The Dixie Chopper.

• Author: Keaton, Joanne

At $5,795 for the simplest model and $8,900 for the top performer, the Dixie Chopper mower is not designed for the homeowner with a little patch of green. But for the commercial user or someone with a big, big yard, the made-in-Coatesville machines may solve lot of problems.

Problems, in fact, were what led to the creation of the Dixie Chopper line. Art and Jean Evans started a mower sales and repair service in 1974. Through fixing mowers, they soon learned those machines' weaknesses. They formed Magic Circle Corp. in 1979 to manufacture their own mowers based on what they learned.

The major pluses of the new mowers were speed and zero turning radius, meaning the machines literally can turn in place rather than making a wide circle.

A funny thing happened with Magic Circle's earliest models. When customers brought equipment from other manufacturers into the Evans' shop for repairs, the company loaned them Dixie Choppers. Customers were so taken with the loaners that they wanted to buy them.

Today, many lawn-care professionals claim Dixie Choppers are the best machines available. Chris Hargis of Indianapolis-based Perfection Property Services sang the mower's praises in a recent lawn-care industry publication. "Dixie Choppers cut two to three times faster than walk-behinds and other riders. My guys can mow a 30-acre account with four Dixie Choppers in five hours," he says, adding that employees using large commercial walk-behind mowers would need two days to complete the task. Magic Circle, in fact, claims that the Dixie Chopper is the fastest mower on the market.

The deluxe machines are stainless steel. This keeps them from rusting, of course, but has another advantage. In the classiest commercial settings, maintenance...