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Zero Turn mower- Help me Pick (Exmark Quest S or Hustler Sport)

44K views 38 replies 23 participants last post by  ducnut 
#1 ·
#2 · (Edited)
No help at all, but I love my Toro 50"/24HP and I will NEVER use a regular riding mower again as long as I have the choice, LOL.

Side note, I see more Exmark commercial users here in my area than the Hustler. Not saying they're better, just letting you know what I see.

This place knows everything about everything, im sure you'll get some responses soon. If not, bump it up tonight when most people are off of work.

Good luck on your purchase
 
#4 ·
I have a '04 Hustler FasTrak 42" w/Honda GXV530 engine. It pre-dates the Sport that you're looking at. It has 220hrs on it (I can't believe the hourmeter to be accurate). Warranty has taken care of one deck spindle (I hit a property stake) and the drive belt (it simply came apart at the seam). I've had to replace one idler pulley on my own (my frequent washing probably contributed to the bearing failure). I have zero complaints and wouldn't buy anything but a Hustler. They were the first zero turn mower (1964?). They've been at it a long time. I've used mine in, both, residential and municipal settings and am trying for an annual contract. If I get it, I'll be upgrading to an X-One or Super-Z w/60" deck.

The smaller, 18" tires of the Sport have a tendency to spin easier versus the larger mowers, because of less traction. The narrower track of the drive tires exerts less leverage on the length of the mower, which means it'll spin the tires easier than the larger mowers, when turning. It's nothing major. But, if you plan to sidehill the mower, you'll want a wider chassis with larger diameter tires. The smaller diameter tires ride rougher, too. I run mine at 7psi and have a lot of Slime in them.

When I bought mine, I primarily compared to eXmark. The biggest difference was that the Hustler was more finished and, at that time, the eXmark was built on a much larger chassis with the smallest deck being a 54". The Hustler dealer is blocks away and the eXmark dealer is 50min away. At that time, eXmark built Toro's chassis and Toro made their own deck, which was stamped. Never buy a stamped deck as the material is much thinner at every contour and will bend/fatigue much easier. The above mentioned Bobcat has a bolt together chassis. Never buy a bolted chassis, as it doesn't have near the strength of a welded chassis.

The eXmark Quest looks to be closer to the Hustler Raptor, based on engines versus deck size.

If I were looking at all three mowers, I'd go with the Sport and 54" deck. The 54" deck will give you 6" of trim width on the left side. That's a huge deal. I wouldn't want all the plastic body crap of the Raptor or Quest. If you search the lawncare forums, you'll see that Hustler gets the highest marks for quality of cut. My neighbors can vouch for that as my lawn never has windrows of cut grass, no matter how tall it is when I mow it. The municipal property I mow is routinely 1' high and my mower goes right through it, at 5-1/2" deck height. I keep an extra set of belts and blades, just in case something happens over a weekend or when I'm in the middle of nowhere mowing.

Lastly, I wouldn't consider any other brands than what you're looking at. I think you'll be happy with either mower. Dealer satisfaction should be just as big of factor as the mowers.
 
#6 ·
I work on the hustlers and they're really a good mower for the money. Nice simple set up with a fabbed deck. Just worked on an old sport with a briggs, been through hell and back. Still worked well and cut flat. I was hopin hed trade it in. Id love to own one.
 
#15 ·
Thanks guys. Looks like it will be the Hustler. We have about 2 acres to mow and it is more like a pasture than a yard. We have a gravel road that runs through part of the yard, so the mowing transitions from grass to grass/gravel mix and old, cheap mowers that we always used just would not hold up over time. There are no inclines to worry about, but it does get a little rough in some areas.
 
#18 ·
We have about 2 acres to mow and it is more like a pasture than a yard.

but it does get a little rough in some areas.
You may have your dealer bring out the Sport you're looking at and one of the big-tired mowers to demo. The 18" tires will beat you up, in that environment. You'll never be able to mow, at speed, because of the ride. You really need to look at it from that perspective, before looking at the cost. Just amortize the cost over the years you'll get out of it. The bigger mowers are just so much heavier-duty (your dealer can go over the differences-separate pumps and drive motors is a biggie). Also, consider the spring forks. I don't have them, so I can't comment as to how effective they are. But, your dealer may be able to give you accurate feedback. I'm not sure if the suspension seat is a worthy upgrade, as it may just continually bounce you. I got the armrests and never use them.
 
#20 ·
Wow, I looked at a Kubota Kommander today and I am really impressed. Zt-3100 hydros, 8 mph, 10 gauge deck and only a couple hundred more than the Hustler. The ONLY thing that is not better than the Hustler features is that the lower end model has a B&S engine, which all in all is not too bad, since I will get less than 50 hours a year out of it.
 
#21 ·
the kubota also has the "regular" taller tires. The hustler had tiny drive tires, cheaper EZt hydros, no arm rests, smaller fuel tank, 11 ga deck and 7 mph.
 
#23 ·
The Fastrak sounds comparable to the Kubota. Not sure about price.

Yep. That sounds about right. The fastrak is about $800-1000 more.
 
#26 ·
Not familiar with the brands you mentioned, but I really like my Dixie Chopper. "worlds fastest lawn mower"... I can cut at 20 mph, pretty cool.


.

Is that N/A or a shot of NOS, LOL!
 
#25 ·
20 MPH???????????

Wow. Every one I have looked at has been between 6 and 10 MPH
 
#28 ·
I am not trying to sell lawn mowers here, I have 8 acress to do and the bitch cuts the two that are finished off neatly as nice as the six that are open fields. It was 8k, but I'm done with a double cut of the two acres in an hour and a half. It looks like a ball field when I'm done. Takes 3-4 hours to do the whole property which isn't to bad IMO.

I haven't GPS'd it or anything, but thats what they claim, and there is a big American flag on it and "the worlds fastest lawn mower" sticker on it, Google them, they kick ass.
 
#29 ·
I tested out the hustler sport in a 48" and the 48" fastrak with the kawi. The biggest difference for me was in the drive pumps. The fastrak was far smoother than the sport. Plus the fastrak drive pumps are rebuildable whereas the sport is not. Both are excellent residental mowers, but I chose the fastrak.
 
#32 ·
yeah, I know. That thing has a sport tuned suspension, LOL! Definitely top of the line, but I could pay a HS kid to mow my lawn forever, for that price..
 
#31 ·
The drive difference in the Hustler Sport versus the FasTrak is that the Sport has integrated pump/motors and FasTrak has individual components. The integrated systems are limited to ~7-8mph, because of heat. Individual drive components are much heavier-duty and many mowers have auxiliary coolers that help control temps. But, you're moving up in price. And, realistically, you don't need that much mower for the size of property you're mowing.

I wouldn't have a Briggs on anything.

Have the Kubota dealer bring out that mower and put it up against the Hustler (get them both out there together). There are a couple things I don't like about my friend's Kubota, but, that's mainly because of how I use my mower. He absolutely loves his Kubota. And, that's fine, as different strokes for different folks. In the end, it's the purchaser who needs to be happy; not anyone else.

That Dixie will not mow at 20mph, no matter what the mfr says. Tip speed is govt regulated to 19K feet per minute, so it's only going to cut so much grass for every blade rotation. One can't simply up the ground speed without increasing tip speed. It'll just knock down the grass and not cleanly cut the blades of grass. This is where quality of cut comes in and why professionals always buy the largest deck and not necessarily the fastest chassis.

Bottom line: Get all the mowers out there together and see what does the best job in the environment they'll be working in.
 
#33 ·
You have given great advice, multiple times. This is not a dis, but you sound like a dealer. A dealer who sells multiple brands, because you do not seem too partial.. Your explanation of blade tip speed makes a whole lot of sense and answers a lot of questions.

BE SPECIFIC- what do you not like about the Kubota, over the Hustler? So far, the Kubota seems like a no brainer over the Hustler and any other model I have looked at (for ~$4,500)
 
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