zero-turn mower, turning around w/o wrecking the grass

[big bubba]

agree that smaller rear wheels are more likely to rough up on turns. the bigger & wider rear tires are, less likely to mess things up. of course, it's the operator's technique that decides

 

[gstrom99]

I think I'm going to mow today. Maybe/hopefully the last of the year? I've only had this ZT mower a year, and am guilty of often doing the "tear up the lawn" turns. It's been a dry summer, so I haven't mowed much here. I'll have to experiment, and change my ways.

 

[GeneV]

That saying is definitely an "old" saying. Meaning back ~20 years ago when a 61" commercial ZTR was under $10k new and used ones in good shape could be had for $3k-$4k. And the other mowing options were riders. Either box store or something like x300 deere. Then yea.....it would cut mowing time in half. No only because of turns, but they could mow faster with good quality.

But now the market is flooded with ZTR mowers that are "homeowner" quality. Very small drive tires, ~5mph top speeds, Cheap feeling controls and feedback, crappy decks, not great cut quality, etc. So going from a GOOD rider to a cheap homeowner ZTR.....no....cutting mowing time in half dont hold true.

My FIL has a Bad-boy 26hp 61" cut. Supposed to compare to low-end commercial ZTR's. I have a 20year old scag wildcat. MUCH MUCH better quality.

I have a slight hill behind my 3-unit rental. His mower absolutely refuses to stick to that hill sideways. I have no issue whatsoever even in damp grass. Weight, balance, smaller tires, combination of all I dont know. And it tops out at 5mph whereas mine goes 10. He lives half a mile away so I ocassionaly have him mow and he just drives it up. So the painfully slow part sucks.

Regarding the standers....I personally hate them. They suck mowing under trees because standing on a mower you are taller than sitting on a rider. And you use your wrists to control, and no armrests. And yea, standing in general sucks.

My friend that owns a landscape business owns standers and riders. There are only TWO benefits to a stander as far as mowing and business is concerned.

1. They are cheaper
2. With employees....they are more likely to get off and move trash/debris rather than mow over or go around.

Having choices is great, so to each their own. Mine's actually a commercial mower, and goes 10 miles/hr.

More benefits for a stander over sit-down mower, I could hop off my stander and use it like a self-propelled walk-behind. In soft ground areas (although I usually don't mow there until it thoroughly dries out), being able to instantly decrease the weight of my mower by 150 lbs is pretty nice.

Around trees, you duck or squat, or get off the mower and walk next to it. Can't do that with a sit-down mower.

1.
2.
3...they take up less room on a trailer.
4...landscapers prefer them to sitting on a ztr all day.

 

[GeneV]

Mowed yesterday, I was under the gun coz they were predicting rain. I did the whole thing using the true "zero-turn" method for turning around. Guys I was rushing it a little coz of the upcoming rain, but between that and not doing 3 point turns...half an hour, I saved close to a friggin half hour!

I perfected the technique a bit, found best way is to turn into the next row like doing a 3 point turn. But then instead of backing up, spin around with the wheels going in opposite directions...it lines you up perfectly for the next pass going the other way. The only time I tore up the lawn was if I didn't fully stop, and abruptly put the inside wheel into reverse. I had to watch out for that, coz it felt instinctual to do it.

 

[RoyJackson]

Mowed yesterday, I was under the gun coz they were predicting rain. I did the whole thing using the true "zero-turn" method for turning around. Guys I was rushing it a little coz of the upcoming rain, but between that and not doing 3 point turns...half an hour, I saved close to a friggin half hour!

I perfected the technique a bit, found best way is to turn into the next row like doing a 3 point turn. But then instead of backing up, spin around with the wheels going in opposite directions...it lines you up perfectly for the next pass going the other way. The only time I tore up the lawn was if I didn't fully stop, and abruptly put the inside wheel into reverse. I had to watch out for that, coz it felt instinctual to do it.

Practice makes perfect!

 

[tinsnip]

Not sure if this helps. I own a Ferris stand-on and only recently discovered that when turning, if you completely let go of the lever for the inside tire that tire will still move through the turn. Not sure if it’s a feature of the mower or if they all do that. Once I realized it, it took some practice to simply let go of the inside tire on turns instead of trying to back the inside at the right speed. Now it must be said that if the ground is wet, I can still end up with a tear, but it’s nowhere near as bad.

 

[Creamer]

When I get to the end I immediately start turning when the outside grass goes under the deck. I get to about 45-50 degrees off of straight and out far enough to have room for the deck to spin and not be in uncut grass and then turn sharp reversing the inside wheel. So it is a modified 3 pt turn. I find it faster this was and since the inside wheel barely moves it is very smooth as the center of the mower never stops its forward motion. With my 60" deck I can be back in the cut in less than a second and rarely do rip up grass. Like Jeff said Practice makes perfect and I didn't get to this overnight. My 72" deck doesn't work quite as smooth because the wheels are farther away from the edge of cut and quite often I find myself not taking a full cut right after the turn.

 

[GeneV]

Not sure if this helps. I own a Ferris stand-on and only recently discovered that when turning, if you completely let go of the lever for the inside tire that tire will still move through the turn. Not sure if it’s a feature of the mower or if they all do that. Once I realized it, it took some practice to simply let go of the inside tire on turns instead of trying to back the inside at the right speed. Now it must be said that if the ground is wet, I can still end up with a tear, but it’s nowhere near as bad.

Naw on mine, if you let go the lever that wheel will dead stop. Ferris is a higher-end mower, so that could be a feature for preventing turf damage with sudden stops.

So basically, we're talking here about two different types of 180 degree turns. One, is pivoting on the inside wheel, which is also moving slowly so as to prevent turf damage. The other type is simply spinning in place with center of mower being the pivot, done with tires turning in opposite directions.

 

[masscity]

I have a Husqvarna zero turn and I have scrub marks here and there every time I mow. I could do better if I wanted to, but I don't have a lawn, but a yard out in the country. Close to 2 acres of mowing. Heavy with white clover, thick, but doesn't grow tall. Mow every 2-2 1/2 weeks.