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You can't beat a zero-turn radius riding lawn mower if you have a large yard, even more so if there are many obstacles to avoid such as trees.

One of my neighbors has these--they do a pretty good job on the grass and the kids can ride them:

Greg wrote:I have recently moved to a new home with a rather large yard (100X200) and it looks like I am going to end up buying a riding lawn mower. Anyone willing to volunteer some preferances and reasons for buying or avoiding a certain model?

Thanks for any advice,
Greg

The engineer in me is unable to arrive at a recommendation until I know the requirements. Is your lot flat or hilly? Lots of trees and flower beds, or just open grass? What kind of grass? Are you looking to just keep it under control, or are you willing to spend some $$ for a machine that will really manicure it? Which is the higher priority: getting done quickly or spending a little more time and having it look perfect? Do you have a budget?

So far, your question is a little like "Hey, guys, I'm going to buy a tuba. What kind should I buy?" Give a little more input and I believe you'll get a lot more output.
_____________________________
Joe Baker, who advises hanging onto the push mower in any case, for trim work and tight spots.

Of course there's the question, do you want a Lawn Tractor, or only a Lawn Mower? That being said my uncle bought a Kubota, and I really like it, it's extremely simple. I found out while looking for lawn tractor's with him that the higher end models don't have the horsepower that the model's you'll find at your local big hardware store. For example, his Kubota is only 17.5 hp, but for the same amount of money he could have gotten a Craftsmen tractor with more than twice that amount of hp. He went with Kubota because of its reputation.

My $.02, and it's probably not worth that.

Are you thinking silver or lacquer? Or maybe both?

I finally found a push mower I like by Toro. I like all Toro products.
When I moved to a larger yard I had to have a Husqvarna 20 hp riding mower or lawn tractor. Made in the U.S.A..

I'm house sitting for my uncle (nice vacation) in a small neighborhood of McMansions on 1-2 acre lots. I've noticed that the professionals who mow the other yards in the neighborhood all use large walk-behind mowers. I have to use a 20hp Scotts yard tractor to mow the lawn and I can see why pros don't use yard tractors. The ride is extremely bumpy, trying to turn sharply carves ruts, and it cant get close enough to cut around ledges, signs, and mailboxes. Frankly I would rather walk than ride on that bumpy tractor.

-Eric

Thanks for filling in some of the gaps, Greg.

First, 100x200 isn't all THAT big. Just about any rider should knock it out in an hour or less. Since it's flat, and you're planning to add trees, maneuverability is going to be your number one priority. You don't need the thing to be any wider than 36", and you should look for a tight turning radius. You don't need more than 12 HP for a flat lawn, though a little more power won't hurt any, either, especially if you plan to mulch (and even moreso if you expect to miss a week now and then!) I'd be looking for one that has a short turning radius and able to change speed without stopping (many -- my own, for example -- require you to come to a dead stop to change gear ratios. Never again...) If I were buying for a lawn of this size, I'd be looking at a rear-engine rather than a front engine, with one longer blade rather than two shorter ones. I'd look for a mulching attachment. And I'd make sure the seat is comfortable and padded.

I've always been a fan of Briggs & Stratton engines, but I've got a Tecumseh I bought three years ago (6.5 HP, on my 21" high-wheel walk-behind) that starts on the first pull, runs like a hose, and has required ZERO work other than annually changing the oil and replacing the air filter), so I think they must have really improved their quality. I haven't looked at any of the fancier name brands, so I don't know if they have their own engines or if they use B&S or Tecumseh; if they have their own, you'll want to do some research to see how reliable they are, and whether there's a qualified repair person in your area.

Good luck!
___________________________
Joe Baker, who has been quite happy with his $400 used 17 HP, 42" cut mower for a hilly lot that's about 350x120 -- but who cuts his relatively small front yard with a walk-behind so it'll look nicer.

Make sure it has a proper cup holder for your beer. You gotta have priorities man!

bloke wrote: ...and those folk haven't figgered out how to properly use goats...

The poster asked about riding mowers, Joe! You can't (or at least I wouldn't want to try) ride a goat. You could ride one of these, though, but they take some pretty pricey upkeep:

If anybody puts an open beer in the rear fender drink holder of a riding lawn mower, a lot of grass will get in it. Hate to drink all that grass!

bloke wrote:Chuck,

Of course, you're right as usual, but for a 100' X 200' (less footprints of house, driveway, yardbarn, and truck-garden) this should more than do the trick:

Now that just ain't right!

Joe Baker wrote:
You don't need the thing to be any wider than 36", and you should look for a tight turning radius. You don't need more than 12 HP for a flat lawn, though a little more power won't hurt any, either, especially if you plan to mulch (and even moreso if you expect to miss a week now and then!) I'd be looking for one that has a short turning radius and able to change speed without stopping (many -- my own, for example -- require you to come to a dead stop to change gear ratios. Never again...) If I were buying for a lawn of this size, I'd be looking at a rear-engine rather than a front engine, with one longer blade rather than two shorter ones. I'd look for a mulching attachment. And I'd make sure the seat is comfortable and padded.

I agree here. Your yard is really pretty small (less than a half-acre).

I remember these being popular down home (FL) for people with yards from about 1/3-2 acres:



11HP to 15hp, great turn radius, good build quality and reliability. You can even stand it on end for storage and repair. Starts at about $1200.

Matthew Gilchrest wrote:

Joe Baker wrote:
You don't need the thing to be any wider than 36", and you should look for a tight turning radius. You don't need more than 12 HP for a flat lawn, though a little more power won't hurt any, either, especially if you plan to mulch (and even moreso if you expect to miss a week now and then!) I'd be looking for one that has a short turning radius and able to change speed without stopping (many -- my own, for example -- require you to come to a dead stop to change gear ratios. Never again...) If I were buying for a lawn of this size, I'd be looking at a rear-engine rather than a front engine, with one longer blade rather than two shorter ones. I'd look for a mulching attachment. And I'd make sure the seat is comfortable and padded.

I agree here. Your yard is really pretty small (less than a half-acre).

I remember these being popular down home (FL) for people with yards from about 1/3-2 acres:



11HP to 15hp, great turn radius, good build quality and reliability. You can even stand it on end for storage and repair. Starts at about $1200.

I had one of those (back when I used to cut my own grass) and although it was reliable and did a decent job, the turning radius wasn't so great. I would look for one that specifically says it has a very tight turning radius. I seem to remember someone advertising a "zero turning radius" mower.

OTOH, a riding mower seems like overkill for a half an acre. I would think that a good self-propelled walk behind mower would be more than enough.

One other option, if you are looking to mow your area in about 7 minutes:

MellowSmokeMan wrote:

I wonder if anyone actually noticed my lawn mower in this picture.

MellowSmokeMan wrote:I wonder if anyone actually noticed my lawn mower in this picture.

No, but we noticed the Astro-Turf!...

windshieldbug wrote:

MellowSmokeMan wrote:I wonder if anyone actually noticed my lawn mower in this picture.

No, but we noticed the Astro-Turf!...

It's funny. Now that I think about it, I water that grass all the time and it never grows. When I neglect watering, it never dies. Wow. It is astro-turf. No wonder my knees have been bothering me lately.

Find a used rider (pull the deck) or ATV and hook one of These up.


That give you a better cutting system (better for the grass), good mulching, and low mainenance, lower power requriements (so less fuel). If you go ATV, you also have an ATV for fun, a real dual use system :)

Note, When my mower deck finaly rusts through enough I cannot use it, I hope to get one of these. 8)