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Mower recommendation for mowing 2 hilly acres

Doc

Bottoms Up
Staff member
GOLD Site Supporter
My son is in the market for a mower. He has two hilly acres to deal with along with a limited budget.

He has a Honda 300 Four Trax ATV and he was looking for something he could pull behind it to get the job done. Or a reasonable price on a rider. I think a ZTR with ATV knobby tires would do great for him, but they are rather expensive.

I have looked at the ATV pull behind option but that was 10 years ago before I had a tractor. At that time nothing stood out and I did not find anyone who mowed that way and saw that as the solution.

Negative comments included
-ATV engine gets hot, and can burn legs.
-Gas for ATV and gas for pull behind mower means more gas cost.
-Turning radius suck. Worst of about anything else.
-Backing up is a chore, it's possible but not easy.

I would like to hear from someone who has mowed with their ATV for a year or more and what kind of pull behind they use, and whether they would recommend going that route or not.

Or other solutions for getting the mowing done at a reasonable price.

Any thoughts on what might get er done and not cost a fortune? I think he could spend 5 or 6k, but with a new baby in the house he is hoping to find a solution for about half that.
 

JEV

Mr. Congeniality
GOLD Site Supporter
Mexicans?

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url
 

Melensdad

Jerk in a Hawaiian Shirt & SNOWCAT Moderator
Staff member
GOLD Site Supporter
I for hilly property take a look at STEINER and VENTRAC brands. Both are designed for mowing on slopes, not just up & down slopes but also across the slopes. Both use similar designs with frames that are articulated in the middle, and front mower decks. I currently own a Ventrac 3000 series, can't believe how much superior ~in every way~ it is to my old Cub Cadet, and my older Cub was a great little machine!

These are both small, rugged, machines built for hard use:

STEINER => http://www.steinerturf.com/

VENTRAC => http://ventrac.com/advantages/difference/
 

ki0ho

Active member
GOLD Site Supporter
How about a Bad Boy zt mower???? I just picked up a ZT...60 today ....to take the place of my three point finish mower.....they are proud of them ...but it will be easyer to manuver around the growing flower bed obstical!!!!!!!:whistling:
 

Doc

Bottoms Up
Staff member
GOLD Site Supporter
that is the same route I went KiOho. I still have my 3pt finish mower (6ft) and thought it would still come in handy. As it is it has set since I bought the ZTR (Scag w/ 62 inch deck). The Scag deck is smaller but I can mow my 4 acres in less time than with the 3pt mower deck.

Still, I'm leaning towards a Ventrac like Bob mentioned or a CUT such as a Kubota 2250 or NH or JD 4wd 22 - 25 HP. With the CUT's the advantage is you can add a loader and 3PH implements. Ventrac or Steiner would be superior in hills.

I've done my buying this is all up to my son and whether or not he wants to spring for a real solution at this point or just buy something to get through the next two or three seasons and start over again. I made that mistake when I first started mowing my 4 acres, I'm trying to help him avoid throwing away money but ....I figure most of you know how that goes.
 

EastTexFrank

Well-known member
GOLD Site Supporter
I've done my buying this is all up to my son and whether or not he wants to spring for a real solution at this point or just buy something to get through the next two or three seasons and start over again. I made that mistake when I first started mowing my 4 acres, I'm trying to help him avoid throwing away money but ....I figure most of you know how that goes.

I think that we've all been down that road Doc but sometimes you just have to opt for the short term solution because that's all that finances will allow.
 

Fret Fodder

New member
Not a finish mower, but I bought one of these back in 2011. I use it for maintaining a few acres of pasture, trimming around the edges of hay fields and obstacles before cutting the hay, mowing off trails through the woods, and cleaning up overgrown hillsides that are "too sporty" for tractor work.

http://www.drpower.com/prdSell.aspx?Name=fab-tb-pro-xl


To address the negative's you've read:

- I pull the above model for hours at a time up and around hilly terrain with a liquid cooled ATV so I haven't experienced any overheating issues. The mower does put a noticeable strain on the ATV, and sizing the ATV to the mower and the conditions is necessary. But I would think that a reasonably sized 450-500 cc air cooled ATV wouldn't be working to the point of over heating as long as the user is not trying to take too big of a cut with the mower (i.e. trying to cut 8' tall heavy wet grass down to 4" in one pass).

- The gas issue with current pricing is a definite "con", but the Kohler seems to run pretty efficiently although I've never tracked its fuel consumption. The ATV will also use a little more fuel when pulling the mower, but this is more noticeable when trying to mow the heavy stuff. Once something has been mowed off and it's just being "maintained" at a reasonable height, it's not that big of a difference.

- These mowers do require a large turning radius but you learn to compensate for it just like learning to operate any other piece of equipment. It's a challenge to maneuver in tight quarters and the mower is too heavy to man-handle very much, so you learn to plan ahead.

- On this particular mower, the longer tongue is actually easier to back than a short tongue two-wheel cart. You have to give more steering input, maybe that's why it seems more difficult. Now to that I might add most of my mowing is done with the mower directly behind the ATV, not offset to one side which is a little different. But if you can back a hay bine or square bailer you can back an offset DR Mower. Just takes a little practice.

As for other options, he might look at the Scag walk behind mowers (with the standing sulky) or one of these 3-wheel mowers:

http://www.scag.com/sthm.html


I'm not familiar with this company, but I looked at one of these one time as an option to the Scag model.

http://www.ferrisindustries.com/three-wheel-mowers/

While the new models may be a little too expensive for his budget, there may be lawn care businesses in the area that are going out of business and looking to sell off their equipment. I've seen the Scags pop up from time to time on "tractorhouse.com" that were in the $4,000 - $6,000 range. They were well used, but there's not much to them and parts are available.
 
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Doc

Bottoms Up
Staff member
GOLD Site Supporter
Awesome input Fret. Thank you sir!!!! :tiphat:

I had not read that the ATV overheats, but that the engine gets very hot and will make it uncomfortable for the driver going slow as his (or her) legs would get very hot from the heat.
 

Melensdad

Jerk in a Hawaiian Shirt & SNOWCAT Moderator
Staff member
GOLD Site Supporter
You said hills so I said Ventrac (or Steiner).

The Ventrac will mow on slopes that a ZTR will slide down. While not as fast as a ZTR, a Ventrac is much faster at mowing than a compact tractor.

ZTRs are faster on flat or mild rolling land. If you have some steep spots, then the Ventrac clearly has the advantage and may be faster overall.
 

Doc

Bottoms Up
Staff member
GOLD Site Supporter
Bob, I too think the Ventrac would be his best solution but, as usual, it is one of the more expensive solutions. At this point he is not ready or willing to spend that kind of change. From what I've seen they start at 10k and the 4000 goes up to 20k. Simply out of his price range.
 

ki0ho

Active member
GOLD Site Supporter
I used my Bad Boy yesterday for the first time.......WOW!!!! that is one fine machine....the one I got was a ZT-60inch.....it took an hour and a half to mow with the tracter and finish mower....it took right at 30 min with the zt........that is trimming and all!!!!!! Compare that with about 5 hours doing it with a 20 inch push mower!!!! Hell I had time to chase mom around the yard!!! yes I fell asleep before I caught her ....but I still had the time!!!!!!:whistling: the Bad Boy cost 5000,oo but when ya add up the cost of all the mowers Ive bought sence comming here I could have had a ZT to start with!!!!!
It might be cheeper in the long run to go ahead and get a good machine to start with.....than to go by steps.....Just my thoughts........I did look at a ventrack......that is some machine but more than I needed for my little piece of heven!!!!
 

ki0ho

Active member
GOLD Site Supporter
:brows:Hay Doc....as an after thought.......why dont ya just make number one son a nice early fathers day gift of a new skag????? or a cheep Bad Boy?????:clap:
 

Snowtrac Nome

member formerly known as dds
GOLD Site Supporter
one thing to remember is most air cooled atv's over 300 cc's are actually, oil cooled. look up in front see if you have an oil cooler if you choose the right gear and don't lug it you will be ok. I have done many trips of over 3 hours of slogging through bog with a trailer on my king quad 300 in second gear and low range with no problems. I have also cooked a couple of 250's that had no oil cooling.
 

Doc

Bottoms Up
Staff member
GOLD Site Supporter
I used my Bad Boy yesterday for the first time.......WOW!!!! that is one fine machine....the one I got was a ZT-60inch.....it took an hour and a half to mow with the tracter and finish mower....it took right at 30 min with the zt........that is trimming and all!!!!!! Compare that with about 5 hours doing it with a 20 inch push mower!!!! Hell I had time to chase mom around the yard!!! yes I fell asleep before I caught her ....but I still had the time!!!!!!:whistling: the Bad Boy cost 5000,oo but when ya add up the cost of all the mowers Ive bought sence comming here I could have had a ZT to start with!!!!!

Same experience here with my Scag ZTR. I had a 6' 3PH mower and a simplicty my wife would mow with around the house. Both of us mowing about 4 acres at the same time we would finish in 2:45 to 3 hours. With the Scag I get er done in 1:50 to 2 hours. Wished I had made the move to a ZTR sooner, but other things took priority.

It might be cheeper in the long run to go ahead and get a good machine to start with.....than to go by steps.....Just my thoughts........I did look at a ventrack......that is some machine but more than I needed for my little piece of heven!!!!

Yep, I agree 100%. I've told the boy that. You know how kids are. Sometimes they insist on learning the hard way.

:brows:Hay Doc....as an after thought.......why dont ya just make number one son a nice early fathers day gift of a new skag????? or a cheep Bad Boy?????:clap:

LOL, you are funny. :yum: :yum: I needed the laugh. :thumb:
 
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