Hi all, well I finally made a decision and went with the Cub 2550. Shaft
drive, cast iron hydro transmission, 50" deck. And the three bag collector
was about $450, roughly half of what it would have cost for the bagger on
the Deere LX280.

I appreciate all the feedback and input. Dealer will be delivering it next
Saturday morning. Of course I'm now starting to shop around for some
accessories (trailer, de-thatcher, aerator), but at least the big decision
is over with!!






"CNB" wrote in message
...
I just done a little research on my own deck - the 42C. It's made of
12-guage metal. I can't imagine why anyone would need anything thicker
than
that for a yard, it's pretty thick. Not something you would put a dent in
without considerable force. Let us know what you end up going with.

Casey
"Jeff" wrote in message
...
According to the Cub guy, the deck's aren't interchangeable. I doubt
that
degree will matter much, but it does make me stop and think. Just my
over-analytical mind in over-drive causing me more angst than necessary!


"CNB" wrote in message
...
I noticed this when I bought my LX266. The deck is considered a seperate
item than the tractor, and so for whatever reason the 50 inch deck is
made
with 12 guage metal. The thickness of the metal used for the different
decks
do not always go up or down proportionally with the size of the tractor
they
are mated with. You have to remember that some decks can be used on
several
different tractors. Its sort of like a computer. The most expensive may
actually have a less expensive part in it compared to the others, but
the
total package is what your getting. I wonder if you can buy the tractor
and
deck seperately? I've never heard of this but it seems like you should
be
able to.


"Jeff" wrote in message
...
Right now I'm looking at the 2500 series with the shaft drive,
probably
the
2544. The more I look at the brochure, the more little, subtle
differences
I see that make my head spin. For example, the 2544 has an 11 gauge
44
inch
deck, the 2550 has a 12 gauge 50 inch deck, and the 2554 has an 11
gauge
54
inch deck. Unless it's a typo, I can't figure out why the deck on the
50
inch would be thinner gauge.