My new Bad Boy ZT Avenger 60" zero turn.

[oggb]

Brand new.
Really impressed with how solid it is. No rattles and it feels very stout. According to the XPO bill of lading it weighs 860 pounds! That's a hefty girl for a "residential" zero turn. It feels easy as sturdy as the John Deere commercial 60" I used at a previous job.

The 25HP Kohler 7000 has plenty of power for the 60" deck and it goes more than fast enough. It wouldn't matter if it went any faster -- my yard isn't glass smooth. I expected it to be pretty thirsty (my other two mowers with Kohler Commands certainly are) but it used well less than 2 gallons to mow ~3.5 acres in 2.5 hours. In my opinion/experience that's pretty good fuel economy, especially with a fairly hilly yard and a few slopes I need to creep on to keep it from taking off into the woods.

One thing I noticed about this Kohler is that it has composite valve covers! That's a plus because for every other Kohler I've owned I've ended up buying composite covers that look identical to these because the stamped steel ones inevitably leak.

 

[cpayne5]

Looks great. Should be a good mower for you!

 

[skyactiv]

Very nice zero turn. Looks like they don't cheap out using thin metal in it's construction.
I have a stand on Ferris and have 3 acres to mow. I wish I got a Wright stander instead. I'm buying a robot mower eventually.

 

[BlueOvalFitter]

Very nice zero turn. Looks like they don't cheap out using thin metal in it's construction.
I have a stand on Ferris and have 3 acres to mow. I wish I got a Wright stander instead. I'm buying a robot mower eventually.

Isn't that what a good wife is for?

 

[northshore_paul]

How is it hold up? I was thinking of one from the local Tractor Supply Store but after reading the reviews I am hesitant about the engine and the mower itself. There were many complaints of engine problems and poor mowing, such as leaving streaks down the middle of each cut. Any experience like that? I read where some long term users complaining of the hydro motors going out after the 2 year warranty and that they are very expensive to replace.

 

[oggb]

How is it hold up? I was thinking of one from the local Tractor Supply Store but after reading the reviews I am hesitant about the engine and the mower itself. There were many complaints of engine problems and poor mowing, such as leaving streaks down the middle of each cut. Any experience like that? I read where some long term users complaining of the hydro motors going out after the 2 year warranty and that they are very expensive to replace.

The engine runs great and I've had zero problems with it. Currently at 40 hours. It doesn't have that crazy electronic choke nonsense but it starts up super quick. The hydros are Hydrogear ZT-2800 units. Probably the most common hydro there is in residential class mowers. It doesn't go very fast, maybe 6 or 7 MPH, but it's hard to mow faster than that without pulverizing your insides anyhow.

As far as mowing, the center blade DOES leave strips if the grass is extremely heavy... just like my other zero turns do... I really have had zero problems with it leaving uncut grass unless I'm mowing stuff that is almost knee high or EXTREMELY thick grass back in the early spring. It's no worse than my old Scag or JD zero turns. Sometimes you just know you're going to need to mow a spot a little slower than usual.

Just mowed the yard yesterday and it had gotten pretty tall and it cut great. I mow at 4" and couldn't ask for much better honestly.

 

[northshore_paul]

Good information, thanks.
On another note, I see in your list of vehicles you have a 07 Prius you identify as "Formerly known as the Devourer of Oil." I have a 2016 with 80,000 miles and no oil consumption between the recommended 10,000 OCI using the recommended 0w/20 Mobil 1. How much oil did/does your's consume between oil changes and since you identified it as "formerly" does that mean you sold it or something changed to prevent the devouring of oil?

 

[oggb]

Good information, thanks.
On another note, I see in your list of vehicles you have a 07 Prius you identify as "Formerly known as the Devourer of Oil." I have a 2016 with 80,000 miles and no oil consumption between the recommended 10,000 OCI using the recommended 0w/20 Mobil 1. How much oil did/does your's consume between oil changes and since you identified it as "formerly" does that mean you sold it or something changed to prevent the devouring of oil?

Mine consumed 1 quart every 750-1000 miles. Common problem with the Gen 2 (2004-2009) Prius and the Gen 3, but mostly 2010-2013. The rings were redesigned for 2014 and the pistons for 2015. I haven't heard of any problems with the 2016+ models yet.

 

[northshore_paul]

Did Toyota replace the rings for you since it was a defect in design engineering?

 

[oggb]

Did Toyota replace the rings for you since it was a defect in design engineering?

No, the rings/pistons were just a redesign for the 2ZR-FXE engines in the Gen 3 Prius.

I solved my oil burning by doing a thorough piston soak using Berryman's B12 chemtool.

 

[northshore_paul]

I am having the same problem with my son's 2017 Hyundai Tucson that started consuming the same amount of oil at about 55,000 miles. I've heard of people doing a cylinder soak from the spark plug opening and using compressed air to force it down around the ring lands and letting it soak for a day or two. I have heard of using Marvel Mystery and Seafoam but not the Berryman B12. What process did you do to accomplish it and what was the oil consumption after doing so?
Thanks for the reply, it will help a lot.

 

[oggb]

I am having the same problem with my son's 2017 Hyundai Tucson that started consuming the same amount of oil at about 55,000 miles. I've heard of people doing a cylinder soak from the spark plug opening and using compressed air to force it down around the ring lands and letting it soak for a day or two. I have heard of using Marvel Mystery and Seafoam but not the Berryman B12. What process did you do to accomplish it and what was the oil consumption after doing so?
Thanks for the reply, it will help a lot.

So I just poured a few ounces of Berryman's down each cylinder, threaded the spark plugs back in lightly, and gently turned the engine over by hand by turning the crank pulley bolt to force the Berryman's down past the compression rings. I would then wait a few hours and repeat the process. I went through 2 or 3 12oz cans of Berryman's. Once I was done soaking I blew the cylinders out with compressed air, put a little bit of motor oil in each one to provide a little lube for the cylinder walls on startup, threw the spark plugs back in, changed the oil, and that was that.

Berryman's B12 is a much stronger cleaner/solvent than Marvel Mystery Oil or Seafoam. You can find it at Walmart and most parts stores.

It cut my consumption down to the point that I don't need to add oil between 5000 mile oil changes.

 

[JTK]

Looks great!

It's been some time since I followed OPE like this, but I don't think I've ever read of anyone wearing out Hydro-Gear ZT2800 drives. I had them on my Cub Z-Force w/ a 44" fab'd deck back in 2010. I think the 2800's had only been around a year or so at that point. That 44" would leave a strip at times too. I never cared for the cut quality or horrendous noise from that deck.

 

[northshore_paul]

Thanks JRed, we will give that a try.

 

[GMBoy]

I've had my BAD BOY zero turn for 3 years - the thing is a beast. No issues, runs strong and the metal is thicker than anything available at the big box stores. It will serve you well.

 

[oggb]

Rainy day so thought I'd update this after having used it for ~14 months. We had a dry year last year and I didn't put anywhere close to the hours on it that I thought I would. This year I've been mowing every 4-6 days since the last week of March.

Still cuts great and I've had zero issues. Replacing the deck belt takes at most 10 minutes. Replacing the drive belt takes longer as there's very little clearance to slip the belt over the hydro pulleys, but having done it once, it'll take me ~10 minutes next time. Neither belt needed to be replaced, but I'm used to doing it out of habit on the older mowers we have that ruin belts with oil far before they're worn out.

My only real complaint with my particular mower is that the deck belt creates some vibration due to belt slap. Gets worse as the belt stretches. Installed an idler pulley on the long run from the PTO to the deck and solved it. Didn't even need to upsize the belt length to give an idea of how much slack there is even with the tensioner perhaps a bit too tight.

That being said, the newer models use Briggs engines instead of Kohler and cost considerably more than I paid. There's less than zero chance that I'd pay $4700 for a mower that says Briggs anywhere on it. Similarly, these mowers now cost ~$5000 with a Kohler engine, and this isn't a $5000 mower.

 

[dlundblad]

Very nice. I do like how the decks appear overbuilt.

 

[#18FAN]

Rainy day so thought I'd update this after having used it for ~14 months. We had a dry year last year and I didn't put anywhere close to the hours on it that I thought I would. This year I've been mowing every 4-6 days since the last week of March.

Still cuts great and I've had zero issues. Replacing the deck belt takes at most 10 minutes. Replacing the drive belt takes longer as there's very little clearance to slip the belt over the hydro pulleys, but having done it once, it'll take me ~10 minutes next time. Neither belt needed to be replaced, but I'm used to doing it out of habit on the older mowers we have that ruin belts with oil far before they're worn out.

My only real complaint with my particular mower is that the deck belt creates some vibration due to belt slap. Gets worse as the belt stretches. Installed an idler pulley on the long run from the PTO to the deck and solved it. Didn't even need to upsize the belt length to give an idea of how much slack there is even with the tensioner perhaps a bit too tight.

That being said, the newer models use Briggs engines instead of Kohler and cost considerably more than I paid. There's less than zero chance that I'd pay $4700 for a mower that says Briggs anywhere on it. Similarly, these mowers now cost ~$5000 with a Kohler engine, and this isn't a $5000 mower.

What pumps do they run? 2800 or 3100 maybe

 

[oggb]

What pumps do they run? 2800 or 3100 maybe

Mine has 2800s. The model up gets 3100s.

 

[#18FAN]

Mine has 2800s. The model up gets 3100s.

Have you changed hydro fluid and filters?