I am in the market for a new lawn tractor and I know there are those that are comercial grade, but for the rookie in this area and for ease of warranty work which one of these (or any other ideas are welcome) do you think would be best for grass, snow removal, etc...
Thanks for any suggestions.

MTD, decent machine for a decent price.....Craftsman.

Of the brands up top I'd say Deere. Craftsman are just over priced IMO, Troy built makes nice stuff, but I'd worry about parts availability. Husky...I dunno, never seen one. I put a Murray 18 HP garden tractor through hell and back for 8 years in Alaska. Mowed and hauled all summer, and ran a snow blower all winter. Paid 1600 new, and sold it for 1000 when I left, still ran like a top. I wouldn't hesitate to buy another Murray in the future.

John Deere tractors, X-Mark mowers!!! Our X-Mark 0 turn mower is the only piece of equipment we own that isn't John Deere *besides Kinze grain carts...Great mowers

I have to stay true too my roots. I own and operate a 04 JD 210LE and 97JD 310SE. Far from a lawnmower but if John Deere puts in a fraction of the effort into building a lawnmower as they put into building heavy equipment you can't go wrong.

Like I mentioned in another post, go with a commerical zero-turn if there's any way you can afford it. Once you run a hydrostatic z-turn for about 5 minutes you'll never want to go back to a conventional again.

I run a Grasshopper 952D for my business, and it accepts damn near every attachment known to man--PTO snowblower, blade, power sweeper, vacuum, etc.

I'd personally stay away from Husky lawn stuff--they're not really made by Husky and are generally really cheap. Many parts are interchangeable with MTD, so I suspect MTD actually makes them and Husky slaps stickers on them.

Exmark, Grasshopper, John Deere Commerical, and Gravely are some good brands to consider.

No Simplicity??? :D

If you are set on choosing between those 4, I would not go with a Troy Bilt or Craftsman...you'll be buying a new one 4 years down the road.

If you want ease of warentee work...do yourself a favor and buy from a local dealer! You wont be happy if you buy from a big-box store ;)

If you want ease of warentee work...do yourself a favor and buy from a local dealer! You wont be happy if you buy from a big-box store ;)

Exactly right. You also didn't give us a budget to consider. JD from the box store isn't the same as a JD dealer mower and most of the dealers WILL NOT do any warranty work on the box store line. Cub Cadet makes a decent mower IF you get into their larger series of garden tractors.

Zero turns are the cat's ___ but not the one's from the box store either.

Exactly right on the warentee thing...

We sell Simplicity's so we dont have to deal with warentee work from big box stores (Simplicity is dealer exclusive) but our other main product line is Echo, which IS sold in big box stores. If someone comes in with a broken weed wacker "hi yeah I got my Echo weed wacker at Wal Mart and now it wont start, can you people fix it?" 9 times out of 10, we refuse to do work on it...

or, the best line of all, where people try to get around the whole dealer issue, they call and say "Hi I have a problem with my Briggs&Stratton lawn mower, can you fix it?" (totally side-stepping the issue that its a Craftsman or something that we will not work on ):h )

Like I mentioned in another post, go with a commerical zero-turn if there's any way you can afford it. Once you run a hydrostatic z-turn for about 5 minutes you'll never want to go back to a conventional again.

I run a Grasshopper 952D for my business, and it accepts damn near every attachment known to man--PTO snowblower, blade, power sweeper, vacuum, etc.

I'd personally stay away from Husky lawn stuff--they're not really made by Husky and are generally really cheap. Many parts are interchangeable with MTD, so I suspect MTD actually makes them and Husky slaps stickers on them.

Exmark, Grasshopper, John Deere Commerical, and Gravely are some good brands to consider.

Ah what do you know.....:D

We sell Simplicity's so we dont have to deal with warentee work from big box stores (Simplicity is dealer exclusive)

Hey, where are they hiding the DIESEL powered stuff on their website? Everything I saw was :mad: gas. :D

Just last year I went to a place in Missouri that sells Yanmar. It's a JD without the green paint. This guy will sell you a tractor, implements and a 16' trailer to bring it home on for around $5k. The tractors are rebuilt but we have had to do that before with our 46 IH.

Hey, where are they hiding the DIESEL powered stuff on their website? Everything I saw was :mad: gas. :D

Its there!!

You can get the Simplicity Legacy 4x4 with a sweet little 27hp inline-3 cylinder liquid cooled Briggs&Stratton (manufactured by Daihatsu, same thing as the GM/Isuzu deal) direct injection diesel!!!!

Awesome little engine. Customer bought one last year with the works...front end loader, 60" deck, rear PTO, 3 pt hitch...

I got to do PDI on it and test drive it!:D Sounds awesome, smooth, quiet little diesel!

Ben

Sorry for the lack of information. I am planning on spending no more than $3000 for tractor and parts.
We just sold our house and are getting a house on 2 1/8 acre's that has close to 1 acre of lawn. Not to big for some of you down there but my 14 year old son may get very tired and give me a hard time when it comes time to do the lawn with our Honda push cutter.
Thanks for all of the ideas.
I am leaning towards the John Deere, but what is the difference between the big store tractor's versus the local dealer tractor's? Is it just a loyalty thing to give local buisness or do they actually get different versions of tractors?
Also, what difference does it make if you have a John deere bought from a one store and take it to another dealer that sells John Deere for warranty work? We all take our trucks to different dealers to get the right service don't we. Warranty work should be covered no matter where you go as long as it is the same brand there.

Husky's are made by MTD as well as Murray and Craftsman and Yardman...ect. I have an 11 year old Craftsman that I can buy parts for still at tractor supply company for a decent price. When I worked at a TSC, part of my job was to drive the mowers in and out everyday. They say some severe abuse and kept on ticking. My favorite was the cheapest you can buy. 14hp 3x" deck 7 speed. That thing would fly. They may require a more frequent maintenance schedule than something nicer, but an MTD mows my lawn.

Dixie Chopper with the 50hp Yanmar Diesel :D

It will knock that 1 acre yard out in about 15-20 mins.

I am leaning towards the John Deere, but what is the difference between the big store tractor's versus the local dealer tractor's? Is it just a loyalty thing to give local buisness or do they actually get different versions of tractors?
Also, what difference does it make if you have a John deere bought from a one store and take it to another dealer that sells John Deere for warranty work? We all take our trucks to different dealers to get the right service don't we. Warranty work should be covered no matter where you go as long as it is the same brand there.

The John Deere's that you buy from Home Depot are rebadged MTD tractors with green paint. Look at one of these mowers then go to your local JD dealer and look at a 200 series or higher lawn tractor and the difference will be apparent. I have a 12 year old 320 that I use to cut just under an acre. It's way more tractor than I need for the job, but it will last forever as long as I keep the oil and coolant in the engine. Since you are on a budget, I would look at a late model used mower. $3000 sounds like a lot of money until you walk into the dealership.
As for the warranty deal, it's an "agreement" between Deere and the big box retailers. You have to take the tractor back to Home Depot or wherever you bought it for warranty work. They send it to the local dealer for the warranty service. I've yet to hear of any dealers who are thrilled with this arrangement.

Kubota, One of the best ones out there, along with some of the others mentioned such as exmark, grasshopper. Kubota diesels seem to run forever. we have had very good luck with them over 1000hrs. The new cub cadets are junk. Even the ones from the case IH dealers. I used to work as a mechanic at a dealer. We called them Cub Cajunk.

I used to work as a mechanic at a dealer. We called them Cub Cajunk.

We call the John Deere's OH DEERE's!):h

400 series Deere is tough to beat but expensive. Are you buying new?

My 455 Deere (diesel) hasn't required anything but fluid and filter changes along with a bettey in like 9 years of service.

The John Deere's that you buy from Home Depot are rebadged MTD tractors with green paint. Look at one of these mowers then go to your local JD dealer and look at a 200 series or higher lawn tractor and the difference will be apparent. I have a 12 year old 320 that I use to cut just under an acre. It's way more tractor than I need for the job, but it will last forever as long as I keep the oil and coolant in the engine. Since you are on a budget, I would look at a late model used mower. $3000 sounds like a lot of money until you walk into the dealership.
As for the warranty deal, it's an "agreement" between Deere and the big box retailers. You have to take the tractor back to Home Depot or wherever you bought it for warranty work. They send it to the local dealer for the warranty service. I've yet to hear of any dealers who are thrilled with this arrangement.

Thanks for clearing it up. You would think it would be almost illegal to do a rebadge scam since it is false advertisment in a way.

I plan on buying new. You can get good deals on used items/vehicles, but most people are not as anal as the members on this site for taking care of and making our trucks and other things better. Looking at the voting scale it seems the John Deere is the winner, but that is also for the ones that are true John Deere's.
Who knows maybe if I do get a diesel tractor I can look at a way to use my LB7 turbo, when I change it out, on the tractor.):h Then maybe I can cut that time down to about 5-10 minutes.
The black marks on the lawn might be hard to explain to the wife.

I bought my truck because I like the power they have and for any future needs, this may also be the same way I will go for a lawn tractor. To be able to have a tractor that can cut grass and lift loads, blow snow/push snow, etc. My budget may have to go up.

I was in this same situation about 6 years ago. I was leaning toward the John Deere but finally got a cheap craftsman. The reasoning I used was I could buy 3 craftsmen for the same price as the JD. I figured if I got 5 years out of each craftsman, I could throw it away and get another one and still be ahead of the JD. I am on year 6 so far with the first machine and its still running fine.

Take a big bite of the bullet and get a John Deere 4110 with a 60" deck and a front end loader. The loader goes on and off in seconds and it mowes a long time on very little diesel fuel.

The John Deere's that you buy from Home Depot are rebadged MTD tractors with green paint. Look at one of these mowers then go to your local JD dealer and look at a 200 series or higher lawn tractor and the difference will be apparent.
As for the warranty deal, it's an "agreement" between Deere and the big box retailers. You have to take the tractor back to Home Depot or wherever you bought it for warranty work. They send it to the local dealer for the warranty service. I've yet to hear of any dealers who are thrilled with this arrangement.

The cheap John Deere's are made in a John Deere factory in Greeneville, Tn. They are not an MTD. They are not the same quality as the expensive Deeres, but they are still better than a MTD. I also believe you can take them direct to a dealer for warranty work.

John Deere tractors, X-Mark mowers!!! Our X-Mark 0 turn mower is the only piece of equipment we own that isn't John Deere *besides Kinze grain carts...Great mowers

Ditto what OneTALLGMC96 says. The John Deere accessories are always what keeps buying Deere's. Snow blade, mower deck, dethatcher all go one easy and in minutes. Cut my mowing time in darn near half with the Exmark though.

Stu

I have had a cub cadet and I wasn't too impressed with the cost to workmanship. we went back to throw away craftmans riders. we mow at least 3 acres third year on this last one still going strong. no problems. but it is a cheap piece of ----------- . did go with a kohler engine. I have no luck with briggs.

I also believe you can take them direct to a dealer for warranty work.

My local dealer will not. His (owner's) opinion is that if they bought that junk from somewhere else, somewhere else will have to fix it too. Said he is not liable for any warranty work right now. And if corporate should happen to change their policy, his thinking is any box store stuff will be "first in, last out".

At the dealer where I work we have a sign hanging on the wall that says
"The bitterness of poor quality remains long after the sweetness of low price is forgotten!"

I cant say enough how much happier you'll be if you buy from an independant dealer vs. a big box store!! :)

Cub Cadets have been made by MTD for a few years now. I own a 2000 series that has lasted 6 years, but I would not recommend them to anyone. I can't tell you how many broken welds I have had to repair or parts that were just built too light to last.

I mow approximately 2.5 acres of lawn. My twin cylinder Cub Cadet will burn almost 3 gallons of gas each time I mow. I run a mulching kit on the deck which makes the engine work harder. My next mower will be a John Deere from a dealership.

We have wet heavy grass and mow about 1.75 acres twice a week with numerous obstacles. The 455 holds 6? gallons of fuel and we fill the tank every month or so. 1 gallon/hr fuel consumption max. Generally 1/2 gallon per hr.

I have yet to change the belt on the mower and I have mowed in some pretty nasty conditions. Easy R&R of mower deck, shaft drive (liquid cooled) hydro, shaft drive mower gear (belt links the blades) means no/low maintenance...

The cheap John Deere's are made in a John Deere factory in Greeneville, Tn. They are not an MTD. They are not the same quality as the expensive Deeres, but they are still better than a MTD. I also believe you can take them direct to a dealer for warranty work.
I was told they were MTD sourced by an engineer with an outdoor recreation equipment(ATV) manufacturer. He said they thought about getting in the mower business but decided against it after touring MTD because they could never match the production scale of MTD. He also said that Deere gets their "budget" model mowers from MTD. Perhaps Deere builds them, but after looking at one I'm convinced they used MTD's engineering department to design them. I would buy a used LX178 before I hauled one of these new POS models home.

My local dealer will not. His (owner's) opinion is that if they bought that junk from somewhere else, somewhere else will have to fix it too. Said he is not liable for any warranty work right now. And if corporate should happen to change their policy, his thinking is any box store stuff will be "first in, last out".

I think that is just plain wrong! It is the same brand. Fix it or quit carrying the brand! :rant:

P.S. If a customer could prove it, sounds like a winning lawsuit.

I think that is just plain wrong! It is the same brand. Fix it or quit carrying the brand! :rant:

P.S. If a customer could prove it, sounds like a winning lawsuit.

Maybe he's holding to the big sign over the door, "We reserve the right to refuse service to anyone".

Sleazy lawyers are one of the pitfalls of our country.:lol:

Maybe he's holding to the big sign over the door, "We reserve the right to refuse service to anyone".

Sleazy lawyers are one of the pitfalls of our country.:lol:

I don't care for lawyers either, but if you took your truck to a chevy dealer other than the one you purchased from for warranty work and they refused you, how would you feel? I view this the same way. If I PAY for a JD, then I expect service from JD and JD service centers (dealers). End of Story.:mad: :rippedhan

I must say. Not to get on anyone's case, but 2 years ago when I was looking at lawn tractors I looked at both JD and Craftsman. I found that they were pretty much the same mower. Only differences were the color and the price. True, the hood was slightly different...

Anyhow, I've been using the '03 Craftsman for two years. It's been a pretty good mower. I managed to damage one of the seals on a bearing on the deck and the bearing went out. I also broke the shift lever (fatigue, same part as on the JD) and welded it back together. That's the sum of my difficulties with it.

So you know what ended up being the best mower? Not the Craftsman, not the JD (my nieghbor bought one and it didn't last him a year before it quit).

My 1973 Sears with the 20 hp Onan twin and a 48" deck. Guess how much that cost: nothing. I got it off the side of the road. It was in someone's trash. It has been flawlessly reliable (I don't recall it ever breaking down), has plenty of horsepower and plenty of gears. Sure, it looks worse than the inside of a septic tank, but it is functionally far better than either of the new mowers.

I have a JD GX345 for .75 acre...just wish I went w/ a 54" deck instead of the 48". I have 5 suitcase weights on the back and plow my blacktop drive way with no chains. It works great. My 2003 model don't have the diff. lock. The new GX345 has diff. lock. Great little tractor. Step up to a 400 series and get fuel injection if you don't go with a diesel. JD also makes my 345 in a 355 w/ a diesel instead of my liquid cooled Kawi motor. No need to buy the X400 series...get the older 400 series. They are cheaper and nearly indestructible. You should be able to pick up a liquid cooled, fuel injected gasser 400 series for 5K or less in great condition. It is all the tractor you will ever need. My dad has a JD 318 that is still kicking strong. The 300 series fits my smaller yard perfect. My next purchase will be the hydraulic tiller for it. I need a shed or another garage first.

P.S. Don't let your wife drive it. You will never get to mow the lawn again!

IMHO I'd highly recommned spending a little more and buying a used Kabota or Yanmar. They'll last a lifetime (no lie), thier easy to fix and they run on diesel fuel (that's right - the expensive stuff). I replaced a older Simplicity with a new one about 10 years ago - boy was I disappointed - what a POS. The newer lawn tractors are nothing but junk.

I replaced a older Simplicity with a new one about 10 years ago - boy was I disappointed - what a POS. The newer lawn tractors are nothing but junk.

which model?

The Regents, yes, JUNK, definetly. But that was 10 years ago also...they have improved significantly. every model above the junk-Regent is pretty solid IMO. But every brand has to have a junk level. They would not be able to build a SOLID very low end model that was cheap. The Regent it junk because it has to be cheap and affordable for the average small home owner who uses it only to mow lawn etc... I just dont think you'll find a lawn mower in that size category that is really solid. Especially the Legacy. Our Legacy has certainly done its fair share of work...the 60" full hydraulic plow that goes in the front probably weighs 250 pounds, and ive hit more curbs with it than I can imagine, nothings bent or broken on that tractor. Ive put over 800 pounds on the 3 point hitch as well, and its only rated for like 450 IIRC. Shaft-driven full floating deck, full instrument panel, tilt power steering, ROPS, front, mid, rear PTO, 3PH, high/low range, Sundstrand tranny. You may pay a lot, but you get what you pay for...

Also curious what dealer did you purchase it from in CT?

I must say. Not to get on anyone's case, but 2 years ago when I was looking at lawn tractors I looked at both JD and Craftsman. I found that they were pretty much the same mower. Only differences were the color and the price. True, the hood was slightly different...

Anyhow, I've been using the '03 Craftsman for two years. It's been a pretty good mower. I managed to damage one of the seals on a bearing on the deck and the bearing went out. I also broke the shift lever (fatigue, same part as on the JD) and welded it back together. That's the sum of my difficulties with it.

So you know what ended up being the best mower? Not the Craftsman, not the JD (my nieghbor bought one and it didn't last him a year before it quit).

My 1973 Sears with the 20 hp Onan twin and a 48" deck. Guess how much that cost: nothing. I got it off the side of the road. It was in someone's trash. It has been flawlessly reliable (I don't recall it ever breaking down), has plenty of horsepower and plenty of gears. Sure, it looks worse than the inside of a septic tank, but it is functionally far better than either of the new mowers.


My best one to date was a 1985 Murray 11 hp Briggs with 36" deck. Mowed 3.5 acres for over 14 years. It died only because my brother borrowed and forgot to check the oil level (used 1/2 quart every 5 tanks).

My current 2001 Craftsman 16 hp Briggs with 42" deck has been great. Cost $900 new.

Seems that I am unlike most of you guys in that I actually enjoy riding the mower. Gets me out the house. About 1/2 day for the 1.5 acres I currently mow.

Now, the damn weed wacker is a different matter. ;)

My best one to date was a 1985 Murray 11 hp Briggs with 36" deck.

Yep. Have one of those as well. Still runnin' good, but comes in a bit lower because it has a crank seal leak. Also the mower deck is a bit weak. Has a tendency to crack in certain places. Then again, I guess I shouldn't be surprised. Those parts of the deck have just about worn through because it has seen so much use...

I appreciate all of the replies and other suggestions.
When I get back home from work I will be looking at the JD's and Kubota's. I know of the dealers for the JD's but not sure where the Kubota dealer is at. I know we have one though.
I don't think I have to worry about my wife taking over the lawn mowing jobs with the new tractor. She is not a gear head. As long as the vehicles are running she is happy.
My 3 year old son is another story. He loves to get in the shop and help with what ever I am doing.:D

Ben - Which model Simplicity? I think is was (and still is..its still in my barn) a Hydro Broadmoar. My experience wasn't even close to the older Simplicity that I had that I could not kill (but my son could). Anyway - I bought a used Kabota B1850 with a belly mower and have never regretted it. It takes me a lost less time to do the lawn and I get smell diesel as I'm doing it. The dealer was located in Winsted or Barkhamsted CT and closed up shortly after I bought it.

ahhh ya...gotta agree with you. The old hand-hydro Broadmoors were junk...

I just bought an EverRide Warrior. Nice! I was very impressed by the build quality.

Upfront, I WORK FOR SEARS!! If you have any Q's, ask away. Kubota and JD are good mowers. I have an aunt who has a Kubota zero turn with the diesel and it is really sweet. If you go the JD route, make sure it is from a JD dealer.

About the Craftsman mowers, they have just undergone their first complete redesign since approx 1982. (Some of last years models are still available.) They redesigned them from the ground up for 2006. As for service, Sears will send a tech out to your house to fix your machine. (I heard on the radio tonight that JD is starting to do the same thing) Kohler is another option if you dont like Briggs. Like I said, ask if you hve any Q's.