mow 8 acres.
My 35HP tractor with 84" deck takes me around 3 1/4 hours to mow it. (2.46 acres per hour average).
I can mow the same lot with my 35 HP 72" deck zero turn in 2 hours. ( 4 acres per hour average on our lot)
The difference is huge. When I say our zero turn mows circles around the tractor I'm not kidding. It will mow at 14 MPH.

That's impressive! Going 14mph mowing must be fun?

 

[BoylermanCT]

I resisted getting a zero turn for years. My Craftsman 46" tractor would mow my 5 acres in 5 hours. Then I decided my free time was worth something and I bought a consumer Hustler Raptor SD 54" zero turn. Cut my mowing time down to 2.5 hours. In year 2 of owning the zero turn, I sent it in for a new deck which was under recall due to peeling paint. They let me borrow a commercial X-One 60". Wow, what a difference. Cut my mowing time down to 1.5 hours and it will mow at 11 mph. Yes, a zero turn may be a one trick pony, but I will mow my lawn 36+ times a season and the time dividend is way worth it.

 

[chim]

Yep, if you豎*e not comparing apples to apples the logic isn遞 logical.

Same logic that is applied when the Zero guys state that "nothing is faster than a ZT", "my ZT will mow circles around any tractor", or "a ZT will cut mowing time in half" when they picture using their Zeros to dominate 38" box store riding mowers?

There are some owners for whom a Zero may well be the only machine suitable for them. That doesn't translate into it being the only machine for everyone else. Same thing applies to tractors with finish mowers, flail mowers, ganged reel mowers, etc.

C'mon and lighten up and realize there's more than one way to get the job done. LandPride, King Kutter, Woods, Caroni, Bush Hog, Agmate, etc. still manage to sell their wares in addition to the factory decks available from the tractor manufacturers.

 

[4570Man]

Same logic that is applied when the Zero guys state that "nothing is faster than a ZT", "my ZT will mow circles around any tractor", or "a ZT will cut mowing time in half" when they picture using their Zeros to dominate 38" box store riding mowers?

There are some owners for whom a Zero may well be the only machine suitable for them. That doesn't translate into it being the only machine for everyone else. Same thing applies to tractors with finish mowers, flail mowers, ganged reel mowers, etc.

C'mon and lighten up and realize there's more than one way to get the job done. LandPride, King Kutter, Woods, Caroni, Bush Hog, Agmate, etc. still manage to sell their wares in addition to the factory decks available from the tractor manufacturers.

In anything that resembles a fair comparison a ZT will mow way faster than a tractor. And that’s once you get started mowing. If you’ve got to attach your finish mower and drop the loader I’ll already have 2 acres cut.

 

[lman]

That's impressive! Going 14mph mowing must be fun?

Better have your seat belt on when you're going around a tree at that speed.

 

[DK35vince]

Same logic that is applied when the Zero guys state that "nothing is faster than a ZT", "my ZT will mow circles around any tractor", or "a ZT will cut mowing time in half" when they picture using their Zeros to dominate 38" box store riding mowers?

There are some owners for whom a Zero may well be the only machine suitable for them. That doesn't translate into it being the only machine for everyone else. Same thing applies to tractors with finish mowers, flail mowers, ganged reel mowers, etc.

C'mon and lighten up and realize there's more than one way to get the job done. LandPride, King Kutter, Woods, Caroni, Bush Hog, Agmate, etc. still manage to sell their wares in addition to the factory decks available from the tractor manufacturers.

That's all true.
I mowed for years with my tractor and rear finish mower. ( I still often do while my wife runs the zero turn)
Many people don't want to store/maintain or can't afford multiple machines. And that's fine.
But it doesn't change the fact that zero turns are more efficient mowers.

 

[DK35vince]

Completely agree. However, when mowing the steep hills make sure they are bone dry; I went down about 60 ft on a wet hill, backwards, sideways, and back and forth. Puckered up like a prune and left grip marks on the handles.

Mine would do that too on hills until I threw the stock turf tires away and replaced them with the Carlisle AT 101's.
Made a HUGE difference and I've never had an issue on our hills again. (wet or dry)

 

[Hay Dude]

Mine would do that too on hills until I threw the stock turf tires away and replaced them with the Carlisle AT 101's.
Made a HUGE difference and I've never had an issue on our hills again. (wet or dry)View attachment 657774

I did the same thing. Can damage turf quickly if its a little damp.

 

[blackd]

I have both and used both. The Z-turn gets used weekly asi i cut mi For pure grass cutting th Z-turn can not be beat. For utility use the tractor with implements can not be beat. The Z-turn gets used weekly during the grass growing season. I cut my yard, a neighbors with an invalided wife and the 1 acre common area in the subdivision. Can you afford both? Do you have storage for both?

BTW, I am 76 and got the Z-turn so that I could continue maintaining my own ~4 AC yard. I have had it for 3 seasons now, and would not go back. I still use the tractor and implements for general chores around the house. I do plant food plots for my deer and do not take the FEL off. As it is the most useful tractor implement I have. I also use the 4 foot tiller and a dethatcher I built for the tractor several times a year.

So, it depends on your situation and needs. Both are optimal depending...

 

[MoMower]

Count me in as one of them. I always like to insert this commercial because I think it can bring home a point to some.

YouTube

Me too, I want as few machines/engines to maintain as possible. 1.5 hours, 1.5 acres here, all sorts of obstacles. That’s with attaching the deck and picking up the dog s@&t....

 

[chim]

What others want to own and use is obviously their decision. When different views are expressed on equipment it helps shoppers consider things before they spend their money. On discussions on types of toothbars, chain saws, trimmers, sprayers, and most everything else, posters speak from their own experiences and everyone seems to have a somewhat Libertarian approach - here's what works for me but you need to do what suits you if it doesn't affect me. Mowing takes on a different tone.

As mentioned, different people have different preferences. In my situation, having another machine doesn't make sense. Even though mowing amounts to the largest percentage of the 100-150 hours per year, my primary goal is to have a tractor large enough for anything I want to accomplish. But I do need to mow. The choice becomes get a deck for the tractor or get another machine. A nice new deck can be had for around $2K, and a Zero for a few times that. Fortunately I found and refurbed a deck for under $1K. I enjoy tractor time enough to spend 1-1/2 hours a week mowing. Twice that time would become less than fun.

 

[dodge man]

I often see people say tractors are not as good for mowing, mid mount mowers are terrible to take on and off. You can buy a zero turn for the price of a mid mount. I’ve read it all. I’m always bragging about how easy the deck and loader go on and off my JD. I really don’t take them on and off that often even though it’s easy and quick.

I’d love to see someone mow my yard at 14mph. Hope you don’t mind if I film it because it would be funny. I’d love to have a zero turn. I could probably do half my yard with it and maybe even get the wife to help. I don’t have a place to store it and am to cheap to buy one. They are very hard to find used.

 

[ArlyA]

I got sick of getting stuck in wet yards with the 2 zero turns I owned. A little more aggressive tire only made turning tear up the grass. Sold the last one (Ferris) and went with a John Deere X394 tractor. 4 wheel steer, power steering and hydraulic deck lift & lower. No regrets here. Obviously doesn't spin turn like a ZT but close enough for my needs.
I'm awaiting delivery of a BX2380 with 60 inch belly mower and turfs but the John Deere is not going anywhere. The BX will handle mowing the rougher lot next door to the house property as well as light duty loader stuff that causes my skid steer to leave ruts in the yard.
Worst mowing move I ever made: a Troy Built unit to pull behind a 4 wheeler. Under powered and a crappy cut.

Our yard is made up of hills, ditches and holes which got our old garden tractor stuck, stuck and stuck again. I finally got a husky 4wd, center actuating unit and never spun or got stuck again. Its easy on the grass and does a nice job mowing but of course, Husky quit building them! What will we get next??? Its already a dated unit and parts are getting questionable to find.

 

[johncanfield]

I often see people say tractors are not as good for mowing, mid mount mowers are terrible to take on and off. You can buy a zero turn for the price of a mid mount. I’ve read it all. I’m always bragging about how easy the deck and loader go on and off my JD. I really don’t take them on and off that often even though it’s easy and quick.

Tractors are very good at mowing, that's why I have an MX6 and a pull MX8 (Deere) for my tractor. When I say mowing, for me and my ranch it's shredding. I have over a mile of fence line I need to keep clear for fence checks, there is no way I would use my ZTR for that. If I had a very large open area with nice turf (like a football field) I would rather use a finish mower with my air conditioned cab tractor instead of the Z.

I’d love to see someone mow my yard at 14mph. Hope you don’t mind if I film it because it would be funny. I’d love to have a zero turn. I could probably do half my yard with it and maybe even get the wife to help. I don’t have a place to store it and am to cheap to buy one. They are very hard to find used.

Mow speed capability depends on the tip speed of the blades. My Z945M has a tip speed of 18,000 feet per minute and a top forward speed of 10 mph. I've found a comfortable balance between cut quality and operator comfort of maybe 5 to 6 mph on open ground.

My neighbor on my north side doesn't have a tractor (I offered him a deal when I sold my Kubota L2900 but he passed it up) but he pulls a powered mower deck behind his Mule. He rarely uses that now and I noticed he bought a homeowner quality rider mower tractor - it's as slow as molasses in February but maybe that's just him.

When I was shopping for my first new mower at our old place in Florida (2.5 landscaped acres) I made a note of what the commercial lawn service guys were using. They exclusively used either a ZTR or a step ride behind front mower. I didn't want to stand to mow so I bought the Gravely Promaster 100.

And a final comment. I bought the prototypical Craftsman lawn tractor to mow our fairly large lawn at another house in Florida we had, couldn't afford to buy a commercial quality mower at that time. That Craftsman mower was a piece of junk that self destructed in a year or so (I had to mow at least every ten days year round.) Lesson learned, buy equipment that people use to make a living if possible.

 

[dodge man]

The reason I say you can’t mow my yard at 14mph is it would beat a person to death.

 

[johncanfield]

The reason I say you can’t mow my yard at 14mph is it would beat a person to death.

If I tried to mow some of my 'yard' at 10 mph you would have to peel me off an oak tree I ran into.

 

[dragoneggs]

Gotta love the passion we have for mowing!

 

[Steppenwolfe]

Mine would do that too on hills until I threw the stock turf tires away and replaced them with the Carlisle AT 101's.
Made a HUGE difference and I've never had an issue on our hills again. (wet or dry)View attachment 657774

Those are really nice. I'm waiting for an excuse to buy the Michelin no air tires.