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Zero Radius Mowers why Landscapers prefer
The wife and I just got home form a trip into the city, (150,000 pop.), and noticed every mower in town is going today. We've had generous rainfall lately so everything is super green. I never paid that much attention before, but why do the lawn care services use mowers that the operator rides a little two wheeled cart behind instead of having a seat on the mower? Frank.
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Zero Radius Mowers why Landscapers prefer
Frank, I think the mower you are tlaking about is not a ZTR, but a "walk-behind" mower equipped with something called a sulky, basically a VERY tiny chariot if you will, with just enough room for a pair of feet.
The reasons are many and varied for using this type of mower, which is basically a 2-wheeled lawn tractor, but you walk along behind it, like you would a self-propelled snowblower. Usually they are used on smaller areas, but often, especially nowadays, you see them because they are cheaper than a conventional riding commercial mower. A walk-behind is nearly half the price of a rider.
Best of luck.
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Zero Radius Mowers why Landscapers prefer
Hardwood, the company if still in business has been sold I was told but Great Dane did make what was told to be a ZTR mower as you described. (I guess that would be a ZTW.) There was not a lot of price difference to me between that model and their rider if my memory is correct (3 or 4years ago). Did not make sense to me either. Sure did make reverse a NO option. kt
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Zero Radius Mowers why Landscapers prefer
I forgot to mention the other big consideration for situations such as you describe where you are cutting grass in an urban (big city) environment.
A walk-behind mower is about half the length of a commercial rider, in fact you can easily put 2 of them in the back of a standard 8' long pickup equipped with a ramp or tailgate lift. This means you could send a crew into an area like a big city without even having to try to fight a trailer through traffic or find a place to park it.
In the Toronto area I see a lot of commercial outfits have gone to cube vans, and not for just that reason, they are also rolling billboards and offer far better security for the valueable equipment that is all too portable to thieves.
Best of luck.
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Zero Radius Mowers why Landscapers prefer
Yeah the walkbehinds with a sulky will wear you out trying to keep your balance, not to mention keep yourself from wrapping around a tree or fence post. The guys I know who can't afford the nice ZTM's use the walkbehinds. They heavy but twice as fast and offer a better straight-line cut which the commercial land owners like. Some guys use a flat skid plate or roller to flatten the cut grass for curb appeal (Thers'a a term used for that type of look like stadiums and golf courses use---I'm sure Murf will set me straight  )
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Zero Radius Mowers why Landscapers prefer
It might take more than the likes of me to set you straight there Jeff'ry........
But I'm jiss sayin's all ....... 
It's called 'striping' and is done, oddly enough, with a striping kit. A fancy name and more than a few bucks for a little piece of steel that drags along behind the mower.
If you look carefully at my picture # 1 you will see the front lawn is done that way. It gets cut twice a week, and every time the pattern changes. I need another hobby.
Best of luck.
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Zero Radius Mowers why Landscapers prefer
Murf, you could take on straighting out EW. You might could use the same stripping kit.
But I'm jiss sayin's all....
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Zero Radius Mowers why Landscapers prefer
I could see dragging him around back of the wood shed to straighten him out.........
But dragging him around the lawn would probably not work.
Best of luck.
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Zero Radius Mowers why Landscapers prefer
Murf and KT: Ya know... if I had feelings---that woulda hurt.
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Zero Radius Mowers why Landscapers prefer
Thanks for setting me straight on the sulkys behind the mowers. That makes me wonder too, how do they back out of a corner? I think I'll leave the seat on the mower and just ride along. Frank.
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06-20-2007, 11:14 
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