Riding mower.

[John B.]

Are you planning on doing your own maintenance/repairs and/or do you have a trailer for your vehicle? If no to both, you might want to consider where you are buying the machine and their ability to pick it up/drop it off for service.

I inherited one of those classic Snapper riding mowers on a commercial property I bought (26 or 28 inch deck, if I remember correctly). When the Snapper started acting up and I mowed the same property with my 21" self-propelled walkbehind, I was surprised to find that the walkbehind was faster because of the time it took to turn the Snapper around to cut the next row.

I have a 48" commercial walkbehind mower now for that property and obviously it cut the time to mow way down. Deck size and quickness of turn are big plusses. I originally wanted to buy a tractor or ZTR for that property, but the slopes on a retention pond there were not rider-friendly. (The 48" commercial walkbehind was a dealer demo and I bought it for about $1200 at the time.)

Honda and Kawasaki small engines have spoiled me. They start on the first or second pull, even though both of my mowers are more than 7 years old at this point. Newer Briggs engines may be as good, I remember older ones being more finicky, and I have an old Tecumseh engine on a vacuum unit that needs coaxing if it sits for more than about a month without being used.

[illustratton]

Look for a used John Deere with reasonable hours on it (and NOT used commercially). Say a 2000-2002 model. You'll pay about the same as buying a new Sears, but will have a way better mower. Forget the HomeDepot models and go for one from a John Deere dealer. Say a "LxXXX or GtXXX"

[colonel panic]

[haikuman]

Also remember when considering accessories you are going to require a little ragamuffin to
do some of the hand work *(:>*

[Ombligo]

AIO, low maintenance mower, fertilzer, and security system....

[AllGold]

For that size yard and that size budget, you are in great shape--unless you want a ZTR (Zero Turn).

A 42" deck will be plenty. If you can't find something used, going to any big box or power equipment specialty store you can get a new 42" Cub Cadet or John Deere, etc. for well within your budget.

You can pay more for higher end stuff but with that size yard, you won't be putting a lot of hours on the machine anyway. It will probably take you only 30-40 minutes to mow.

[OWC Jamie]

illustratton wrote:
Look for a used John Deere with reasonable hours on it (and NOT used commercially). Say a 2000-2002 model. You'll pay about the same as buying a new Sears, but will have a way better mower. Forget the HomeDepot models and go for one from a John Deere dealer. Say a "LxXXX or GtXXX"

My JD dealer has the same D100 Lowes has for the same price.

[Dennis S]

Get one supported by a farm supply place or John Deere, not Home Depot or Sears.

[DRR]

Thanks for all the input everyone. I'll do a little more research but at this point I'm leaning towards a nice used one (smaller deck), whether it's CL moving sale or a trade in at a Deere dealer (thanks for that tip). Also still considering a self-propelled walk behind, but a riding one sounds like so much more fun. :gears:

I expect to do most maintenance myself. I can rent a trailer for the occasions that it needs something I can't handle. Also, there are a number of mobile mechanics in the area that specialize in mowers so that's an option too.

My 4 year old likes the goat option though.

[cbelt3]

DRR- a nice little used one with a few years left on it will run you about $500 or so. Check around for an attached grass catcher.. those are nice (Wish I had one) for those mowing tasks when the grass has grown juuust a bit high.

And besides you'll have nice bales of hay to feed the goats.