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54 or 60 inch deck?

17K views 17 replies 14 participants last post by  Virtual_Guy 
#1 ·
I have a 54” deck now on my x475. I am looking into upgrading tractors and would like your opinions regarding the 60 inch deck. I mow 3 acres. Thanks.
 
#2 ·
Which do you want??? They will both mow 3 acres, the 60" will do it slightly quicker!!! :dunno:
 
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#6 ·
The 60D mmm just may be the best mmm JD has ever built. The scalping issue many users talk about is a non-issue if the mmm is set up correctly, you do not try to cut your lawn too short, and you do not crest hills while mowing.

Most users with a 60D do not realize, because of the height of the deck, the deck only drops about an 1" from fully raised to cut height. Grass should be mowed at a height of 3" to 3 1/2". Fully raised on a 60D is 4".

Any mmm will scalp if you crest a hill with the deck lowered or otherwise mow uneven terrain and this condition worsens with longer wheelbase tractors. The best way to prevent scalping is plan your mowing to prevent these situations.

I assume if you are mowing 3 acres, it is relatively level. The 60D will work fine.
 
#7 ·
I like the larger deck because it sticks out further to the left and makes close trimming easier. I have 62C, I would have liked to have either the 60 7 Iron or 60HC deck, since I tend to be hard on decks. I had to weld cracks on the 50" deck on my JD 285 several times.
 
#8 ·
The wider deck, set up correctly and used correctly, has a distinct advantage as Z5 said, the deck extending out the side of the mower permits trimming under trees, along landscaped areas, etc. and dramatically reduces the string trimmer time. I have never had an issue with the decks scalping and my front yard is "contoured" with rising and falling terrain. Just pay attention to the mowing direction and change it often and you won't have any issues.

Reality is most decks after the 1st pass are operated at 80% efficiency when over lapping and making subsequent passes. That means the 54" deck ends up providing a net mowing width of about 43" (80% of the 54" width) where the 60" deck will provide over lapping and subsequent passes of 48". Plus I like having the overlapping of the cut occurring outside of the mower's wheel base, which will happen with the 60" deck and won't with the 54" based upon the machine wheel base width.

As long as you don't have any restrictions with gates, doorway openings, landscape areas or trailer widths which restrict the larger deck, go with the 60" deck. It will reduce the mowing time and the cutting quality doesn't have to be any less if the deck is set up and used properly.
 
#9 ·
The height you mow your lawn depends on the type grass you have and desired “look” you are after. For instance I mow mine 2.5 inches because I am looking for that “golf course” type look. And yes with northern grass I have to fertilize and water my lawn to keep the look I want. As a general rule of thumb, with modern high capacity mower decks. The 54 inch deck will give slightly better cut than 60 inch deck – just common sense; you are hanging a deck from two hanging points below the tractor. The wider the deck the more it is prone to “tip” or lean when turning tractor or cresting a hill, The 60 inch will get job done quicker. If you lawn is straight line, ( or basically a field) with few trees, flower boxes etc to maneuver around the difference in quality of cut will be negligible. So a lot depends on look of lawn you are looking for and how picky you are on quality of cut
 
#10 ·
I think the 60” deck is the way to go, unless you gate or something that you couldn’t get through with the wider deck. The wider deck gives you a smaller uncut circle.
 
#11 ·
I have the 54" on my x758 and previously ran a 60" on my 445. The x758 was a good deal so I ended up with the 54", but the 60" is what I would prefer. I cut about 3-4 acres every two weeks, and it's still taking me about the same amount of time to cut as it did with the 445 and the 60" deck. The big difference on the x758 is that I can move a whole lot faster than I could on the 445 and still achieve a great cut. The down side to that is that I need a smoother seat suspension since the factory suspension is too stiff for my weight. That said, I'm on the look out for another 60" deck as that would be my preference overall. With 3+ acres to cut I would always want the biggest deck I could get.

Rick
 
#12 ·
It it were me, I'd stick with the 54" deck.

My used Craigslist x750 came with the 60HC deck. Seemed to scalp a lot on he left side, but I discovered my deck wasn't level. Once leveled, solved that problem.

I had 445 with 54" deck and it was great. In my opinion, not much difference between the two.

If there is a cost involved, just keep the 54 and be done with it. If it's going to cost you some $$, save your bones...not worth it.
 
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#14 ·
Discounting the cut quality, height of the deck, etc.,\; without a doubt, the number one reason to have a 60D mmm is it sticks out the side of the tractor further which will most time prevent your from knocking off the ROPS lights. :laugh:
 
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#15 · (Edited)
I have a 54" for the X585 that doesn't get used anymore and a 60" on my Z950R.

I also bought a chainsaw so now I can use the 60". :good2:

Of course cutting with a Z Trak has reduced the mowing time significantly and the bigger deck helps a little. I can cut a little faster but just going around trees in a single pass vs two is probably more of a time saver than the deck size. That is a machine difference though.

The biggest difference (negative) I see is that when I cut my ditch it is impossible to get an even cut with the 60". The ditch isn't that big and when I am in the middle it leaves it long in the middle as the tires are partly up each side and scalps at the edge of the deck. If I make a pass slightly up on the side to cut the middle then it scalps the middle. This is partly because it is a bigger deck and since it doesn't flex to follow the contours it is going to miss stuff when going over terrain where there are quick changes in grade. Also the mower deck's cutting width being larger than the wheel width. About the best way to cut this is going down one side and up the other. I have to watch that though because when I crest the hill I will scalp the grass as well. Personally I don't care that much. Some people are more fussy about their lawn though.

Oh another thing. The 60" will stick out the sides further. There are plenty of threads about not using your mower deck as a step on a tractor. They are made for that on a ZTrak. Since the 60" sticks out further it is more of a step to get up on the machine without stepping on the deck.
 
#16 ·
I feel like I’m the Goldilocks of mowing. My fantasy is a 60 MMM. Instead I have used a 60 RFM which has issues of grass lay down by two sets of tractor tires. I have a 54 MMM (gator blades) which has some side to side play and scalping on my rough field. The best cuts ever was the two times I used my 48 with lift and cut blades. It look Some time, however it sure looked pretty. I suspect a 60 MMM on a GT would have a lot of side to side play. Really though, the height of the grass, the moisture, and the point in the season seem to play a bigger role than the size of the deck in terms of cut. Overall the 54 is my fastest time wise and that’s maneuverability. Will I ever find the one that is just right? I do enjoy reading these threads.
 
#18 ·
I recently went from an x350 with a 48" deck to an x495 with the 62". My observations:

  • I love the size of the 62" deck for my open areas. Between that and the sheer power of the 495 I can mow much more quickly.
  • I do have issues with scalping on uneven spots. Other's have said "avoid this" but I can't really see how in my case. I just live with it.
  • For every place the wider deck prevents trimming like up under a bush, there's another place that I can't fit. I think this is about a wash overall.
  • In general and on fairly even terrain I get a better cut with the 62 but both were great mowers.
  • I crashed into a few more things with the 62" before I got used to how far it sticks out to the side. I accidentally discovered how strong that x495's diesel is :laugh:

So given how much you're mowing and assuming you don't have a lot of tight spots, I'd go with the bigger deck.
 
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