Outdoor Power Equipment (Lawn Mowers, Snow Blowers, Chain Saws and more) Discussions

      Hi Gang. Tomorrow I'm going to hit a couple places and price some Simplicity and Husqvarna Tractors. With cutting my  elderly neighbors lawn now I can more justify the cost of a new mower. I'll be cutting at least 2 1/2 acres and then some. It's basically flat terrain with a fair amount of trees to work around. The heaviest hauling I do is mostly cart loads of firewood. I'm also going to be cutting a short path back into the woods and a path through her fields for approx. 1/4 mile distance.
     I'm basically looking at the Husqvarna XP series from a price standpoint. The only thing that I don't like about those is the fender mounted hydro shift. I prefer the foot controlled hydro. With the trees, I change speeds a lot. As for the Simplicity which is my preference, but much more costly, I'm going to price the Broadmoor and the Conquest series. The Broadmoor could be in reach financially, and the Conquest is a stretch. I've had 2 different Simplicity tractors since I've lived in my house, (24 years), and I hate to break tradition.  LOL.    They are just good solid tractors and the mower decks are hard to beat. Love them rollers. Original cap was $3000, but that can be stretched with the right deal and financing. The wife is even ok with it.  The lady next door is more than a neighbor, shes a good friend. My wife said what ever it takes to get the job done. So c'mon gang, give me a push. Get me off the fence. I bought the last 2 used, it would be nice to have a new one. Ya think.

                                                                                                                            Kevin

   

OK Kevin,

The Conquest gets you the ability so use it for snow as garden situations. You could use the Broadmoor too for a smaller amount and smaller chores but the Conquest is bigger, longer, wider and heavier and would handle them both much, much better. The differential lock is a great feature for traction needing situations too! How much coxing do you want? LOL

Not to muddy up the water........but you have a decent tractor already, is this the right time to justify a ZTR mower to speed up cutting that much yard???

Just asking...........

Good luck with whatever you decide.

Marshall wrote:

I'm teetering.  LOL

Hi Emmo. These aren't ZTR's. Lawn and yard tractors. I know what your saying. The one I have now will do the job. I may still just get a replacement engine for the other parts tractor I bought. I'm also thinking that the money the motor would cost would better be used towards a new one. My tractors 15 years old and still running good. Would be nice to have a new one though.

                                                                          Kevin

Well I went to the first Simplicity dealership today that sells the Husqvarnas also. Huskys on the right, Simplicity on the left.
No comparison. Then it was on to sitting and checking the features of the Broadmoor and the Conquest that were side by side. Sit on the Broadmoor, then sit on the Conquest, Sit on the Broadmoor again, then sit on the Conquest again. Sit on the Broad,,,,,,,, naw, I'm staying on the Conquest. For what basically works out to a $500 to $600 difference, The Conquest is all over it and worth the difference. Your right Marshall, It is a real nice piece of machinery. The owner was a younger guy that was very pleasant and helpful. I'm comfortable dealing with him. I did go to another local Simplicity dealership, but they were $200 higher on both tractors, and a little too busy to give me some time. Nice people but it's a hardware store also, and they
have too much going on. Anyway, I've got to work on the financial end, and go over it with the finance minister (wife), but it should work out. Man, that highback seat really felt good on the back. I've got work tonight. I better go sleep on this.   LOL

                                                                                                                Kevin

"Man, that highback seat really felt good on the back. I've got work tonight. I better go sleep on this.   LOL"

                                                                                                                Kevin

Congratulations on your future new Conquest. ROFLMAO  Damn that's a nice tractor!

Edit:  Oh yea, I'm jeleous already. 

Hey, I didn't pull the trigger yet, but it's cocked and my fingers getting itchy. Feel lucky punk. LOL

Vangellis wrote:
Just don't ask me to pull your finger. 

Kevin, You are not going to like this. Most small commercial Zs will do a better job of mowing in about half the time. If I were you, I would not spend $3000 without at least looking at them.

http://www.gravely.com/gravely/Products/Zero-Turn+Mowers/pm+44z.asp

http://www.exmark.com/lazerzct_con.htm

http://www.exmark.com/lazerzhp_con.htm

http://www.scag.com/tigercub.html

http://www.hustlerturfequipment.com/products/hustlerminiz.html

If you need a Simplicity
This one is pretty new, don't know what they are like. It looks good.

But if you don't care how long it takes to mow, or you are planning on ground engaging, forget everything I just said. But I like ZTR's. I bought a large (for me) walkbehind with a sulky. For speed, to minimize trimming, and because of hills.

Thanks for the links Robmints. I will be ground engaging and hauling with it. I'll also be cutting paths through bumpy fields. I can use the Blade I have with my current tractor but it will require a different bracket. Nice thing also is that it will work off the mower deck lever and not an add on like my other tractor. App for finance is filled out. I better get going and see if he'll sweeten the pot a little. Don't think there is much chance of that, because it's pretty sweet already.

Marshall, as long as you don't pull my leg.

                                                                                      Thanks,   Kevin

Well, it's a done deal. Financing was approved by the dealer, I went and signed this morning, and I'll take delivery tomorrow.
 
The Conquest really is a sweet machine. The final cost was $3990. Of course there is the good ole Pennsylvannia sales tax, and the interest on the financing, and I'm still comfortable with the whole deal. Plus I found a new dealer to buy from and this
might help me get some deals in the future.   LOL   Funny how life goes. Two weeks ago, this was just on a wish list.
Tomorrow I'll be buzzing around on it.     Yahooo,  
                                                                                                      Kevin

KEVIN, PLEASE TAKE PICS OF IT BEFORE YOU MOW, I WOULD LOVE TO SEE ACTUAL PICTURES OTHER THAN THE SIMS PHOTO SITE.

I AM ENVIOUS, CONGRATS ON THE CONQUEST!

Oops, sorry for the caps.

Kevin...

Sweet tractor !   Enjoy it for a loooong time !

What's the cutting width?      Horsepower?     Hydro drive?

Dave...

Marshall, I don't know who's more excited. Me or you. LOL   I'll see what I can do on pics but I don't want to hold the dealer up to much. That was the nice part of this dealership. I dealt with the owner the whole time and he's delivering it. Nice guy. He has a pretty good size building, inventory and seems busy, but it's just him, and another helper. He does have a part timer that comes in some nights to do repairs and set ups. He's going to stick around until I cut with it a bit and have the controls down and am satisfied with the setup.  One of the first things I want to do is find a steep wet hill and test the diff lock.
                                                                                                                                                                Kevin

Dave___in___CT wrote:

Hi Dave. Thanks. It may be the last tractor I own.  LOL  It has a 44" deck. The engine is a 20HP B&S Vanguard V-Twin. It has a foot controlled hydro with cruise control on the fender. It also has a differential lock that is a pedal on the left side that you step on when needed. Heres specs for the
Conquest series. But you have to sit on it. That high back seat's the bomb.   LOL

                                            

I'll second Marshall with those pics.    I want to see that sweet tractor too, but I'll understand if you can't get detailed.   

Hey Kevin nice mower..  I wonder why I don't see many Simplicity down here? The dealer I use down here has one on the show rooms floor. Next time I go in I'm going to ask him how many he sells a year. He mostly deals in Exmark and Hustlers. You never seen one being used down here. THey look like nice mowers. Maybe I need to start a new trend down here in Florida lol what do you guys think???  later Mike

mikefla1 wrote: Mike,

Simplicity has always been more popular in the northern states, that's one reason they aquired the Georgia based Snapper company. Snapper never did real well in the Northern states, pretty good fit.

So are Simplicitys and the Snappers built pretty much the same?

Kevin,
I thought you said $3000. What happened?

mikefla1 wrote:
The Snappers like the ones I am posting below are Simplicity's rebadged. You can see them together here.





You can still get the LT's Snapper made and designed, their Homeowner Zero Turns, Walk Behinds, Brush Mowers and of course their RER's as well as their commercial stuff.

I see, I guess that is why i come here to learn something new.  later Mike

Damn, that was a lot of pictures.

Congrats Kevin!

I like that Ariens orange color on that Simplicity.
Our local OPE repair shop just started selling Simplicitys...they look nice in front of his shop.

Frank D.

AWESOME choice Kevin!!  Best of luck with your new toy, and ageed - that seat looks ULTRA comfortable!!

Marty

robmints wrote:
OPE Madness!

           Seriously though, I've had 2 Simplicity tractors since I've owned my house. Both used and I've always liked the quality
and the cut. A new Conquest was just a wish list item and definetly the tractor I wanted. The Broadmoor is a nice tractor, but for $500 more, the Conquest is so much more. If I got the Broadmoor, I'd be happy but probably would have had a case of the "coulda, shoulda, woulda's". With Simplicitys financing it was doable and the finance minister put her stamp
of approval on it. Of course when I first told her what it was going to cost she made googely eyes at me.  LOL  After a couple of minutes she was ok with it. Funny thing was right after I told her about it, she was watching a re-run of Home Improvement. Tool man Tim was in the hardware store with his buddies, and one stated, "when a man wants to buy something, he buys it, and thats it. My wife turned to me and said, "I guess so". But , she smiled when she said it.  LOL
Well, It's on the way here so I have to go keep an eye out for the delivery truck. Man, I feel like a kid on Xmas morning.
No, better.  LOL          Thanks for the thumbs up Guys.
                                                                                  Kevin
P.S.  Nice pics Marshall. I like the snapper with the hood scoops.

All I can say is ...WOW. Quiet, comfortable and smooth. The foot hydro is great. I found myself reaching for the lever on my old one. LOL I have to get back out and cut before it rains, but initially all seems well. It has a funny smell though. Oh yeah, new break in smell. Heres a few pics.
                                                                                                           Kevin

                                                                                            

That's beautiful. Congratulations.

Now that's a tractor! Look at those rear wheels and tires! Seat looks like a throne. Good PICS!

WOW! That is a nice machine!!! You will look like a KING riding around on that thing!

Congrats!!!

Brian

Well, that was fun. I blew off my yard and the neighbors in a lot shorter time than it took with the other tractor. The short turning radius and the foot hydro made cutting around the trees a lot easier. It's not as quiet as I first thought. I was only running it around on about 2/3 throttle when I first tested it. It still has a nice strong sound on full throttle. A couple more cuts and I'll do a review. The lawn looked real nice when I finished. Love them decks.

                                                                                                                                              Kevin

                                                                                                                                       

Kevin, good deal buddy, looking forward to a review.

Rob, Phillips is into everything, those headphones look real nice!

very nice indeed...

its looks a lot better than your old one dosent it.

you know i would take the old one away and not charge you much for disposel right 

can i have it can i can i   hunh can i    please.

later chris

ps...ill send you some wax for the new paint

Just got back on. Great to be back.   LOL
Robmints, I have the race tunes. They'll be fine. It was louder, but not bad loud, more like nice hum loud.

Chris, I think I'll be selling the old one, along with the parts mower. Theres only so much room in a 12 x 20 shed.
I really would like to keep it for tree bashing contest, with Robmints. Could be fun. It still runs real well, and doesn't
look half bad for 15 years old.
 

I normally just use the tractor and an old weed eater trimmer on my yard, but my neighbors yard that I will be cutting
has some different configurations that a push mower should take care of some of the trim work just fine.
I'm picking this up on Monday from the dealer that sold me the Conquest. It's a Husqvarna 7HP Briggs Intek, 21 inch cut. Basic, but it'll do the job just fine.
I think I'm done buying OPE for a While.   LOL.  Backpack blower would be nice though. Maybe in the fall.
                                                                     Kevin

Is there a little room in the neighbor lady's shed? Maybe try to hold on to it for a while to do the jobs (like through the woods) that you might not want to do with the new one.

robmints wrote:

I really do want to hold onto it for purposes like that.  Just thought I'd sell it  to get the bucks for some Accessories. For an LT it does some good grunt work. Little lug tires would look nice. I'm sure she would let me keep it there. I kept the parts mower in there for the winter. It definetly has the room. Heres a pic from last winter of her barn/garage.

You have three tractors each with a perfectly good set of tires. And you want different ones. You sound like a woman shopping for shoes.

Sorry Kevin, couldn't resist.

Pauls, Sherri, no offense, eh?

I just mentioned to my wife about about keeping the old tractors, and she made those googely eyes at me again, just shook her head and walked away...still with a smile though.  What a gal.   LOL

                                                                                                                                   Kevin

                                                                                                                                 

If she brings a cold one back the next time through the room, she's a keeper.

You could always do what we used to do,  just tell her it's not really yours, you are holding it for a friend.

robmints wrote:
Thats classic. LOL

Nice place there Kevin.  Saweeet tractor!!