**Updating this article after 3 years of owning a Grandstand
We have no affiliation with Toro, but somehow over the years have ended up with almost all Toro mowers in our fleet. I am really impressed with the quality of build that Toro makes for all of their mowers, whether it’s the Toro Z-Master, TimeMaster or Grandstand, we love them all.
Quality and Compactness Of The Build
I think almost all commercial lawn mowers have a similar build quality, but Toro in my opinion has one of the smartest builds for stand on mowers. Let me start with the platform. We absolutely love how you can flip up the platform and the mower becomes so compact. Two 52″ Grandstands only take up 10 feet of space on a trailer which is incredible. With our Z Master 4000’s, they’re like 7 feet long each. We had zero serious issues in the 750 hours combined we put on our two grandstands.
(Update: Now at 1350 hours EACH, still have not had a serious issue. One belt broke and one had the PTO switch break. We haven’t even replaced our tires yet and they aren’t bald.)
How Efficient Are Toro Grandstands?
Having the 10 gallon gas tank is a huge benefit for our company. We burn about 5-7 Gallons of gas per mower per day depending on the season. The belts, the hydros, fuel lines, everything is so simple and easy to get to. No grease fitting either, this machine is just a workhorse. I’ve pushed countless piles of leaves with them too and they still weren’t breaking down.
If I have one major criticism of the Toro Grandstand 52″, it would be with the 22 HP Kawasaki Engine. Having more horsepower on the Grandstand I bought would be nice, but definitely not a necessity.
(Update from 2 years later: I absolutely wish they had bigger engines for the 52″. The 22 HP Kawasaki does miserable in wet conditions. It’s practically unusable if the lawn is wet. BUY THE 60″!!)
Top speed for these machines are around 8 MPH, but nobody ever cuts a lawn that fast unless it’s the summer time. The speed difference compared to the Toro Z master 4000 60″ deck and my Grandstand is a 52″ deck is noticeable on properties bigger than 1/4 acre, which unfortunately is almost all of our lawns. Looking back, I wish I had not bought the 52″ deck and went with the 60″ deck. The Toro Grandstands are noticeably lighter, and will make ruts in the lawn about half as often as our riders do. They’re the absolute best mower to train someone on who has never cut grass before.
Pros:
- Compact design saves shop and trailer space.
- Very comfortable ride.
- Easy deck height adjustment.
- Top of the line cut quality.
- Smooth turning and controls.
- The easiest mower that I’ve seen new employees get comfortable with using.
- Incredibly easy access to drain/change hydro oil.
- Very easy to clean.
- Easy to hop on and off the mower.
Cons:
- 22 HP Kawasaki seems a little under powered.
- Deck height lever sticks out and sometimes gets caught on branches.
- Horrible cut quality if it’s wet (applies to 52″ deck only)
Price
The price of our machine was around $9,300 after taxes, which is roughly the same as the Toro Z Master 3000 rider. Really no savings in getting the stander.
(Update 2 years later: I think they’re around 11,000 now, which is still less than the 13,700 I paid for a new Z Master 4000.)
Versatility
This is where I think the Toro Grandstand review really shines. There are so many attachments that you can add to this machine that make it more than just a lawn mower. D’ttach Manufacturing makes awesome products such as leaf plows, aerators, and more than make it a year round unit.
These mowers hold hills well as long as you are cutting side to side like the image I put in above. Knowing I can easily hop off the platform and be safe is awesome as well. The mower really is essentially a Walk Behind Mower with a sulky that’s built into the mower and allows you to maneuver much more comfortably. I’ve never flipped up the platform to cut a hill, because your weight on it actually helps stabilize the machine.
My team members also love using these machines. They’re honestly just really fun to use. Standing all day will eventually wear on you and your knees, but sitting all day on the Z Master also can get boring and hurt your back. I think the best combination is to have one of each and you can rotate with crew members. The ultimate trailer setup probably is a 60″ Rider, 60″ Stander, and a 48″ walk behind for any gated areas. Buy an old used Scag belt drive one too because it’ll probably get used a few hours a month. Just depends on your area.
Toro Grandstand Review Conclusion
We really love these machines and will definitely be purchasing more in the future as we grow. There are simply not many “cons” with the Toro Grandstand. I hope you enjoyed this Toro Grandstand review. Email us if you have any questions! boltonlawncarellc@gmail.com
Bolton Landscaping & Tree Service LLC 