I'm a big fan of exmark, but they are pricey. Scag makes a fine machine for the money, but you better like a grease gun. Really my biggest complaint with Scag besides the weight of the machine is that you still have to grease the spindle bearings. Most all the other machines use sealed bearings so there's no need to grease them. I also own a Spartan. At first I didn't like it at all. The price was right, but it was extremely sloppy in the steering controls. I took it apart and redneck engineered it over the winter. It's actually a usable machine now and rather nice. It's by far the smoothest riding mower I've ever been on. Also the factory deck adjustment on the Spartan is garbage. They make an aftermarket that uses a pin instead of the dial, which is much better. If you know what you getting into the Spartan maybe worth the money you'll save if you willing to tweak a few things. But if you're looking for something great right out the door on go with either Scag or Exmark. Whoever you choose, if it's in the budget, make sure you get a commercial model. The homeowner models just don't stand up to the abuse like the commercial machines do.
