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sportav8r(at)aol.com
Guest

Posted: Wed Jul 26, 2006 6:58 am Post subject: off-topic lawn tractor question

Unrelated to RV's except that mowing the runway at Hop-Along for the last 8 years has undoubtedly played a major role in wearing out my Husqvarna 

    

   Bottom line: my tired old 42"/15 hp tractor is fast becoming a basket case, with stuff falling off and no longer cuts cleanly - we've renamed it the lawn-chewer.  I need a new mower and I need it soon.  While I'm at it, an upgrade to 48" or 54" cut seems like an affordable luxury at my age; I've got quite a few acres to groom.  

    

   What I'm asking the List for is any strong recommendations, good or bad, about the various models and brands of yard tractors out there.  If you've been very happy with yours and would never give it up, or if you've made an impulse buy on a brand you swear you'll never buy again, I'd like to hear about it before I hit the big city tonight for my shopping adventure.  If you know of any chain stores running great sales on a model you like, I'd appreciate knowing that, too.

    

   Thanks, guys.  I hope in my own small way I've given us something to talk about besides how much we wish we were in Wisconsin this week, being rained on in our tents, and wondering how we were going to pick our way home through the occluded frontal systems, etc. <g>

    

   -Stormy

    

   certainly do not archive

Hopperdhh(at)aol.com
Guest

Posted: Wed Jul 26, 2006 8:18 am Post subject: off-topic lawn tractor question

Love our Wheel Horse with 60 inch cut, power steering, cruise control,  hydraulic deck lift.  It even trims pretty well.  It cost me $5K  used (like new), but it was money well spent.

  

 Dan Hopper

 RV-7A

 do not archive

highflight1(at)gmail.com
Guest

Posted: Wed Jul 26, 2006 8:38 am Post subject: off-topic lawn tractor question

Check out the John Deere 2305. It's a SERIOUS "lawn mower" with either a mid or rear mower deck (I use the mid), and you can also get some pretty handy attachments including a front loader and a box blade, both great for runway maintenance. 

 In reality, it's really a compact tractor rather than a lawn mower.

  

 With a 24hp diesel engine, this one will probably last long enough to dig my own grave when the time comes, and then they can bury me with it 

  

 Vern

 RV-7A QB

 Houston, TX

ronlee(at)pcisys.net
Guest

Posted: Wed Jul 26, 2006 10:03 am Post subject: off-topic lawn tractor question

I have a Sears 24 HP 52" deck.  Go for a wide deck and lots of horsepower.

I had a switch go bad (would not start) and a week ago something happened

where it will not go into gear (engine runs fine and the blades will spin).

Problem not yet corrected and the weeds/grass must know it because they just

started growing faster.



One problem from the beginning is that it could go faster.  This is really for

lawn tractor racing since I slow down for cutting grass/weeds.



I probably would get it again but with most things quality is good and usually

costs more than what I paid.



Ron Lee



do not archive

dburton(at)nwlink.com
Guest

Posted: Wed Jul 26, 2006 4:17 pm Post subject: off-topic lawn tractor question

You indicated you were headed to the box stores for a mower.  I would avoid MTD.   

   

Personally I’d consider a zero turn mower.  They are well made and likely will reduce your cutting time by half over the rider you are using now.  The down side is that they are expensive.  

   

Check out:  

   

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?s=ad597abf2852b916dc60a08a8fb186b4&f=22  

   

This is a list like the RV list for tractors and related equipment.  This link should take you to the lawn mower section.  There is an archive you can search for additional information.    

   

Just to make it a little more aircraft related.  I kept my old lawn tractor to move the plane around with at the airport…  

   

Dave  

   

Do not archive  

         

  

From: owner-rv-list-server(at)matronics.com [mailto:owner-rv-list-server(at)matronics.com] On Behalf Of sportav8r(at)aol.com

 Sent: Wednesday, July 26, 2006 7:53 AM

 To: rv-list(at)matronics.com

 Subject: off-topic lawn tractor question  

  

     

Unrelated to RV's except that mowing the runway at Hop-Along for the last 8 years has undoubtedly played a major role in wearing out my Husqvarna   

    

   

    

Bottom line: my tired old 42"/15 hp tractor is fast becoming a basket case, with stuff falling off and no longer cuts cleanly - we've renamed it the lawn-chewer.  I need a new mower and I need it soon.  While I'm at it, an upgrade to 48" or 54" cut seems like an affordable luxury at my age; I've got quite a few acres to groom.    

    

   

    

What I'm asking the List for is any strong recommendations, good or bad, about the various models and brands of yard tractors out there.  If you've been very happy with yours and would never give it up, or if you've made an impulse buy on a brand you swear you'll never buy again, I'd like to hear about it before I hit the big city tonight for my shopping adventure.  If you know of any chain stores running great sales on a model you like, I'd appreciate knowing that, too.  

    

   

    

Thanks, guys.  I hope in my own small way I've given us something to talk about besides how much we wish we were in Wisconsin this week, being rained on in our tents, and wondering how we were going to pick our way home through the occluded frontal systems, etc. <g>  

    

   

    

-Stormy  

    

   

    

certainly do not archive

sportav8r(at)aol.com
Guest

Posted: Wed Jul 26, 2006 5:34 pm Post subject: off-topic lawn tractor question

Well, Dudes, I'm back from the box store, and I've gotten a Deere.

    

   Lowes had a 145 (22hp/48" cut) for $1980, and that was both a step up and within my budget (gotta save $$$ for the glass panel), so it's done and I'm glad.

    

   Thanks for all the helpful hints, especially about avoiding MTD.  Man, they're everywhere.

    

   -Stormy

  

 --

Ron Schreck

Joined: 10 Jan 2006
Posts: 94
Location: Gold Hill, NC

Posted: Thu Jul 27, 2006 3:37 am Post subject: off-topic lawn tractor question

     

 Hi Bill,

  

 Funny  you should ask!  On the way to Oshkosh we stopped at a nice little  airport near Indianappolis.  The "Dixie Chopper" lawn mowers are made there  and they were all over the place.  One chasis was serving as the FBO's  start cart!  They claim is is the fastest mower in the world and they look  positively tank-like.  One has a 72-inch cut and twin engines with 54  horsepower!  That would probably mow the hump clean out of Hop-Along  airport!  I didn't even ask how much, but I'm not in the  market. Check out the web site:        http://www.dixiechopper.com/

  

 Ron Schreck

 RV-8 "Miss Izzy"

 Gold Hill Airpark, NC

  

 

      Unrelated to RV's except that mowing the  runway at Hop-Along for the last 8 years

      has  undoubtedly played a major role in wearing out my Husqvarna  

      

      Bottom  line: my tired old 42"/15 hp tractor is fast becoming a basket case,  with

      stuff falling off and no longer cuts  cleanly - we've renamed it the lawn-chewer.

      I  need a new mower and I need it soon.  While I'm at it, an upgrade to  48"

      or 54" cut seems like an affordable luxury  at my age; I've got quite a few

      acres to  groom.  

       

      What I'm asking the List for is any strong  recommendations, good or bad, about

      the  various models and brands of yard tractors out there.  If you've been  very

      happy with yours and would never give it  up, or if you've made an impulse buy

      on a  brand you swear you'll never buy again, I'd like to hear about it  before

      I hit the big city tonight for my  shopping adventure.  If you know of any  chain

      stores running great sales on a model  you like, I'd appreciate knowing that,

       too.

      

       Thanks, guys.  I hope in my own small way I've given us something to talk  about

      besides how much we wish we were in  Wisconsin this week, being rained on in our

       tents, and wondering how we were going to pick our way home through the  occluded

      frontal systems, etc.  <g>

      

       -Stormy

      

       certainly do not archive

dan(at)rvproject.com
Guest

Posted: Thu Jul 27, 2006 4:21 am Post subject: off-topic lawn tractor question

Sounds like 4I7 (four india seven, http://www.airnav.com/airport/4I7).   I also stopped there last week.  Dixie Chopper has a business center on the  airport, and they operate a hotel right there in the FBO.  It was 50 bucks  a night, and the rooms were spacious & clean.  Restaurant, lounge,  pilot shop, and they let me pull my -7 into the hangar for free since I was  staying in their hotel.  They offered a crew car but I didn't take 'em  up on it -- no need to drive anywhere.  Cheap fuel ($3.47 a week ago) to  boot.  As far as I'm concerned, 4I7 is an ideal place to  overnight.

  

 )_( Dan

 RV-7 N714D

http://www.rvproject.com

  

 P.S. -- Ron, great flying with you &  Palmetto Flight at SQI & OSH.

 [quote]   ---

sportav8r(at)aol.com
Guest

Posted: Thu Jul 27, 2006 5:00 am Post subject: off-topic lawn tractor question

I bet Kathy wants one of those; better be checking on the price 

    

   -Stormy

  

 --

plennon105(at)yahoo.com
Guest

Posted: Fri Jul 28, 2006 3:51 am Post subject: off-topic lawn tractor question

Stormy,

   

  Speaking from personal experience I'd like to make a suggestion. I belong to a club that has a private 2500x150 grass runway. We first started mowing it with a John Deere mower.....I believe it may hae been a 42" cut. That lasted a number of years and then wore out. Since it was an older used tractor the club decided to purchase a new tractor and we selected a Bolans. I believe it was the same width. That mower lasted about 3 years before it started to require maintenance on a frequent basis. Maintence vaired from worn blades, worn bushings, etc... Also I don't believe that the tractor was designed to run as hard as we were running it. The feild was mowed approx 2-3 times a week depending on season and how much rain. It took aprox 2hrs or so to mow.  We like to keep the feild looking good and the runway looks similar to a golf course. Oh..let me mention that I live in upstate NY. I point this out because in the  winter the mowers obviously don't get used so they are not run all year. 

   

  We soon came to the conclusion that we should look into other options for mowing the field. So we got to thinking...what type of mower should we look at that can mow a field of this size. We were thinking industrial mowers....noway were we going to use a brushhog...We considered a big tractor with a PTO and Deck mower also...All this seemed expensive. Finally one of te members decided to go down to the golf course 5 miles up the road and talk to the greens keeper. Surely they would know..they mow golf courses everyday so they must use decent equipment. After talking to the greens keeper he convinced us to look into a used Fairway mower. These things are designed to mow fairways all day every day, and for our use, would probably last a long time. He gave us the name of their maintence company and we gave them a call. They had a used Toro Reelmaster that came form a golf  course. This thing had 5 reels and mowed 11ft wide. It was powered by a 4 cylinder engine and everything was driven by hydraulics. He gave us an option on purchase. The mower needed some repair. Needed tune-up, but did seem to run fine,  reels sharpened and some of the seals in the hydraulic rams that raise and lower the reels. He would sell it to us for $5000. fixed or $2500 as is. Since there were a few in our club with an extensive mechanical background, including myself, we decided to purchase it as is. I fixed the hydraulics for around 300.00 in parts and the reels were sharpened and adjusted by the seller for around $250.00 I think and then new hydraulic oil and a tuneup. Total was around 3200.00. We even installed an old car radio that came from a flea market ($5.00 with speakers)

  This mower is amazing and we can now mow the feild in about 1hr. It looks great and we have had the mower for approx 10yrs. We purchased the maintence book from Toro and  do most of the work ourselves with the exception of sharpening the reels. The only odd thing that went was a starter(85.00). Oh...and this thing has a hobbs meter too...  not sure on the hours though. We joked ...hmm hobbs meter...it must be designed for mowing airfields.  

   

  Sorry that this got long winded...but I guess my suggestion is to try and see if there are any decent used fairway mowers in your area. You may get lucky and find something that will last longer than a conventional lawn tractor. Plus mowing 11ft wide in one pass really cuts down on time and gas. 

   

  Pat Lennon

  RV-7 empenage

   

   

   

   

        Time:   07:58:56 AM PST US        From:   sportav8r(at)aol.com (sportav8r(at)aol.com)        Subject:   off-topic lawn tractor question      

      Unrelated to RV's except that mowing the  runway at Hop-Along for the last 8 years

      has undoubtedly played a major role in wearing out my Husqvarna 

      

      Bottom line: my tired old 42"/15 hp tractor is fast becoming a basket case, with

      stuff falling off and no longer cuts cleanly - we've renamed it the lawn-chewer.

      I need a new mower and I need it soon.  While I'm at it, an upgrade to 48"

      or 54" cut seems like an affordable luxury at my age; I've got quite a few

      acres to groom.  

      

      What I'm asking the List for is any strong recommendations, good or bad, about

      the various models and brands of yard tractors out there.  If you've been very

       happy with yours and would never give it up, or if you've made an impulse buy

      on a brand you swear you'll never buy again, I'd like to hear about it before

      I hit the big city tonight for my shopping adventure.  If you know of any chain

      stores running great sales on a model you like, I'd appreciate knowing that,

      too.

      

      Thanks, guys.  I hope in my own small way I've given us something to talk about

      besides how much we wish we were in Wisconsin this week, being rained on in our

      tents, and wondering how we were going to pick our way home through the occluded

      frontal systems, etc. <g>

      

       -Stormy

      

      certainly do not archive



  	 		See the all-new, redesigned Yahoo.com. [url=http://us.rd.yahoo.com/evt=40762/*http://www.yahoo.com/preview] Check it out.[/url]

sportav8r(at)aol.com
Guest

Posted: Fri Jul 28, 2006 4:18 am Post subject: off-topic lawn tractor question

Thanks, Pat.  Your reply is not the first time that idea has crossed my mind (I've stayed in condos near golf courses and watched those machines work.)  But I always wrote them off as too expensive.

    

   I love the new 48" Deere mower; even with the trail mower towed behind , it steers with authority (and not as the scribes and pharisees    Goes where you point it with no detectable slip/skid while pulling that cantilevered load, and mows very cleanly.  I now have that golf-course-quality finish to the runway again.  That's nice.

    

   I pull a 42" Swisher trail mower behind the riding mower, for a combined cut of some 84", which gets the job done fast.  I mow about as often as your airstrip group does.  Funny thing: the Husqvarna riding mower still has the original drive belt, but I replace deck belts on it at least once a season; the Swisher has but one belt (not self-propelled) which has lasted about 7 years or more and never been changed once.   Not sure why the difference, but maybe the floating deck on the riding mower is harder on them than having everything bolted solidly to one deck like the Swisher has.  Those 88" power belts get expensive, and it's never convenient to change one ( they only break while mowing, never after 

    

   At this point, I'll see how long the Deere holds up.  What I really need to do is patch up the Husqvarna for down on the runway and keep the Deere up here at the house strictly for the yard.  As anyone who's been here can attest, it's quite a pull up a steep hill to get from runway to house.  The Husq won't do it without a long detour, but the Deere will crawl straight up the hillside through 18" pasture grass.

    

   -Stormy

    

   "Hey, don't they include a green and yellow ball cap with this thing ?!" 

    

  

 --

Morocketman(at)aol.com
Guest

Posted: Fri Jul 28, 2006 11:58 am Post subject: off-topic lawn tractor question

     I didn't think this would get so much attention.  Especially with everyone off at OSH.  Rebel's Bluff Airstrip is 90' wide and 2,200' long, and another two acres or so around the hangar, and picnic area.  Here is Southwest Missouri I "have to" mow twice a week from April till about now in July.  Then once a week except for Jan/Feb.

      A 10 year old 72" Kabota riding mower came with the house, and I pretty much used it up in about 5 years, and 3 hours per mow.  The local implement dealer had a very slightly used Woods 9144 Bat-wing (three deck) mower for sale for about 60% of new.   It cuts a 12' swath, and knock on wood, it appears as though it will live a lot longer than I will.  Now takes 1:45.   In mowing your airstrip, "size does matter," and you'll never regret getting a wider cut mower.  I pull the Bat-wing with a 36 hp Kabota L3600.  I cannot tell you how much enjoyment I get riding back and forth on the runway.

      Good luck on your choice,  Les Featherston

 Do not archive

Hopperdhh(at)aol.com
Guest

Posted: Fri Jul 28, 2006 12:15 pm Post subject: off-topic lawn tractor question

I want to build a laser guided lawn mower to do my runway with.  I got  all excited about it and was telling my wife.  She said that mowing was  about the only pleasure she got out of living out here in the sticks!

  

 By the way did you see the article about 8 or 10 years ago about the  90-some year old pilot that rigged up his mower to make circular paths  automatically down the runway?  The diameter of the circle was the width of  the runway, and it went down the runway one mower width with each circle.   The mower followed a wire, I think, and reeled itself down his  runway.  If you are on the list give us some more details.

  

 do not archive

 Dan

rocketbob(at)gmail.com
Guest

Posted: Fri Jul 28, 2006 6:29 pm Post subject: off-topic lawn tractor question

Art Evans (owner of Dixie Chopper) is a bona-fide airplane nut and mad scientist.  He has powered parachutes, ultralights, a RV-6A, a Citation, a Diamond aircraft dealership, hotel on the airport, FBO, on and on... At one point a few years ago he was developing an aircraft engine. He's a very unique individual, and is a down-to-earth good guy.  Its rare to fly in to Putnam Co. airport and not find him there hanging out on the evenings and weekends. The restaurant has the best breakfast buffet around.  In the non-summer months its not uncommon to find 15+ RV's there for breakfast on a Saturday morning.   



If I didn't already have a Woods zero-turn mower that doesn't seem to want to wear out I'd definitely go for a Dixie Chopper.



Regards,

Bob Japundza

RV-6 flying F1 under const.

 	  Quote: 	
		    	  Quote: 	
		   Funny you should ask!  On the way to Oshkosh we    stopped at a nice little airport near Indianappolis.  The "Dixie    Chopper" lawn mowers are made there and they were all over the place.     One chasis was serving as the FBO's start cart!  They claim is is the    fastest mower in the world and they look positively tank-like.  One has a    72-inch cut and twin engines with 54 horsepower!  That would probably mow    the hump clean out of Hop-Along airport!  I didn't even ask how much, but    I'm not in the market. Check out    the web site:       http://www.dixiechopper.com/

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