Bx23

[slickwilly1976]

Quick question folks.
I had a B series with a mowing deck and wasn’t crazy about mowing with it. I’m now looking at a BX with a 54” deck. Do they mow good ? Also this new BX looks like it has a lever to take the loader off pretty easily so I could use it like a regular mower. Any thoughts comments suggestions?

 

[luc.who]

I have a BX 23S and dont enjoy taking the mower deck on and off. I have gotten pretty good with the BH and FEL on and off.. But as soon as my old JD lawnmower doesnt run anymore.... I am going to buy a zero turn.

 

[slickwilly1976]

How does your BX mow? Is it pretty good?
I have a scag zero I use but it doesn’t do well on banks.
I want to drop the FEL and mow my banks and simi swampy places with the BX

 

[PaulL]

My BX mows just fine, including a number of banks I mow. I go slow and regularly pause and give it a rock to see how stable I am - the tractor goes places I'm not comfortable going, so that's good.

I always take the loader off. It's much more pleasant mowing without the loader on, less likely to break things, and much less weight on the front axle makes the machine nicer to drive. I think it results in lower centre of gravity too - it holds the hills better. Taking the loader off is pretty easy even on the older style loader.

Taking the mower on and off is a bit more annoying, depending on how you do it. My machine is older and the wheels are more difficult to turn (someone's lost the pins, so they have bolts instead, so I'd have to get a wrench out). But I just put the loader on, then lift the front wheels off the ground with the loader, pull the mower out forwards. Much easier than fiddling around dragging it.

 

[slickwilly1976]

Thanks for the info. I started with a a old gray market (LOVED IT) then bought a new B series with the drive off deck and it was aggravating to take off. It wasn’t a great mower either. I traded it in on a JD1025R and it mows terrible no matter what you do it. The JD is a much more comfortable to drive for sure. They are really laid out nicely. The JD’s are like a beer can when it comes to everything else. It’s light and even moving a dump truck load of mulch you have to be wide open and in 4x4 to get a good dipper load. When I’m going through the field it’s beats you to absolute death. You feel like a rag doll when you get off. The ergonomics have the orange beat but construction is really lacking. In my opinion and I know we’re all different. They are kinda the Tucker Car of the day. Pretty and a great idea but not well put together. I think I can get a good deal on the BX so I’m thinking of pulling the trigger.

 

[tractormike]

I have a BX2380 and it mows fine.I actually think it mows better than my JD X540. I always mow with the loader off. Much easier to handle and much better balance.

 

[slickwilly1976]

My old JD mower probably mows better than my scag zero. So if a bx will mow as good or better than a JD mower I really will be pleasantly surprised. Thanks y’all for all the info

 

[Tchess450]

I have the bx23s and my whole yard is hill. I Am sure I mow in areas out side of recommended degree of slope but find the BX pretty stable. I have the 60 inch deck and cut Quality is pretty good.

 

[PaulL]

The problem is that cut quality is very subjective, and very closely related to what you're cutting and how often. If you want stripes and beautiful flat lawn, I'd get a different machine. If you're cutting once every 2 weeks in spring with lots of dense grass, you need a machine with a bagger.

For me, I mow 1-2 times a week depending on season, I'd rather mow more frequently than bag. The BX mows well when it's not taking too much off, and (even though I don't have a mulch kit) mulches just fine. I side discharge to the inside, and mow over it again on the next go round - end up with a small pile in the centre. If the grass gets too long that doesn't work, and I end up looking like I mowed hay off my lawn.

I wouldn't expect the cut quality to be a lot different than a B, so if you were unhappy with the B you'll potentially also be unhappy with the BX, unless that B was damaged or set up badly.

One problem I do have is that I think my blades are a bit short (sharpened too many times, ate too many sticks and rocks), and so I get a bit of a ridge where the blades meet. Doesn't worry me too much, it's not huge and only visible the day I mow.

 

[i7win7]

BX2370 with 60" deck no problems mowing. Last year, had wet spring, revved up dropped into 4wd powered thru standing water (R4 tires). Yes it left ruts, week or so later drug out my monster roller. Also helps to have spare dirt pile on property.

 

[AlaskaKubota]

I agree with the loader off. Less likely to hit something or break something on the loader but for hills I always used it for extra ballast. I just always mowed the hill first then dropped it to mow everything else. It was a pain because I then wanted it back until the next mowing. Just something to think about depends on your hill. Mine was steep and just gave me some extra peace of mind.

My tractor was a little bigger, 45 horse JD with 72 7iron. Mowed great for what I used it for and I have friends that mow with the smaller Kubota B series. Their yard/pasture always looks really good.

 

[slickwilly1976]

Thanks guys for all the replies. My yard isn’t perfect and I have coverage more weeds than grass. Lol. My scag makes a pretty yard but I have a long bank that I hate to mow with it because it digs in and leaves a cut line so I usually have to use two mowers if I want something that looks better. I have a small field behind the house I’ve gotten fairly tamed but it’s rough and on a slope. The scag mows it fine but it’s rough on the kidneys not to mention the mower. Maybe my B series wasn’t as level as I thought it was. My B had the R4’s on it as well and if I get this BX it has turf’s so I’m hoping it’ll be a little more forgiving. I haven’t done my due diligence yet and got prices from other places yet. This one is just shy of 15k out the door. It has 3 hrs on it. It was traded in at my local yanmar dealer. Guy bought it new then traded it in on a bigger yanmar.

 

[GreensvilleJay]

It doesn't matter what mfr/make/type of mower you use if the ground is ROUGH, LUMPY,BUMPY... you'll never ever get an acceptble lawn , let alone a 'golf course green'.
If you're planning on living there more than 5 years, spend a month and regrade the 'lawn' area, level it, roll it, get it darn near perfect, then seed and roll and water. Reseed in the fall and next Spring. After that THEN any mower will easily cut the grass without busting the the mower OR your 'family jewels'.

 

[slickwilly1976]

My yard is pretty smooth I don’t have any problems there. The field out Back I don’t take a lot of care with. I mainly keep it knocked down every two weeks or so to keep the vermin population down.

 

[slickwilly1976]

Well I pulled the trigger and went from green back to orange and got the BX
I get to adjust the deck this weekend. I don’t know what they done installing but it’s definitely not level lol. Time to read the manual and figure it out.

 

[PaulL]

Messicks have a good video of levelling a BX deck. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oewtrUqLVU8

I mowed today, so took a couple photos. It's autumn here, this was a 1 week mow, wasn't long but not so short either. A few leaves around that I mowed in, as you can see you get a bit of untidiness left in the centre, which mostly blows away by tomorrow so I don't worry about it.

 

[slickwilly1976]

Yard looks great .....thanks for the lint to the video