How a complete zero turn novice ends up with a 2021 Bad Boy Maverick after having his eyes opened to the benefits of zero turn mowers. Here's why each other brand was passed over:

Kubota 700 series was simply too expensive. Dealership was too far away to go back and test a 400 series. Too far to get service and parts, also.

eXmark had a less-than-commercial grade 2800 transmission in the model available for a test drive.

Gravely ZT HD felt super lightweight somehow, but was quite a nice machine overall. Good quality drivetrain at the price point.

SCAG Liberty Z looked and felt absolutely tiny, as if you weren't getting enough metal for your money at their price point.

Toro Zmaster was extremely nice, felt heavy duty, but the Chinese Loncin engine made me nervous in a machine that expensive which I want to last a long, long time.

Of course there are other price points and models available. But this was what the dealerships near me had in stock, so these were what I had available to test drive and experience for myself. I won't buy something this expensive without trying it first.

The Bad Boy Maverick just "felt right" if that makes any sense. Just looking at the front end tells you that it's made with enough steel to last. The company is certainly thinking about long-term durability.

This is supposed to be a true "lifetime" purchase for my needs, and I wanted at least a Kawasaki engine and a Hydro-Gear 3100 transmission or better. This Bad Boy Maverick has the Kawasaki FS730V and Hydro-Gear 3200 transmissions. It should last me a good long while, since I'm religious about service on my machines.

Beware of "Lifetime" transmissions when choosing a lawn mower. What that really translates to is "Non-Serviceable", and they don't have drain plugs or removable filters. You'll end up either burning them up in a few years when the oil cooks down, or you'll be going to insane lengths to actually change the oil on a regular basis. Consider the "Lifetime" they claim to be no longer than the terms of the powertrain warranty.

That LTX 1050 KW Cub Cadet I whine about on the video has cost me more on repairs and my personal time than I paid for it initially. The best example is that I removed the transmission, did a full rebuild on it, and then drilled and tapped a drain plug so I could do regular oil changes. I can't count how many hours I've spent fixing things on it, and it only has about 160 hours on the Hobbs meter at this point. Just disgusting. MTD will never be seeing another dollar from me, and I'm happy as hell about that fact.

Do your research before buying. It'll save you many headaches in the future. Buy once, cry once!