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A couple of things to consider.
If you buy a riding mower from one of the bix box home centers, you are getting an MTD product. The Cub, JD, husqvarna, etc are all manufactured under license by MTD and the only real differences besides price and a few minor features, is cosmetic. This may not be the case now, but about 10 years ago when i bought my cub tractor from the local home labyrinth and could not find parts at the local authorized cub dealer, it most certainly was.
If you have hilly uneven ground, be careful about buying a finishing mower. If the deck has a built in bubble level or a pad to place a level (usually included) you are looking at a finishing mower. They are great if you have a flat well maicured lawn but are a bit spindly when it comes to subbing for a brush mower or bush hog. They will get the job done but your bill for blades, belts, and spindles will be pretty high, not to mention the labor costs if you are not a DIY kinda guy.
For hilly ground, a low CG walk behind with a skag would be safest. Don't think you typical suburban walk behind, you want a 2WD "mule" with a front PTO you can drive a mower deck, tiller, cultivator, or whatever else is available for the particular brand you chose. The skag is a small wheeled dolly attached to the mule that allows you to hold onto the hand controls and ride the mower. It also allows an easy off if something does wrong on the hills and you need to get out of the way of a tumbling mower deck in a hurry.
if money is not a problem, get you a nice 4 wheeler specifically made as a piece of farm equipment and a pull behind self powered bush hog. Not only can you cut your grass, you can use the vehicle for all kinds of fun stuff and other work.
You mentioned Gravely so let me tell you about a Gravely tractor I have long personal knowledge of. My granddad bought one back right after WWII, it was a "mule" type of implement as I described above, it had a big gas engine on a two wheel drive gearbox and a power takeoff to run all manner of implements. He used that tractor until he passed and my uncle got it. Now his son has it and is still using it to cut his pastures. It's been rebuilt several times but it still starts right up and runs all day if that's what is required. I don't know anything else about Gravely or what kind of stuff they build today, but if I was looking for something along those lines I'd give them a long hard look before i passed them up.
Last, have you looked at the DR line of equipment? They have a full range of field and brush mowers. Most are walk behind, but as described above are not your typical little whimpy suburban lawn mower. I've got a DR chipper and it has been a rock since day one. I use it all the time and other than a new set of blades a couple times over the years, not a single problem.
If you buy a riding mower from one of the bix box home centers, you are getting an MTD product. The Cub, JD, husqvarna, etc are all manufactured under license by MTD and the only real differences besides price and a few minor features, is cosmetic. This may not be the case now, but about 10 years ago when i bought my cub tractor from the local home labyrinth and could not find parts at the local authorized cub dealer, it most certainly was.
If you have hilly uneven ground, be careful about buying a finishing mower. If the deck has a built in bubble level or a pad to place a level (usually included) you are looking at a finishing mower. They are great if you have a flat well maicured lawn but are a bit spindly when it comes to subbing for a brush mower or bush hog. They will get the job done but your bill for blades, belts, and spindles will be pretty high, not to mention the labor costs if you are not a DIY kinda guy.
For hilly ground, a low CG walk behind with a skag would be safest. Don't think you typical suburban walk behind, you want a 2WD "mule" with a front PTO you can drive a mower deck, tiller, cultivator, or whatever else is available for the particular brand you chose. The skag is a small wheeled dolly attached to the mule that allows you to hold onto the hand controls and ride the mower. It also allows an easy off if something does wrong on the hills and you need to get out of the way of a tumbling mower deck in a hurry.
if money is not a problem, get you a nice 4 wheeler specifically made as a piece of farm equipment and a pull behind self powered bush hog. Not only can you cut your grass, you can use the vehicle for all kinds of fun stuff and other work.
You mentioned Gravely so let me tell you about a Gravely tractor I have long personal knowledge of. My granddad bought one back right after WWII, it was a "mule" type of implement as I described above, it had a big gas engine on a two wheel drive gearbox and a power takeoff to run all manner of implements. He used that tractor until he passed and my uncle got it. Now his son has it and is still using it to cut his pastures. It's been rebuilt several times but it still starts right up and runs all day if that's what is required. I don't know anything else about Gravely or what kind of stuff they build today, but if I was looking for something along those lines I'd give them a long hard look before i passed them up.
Last, have you looked at the DR line of equipment? They have a full range of field and brush mowers. Most are walk behind, but as described above are not your typical little whimpy suburban lawn mower. I've got a DR chipper and it has been a rock since day one. I use it all the time and other than a new set of blades a couple times over the years, not a single problem.
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That's a shame. My grandfather had a Craftsman tractor and it was one of the most bad ass pieces of mechanical equipment that I've ever known. He owned it for 25+ years and it was a tank. He used it for everything from lawn mowing, trailer towing, and snow blowing (rhyme unintentional). After he passed away, my grandmother sold it. I guess the buyer was super thrilled, because those old Craftsman tractors are highly coveted. It was one like this:
My next house will be landscaped with lots of coniferous (evergreen, like pine etc) trees. No mowing, trimming, or leaf raking. Provides privacy and blocks wind. Rock, and shredded bark mulch landscaping around the house. Let everything else grow wild, and put a sign on it that says "Prairie Garden". Sell the lawnmower, and buy beer with the proceeds of the sale.
I don’t have a big enough yard to justify a riding mower, but I bought a Toro self propelled push mower a few years ago on a recommendation from Consumer Reports. I had a Toro a number of years ago that I loved, but this one lasted 3 seasons before falling apart. I bought a Honda. It is flawless.
For one acre it's rather overkill, but my dad used to cut our 3 acres of open area with an Allis-Chalmers wheel tractor. First he uses a side cutter bar (works great but leaves piles of grass if you let it get tall).
Then he got a Bush Hog mower to pull behind it. THAT is one motha-humpin badass bpiece of equipment!!! It will slice and dice anything smaller than a cement block.
One piece of advice if you go the Bush Hog route (again, this would be overkill): PUT a slip joint at the PTO to the mower that allows it to free-wheel when you slow down, or when you back off the throttle, the inertia of the mower blades will drive the tractor forward into whatever's in front of it.
Don't ask how I know this. Just do it.
Then he got a Bush Hog mower to pull behind it. THAT is one motha-humpin badass bpiece of equipment!!! It will slice and dice anything smaller than a cement block.
One piece of advice if you go the Bush Hog route (again, this would be overkill): PUT a slip joint at the PTO to the mower that allows it to free-wheel when you slow down, or when you back off the throttle, the inertia of the mower blades will drive the tractor forward into whatever's in front of it.
Don't ask how I know this. Just do it.
If that black thing is the seat your ass will burn quick!
The Allis-Chalmers tractor with side cutter bar looked similar to this (ours was better kept.) The cutter bar lowers (DO NOT put your fingers between the teeth while lowering) and you make a few passes around the field, cutting as you go:
But then you have piles of grass/whatever, and need to pick them up. We had an old buck rake that Dad pulled behind the tractor with one of the kids sitting on the seat, stomping the lever to raise the rake whenever we got to the drop point. I suppose OSHA would take him to jail today....
And you can get a rake that mounts on the tractor now....
But the bush hog is a better answer, as it chops up the grass so you don't need to rake it if you don't let it get too tall between mowings. Maybe you should think about a small tractor instead of a mower, but you're talking more $$. Plenty of used ones around, though.
But then you have piles of grass/whatever, and need to pick them up. We had an old buck rake that Dad pulled behind the tractor with one of the kids sitting on the seat, stomping the lever to raise the rake whenever we got to the drop point. I suppose OSHA would take him to jail today....
And you can get a rake that mounts on the tractor now....
But the bush hog is a better answer, as it chops up the grass so you don't need to rake it if you don't let it get too tall between mowings. Maybe you should think about a small tractor instead of a mower, but you're talking more $$. Plenty of used ones around, though.
I think the CG is a bit too high for the steep stuff. Also, it's really really loud. Aside from that I like it.
Finding a good dealer is excellent advise. The Husqvarna/John Deere/Stihl dealer I use is awesome. They are in the 3rd generation of the same family. If they decide to switch from Stihl to Husky for the handheld stuff as they've considered, I'll still buy from them, not that I expect to need to replace anything. They didn't have a competitively priced option for a walk-behind available (their words) so I ended up elsewhere but still a very consumer-focused dealer for the Exmark. I think Husky might make something now though.
In your case, you need something better than you'll get at Lowes or Home Depot. Both my neighbors at the old house kept buying big box tractors. They'd replace them every 2-3 years because they'd just fall apart. They easily spent similar money to what my ZTR. They'd also spend several evenings a week mowing. The one neighbor, on the ZTR where we were mowing parallel at the same time I'd make several laps before she'd get from the front to the back. Even now a lot of people in my sub have small lawn tractors and my walk behind beats them even though its maybe 6" narrower. Its ground speed is similar and its way faster around trees and such. Theirs will be nearly worthless in 5 years and I'd probably be able to get good money for mine on the used market.
In your case, you need something better than you'll get at Lowes or Home Depot. Both my neighbors at the old house kept buying big box tractors. They'd replace them every 2-3 years because they'd just fall apart. They easily spent similar money to what my ZTR. They'd also spend several evenings a week mowing. The one neighbor, on the ZTR where we were mowing parallel at the same time I'd make several laps before she'd get from the front to the back. Even now a lot of people in my sub have small lawn tractors and my walk behind beats them even though its maybe 6" narrower. Its ground speed is similar and its way faster around trees and such. Theirs will be nearly worthless in 5 years and I'd probably be able to get good money for mine on the used market.
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