[torc]

Last Tuesday my boy was out mowing with my Broadmoor and the deck belt broke on him. Since I was at work and couldn't change the belt, he got the Sovereign out and kept mowing. I got home from work and he was about 3/4 finished mowing. Ten minutes after getting home he came into the house and told me there was something wrong with the mower, he couldn't turn it. So I went out and saw my poor baby with the front wheels pushed under her. WTF...what the **** happened. We managed to get it back into the shop where it was parked. It was getting dark out and I didn't have the heart to start evaluating what happened so that's where she spent the night. I was a little upset seeing the ol' Sovereign like that. She was my workhorse. The following day I stayed home from work, replaced the belt on the Broadmoor and checked out the Sovereign. What I found out was the steering pivot bolt unthreaded and popped out. What happened was the steering pivot bolt hole wore into an elongated hole and the bushing pushed through causing slack in the bolt and the nut eventually vibrated off. I was able to get her all back together like new with the use of a much thicker bushing.

However, the evening of the mishap I began shopping for a new mower. Believing the Sovereign was beyond repair I thought it best to move on with a new mower. I used the Sovereign for mowing and for snow plowing in the winter so I needed something that could do all that. I started my shopping on Facebook and found an ad that was posted for about an hour for a 2007 4WD Prestige. Well that would certainly take care of the traction for winter plowing and with a 50" deck, mowing should be a breeze. I was excited as a little boy who just found a puppy. So I showed the add to my wife and hoped for her blessing. This is when I actually started looking at all the pictures and a 3-bag turbo collector was also included. Dang, I have a two bag turbo on the broadmoor that I use quite a bit so this was a big bonus. I have a wonderful wife and she said to go get it if I thought it was worth it. So I contacted the seller and since he was two hours away I begged him not to sell it before I got there. He gave me first dibbs and we made an appointment for yesterday.

It was more than I expected. The power steering on the Prestige was very similar to that of the Sovereign. But 4WD, cruise control, power height adjustment, a fuel gauge, 27 HP, nice bright headlights and a cup holder were all things I didn't have so we shook hands and I began loading her up. I thought the $1800 price tag was a bargain for a 4WD tractor that has a turbo collector and 500 hours of use. Now strangely enough, I can't wait for the grass to get taller.

Now to clean up the Sovereign and go through the chore of trying to sell her. Grief....

 

[Hammerhead007]

Great find. She's a looker!

 

[Mrlunchbox]

You cheeky guy!!! I saw that too and was considering going down to Philly to grab it (it was Philly wasn't it?) But thought its either a scam or will be gone in an hour. I guess I was right! ha ha one heck of a deal!!!! See I have a 46" two stage blower and would've loved the 4wd. Beat the heck out of chains and ton extra weight. Did the seller say why it was so cheap?

 

[Willscary]

Congrats! I have the 2wd and I use it to plow my driveway.

My rear tires are filled with about 75 pounds of Rimguard each and each has a cast iron 50+ pound wheel weight also. This weight is on year round as it does not put any weight on the frame or axle. When plowing I add 135 pounds of stainless steel to my 2" receiver hitch. Traction is excellent with the Super turf tires and this setup!


Also, My Conquest had that same deck. It mowed flawlessly!

 

[torc]

It wasn't in Philly but a little town called Willow Street, just east of Philly. Yeah, I bet the 4WD would help you a lot. I'm not planning on using any chains or weights on this machine. Putting the weights on the wheels is a pain in the butt. The guy selling it said that last year he took the thing to the dealership for fluid changes and was thinking about buying a new one. Dealer offered $2200 in a trade. So the guy thought another year of depreciation would bring it down to about $1800. Obviously the guy doesn't understand what trade value is compared to retail value and that the dealer will sell the trade for two or three times what the trade value was. Buy ya know the seller walked away happy and I drove away very happy. As I was loading it on my trailer, he said he needed to call a bunch of people who also wanted to come and get it and tel them it's sold. And just think, the sale of my Sovereign will offset the purchase a little bit.

 

[torc]

Willscary, do you recommend the Johnny plow for the long haul? I'm thinking of getting one and I'm curious of the electronics longevity. That's a great video.

 

[Willscary]

It has worked perfectly for me, so...yes, I do recommend it. It is expensive by itself, but if purchasing with the Johnny Bucket Jr., it becomes a much better deal. the subframe stays on all the time and makes a nice brush guard. The plow and bucket work well. I installed the joystick in the dash and I set it up like most construction equipment...pulling back on the stick raises the bucket or blade and pushing forward lowers them. Pushing to the right pivots the blade to the right or curls the bucket and pushing to the left moves the blade left and dumps the bucket. You can set it up however you like.


Edit: I should add that the joystick option has 8 poles which allows you to move at 45 degree angles and perform 2 operations at once, such as raising the bucket and curling it back or lowering the blade and pivoting it to the right. this is not nearly as easy to do when using the two supplied toggle switches.

 

[Talntedmrgreen]

What an incredible deal! The 2wd Prestige's still run $2000-3000 around here, and anything below $2000 I take a serious look at. I've had two, and loved them. I just (re)added a turbo to my Legacy XL and can't imagine living without one (again). Trouble is, I dump my triple bagger 3-4 times per mowing.

 

[Prestigious1]

Awesome deal!!!!!!!

 

[Ziptar]

Awesome deal! Have a 2WD 2008 Prestige 27HP and love it. Hope you get many years out of it. One of these days i'll find a deal on a 4WD... I hope.