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+--- Thread: Riding Lawn Mowers: any advice? (/showthread.php?tid=33284)
Riding Lawn Mowers: any advice? - tuqqer - 05-15-2007
I think I finally gotta bite the bullet and get a riding lawn mower. We have an acre of lawn and the electric just isn't cutting it.
I'd prefer to not spend a lot, and get a very basic model. This is Colorado, so we don't have a long green season. My only needs are low upkeep and no engine problems.
I've always heard the Deere's and the Hondas are the best, but do I have to spend that much, or will something from Home Depot/Costco fill the need?
Any personal experience would be much appreciated.
Re: Riding Lawn Mowers: any advice? - Jp! - 05-15-2007
toyota
Re: Riding Lawn Mowers: any advice? - voodoopenguin - 05-15-2007
You need power to have fun.
Re: Riding Lawn Mowers: any advice? - graylocks - 05-15-2007
Sears has always had well regarded offerings.
Re: Riding Lawn Mowers: any advice? - vision63 - 05-15-2007
Congratulations on having an acre of lawn. You da man.
Re: Riding Lawn Mowers: any advice? - jesse - 05-15-2007
My husband loves his John Deere, he actually enjoys mowing the lawn now. The JD replaced a Craftsman that lasted about 5 years, we have several acres and it's pretty bumpy, the Craftsman just couldn't take the beating.
jesse
Re: Riding Lawn Mowers: any advice? - Grateful11 - 05-15-2007
This series of John Deere starts at $1499 on up to about $2799. I recently bought a
JD LA130 with a bumper and a bagger from a local John Deere dealer.
http://www.deere.com/en_US/ProductCatalog/HO/series/ho_100_series.html?tm=ho&link=dnav
Re: Riding Lawn Mowers: any advice? - mstudio - 05-15-2007
Another vote for a Deere. Mine came with our house ten years ago, I've got 2 acres to mow, never let me down. Regular oil changes, a new spark plug now and then and a belt or two in the last ten years. Oh, and I just put a new seat on it, more comfy for my old butt. It was seven years old when I inherited it.
Re: Riding Lawn Mowers: any advice? - lafinfil - 05-15-2007
Just about anything at the big box stores are owned by or built by MTD these days
and will be great .... for about the first year or two and then they will self-destruct
All the old great names have been bought up by them - Bolens , White, Troy Built, and even Cub Cadet
are now part of the company that brings you Ranch King, Yardman, MTD and the rest - yuck
I also believe they do the low end Craftsman. The higher end Craftsman are built by Electrolux I believe
same as the Husqvarna's and a few others - some were Murrays which were pretty good
and also sold under the Huskee line (TSC's house brand although many are MTDs now)
They are generally poorly engineered and will cause you more headaches when you find that
you can no longer get parts for that three year old mower
Here's my advice if you are spending less than $1000
Go to the local lawn tractor dealers and see what they have in the way of trade ins or also
check out craigslist etc ... and look for a Deere, Cub, Wheel Horse etc ... from the 70's or 80's.
Something with a real steel frame - not a stamped steel deck. Something with a heavy steel mowing deck
that has full gauge wheels on it, a real steering box , and is gear or hydro drive.
Look for a Kohler engine - not a B&S The old Kohler single lung K series will be running strong for many years after
the big box bargain is a pile of scrap metal not worth fixing.
Recommendations - If you can snag a Deere 200 series for $500 to $600 you will be golden.
Look for a 210, 212, 214, 216 - denotes 10HP, 12HP, 14HP etc...
Take it in and have it tuned and a set of belts put on it and you will be mowing for 20 years
One caution - The K engines are splash lubricated - not pressure so they are not a good choice
if you are mowing hill sides go with a more modern design.
Another work horse is the Cub 17xx series - early 80's vintage with a "modern" Kohler twin
I see them in nice shape around here for $500 - I saw two 1720's w. 46" decks in the last week and both were nice $500 & $600
They are pressure lubricated Kohler twins and has hydro drive (no hydro ports though - just tranny)
and have electric PIO for the deck. earlier Cub 100 series had electric PTO but were gear drive and Kohler K's)
If you want to "invest" in a tractor $1200 to $1500 will get you into a Deere 300 series hydro
that has a hydro tranny and hydro ports so you can add a plow, snow blower, etc...
and you can sell it for what you paid for it if you want to trade up
Re: Riding Lawn Mowers: any advice? - DinerDave - 05-16-2007
I was in your spot a few years ago and went with a John Deere. Very glad I did. The previous Craftsman just mowed terrible, even after Sears tech and private repairs shops tried to work on it. It was a 42" cut path with two blades. It seemed to always miss a few blades in the middle where they overlapped (or not!) The right side blade waould do an extremely poor cut, bad enough so that I would adjust my path so I was going back over it with the left side blade. This was after sharpening, blade replacement, etc. from several different repair shops. My guess was that it shot all grass blade to the right side, so that blade could not handle both the grass and recutting the clippings, thus a poor cut. This effectively made my 42" mower a 20" at best. Not a time saver.
The new Deere 42" 17hp L100, I admit, the smallest one I could find, any bigger would not fit in garage or shed, even though I really wanted the bigger one to handle the plow attachment. Anyway, it starts right up, as smooth as a mower could be, and actually CUTS the grass! My mow time was cut in less than half, as I can double the cut path, and still ride one gear faster than before.
I am a cheap any anyone, but this purchase price was well worth it.
Go Deere!
DinerDave