# Help me pick a used walk behind mower



## Andru1d (Jun 21, 2021)

Here are the relevant details. I just moved into a new house and went from cutting 8k to about 12k with a Honda HRX 21'. Also, the back yard is in two tiers with a significant slope in the middle, significant enough to make me wonder if a riding mower would even be a possibility. Side note: long term plan is to make a good piece of the slope a flower bed or tiered garden bed to eliminate cutting it.

Another piece of information; I have small kids and not a ton of free time. I love yard work but need to fit it in where I can, so larger cutting deck would really help in that regard. I'm on a $1,500 budget so I'm looking used. Here are three options currently available.

Option 1
Scag 36' Walk Behind - Model SFW36-16BV and the guy offered to sell for $1,200. He says no issues but he doesn't know how many hours


Option 2
Scag 36' that looks much cleaner and says low hours for $2k. I might be able to negotiate down some and go over budget.


Option 3
Lesco 54' Walk Behind for $1,295- Guy says no issues but hour meter doesn't come on. Waiting on model and year.


Option 4
Per the description: 52" exmark turf tracer has 3600 hours still cuts good, has mulch kit on it 1500.00, don't expect a beauty queen



Thoughts? I appreciate any help I can get. Also, if it matters I have a Scag dealer/servicer a mile from my house. I like to attempt to do maintenance where I can to save money.


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## wiread (Aug 27, 2019)

I know some of those can go a long time, but they get worked on. Myself, I prefer to spend more and work on less. A couple of those look pretty used, but if they were maintained well, could be good. I'd lean towards the cleaner residential use mower myself. Probably maintained just as well without the use.


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## SCGrassMan (Dec 17, 2017)

2, final answer Regis.


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## SCGrassMan (Dec 17, 2017)

1 will get you an $800 bill real quick, and never look like #2.


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## BruceAlmighty22 (May 12, 2021)

Option 2 please!


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## sam36 (Apr 14, 2020)

Not sure how steep your "slope" is, but I mow my ditch by the road with my ZT and part of it is at least 30 degrees, maybe even 40 degrees. I can't do it if the grass is wet or the mower will slide down it. Other than the issue of rolling over, keep in mind a steep slope can also cause the oil in the motor to not pool in the sump correctly and you could loose oil pressure so keep an eye on oil pressure gauges and/or engine sounds while "slope mowing".

I'd go with the scag for $2k. But remember you are "buying time" by going up deck sizes. I would think a 48" ZT would be more what you would want.

I started with a budget of $2k looking at wore out 72" commercial scag mowers, but was scared I'd spend more time fixing them than mowing. Started looking in the $3k range and realized some cheap zero turns are $3k new. Ended up with my badboy elite for $5k new. The motor and transmission are the same as what is used in some $7k commercial zero turns so felt like I was getting a good deal and won't have to fix anything on it for a really long time.


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## wiread (Aug 27, 2019)

I think that 2nd one is a belt drive if that matters.


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## SCGrassMan (Dec 17, 2017)

If the Scag has hydraulics get that checked - that's a $500+ service item. If the owner doesn't know when it was done last, I think with a different brand mower I had, it needed it every 500 hours or something like that.

Be good to use as leverage for a price break.

Keep in mind you could use that mower for a few years and still get $1500 when you're done with it.


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## uts (Jul 8, 2019)

Why not just consider a new 30" timemaster for 1k or so and call it a day. Gets you in a sweet spot with a mower that's not going to give you trouble for many many years to come, close enough to the 36" you are considering AND under budget. I would save the money and spend on a good spreader.

If you plan to make it into a bed some of your grass area will decrease in any case.


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## Mrsamman (Jun 12, 2018)

Xmark. It's hydro drive and looks like it has kawasaki engine.
Scott


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## ericgautier (Apr 22, 2017)

Option 2 looks like a fixed deck. Look at the manual for it and make sure you understand how to adjust the cutting height (it is more involved compared to the floating deck of the others).

Option 4 is a hydro and the others are belt drive (unsure about option 3.. that might be a hydro also). Belt drive don't really give you a true reverse. It is more of an assisted reverse. So depending on your slope you might have a hard time backing up the mower.

If you can, I would test drive all of the mowers available to you so you can get a feel of the controls and pick which one you like best.

FWIW, I have an older eXmark 48" floating deck/belt drive walk behind with about 13k of lawn and mowing goes quick. :lol: I bought it used and outside of basic maintenance it has been rock solid. :thumbup: If at that time (7 years ago) I was able to afford a floating deck/hydro one (like option 4)... I would have totally gone for that model.


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## SCGrassMan (Dec 17, 2017)

If we weren't limited to these choices though, I had a 36" Wright Stander that made cutting lawns, even commercially, truly enjoyable. It was impossible not to smile on that thing. And way better maneuverability than a zero turn.


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## Andru1d (Jun 21, 2021)

Thanks for the replies. The comment about buying time has really stuck with me. If I'm not able to negotiate on option 2, the nicer Scag 36' I think I'll hold out for something in the 42-46 inch range. If nothing pops up I may seek out a 30' Timemaster as a stopgap while searching and waiting.

I was really close to committing to the 52' Exmark but the seller said it would definitely require a trailer. I do have access to one but don't own a trailer and would prefer to get something that fits in the back of my Tundra when I need it to be serviced. Does this seem like a reasonable consideration?


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## Mrsamman (Jun 12, 2018)

Getting a 42"-46" walk behind mower in the bed of a truck would be a little scary. I only once took a 21" mower in for service, after that I buy my own parts and service myself. You shouldn't need to take it to the dealer. I have 7 mowers and multiple handheld.

Also if you do have something major most shops can pick up.

Scott


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## wiread (Aug 27, 2019)

If you need to take it in, rent a trailer or pay the fee for them to come pick it up. I wouldn't regularly or even occasionally put a mower that size in the back of a truck. Only has to fall once for it to be completely not worth it.


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## Andru1d (Jun 21, 2021)

Well in the end, I didn't go with any of the four options from my first post. I did reach out to #2 but got no response. Instead, a Toro Timemaster MX SS4225 popped up and I pulled the trigger. It's very clean and was only used residentially. It has 200 hours and runs great. I will probably look into changing the back tires though to better on my sloped bermuda yard. I cut for the first time yesterday and got a little slippage a few times.


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## SCGrassMan (Dec 17, 2017)

That looks like a great unit. If it has the grease zirks, go grease all the fittings. And if it doesn't, you can get them on Amazon and unscrew all the bolts where you have to grease (check the manual).

Also, I really liked having a rider with a mulching kit when I was cutting commercially, but you may want to bag, so what I'm saying is think about what you want to do with clippings. I think Gator blades is what I used or something similar, designed to really mulch well. It's also nice because it doesn't launch sticks or rocks out the side when you have the misfortune to run over some.


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