your looking in the right direction but unless you have a lot of trees or obsticals to go around a ZTR for .7 acres is way overkill, but they are fun to mow on!! Find a local dealer that you can trust would be the biggest factor for me.A history of reliability is a must!! JDZ225 is new for 07, ya might want to let that one pass for a year or two!!

I don't think a ZTR is overkill at all. It will cut your mowing time in half. What could be better? From the three brands you mentioned I like the Gravely but all three brands are good.

If there is any "overkill" about a ZTR, its the price of
them, at $3K Ur selecting from the "bottom shelf" of the
ZTR field.. If Ur need is not urgent, U might shop around
for a late model, low hour commercial, or quality
residential mower.. Late fall, early winter is the best
time for that though... In any case, of the 3 U mentioned,
I'd stay away from that JD225, they have a ways to go with
that one yet..
Paul R...

Is that a "polite" way of saying,A jd 225 ain't no good?tbk

I think Gravely is hard to beat in small ZTR's. Very sturdy mower decks, etc.

Thanks to all that posted so far. The reason I am willing to spend the money to get the ZTR is simply that mowing time is critical, and I want to be able to cut "back and forth" easily. It takes me about 50 minutes to mow now, and I want to get that down to 30 or so...Either that, or I will need to contract the mowing out, which I do not want to do, as I enjoy the yardwork.

I have a few other questions....my yard is somewhat soggy from time to time...the JD and Toro have nice size tires and weight only about 500lbs each...the Gravely has nice size tires but weighs 725lbs. No doubt the Gravely is more stout, but will it tend to "sink" deeper into the lawn due to the weight?

Also, the Gravely has 3 blades and a slower (about 16,000) tip speed versus 2 blades on the Toro and Deere with tip speed about 17,000....can someone fill me in on what is a better set up.

I would appreciate any and all feedback on the two posts that I have made.

Thanks again!

buckeye,
take a look at these, you can probably get into 1 for under $3,000 or right at $3K.
http://www.countryclipper.com/residential_acreage_jazee_one.shtml

if what your mowing is wet or soggy, dont mulch and change your pattern often to prevent grooves from your tires. ZTR's are great but tend to be a little more money, I dont mow much more than you and I spent $7,000 today on a ferris IS1500 21/48 w/3 bag bagger. so yup I think its overkill but like you I love to work outside and have fun too!!

"polite" way of saying,A jd 225 ain't no good?tbk... just for a follow up, talking to the dealer today he said the drive on the 225 residential is the same as the commercial only on the smaller side, JD owns the rights on that drive and when that pattent is gone he expects the industry will be going in that same direction !! He sell's EXMARK, FERRIS and JOHN DEERE. I he were to spend the money it would be a deere.

What a "crock"!!! The 225 has the same "EZT" hydros that
all the "cheapies use, whats so special about theirs ???
U get the better hydros in the 425 & 445.. JD has a one
size fits all chassis there, fine for 54-60 inch deck,
48 inch starts looking lost under there, the 42 inch of
the 225 U have to look under it to find it.. It uses a splash
lube engine, not exactly state of the art these days..

The thing is huge, but it only weighs 550 lbs, tells U
something right there.. A quality residential ZTR in
the 16-18 HP, 42-44 inch deck will weigh about 700-750
lbs.. Even the 445, a 25 HP, 54 in deck only weighs 685 !!!
All of them have only 3 gallon tanks, and none of them
have fuel shut off valves !!! Thats just a few of the
things I remember from when I looked at them a couple
months ago.. Looks like the investment of another $50
at the manufacturing level would probably make decent
units out of the 425 & 445, but the chassis is just too
big for the 42 inch 225...
Paul R...

THanks to all...please keep the discussion going....I was test drving some of the units yesterday...here is what I found.

The Gravely unit at $3000 (no longer a 1640 available) has been redesigned for 07. The "replacement" is not the unit the 06 was...now a stamped deck, single fuel tank, EZT tranny...old 1640 weighed about 725lbs...new one will weigh significantly less.

Toro is the only unit that does not have a tube frame....seems lighter duty to me than the Gravely or Deere...liked the optional deck foot pedal, the 4.5" cut height maximum and the price was 2499.99 with the 19HP Kohler. Weighs about 525 lbs....has higher travel speed than the Gravely and tip speed of 18100 is better than the Gravely.

The Deere was more stout than the Toro....liked the frame better than the Toro, similar weight and travel speed of the Toro (7mph)...had more deck adjustment than the Toro and the tiller controls are dampened to eliminate the "jerky" motion....has 18.5 HP BRiggs..not sure I like that versus the Kohler..also has larger wheels front and back. Consumer reports rates the Deere a best buy for what it is worth and says it cuts more evenly than the Toro...cost is 2899.00

Still considering them all at this point..but could get a 23HP-50" Gravely on sale for the price of the 42" Deere..about 2850.00....any thoughts on this route???

Also, do you think a lighter unit with larger tires...such as the Deere would be better on a "soft " lot that can retain water during the spring?????

I am curious as why you've mentioned the blade tip speeds of the units you're considering? Where did that info come from? Did you calculate the BTS or did you read it in a brochure or did a dealer(s) tell you those numbers?

You seem to be concerned about cutting the "soggy" area of your lawn and the tire marks the unit(s) may cause. If so, how much does the tractor you now have weigh? That tractor's footprint may be smaller than the ZTRs, but if it's "soggy" most any machine will leave tracks. Have you considered correcting the drainage problem? How much of your .7 acres is "soggy".

Well, I have seen the blade tip speed in literature and although a novice at this, I think it must have some effect on the cut and ability to travel faster and still make a nice clean cut. Interesting that John Deere would not provide this information and said they would not provide it because they did not want "commercial" customers buying the "residential" line of ZTR's..sounded like Bs to me, but who knows??

On the lot issue, my current rider is certainly smaller than the new ZTR's....the lot drains OK, but could be better and it is just along the rear 1/3 of the lot.....I was just hoping that as I move forward and get a larger ZTR unit with larger tires, it might improve the performance in this area as well.

Right now I am leaning towards the John Deere because I have had good luck with my current unit...although I have concerns about the newness of the design....but the bottom line is that both the Toro and Gravely have been redesigned this year as well....all of the units have their drawbacks and the Deere just had fewer of them in my opinion, plus Consumer Reports really like the cut quality of the JD as well...plus the 30 day trial to actually see how it works on my lot...so that is where I am at at this point....

IMHO, I wouldn't buy a new ZTR for that budget. The good machines are closer to $5k.

For your lot size I'd consider a used 48 inch hydrostatic commercial walk-behind. (Exmark, Scag, Gravely) You're getting commercial build quality and still getting your mowing done very quickly. You can hang a Velke off the back if you don't want to walk. You'd probably finish your mowing in 40 minutes.

If you don't want used, Better Outdoor Products just came out with a 44" cut single-hydro walk behind with a 16hp Kawasaki engine. Just under $3000, shipping included! A lot of commercial cutters really liked their 36" cut machine.

Those blade tip speeds seem a bit high for the under 3K residential unit. It may be so, but consider that some of the best commercial units on the market have blade tip speeds between 17,500 and 18,500, and a few that claim to exceed 19,000. Regardless of blade tip speed, your "soggy" lawn area, consumer reports ratings, and you're lean to green please do this: Try Before You Buy!!

Go to the Gravely dealer and look at the hydro pumps used on their machines.

Then drive to the John Deere dealer and look at theirs.

You will go back to the Gravely dealer if you know anything about hydro pumps..

What is wrong with the hydro pumps on the Deere? Their commercial line seems to be just fine, and I have been told they are the same for the residential units but on a diferent scale ...

Go to the Gravely dealer and look at the hydro pumps used on their machines.

Then drive to the John Deere dealer and look at theirs.

You will go back to the Gravely dealer if you know anything about hydro pumps.

Hi All,

I just wanted to post an update as well as thank everyone for their feedback.

I did buy the John Deere and am in the midst of the 30 day trial.

Simply put, this unit is flat out amazing to me. I have cut with it twice. I am already down to about 23-25 minutes (and hope it will drop more as I become more adapted to the machine)of cut time from about 50-60 mintues with my 30" rear engine rider. The frame size...a concern posted above....has been fine and I am actually glad the unit has a beefier frame than many I have seen at that price point. It has been very easy to trim around my beds and trees with this machine. No problem at all.

I added the mulch kit and it performs well so far.

As for long term reliability, only time will tell...but my old rider had a splash delivery oil system and I am going on 15 years now with no engine problems. We will see about the hydros...who knows???? Butone other note...Ariens has now reduced the Gravely hydros in the residential line to the lighter duty hydros as well....Gravely is not what they were now that the new 2007 units are out....

So far so GREAT!!!!! I love this thing.....

I have a toro z4200 and love it.I mow about .75 acres with a few trees which took me about 50 mins with a toro self propelled mower but with the z 4200 and can do it in about 15 to 20 mins...way faster.I have about 30 hours on mine with no problems.As far as reliability i know a guy that uses a z 4200 and he has 900 hours on it with no problems except for changing a belt..so what does that tell ya...that's why a bought a toro...hope this helps