I was lookin at ZTR mowers but then realized I wouldn't have a free hand for my beer, haven't made up my mind on what to get now.

 

I just bought another Craftsman from sears. This one 18.5hp 42" cut w/bagger. I like to buy things at sears when they are on sale 0% interest for 12mths. Sold my sears 10hp riding mower for $200.00 & I had it for 10yrs.
Funny thing is a buddy bought a huskavarna at the local saw shop & it is identical to mine right down to every bolt just painted orange instead of green & cost him $300.00 more & no bagger

 

yeah pulon, crasftsman, mtd, husakvarna, and a few other brands are all the same manufacturer. sears dosent actually make anything. So whatever you get from them you can get from someone else. Lot of there electric tools are black and decker. Hand tools are wallace forge. stuff like that.

 

surfram-

I do lawn care as my second job. With experience with many types of John Deere mowers I recommend to you a John Deere GT235 with a 48 inch deck. The price may be a little steep, but you will not be dissatisfied.

Justin

 

I used to be in the lawn care biz (a while ago).

I always had good luck with the "real" John Deere mowers (too pricey when new, though).

I also like the Cub-cadet and Deutz-Allis mowers. CC is my personal fave.

jlh

 

Thanks for all of the responses. I was hoping to keep the cost under $2,500 and possibly under $2,000. Is it possible to get a quality mower for those prices? I would prefer the largest deck possible to save time. The John Deere tractors I was considering were the L120 ($2199) or L130 ($2499) but I think they may fall into the Home Depot junk category. I had not considered the Craftsman tractors but after looking at them online, they appear to be a good value. Anymore opinions on specific models?

 

They cost more but these are tuff mowers "John Deere"

I have used my Deere to take down small trees and clear overgrown land.....it has mowed everything from rocks to sand

If you only want to buy one riding mower in your life time buy a Deere

 

I agree with Pappy, that GT 235 I just bought is bad to the bone and it has a beer holder built right into the fender.
Mine was $5910 and change with a three year maintenance agreement and I bought it from a John Deere dealer.
I cut an older gentlemans yard two days ago for him since he is no longer able to do it. I cut the whole yard in 40 minutes and thought I was slow at that. He came out when I was getting ready to leave and said it takes him near four hours to do what I just did.

 

Dieseldude4x4 - I was going to ask the $$ on your Deere. I was quoted $5400 for the Kobuta I mentioned earlier.

Back on track here - If you are getting one of the generic types of mowers...MTD, Husky etc, I would shoot for the Kawasaki twin engine. I believe it to be a little tougher than the Kholer.

Don't go too big on your deck. You need the Hp to cut with a big deck...unless you go diesel. This will shoot the price through the roof 5k and up. If you go this route, you will only buy one lawn mower in your life....Decks are thicker, better bearings and shafts, proper front axel and steering, decks that are actually level ect.

Continue to search and examine everything. Details, Details, Details......I would take the leap for the big dog mower....easy for me to say since I ain't footin' the bill - JKE

 

I'm going to change this to say "If you only want to buy one riding mower in TWO life times..."

We're still using an old John Deere my dad bought when he bought his first house. In a few years it will be passed down to me and I intend to keep it for a long time.

It still runs like the day we got it.

 

Cub Cadet 2000 and 3000 series tractors are still made in the Cub factory in Ohio. Both have horizontal crankshaft engines and a driveshaft back to the transaxle rather than a belt. I have a 17 horse Kohler twin on my 2000 series Cub that's amazing plowing snow and mowing the lawn.

 

dixie chopper solved that they come equiped with a beer cooler, for an acre I would look into a commercial walkbehind with a sulky(riding platform)

 

In my opinion, the best mower available is a Snapper. I have owned several. My current one is a 1986, rear engine 33inch cut. One of the reasons I like a Snapper, is the construction. All steeering joints and king pins have nylon bushings, so when a link gets sloppy, you can slide in a new bushing. On some mowers, you would have to replace components. Also have a grass catcher, which not only picks up grass, but is like a vacuum cleaner, if you have the high lift blade. Try one, you'll like it!!
BIG MIKE

 

oh yeah if you go with a craftsman get the cast front axel not that stamped steel one. Kowaski is best but I think sears only offers it on high end models that arnt worth the money. Kohler is good but there also more expensive. Most of sear's are brigs. They will still last if you dont abuse it. change oil and stuff. Most sears tractors will last 7-10 years and basicly hte deck falls apart after that. for 2000 on sale (regularly like 2400 or 2500) you can get "GT" something or other with a 50" deck thats got slightly heaver gage steel. Cant mulch with it though if you wanted that. That GT was my favorite sears mower but the 1100 17hp was really nice for clean yards with not to many pot holes.

 

My neighbor just bought a zero turn TORO, I am jealous. I cut my yard of about an acre in about 45min!! NICE machine, it was one of the small ones.