Honest Opinions

B

B. White

Active member
Take off your collector and Cub love hat and give me a practical opinion. I was looking at options for a backup riding mower for 4-5 acres and would have considered almost any cheap rider, but was shocked at what folks want for something with a Kohler Courage these days. There is a Woods deck that looks in good shape near me, but I ain't taking off my cultivators since I use them most of the year in our climate. While looking I ran across a couple of Lo Boys with finishing mowers (some with extra deck parts). My gut tells me that would be a better option for a backup and occasional use as far as something that might last and not have a rusted out deck in 5 years like a lot of the plague most residential mowers.

For those familiar with these, are they as reliable as the older Cubs? Do they do a good job in a yard, if it is the finishing mower? I'm aware of the limitations with HP with mine and know it may not be fast, but that is ok. I have an area with muscadines, peaches, blueberries, etc. where I can give it some use every couple of weeks to keep it running regularly.

I am not as concerned about the initial cost as much as having something ready to go and reliable when I get ready to use it. I understand each machine is different, but looking for general opinions based on the average.
 
mower decks rot out because owners do not clean the wet grass off the bottom or they would last forever
# series cubs some luv em, some hate em
 
I''ve seen a lot of them that never even get the top side cleaned off. And as Tim said, wet grass/accumulated moisture is a death sentence. Now that's my opinion! As for the LoBoys, FCub or Number Series you'll get about the same performance as the cub you are using. Keep it clean, repair and service the mechanical stuff, use non blended fuel, run the carb dry when you store it under cover and you'll get reasonably good service and performance from the machine whatever it is. JMHO Stan
 
IF you get one with the creeper drive THEN you have a real bush hogger IF you get one without creeper gear its useless!!--- got 3 185's here so i know!!
 
Well, the market is making the decision easy for me. The offset version I was going to look at has developed problems since he posted the ad, so no good for my immediate need. Hate it since it was what I wanted and had spare deck parts. The next one south of me runs, but PTO doesn't work. The best options I see are all 6-8 hour drives north and I'm not wanting to do that this weekend. I will probably keep looking for one to play with and have as a backup next time something happens. I hate the idea of buying one of the junky lawn mowers just in case needed, plus to rent one is an hour drive one way at a ridiculous cost.
 
B. White said:
Well, the market is making the decision easy for me. The offset version I was going to look at has developed problems since he posted the ad, so no good for my immediate need. Hate it since it was what I wanted and had spare deck parts. The next one south of me runs, but PTO doesn't work. The best options I see are all 6-8 hour drives north and I'm not wanting to do that this weekend. I will probably keep looking for one to play with and have as a backup next time something happens. I hate the idea of buying one of the junky lawn mowers just in case needed, plus to rent one is an hour drive one way at a ridiculous cost.
Click to expand...
The right one will come along if you are patient. It's something I've been noticing in my own life. 😃
 
Myself, if I plan on using a tractor regularly, I'd opt for something newer than a 60 or 70 year old tractor. Unless you're mechanically inclined and don't mind working on your tractor to keep it operating well, I'd look for something newer. Most used tractors you'll pick up will have had questionable maintenance and most likely will require a fair amount of work to get it where you want it. A better option might be a good used, maybe 20 year old John Deere garden tractor (not a lawn tractor). If you find a good one that has fairly low hours, around 500-700 or so and well taken care of, it will give you many years of trouble free use and be reliable without constant work. Those can be found for around $2500-$3000 in my area. I like John Deere equipment because it doesn't matter how old of a unit I have I can still get most any part I need to make repairs and they are quality tractors.
 
ricky racer said:
Myself, if I plan on using a tractor regularly, I'd opt for something newer than a 60 or 70 year old tractor. Unless you're mechanically inclined and don't mind working on your tractor to keep it operating well, I'd look for something newer. Most used tractors you'll pick up will have had questionable maintenance and most likely will require a fair amount of work to get it where you want it. A better option might be a good used, maybe 20 year old John Deere garden tractor (not a lawn tractor). If you find a good one that has fairly low hours, around 500-700 or so and well taken care of, it will give you many years of trouble free use and be reliable without constant work. Those can be found for around $2500-$3000 in my area. I like John Deere equipment because it doesn't matter how old of a unit I have I can still get most any part I need to make repairs and they are quality tractors.
Click to expand...
My quarrel with JD is too many proprietary parts and they are not cheap. I nearly bought a JD recently but knew that going in. My wife could not get on it.

As far as using a cub to mow with look at a Mott flail mower. It does a reasonably good job. Vern
 
ricky racer said:
Myself, if I plan on using a tractor regularly, I'd opt for something newer than a 60 or 70 year old tractor...........
Click to expand...
Agree with Ricky and one of the better options of the newer tractors is the standard 3 pt hitch (and a grooming mower) which will give you a lot more opportunities to use the tractor for other things with quick change of implements. The older, smaller tractors in the 20hp and below range that are available in my area are not too expensive and a lot of them have not been used hard so there's a lot of life left in them. I'm partial to the JD line made by Yanmar starting with the 650 that was made in the '70's/'80's and continued until now as different model numbers. Yanmar also marketed a smaller tractor like it during the same timeframe. And the smaller Kubota's are available. I currently have a JD 850 and a Yanmar 1500 that I use for the same things in the same way that you describe. JMHO Stan
EDIT: By not being used hard, I mean doing work like gardening, mowing, etc. My Yanmar is a mid 70's year made and had 350 hours on the meter when I got it. I should also add that the major brands (and there's others that I didn't name) in most locations, have a good have a good support network, i.e. parts, service, etc available for customer support. That's worth a lot when there's problems to be dealt with.
 

Attachments

  • HENRY&MOWER.jpg
    HENRY&MOWER.jpg
    460.9 KB · Views: 7
  • JD 650.jpg
    JD 650.jpg
    242.3 KB · Views: 7
Last edited:
v w said:
My quarrel with JD is too many proprietary parts and they are not cheap. I nearly bought a JD recently but knew that going in. My wife could not get on it.

As far as using a cub to mow with look at a Mott flail mower. It does a reasonably good job. Vern
Click to expand...
I know John Deere parts aren't cheap but then again, nothing is. I purchased my current mowing tractor used, a 1999 JD 335 with a little over 400 hours on it. It now has 1100+ hours on it and I've never had a problem with it except for an occasional belt or idler pulley. It has a hydrostatic transmission, hydraulic lift, a 54" deck and power steering. I paid $2800 for it when I bought it about 12 or13 years ago. It still looks and runs almost like a new one and if I were to put it out to the road today for sale, I have no doubt I could get $1800-$2000 for it.

My brother-in-law purchased a new Husqvarna from a box store about 8 or 9 years ago and paid about the same money. His came with a 42" deck, manual lift and manual steering. The guy who worked on his tractor and kept it running for him retired so the last week when it broke again he dropped it off at my door hoping I'd fix it for him. I went to the box store where he purchased it to get parts but if it needed more than blades or a belt they carried nothing in parts and no one I spoke with knew how to get any parts for it. I came home and got online to see who else in the area might have parts.

I found a dealer in South Bend, Indiana and drove there to get the parts I needed (I was having a hard time even finding a parts diagram online) but they had gone out of business so it was just a waste of gas. I finally found a parts diagram online and was able to order the parts needed to repair this tractor. I made the immediate repairs and while trying the tractor out noticed his front axle was bent so it was hard to steer but he wasn't concerned about that so it didn't get fixed. From the short time I drove his tractor it was easy to see it was on its last legs and I'd be surprised if he gets another 2 years out of it. If he were to put his out to the road today for sale I think he'd be lucky to get $500 for it. I think when you look at the cost of equipment there's more to look at than the the initial cost but you need to take into consideration of the residual value as well.
 
Well, I didn't rule anything out and watched all options I saw around here for a few weeks. I still looked at JD regular riders, although I swore them off after my only one that was my first zero turn that had me remove half of it and separate the frame to change broken deck cables when it was a couple of years old and had only been used in a small yard, plus had to wait a while for the dealer to order and get in at high prices. Anything I would consider for temporary disposable use needed batteries and at least a couple of tires or a new deck. There were a few (Troy Bilt, Cub Cadet) with the Kohler Courage motor that were older and the price was still high. Have never worked on them, but have never heard anything good about them.

Ran across this '68 version I was willing to gamble on due to price and potential longevity, since if necessary I would feel better putting some cash in it than a lawn mower and actually have something I enjoy when it is done. Don't see anything messed with and rigged other than a left hand turn signal added. Has a Woods 59 and the previous owner initially said it was not a finishing mower and more for pastures when I first asked about it, but when I talked to him he had never used it for anything other than knocking the top off high stuff in a very small pasture and I had heard they do a pretty good job in the yard.

The good is it starts immediately with no choke and sounds as strong as any gas tractor I have been around. Cut some centipede that hadn't been cut in a couple of weeks and no problems in 2nd with some uphill runs and it looks pretty good, although the blades are old and chipped. Went through some bahia and fescue that was last cut with a Woods 6' rotary mower a month ago and it handled it ok in 1st. Expected it to bog down. Couldn't figure out why it is harder to get on and off than my other cub, but the seat is mounted about 7" lower than my 50s Farmall. Was able to get under stuff lower than I expected (clothes line, limbs, etc.). Not really any different than my zero turn. Did not take much longer to cut than the zero turn with another 6" on the deck. I was able to get in some tighter places I did not be able to cut, but figured an extra few feet to stop anywhere I had to back up. It is much more stable with the front wheels extended and sitting lower, but not taking any chances on my steep spots. Rides smoother than my other Cub. Casters and skids do a better job than I expected in places I thought it would scalp or hit roots.

The bad...Don't know how much time I have on the rear main seal. I can see some dripping on the deck when I first shut it down. Knowing how oil spreads and sometimes looks worse I put a container underneath it yesterday and had about a half teaspoon when I checked it today. Oil pressure is low compared to my older cub, which stays pegged out. Looks like about 15 psi, but I see a drop when it gets warmer, so have just used a little while at a time. Not being a mechanic it makes me wonder if the seal or oil pump/gasket. Turf tires are pretty crappy condition. I may post something to see if anybody in the SE buys one with turf tires and wants to get rid of them as take offs. It has some rust and not pretty, but not terrible.

1786406957113.png

1786406987198.png

1786407012640.png

1786407038501.png

1786407067239.png
 
Wood 59's and 306s are great mowers what i use on my yard just have to adjust them. If you are running the older tractors you need to learn to work on them. They last forever but do need TLC. I dropped a 184 motor in mine about the 2nd year I had it as I wanted more umph for mowing. Splitting and swapping isn't that hard. My suggestion if you like it keep it, just work on it and fix it. I was going to tear apart the Cub and redo it, but the 200 came along and postponed the Cub for a year.
My 100 has turfs and they're great for mowing and great with chains for snow. Down side is they're expensive from what I've priced so far. My other 3 tractors have bar tires once the ground gets hard the 300 doesn't dent the yard that bad at all as it's basically like asphalt that grows grass. But if this is your mower I'd go with turfs, but I wouldn't worry about replacing till the sides split. I put new bar tires on my Cub because it also plows my garden and stuff. But I will say you want rib fronts. The Cub has turf fronts and they're useless in the snow or if it's kinda muddy.
 
Rick, I believe Mr. White has spoken. I did have to smile however at your disdain for big box equipment, and if you get to Lowe's note the green stuff with yaller wheels. At least in the case of Cadet you are correct. A Cadet dealer once told me he could not get those models as a dealer. Other brands may also do this. Yes a modern compact is more versatile than a cub. If you need it AND IT FITS YOUR NEEDS go for it. They can lift more than my Internation 404 but I bought the 404. I know of no compact that can lift lumber into the hay mow of my barn to dry. The 404 does it and then some. Husquvarna? I have one. It is about 4 years old and is used not only to mow
but has a snowbblower for the winter so gets more use than most mowers. I have never had a problem. It has a fabricated deck. The engine is a Kawasaki same as in other brands including some JD's. If you can believe the manfacturer I have 23hp to run a 48 inch deck while the neighbor's Kubota has 24hp to run a 60 inch deck. All around I think they are ok in their price range. Residual? For me and lawn mowers it is the price of scrap iron. The JD mower I said I liked? It was at a cadet dealer. It was 1 year old and from the asking price I doubt he received more than 25 cents on the dollar of original price. I doubt it was traded for a Cadet. Probably something more expensive like a Skagg.

Mr. White Happy mowing with your "new" cub. I too do not like to have to change some attachments. Right now I'm looking at removing the flail and putting on the sickle which can reach farther under "stuff" Yech! For me a second tractor is not an option. Enjoy! Vern
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top