I moved from a quarter acre to 15 acres last October. I'm thinking about a riding mower. But a used bx with just the deck can be had for about 1500 more than a gr with similar hp. I have a lot of trees to mow around. Will the bx be clumsy as compared to the gr?
Mowing with a Bx
- Thread starter bucktail
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85Hokie
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Equipment
BX-25D ,PTB. Under Armor, '90&'92-B7100HST's, '06 BX1850 FEL
Depending on which BX you are looking at, the BX will have a larger set of wheels - maybe a better ride too.
Assuming both have same size MMM - both should cut about the same. I do not think the BX will be "clumsy" - but I think the BX has a huge advantage ............. a 3 point system that will allow many different things to be placed on the rear.
IF you are just cutting grass the GL may be the way to go however.
Assuming both have same size MMM - both should cut about the same. I do not think the BX will be "clumsy" - but I think the BX has a huge advantage ............. a 3 point system that will allow many different things to be placed on the rear.
IF you are just cutting grass the GL may be the way to go however.
i7win7
Well-known member
Equipment
BX2370, B2650 grapple, tree puller, trailer mover, 3 point hoist, mower, tiller
I mow with a BX, never remove FEL. When I encounter a pothole and return to the seat, I turn off mower, drive over to spare dirt pile and scoop up some fill material. Then continue to mow. The 3pt is also useful.
yikes ! I looked up what a GR was.. here they START at $12,000 CDN ! OK, WIDE awake now....
Have to ask how many of those 15 acres are you going to mow and is the grass level ? 'lot of trees' ,maybe some kind of zeroturn would be better ? Have you considered two tractors ? one,dedicated to mowing(maybe a ZT) the other for cleanups like 'brush,logs, gardening' ??
Have to ask how many of those 15 acres are you going to mow and is the grass level ? 'lot of trees' ,maybe some kind of zeroturn would be better ? Have you considered two tractors ? one,dedicated to mowing(maybe a ZT) the other for cleanups like 'brush,logs, gardening' ??
I have 26 mature trees on my one acre lot. I am running a 54" mower on my BX 2680. I had a 60" mower on my last tractor and found it a little too cumber son for my lot. I am very happy with the 54"
If you can swing it the best approach is two vehicles. A tractor for the open areas and a good zero turn to mow the tighter areas and around trees in the long run saves time etc
I have just under 5 acres most of which has some sort of incline and mow about 4 of it with my BX1880. We also have horses so I needed the FEL and 3 point for attachments. I would get the BX and you will find all sorts of things you can use it for outside of mowing. Get a good set of bluetooth headphones and you can sit back and relax to some tunes while mowing.
A significant advantage when mowing with a BX is a Diesel engine and fuel economy. If the cost is similar to a riding mower, I’d go for it. Plus, you get the additional utility of the 3pt hitch and rear PTO.
Before I purchased my B2601 w/ 60” MMM, I had to refill the gas tank on my riding mower just to finish my mowing session. Hugely inconvenient and time consuming. And, even now, with my 60” ZTR, the fuel consumption is just horrible but, it has a 15 gallon fuel tank so I don’t have to refill anymore. The real advantage of the ZTR is that it saved an hour of mowing time compared to the B2601, well worth it.
Mike
Before I purchased my B2601 w/ 60” MMM, I had to refill the gas tank on my riding mower just to finish my mowing session. Hugely inconvenient and time consuming. And, even now, with my 60” ZTR, the fuel consumption is just horrible but, it has a 15 gallon fuel tank so I don’t have to refill anymore. The real advantage of the ZTR is that it saved an hour of mowing time compared to the B2601, well worth it.
Mike
I didn't understand this. A zt will out mow a Bx in all areas, why would you consider mowing the open areas slowly with the tractor if you have a zt that can mow it in half the time?
For the OP, if you are just mowing, get a zero turn and get done in half the time, that's what they are made for. If you need a tractor for tractor stuff and also want to mow with it, the BX is a very capable multi trick pony.
How are zero turns on slopes? When the grass happens to be slippery for whatever reason? I mean compared to a BX with power to the front wheels.
No doubt that a zero turn being designed to be a grass cutter will out perform a tractor that is a multi use device.
No experience with a zero turn, but they look like real grass cutting machines, at least on relatively level ground.
I cut about 4 or 5 acres regularly with my BX2200/60" deck. Seems to cut fast enough for me. BUT being retired I am in no hurry anyway.
I also cut a couple acres a couple times per year with my deck all the way up, or at least at the top setting, on a sloped area, but the slope is not that bad. But not quite the area I would expect to see a ZT on. BUT with no ZT experience no way to evaluate this personally.
re: How are zero turns on slopes? When the grass happens to be slippery for whatever reason?
welll..a neighour called me...he slid ! the ZT into the pond... while I drained it ,he got all new filters....
Have to ask how long does it take to cut 4-5 acres of grass ? Guy cross the street has a fast ZT, takes him 22-23 minutes to hack down his 2 acres.
Still thinking a dedicated 'grass cutter' and a 'general use ' tractor'(no deck) would be the best solution...
welll..a neighour called me...he slid ! the ZT into the pond... while I drained it ,he got all new filters....
Have to ask how long does it take to cut 4-5 acres of grass ? Guy cross the street has a fast ZT, takes him 22-23 minutes to hack down his 2 acres.
Still thinking a dedicated 'grass cutter' and a 'general use ' tractor'(no deck) would be the best solution...
My Ferris has full suspension and I can cut 'fast'. I used an exmark zt with just a suspension seat and speed was limited by the bumps. If I carry speed I can mow the steepest parts of my lawn even with a little 'dew' on it. If I stop mid slope and the grass is damp at all, it will spin the tires. I don't stop mid slope and I don't mow when it's really wet. If I used my B for mowing, I still wouldn't mow when it's wet.
I went back to read the original post, he talks strictly about mowing, no mention of needing the BX for anything other than mowing. In that scenario a zt wins outright every time. Of course, like I mentioned, the BX can do so much more than mow, and mows nicely, just slow.
I agree with GreensvilleJ, if you need both, both is the way to go, especially for 15 acres. I agree with it so much that it is what I personally do. Ferris for mowing, big B for everything else. I did not purchase a mmm for that reason.
Henro, I'm jealous (yeah, I know it's not a good quality). One of these days I'll get to retire, but for now saving about 80 hours/year in mowing time is priceless. I only mow about 2.5 acres. I couldn't image the time savings for 15 acres.
I went back to read the original post, he talks strictly about mowing, no mention of needing the BX for anything other than mowing. In that scenario a zt wins outright every time. Of course, like I mentioned, the BX can do so much more than mow, and mows nicely, just slow.
I agree with GreensvilleJ, if you need both, both is the way to go, especially for 15 acres. I agree with it so much that it is what I personally do. Ferris for mowing, big B for everything else. I did not purchase a mmm for that reason.
Henro, I'm jealous (yeah, I know it's not a good quality). One of these days I'll get to retire, but for now saving about 80 hours/year in mowing time is priceless. I only mow about 2.5 acres. I couldn't image the time savings for 15 acres.
i7win7
Well-known member
Equipment
BX2370, B2650 grapple, tree puller, trailer mover, 3 point hoist, mower, tiller
Hoelscher Commercial Products
Hoelscher is a Bushton, Kansas hay baling equipment and earth moving equipment manufacturer.
www.hoelscherinc.com
AND I am jealous of the younger guys that are not retired yet!
Looking back, if I could un-retire and move back that number of years for me and the wife it would be a no brainer. Enjoy where you are at! Something we all must try to do...
Great question! It depends…
With the right ZTR, mowing slopes is easy, fast and safe. With the wrong ZTR…you’re sliding down a hill.
The right ZTR for hills and slopes is the Cub Cadet Pro Z S KW;
The Cub Cadet Pro Z S KW with 4 wheel steering is insanely capable on hills. The traction and performance is unmatched. I demo’d several lap/bar ZTR’s on my property and they all worked great until I hit the hills and slid down. If I didn’t have hills, I probably would have purchased a Ferris. But, with the hills, I purchased the Cub Cadet with steering wheel. I couldn’t ask for a better mower for my property but…they’re expensive.
Mike
I have a BX2200 with a 60" MMM and mow about 2.5 acres of my 5 along with some trails through the rest. Have few trees, but not a ton.
My area is old farm ground that I am working on smoothing out. It is not terrible, but I cant mow as fast as my BX could due to the bumps.
If all I was doing was mowing I would get a nice ZT. They are purpose built to mow and do it well. However, I need the multifunction of my BX. FEL, box scraper, plow, tiller, etc etc.....and it does mow pretty quick.
My area is old farm ground that I am working on smoothing out. It is not terrible, but I cant mow as fast as my BX could due to the bumps.
If all I was doing was mowing I would get a nice ZT. They are purpose built to mow and do it well. However, I need the multifunction of my BX. FEL, box scraper, plow, tiller, etc etc.....and it does mow pretty quick.
BX is a great machine for mowing and utility tasks (they are like small power unit that has the ability to lift a lot without needed to ask the doctor some mesh screen in the belly) I think it will do more work than a lot of folks think. However 15 acres is a fair piece to maintain. Smaller machine is definitely easier to make tight turns. I am not sure how often you have to mow during spring and summer at your location but 15 acres on a BX will keep you busy if you have much grass/rain. You might have to get some goats to keep up in the rainy season. I think with a property that size a compact tractor / front loader with qa and a 3pt would come in handy it you have trees / cut wood / pull trailer etc. it might be handy to have something small dedicated to mowing and something larger depending on what you plan to do with the place. If you have not mowed more than an acre or two at a time before maybe see if your local dealers have some demo units or friends that let you try a variety of mowers/tractors. If you have a lot of acreage to mow and trees to trim around ZT might be worth demoing? It might be hard to find a single machine for that much property.
I agree. With 8 acres I find it great having both a BX and a B series tractor. BX mainly for mowing, but it can do other things too, such as pulling my 5x8 dump trailer and using the rear blade and landscape rake. AND with four foam filled tires, it is VERY stable on slopes. BX is mostly used for mowing though.
It would be hard for me to give up either of the tractors...