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What lawn tractor best to buy?


Mikey

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So, I'm looking at a property that needs to be mowed and it's bigger than I want to push a lawn mower along. So.... it also has a fairly long driveway behind the house to the shop. I'd like to have snowblower option now or in teh future. Lastly, i'd like it to be able to handle something heavier than just lawn grass as a couple acres of the property is tall grass/weed.

I don't WANT to pay a mint, so I'll end up having to give on something I want as the complete package would be hideous, so I don't mind starting with the tractor, then adding the bush pig and then the blower or whatever when I can find it.

So...

What tractor can you get used that has a fair amount of aftermarket products and will last? Suggestions?

I'm in Canada, so I'd need something in the North American market.

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I've got a cub cadet mower and separate snow blower. The mower has a 20 hp 2 cylinder Koehler engine. I call it my Harley even if it does have more Hp than most Harley's. Even mulching long grass it just digs in and keeps going.

I wanted the blower attachment for it and the dealer said I should just get a snow blower. His reason was a dedicated blower is less expensive, and most times the PTO onlawn tractors is belt drive which gets full of snow and may slip. It will also make your tractor rust faster. You'd also have to do seasonal oil changes for viscosity. The reason I went with CC is my dealer is local if I need any parts and a 3 year warranty. My toro lasted for years, but the nearest dealer was an hour away.

Stay away from anything Sears or Canadian Tire sells.

Go in and see your local dealer; mine gave me a better price than Home Depot in the exact same machine and he even delivered it for free.

My buddy has a John deer I can't remember which one but he's had to change mower pulleys on it every year. I don't remember exactly but they keep seizing, I keep teasing him it's because he keeps it too clean.

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I'm with Joey on getting the separate blower, not add on. Maybe consider a push blade for the tractor. Easy to make a few quick passes when you get just a light few inches to clear, and use the blower on heavy stuff.

Ariens makes a good blower, been happy with mine. Got the 30" platinum deluxe. If I bought again, would get the 24" pro model which has the same size engine. Any time you have heavy snow, cant make a full pass anyway.

When my dad was around, 20 years ago, he had a cub cadet combo. Had to remove the deck to put the blower on, plus needed wheel weights and chains.

Not great traction with all the weight of the blower hanging out front. He ended up never really using it much, since the Jeep went fine in most of the snow, and the farmer next door dug him out when it was heavy.

His really needed the multi-vis oil to start in the cold. He ran 30w in summer, and conventional 5w30 in winter. Now, I think you can run the 5w30 synthetic year round in the power equipment according to the last Briggs manual for my generator.

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Can't really help you on the snowblower thing, since us southern folk only see snow once every 10 years, and even then it's only an inch. As far as the tractor goes, you really need to look at two things: parts availability for your market, and the engine. If you like Snapper, but the closest Snapper dealer is 150 miles away, that's useless. So go with a brand with parts available near you. The biggest factor is the engine. Find the one you think you want, and get the exact model numbers off of the engine and do your research. For instance, I bought a used Bolens push mower from a guy, and Bolens is the cheapo stuff from Lowes. But, it has an engine on it that you can't kill. 6 years, and I finally had to put a diaphragm in it this past weekend (I think it was $7). I put a spark plug in it too, a whole $2 from Oreilly's. Runs like new. My John Deere is an LT180 with a Kawasaki V-twin, which is one of the best engines they've put in a lawn tractor, and even is run in some zero-turn mowers. Parts and engine, everything else falls in after that.

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Get something with a proven name brand engine and a name brand mower. If some silly parts go bad, you need really good parts service. You're not going to get that from everyone.

I also have a Deere mower with the Vtwin Kawi engine...a LX289. Great mower...but used it was $2700 with 250 hrs. I need it with my property.

Not sure I really like JD equipment...but that is another story.

Edited by TuffguyF4i
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I have a garden tractor with a snow plow and chains/wheel weights.
It also has a cart for hauling brush up the street to an undeveloped parcel of land.

If I wanted a separate piece of equipment for snow removal, I'd get a ZTR for lawn duties but this does everything so it stays.
It's a 2003 GT5000 Sears with 25hp Kohler Pro motor. I paid $1000.00 for it in 2005 and its been a 4 season workhorse since.

I've seen lots of problems with some of the Briggs/Stratton engines...head gaskets, push rods, always seems like top end problems.
Kawasaki and Honda engines have very good reputations too.

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