An old one compared to the new Spin Off's.

[nikster]

My next door neighbor bought a Home Depot special last Fall for a end of the year special. he could'nt be a more PROUD owner of his lawnmower until I BUST his bubble.

When he 1st. saw me bring home my # 109 & watched me rip it apart, he thought it was a foolish project & waste. I did'nt want to bust his bubble all at once but in a mild way I DID over 5 months or so. He now is fully informed in the TRUE meaning of ' It's a Cub thing.' & the spin-off's that the big store sell. Now he's aware that when I call his Cub Cadet a 'LAWNMOWER' he is now a educated consumer.

Since buying a # 122 last week we pull up & he thought I was NUTS. I've cut my acre twice since & yesterday he asked if he could give it a try. He started to cut his. He then got carried away & cuts his entire (1.5 acres) with it. I could see the sparkle in his eyes. Wow, that was an interesting ride, "I never thought about what you meant? "

As a parting note he said, "hey if you ever run across one thats a GOOD DEAL, call me about it." ' i could see myself tinkering with something this Winter to keep myself busy.

I think he's hooked????????????
Next year we may have 2 vintage Cub's pulling the kids on carts for the trick'er treat thing?

Nik

[ACecil]

Your neighbor has caught Yellow Fever! There's no cure, but buying more cubs seems to help.

[gcbailey]

One thing that I'll say, since I own both....

I have a Home Depot "special" LT1045, and it is a great LAWN TRACTOR. It is in no way comparable or should be compared to a GT. I had my LT for about a year then I got my GT2544. Now the GT and the LT are totally different machines. When I got my '09 GT I had no clue about "old iron" then I got educated.

Now is the '09 the same as an IH GT? No, but I do think that MTD is making steps to put out a better machine. A few years ago they switched back to a cast iron rear, no, it's not the IH rear, but it's better than aluminum... Yes, there's a lot of plastic, but there's still a shaft driven transmission. I do think and I know several die hard JD fans agree that for the money CC's 25XX series is by far the most capable NEW GT on the market today. I've plowed gardens with it, pushed snow like crazy, mow about 10 acres a week and I love it. I also can't wait to love what I'm going to be able to do with my 127 once I get it back together. I've been reading all these posts time and time again and I really want to see side by side what an "old muscle car GT" can do against a new one.

I was and still am in awe of my 'O' and 127. The 127 just looks "heavy" sitting there. Hopefully more and more guys will get new machines and get interested and learn to respect and want something more. I know I do...

[jeffscub]

i went to my local dealer yesterday to buy/order parts for the new 1450 and they had that new zero turn with the steering wheel. it's pretty cool, i didn't have alot of time to actually examine it "all" over but it looks to be an "ok" machine. i do not like the new yellow color, but i am used to the old yellow and white of the older ones, though. i have cut on a newer model and i have cut on my 1200 and 1450. i would just as soon spend the money to keep my older ones running as to buying a newer one and that is in NO WAY meant to be a put down to the people who own the newer models!!!!! jeff

[toyman]

I think the newer machines can and will serve their purpose well, but I also feel that they have a 'more finite' lifespan than our old iron. I'm sure that you can take very good care of a new(er) machine and have it last 30 years or so, but most of the cubs we restore were not very well cared for. I know my 2 - 70's were at least running but still basket cases. Simple, heavy duty design in both the tractor and drive train, which get less simple and less heavy duty as years pass. Example is when I compare the simplicity of my model 70 to my 982 or 1862. The latter are still heavy duty, and relatively simple on their own, but not compared to the 70. Just my 2 cents!

[gcbailey]

true, true.... This has came up numerous times before, but I think it goes back to everything now is a "throw away" society. Nothing is designed for a long lifespan. Everything as we know it now has a bell curve time table applied to it. All my clients their systems are on between 3 to 5 years. After that, throw it away. So that makes everyone think that they need to buy a new computer every 3 to 5 also... It's funny, in the manual of the GT2544 is comes right out and says... quote: "average machine lifespan not to exceed 750 hours."

So either businesses are so smart that they have convinced everyone to do as they say and replace within set time (go buy another and give the manufacturer more $$$), or everyone is so dumb that they listen to what they are told...

[jeffscub]

Originally Posted by gcbailey

true, true.... This has came up numerous times before, but i think it goes back to everything now is a "throw away" society. Nothing is designed for a long lifespan. Everything as we know it now has a bell curve time table applied to it. All my clients their systems are on between 3 to 5 years. After that, throw it away. So that makes everyone think that they need to buy a new computer every 3 to 5 also... It's funny, in the manual of the gt2544 is comes right out and says... Quote: "average machine lifespan not to exceed 750 hours."

so either businesses are so smart that they have convinced everyone to do as they say and replace within set time (go buy another and give the manufacturer more $$$), or everyone is so dumb that they listen to what they are told...

amen, brother, amen

[johncub7172]

That was a good story and funny!

[T-Mo]

I have several older Cub Cadets, all narrow frames. I mowed with them several times. But, when I really need to mow quickly, I used my JD X320. After using the JD, the older garden tractors just aren't as sufficient, as fast, as nimble, as good a mowing machine as my X320. It's built to mow grass. It's built really stout with a very heavy frame, 22 hp Kawasaki engine, foot lift for the deck, etc. After saying all that, I really like my older garden tractors. I used one of my 104s with a box blade, the 123 has the snow blade. I want to configure one of my other Cubs with a Brinly plow.

I think within the next couple of years I might buy a zero turn to do the mowing, use the X320 as my back up. That leaves all my Cubs to do the real work.

[T-Mo]

Well put, Bill.