2013 Cub Cadet LTX1050 Kohler review
Yesterday I got to use my 2013 Cub 1050 Kohler for the first time. Bought it at Home Depot against my better judgment but there were no dealers in the area. I got one that had been put together the night before and had never been outside in the rain. I choose it over the John Deere 140 which was the same price simply because it was more mower for the money and quite a bit more comfortable on my titanium back.
Sadly the first few minuets started with a problem. The starter was having trouble connecting and turning the engine over. All the symptoms of a dead battery plus a high frequency whining noise. It started fine the first cold start up but a while later after turning it off the problem started. I finally had to put the battery charger on it to get it to start. The battery didn't seem low however. After that I didn't have much trouble but it did seem very weak a few times after that. I have 30 days to return it if the problem persist. Maybe the brand new engine is pretty tight and will loosen up some as it breaks in.
Was pretty rough riding and was getting stuck a lot. My yard is pretty rugged and a lot of slopes in it. I checked the tire pressure and they were 10 pounds over inflated. The book says they are over inflated for shipping for whatever reason. Home Depot puts their certification on them when assembled so shame on them for not finishing the job. Proper inflation made the ride MUCH better. It wasn't getting stuck as bad but still getting stuck. Sharp turns seemed to be a headache because of the poor traction. This mower really needs the larger garden tractor 22' wheels instead of the same size wheels that's on a much smaller mower. This is a big 24 horse mower with a 50 inch deck and undersized rear wheels tires. They do sell a model with the larger rear wheels but the markup for it is ridiculous. I could find a set of 22s and buy tires a lot cheaper than the extra 600 bucks for a mower already with them. But that's my only complaint. A tractor of this size and weight needs the larger back wheels to help it keep traction in turns and hillsides.
Mowing performance. This machine was a fearless mower. The 24hp Kohler twin cylinder engine was a monster. The 50 inch deck was quiet and mowed wonderfully. I went into the field I normally mow with my farm tractor and it easily dwarfed anything I could throw at it. Not a complaint but a observation.....the offset blades that are supposed to mulch and finely cut grass into small clippings wasn't really that great. It throws a lot of clippings out and blows them out a long way. This was a little aggravating because the wind can blow them back on you. Stupidly I mowed along my wooden fence with the blower torwards the fence and it threw grass all over me lol. But all in all it was a excellent mower and made a really pretty and even cut. My yard looks fantastic.
Comfort. What can I say, it was a Cadillac. I'm 6'2 and have had 3 operations in my lower back. I was very comfortable on this mower. The seat is large and plush and a nice big platform for my big feel. The steering wheel has a nice rubber grip on it with a nice form for your fingers to grip. The steering and handling is like driving a sports car. Very tight and responsive. As I said before my only complaint is the poor traction due to undersized wheels and tires. Proper tire inflation does help so be sure to check when you get home with one.
Controls. Nicely laid out. The PTO switch is convenient and works great. Throttle is smooth and seems less fragile than the plastic one on the John Deere. The hydrostatic foot pedal for forward and refers works very nicely. Very smooth and responsive. My favorite feature is the reverse safety switch. Your supposed to turn the key into the safety position and press a button which turns on a red light. This allows you to keep the blades on while in reverse. I've cheated a little bit in realizing I can turn the key into safety mode and press the button and leave it there. Your supposed to return it to normal mode after your finished backing up. But, if you leave it there with the red light on you can mow all day in reverse without having to fool with it every time you back up. It doesn't automatically turn off so basically you can leave the overide on as long as you want or until you turn it off manually. One thing I don't like is having the choke on the throttle at wide open. I don't like starting a cold engine at full throttle. I have to quickly lower the throttle after it starts. I believe proper warmup sessions before full power is just common sense. Nobody floorboards their car as soon as it starts so why would you do it to your mower engine??? My dad never had anything that didn't last 20 years and he always taught me to warm things up and cool them down. He must have knew what he was talking about because we had one mower for 20 years and the neighbors went through several. Now we have had the second one for 14 years and going strong.
So that's it pretty much. Besides the poor traction and undersized tires it is a excellent tractor and mower. It is built very well and has a heavier better build front end that the others I looked at. Will it last 15-20 years? I have no idea but time will tell. I'm pretty optimistic about it after using it despite the terrible reviews out there about 2011 models. Of course I would rather had a heavier built dealer model or a John Deere dealer tractor, but money did not permit a premium mower. So for 2 grand this is a lot of mower for the buck.
Sadly the first few minuets started with a problem. The starter was having trouble connecting and turning the engine over. All the symptoms of a dead battery plus a high frequency whining noise. It started fine the first cold start up but a while later after turning it off the problem started. I finally had to put the battery charger on it to get it to start. The battery didn't seem low however. After that I didn't have much trouble but it did seem very weak a few times after that. I have 30 days to return it if the problem persist. Maybe the brand new engine is pretty tight and will loosen up some as it breaks in.
Was pretty rough riding and was getting stuck a lot. My yard is pretty rugged and a lot of slopes in it. I checked the tire pressure and they were 10 pounds over inflated. The book says they are over inflated for shipping for whatever reason. Home Depot puts their certification on them when assembled so shame on them for not finishing the job. Proper inflation made the ride MUCH better. It wasn't getting stuck as bad but still getting stuck. Sharp turns seemed to be a headache because of the poor traction. This mower really needs the larger garden tractor 22' wheels instead of the same size wheels that's on a much smaller mower. This is a big 24 horse mower with a 50 inch deck and undersized rear wheels tires. They do sell a model with the larger rear wheels but the markup for it is ridiculous. I could find a set of 22s and buy tires a lot cheaper than the extra 600 bucks for a mower already with them. But that's my only complaint. A tractor of this size and weight needs the larger back wheels to help it keep traction in turns and hillsides.
Mowing performance. This machine was a fearless mower. The 24hp Kohler twin cylinder engine was a monster. The 50 inch deck was quiet and mowed wonderfully. I went into the field I normally mow with my farm tractor and it easily dwarfed anything I could throw at it. Not a complaint but a observation.....the offset blades that are supposed to mulch and finely cut grass into small clippings wasn't really that great. It throws a lot of clippings out and blows them out a long way. This was a little aggravating because the wind can blow them back on you. Stupidly I mowed along my wooden fence with the blower torwards the fence and it threw grass all over me lol. But all in all it was a excellent mower and made a really pretty and even cut. My yard looks fantastic.
Comfort. What can I say, it was a Cadillac. I'm 6'2 and have had 3 operations in my lower back. I was very comfortable on this mower. The seat is large and plush and a nice big platform for my big feel. The steering wheel has a nice rubber grip on it with a nice form for your fingers to grip. The steering and handling is like driving a sports car. Very tight and responsive. As I said before my only complaint is the poor traction due to undersized wheels and tires. Proper tire inflation does help so be sure to check when you get home with one.
Controls. Nicely laid out. The PTO switch is convenient and works great. Throttle is smooth and seems less fragile than the plastic one on the John Deere. The hydrostatic foot pedal for forward and refers works very nicely. Very smooth and responsive. My favorite feature is the reverse safety switch. Your supposed to turn the key into the safety position and press a button which turns on a red light. This allows you to keep the blades on while in reverse. I've cheated a little bit in realizing I can turn the key into safety mode and press the button and leave it there. Your supposed to return it to normal mode after your finished backing up. But, if you leave it there with the red light on you can mow all day in reverse without having to fool with it every time you back up. It doesn't automatically turn off so basically you can leave the overide on as long as you want or until you turn it off manually. One thing I don't like is having the choke on the throttle at wide open. I don't like starting a cold engine at full throttle. I have to quickly lower the throttle after it starts. I believe proper warmup sessions before full power is just common sense. Nobody floorboards their car as soon as it starts so why would you do it to your mower engine??? My dad never had anything that didn't last 20 years and he always taught me to warm things up and cool them down. He must have knew what he was talking about because we had one mower for 20 years and the neighbors went through several. Now we have had the second one for 14 years and going strong.
So that's it pretty much. Besides the poor traction and undersized tires it is a excellent tractor and mower. It is built very well and has a heavier better build front end that the others I looked at. Will it last 15-20 years? I have no idea but time will tell. I'm pretty optimistic about it after using it despite the terrible reviews out there about 2011 models. Of course I would rather had a heavier built dealer model or a John Deere dealer tractor, but money did not permit a premium mower. So for 2 grand this is a lot of mower for the buck.
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Interesting that in 2010 at least, the 1050 had 20X10 tires, and now they have the smaller 20X8 tires. I have the 20X10's on my LT1045 and I get a lot more traction than my neighbors d110 with 20X8's. Also, the dealer 1050's are the same at HD 1050's, just get better service buying from a dealer. I didn't notice that Cub went to a single lever for the throttle/choke, mine is separate so I don't know how I feel about it. But also, the engine revs at 3600 rpm at full throttle, which is governed, not quite the same as flooring the car, but still annoying.. I don't like running full throttle from cold, after a minute or 2 it is the quickest way to get it to operating temperature, which is desirable. I have changed to full synthetic oil as well.
Great review! I have used my LT1045 to the max in the past 5 years (110 hours) with only the battery giving me trouble (second one), but as hard as I use it I also take care of it equally as well. No problems so far.
Great review! I have used my LT1045 to the max in the past 5 years (110 hours) with only the battery giving me trouble (second one), but as hard as I use it I also take care of it equally as well. No problems so far.
Thanks for the reply. After 160 some odd views of my review I figured there would be more responses lol. Also I'm glad to hear you have had a good experience with these mowers. I was very nervouse about the online reviews. I think out of the thousands sold its just the few that have problems that get reviewed. A few bad apples doesn't poison the tree. I wanted to throw a good review out there for people who want to read a review other than bad. The majority of folks who have a good experience don't post reviews about it online, but those who have a problem have to get online and blow steam. I think it's a little unfair but that's how it goes.
One thing you can do is get a set of ag tires to replace your turf tires on the rear. Don't think I would recommend any wheel or frame weights on a lawn tractor. Check to see if you have the Hydro-Gear tranny in your tractor. If you do, it's defiantly a plus vs the Tufftorq K46 used on some of the Cub Cadets and John Deere lawn tractors.
Good luck,
Bill
Good luck,
Bill
I would think wheels weights would be fine.Frame weights i would say no.You could also and maybe the best way?Load the rears with windshield wiper fluid.
:MTF_wel2:
:MTF_wel2:
Also as leeave 96 said ags will for sure take care of this.I was just thinking of a cheaper way:trink40::trink40::fing32:
With your back issues I would be more inclined to go with HDAP' over the AG's for the ride will be more like a turf tire. Either style tire will get you better traction. slkpk
Ill just make due with it for now. Some ag tires may be in the future though but no sense in throwing a new set away. It was just my first mowing and impression of it. After a little more time I may develop a technique that works a little better as I get used to it. I've been mowing my lawn with a farm tractor the past 3 years so the small mower is a lot different.
Here is what I was mowing with before and still is my backup mower
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Here is what I was mowing with before and still is my backup mower
That is the cutest picture on this forum!
I put the Carlisle HD Field Trax tires on my LTX1050KW and what a difference and a real good heavy tire. I can honestly say, there should be no problem with your terrain then.
Nice review.
I agree with a lot of your points as to why you chose this tractor over other brands. I think there is more value here.
I just shopped for a 42 inch cut with a twin cylinder engine and hyrdo. I ended up comparing the Deere D130 vs the Cub LTX 1042 KW and liked the Cub better without considering price. When you factor in the fact that the Cub was $200 cheaper it was no contest.
Plus I was able to buy from a dedicated dealer that I like instead of buying the Deere at a big box or from a dealer that was pretty far away.
3 cuts in and I am pretty satisfied. For what i ask it to do, its is more than up to the task.
Long may it continueraying:
I agree with a lot of your points as to why you chose this tractor over other brands. I think there is more value here.
I just shopped for a 42 inch cut with a twin cylinder engine and hyrdo. I ended up comparing the Deere D130 vs the Cub LTX 1042 KW and liked the Cub better without considering price. When you factor in the fact that the Cub was $200 cheaper it was no contest.
Plus I was able to buy from a dedicated dealer that I like instead of buying the Deere at a big box or from a dealer that was pretty far away.
3 cuts in and I am pretty satisfied. For what i ask it to do, its is more than up to the task.
Long may it continue
raying:I'm glad you guys are having good luck with your Cubs. My experience experience was not so pleasant. I paid $3000 for a GT1054 to cut my 4 acre bumpy yard. Within the first 50 hours it needed an adjustment bracket rewelded, the center spindle replaced because it broke and a new belt. All of this they tried getting me to pay for, which I didn't. Local repair center wouldn't fix it under warranty and mtd was no help either I took it to TSC where I bought it and they fixed it, but tried charging me for parts. I argued and they did it for free. They gave me a new tensioner spring as well, which caused another headache because it wasn't the right one for my tractor so the belt would slip. So, I eventually bought mtd blades, belt and spring and it ran like new again, but it still took me 3 hours to cut my grass. So out with the old.
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And in with the new.
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Put some Carlisle all trails on the Husky and it's, perfect cuts the grass in less than 1.5 hours and it looks like a golf course.
Sent from my SM-G900P using Tapatalk
And in with the new.
Put some Carlisle all trails on the Husky and it's, perfect cuts the grass in less than 1.5 hours and it looks like a golf course.
Sent from my SM-G900P using Tapatalk
BTW selling the Cub for $2300 if anyone in Michigan is looking.
Sent from my SM-G900P using Tapatalk
Sent from my SM-G900P using Tapatalk
Resurrecting an old thread to follow up with the original poster. It would not allow me to direct message you. Do you still have this lawn tractor? How has it held up through the years? Thanks!
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