Dixie Chopper vs John Deere Z-Trac

[RT66DOC]

We have eight acres, half of which is grass. Some areas with lots of trees bushes, etc. to maneuver around. This time of year it needs cut every 3-4 days and I tell you the little old 48" rider, while always faithful, is mighty slow going. So... I've been researching mowers and it appears to me that a zero-turn would be the berries for what we cut.



Dixie Choppers get good reviews and have a pretty decent warantee but the JD Z-Tracs aren't too shabby either (I like green). I'm partial to the Kawasaki twin in the JD as I have another small mower with a Kawasaki that has run perfectly for eight years. Dixie Chopper uses Kohler twin.



Anyone have some real world feed back and/or suggestions on this subject, sure will appreciate it. TIA

 

[rhino_50]

I have a scag 52 inch man that thing goes. The reason I picked the scag over the others was because the way the blades come off. The bagger is nice too. I would also consider the ferris mower as well. All kawes on them. I bleed green to. JD is about 5 years behind on there zero turn mowers. I have my lawn care business. I hope this helps Rhino50

 

[RT66DOC]

Rhino, that's interesting. The JD website has a comparison chart and IIRC the Scag is one of the comps. The funny thing is when you look at the chart they're all the SAME SPECS, 'cept for the green paint, of course.

 

[JDailey]

They are both good mowers. I have a JD 737 and have no complaints. Hustler is also a good ztr.

 

[trqmnstr]

I had a Wright Sentar for my lawn service. I sold it about a year ago. It had the 23 Kawi twin on it. I never had a single problem with it and had good power. The mower was a zero turn rider but you could sit on it or stand. The Sentar is one of a kind and is a pretty neat mower. I think it's worth a look. Only problem is... . it's yellow. You could probably special order a green. I got mine out the door for around $7800. Not bad.

 

[Dieselnut59]

I have a Kubota TG1860 rider. I am soon going to be upgrading to a Kubota ZD25 (zero turn, 25 horsepower inline 3-cylinder diesel). My rider has a 54 inch deck and I will get the zero turn with a 60 inch deck. They have a ZD21, ZD25 and ZD28, I would get the bigger one, but it is only available with the 72 inch deck and that is just too much of a good thing when maneuvering around trees, bushes, ditches, etc. I would highly recommend the Kubota. Best thing is they are DIESEL!

 

[bmoeller]

Dixie Chopper uses Kohler twin.

Those are great engines as well. At least the older ones were. Haven't used a new one.

 

[RGardner]

I have had Kohler motors on several mowers, tillers etc. Never had a problem always start easy!

 

[slundvall]

I had a Z TRAC w/54" deck for years before we sold our mowing business

I was glad to see John Deere finally came out with something compared

the the grasshopper and woods mower

we got one of the first Z TRACs made and

they have made lots of improvements since then

John Deere also has a good financing rate when it comes to loans



Sherry

 

[rhino_50]

Jd bought out Great Dain. But when looking to buy look at how easy it is to work on example, adj your hydro pumps, deck adjustment, changing the oil,also the blades. Last make sure the seat is comfortable. There are alot of choice out there. So shop wisely. Rhino50

 

[bmoeller]

Last make sure the seat is comfortable.

Even if the seat is junk and the rest is good, the seat can be BOMBed.

 

[Lnwing]

We've had a Pro Star(same as the earliest Dixie Choppers) for about 15 years, and it's still going strong. The engine(Kohler Magnum 18) is still original, and I replaced one of the hydro's for the first time just several weeks ago. It's a tough machine, and will run circles around a regular rider, especially with obstacles to contend with!

One of the challenges with any zero-turn machine, though, is side hill mowing. Since the front wheels are just casters, if the upper drive wheel loses traction, you're going downhill. Guaranteed! Countless times as I've been trying to keep the mower traveling across a slope, I've been, in my mind, "engineering" a way to have the caster wheels help to steer. Well, someone did just that.



Last week, at Ag Progress Days, I drove a Gizmow. It looks much like other zero-turns, but instead of sticks, it has a steering wheel which controls not only the hydro units, but steers the front wheels, as well. It was raining rather hard when I drove it, but should know better how it works after a demo run here at home. Check it out at Gizmow.com.

 

[d90boy]

I've had a lot of experience with the John Deere 737 as well as my own Scag Sabre Tooth Tiger. The John Deere has a few shortcomings in my opinion.



First I don't like how the drive belt is very long, and makes a 90 degree bend up the back to the engine. I've had one break soon after the mower was new. The drive controls I find to take too little effort and make it difficult to precisely control such as when trimming along a fence. I also wish the deck had a transport setting instead of rotating the knob around.



I haven't looked much at a dixie chopper. I know it's a mower but I really hate the looks of them. I think you'd be hard pressed to find a more rugged mower than the Scag. Everything is built very heavy, all you have to do is look at them for a minute and you can tell they're heavy duty. I like the controls on my Scag because they have a shock absorber that makes all your movements smooth and not jerky. The fact that it has a turbo and mine runs a straight pipe makes for an appealing package. Yes I've got the pump turned up too.



My best friend bought a Kubota which I was impressed with as well. He didn't get the diesel but some features impressed me. The deck engagement is an intenal series of clutches like a tractor PTO. The pumps are also internally driven so the only belt on the machine is on the deck. The deck is hydraulic and has a jack to service the blades. My Scag has to be jacked up to get the blades out from under it. My final word of advice is get the best seat you can.

 

[Dieselnut59]

A turbo diesel? Wow! What kind of engine? How many horsepower is it?

 

[Dieselnut59]

The gizmow machine looks interesting, but why THREE gas engine choices and NO diesel???

 

[d90boy]

It's a Briggs/Daihatsu 3 cylinder. The stock rating on it is 32hp I think. Dixie does have a real awesome diesel model that has a 52hp or so yanmar turbocharged engine on it.

 

[RT66DOC]

Sure glad I started this thread. Three days ago the only Z mowers I knew of were the JD and Dixie Chopper. Lots of options. The Scag looks heavy duty. No Gizmow dealers in our state. Kubota dealer right down the street. Would love a diesel but don't think we really need one for four acres. Probably a 27 HP gas twin would do.



One of the frustrations is that I can't find much of anything online regarding prices on these machines in order to make some bang for the buck comparisons. Any ideas?



Thanks for the input.

 

[RGardner]

I have a heavy duty dixon with a kohler motor that has been a very good mower. They recently redesigned the mowers so I can't say much about them. Marty J and Grasshopper are other brands to consider.

 

[rhino_50]

The only two engine gas engines . I would buy are either a honda or a kawe. These engines are designed pretty well. And have a good track record for reliability. Rhino50

 

[DBogo]

i got a gravely Z260 25hp kawi motor and 60" hydralic lift deck it is the nicest mower i have ever used and has by far the most comfortable seat of them all