Where to buy a new lawn mower?

[Grateful11]

timg wrote:


You KNOW Greg wants it!

Our's is close:

[rz]

Agree with mattkime, get a mulching mower and leave the clippings on the lawn. I live in Florida, where in the summertime, grass can grow 8" in a week. I used to have a bagger - never again. When we moved to our current house, our agent bought me a new mulching mower as a housewarming gift. I can mow twice as much lawn in less time than at the old house with the bagging mower.

[John B.]

If you know enough about mowers to be confident at looking at used ones, Craigslist is a decent way to go. I had a plastic-decked Honda (that I bought used 5 years ago) that finally had enough stress cracks in the deck that it was on its last legs. I liked the Honda engines, just not the plastic deck so much, and there are plenty of stories of their engines lasting virtually forever. So I found a used Honda with an aluminum deck, shaft drive (instead of belt on my previous mower) and blade brake clutch (instead of kill switch) for $200 locally on Craigslist. Then I turned around and sold the still-functional engine off my old Honda mower for $50 plus shipping on Craigslist. Still need to sell the catcher and mulch plug from the old mower...they don't fit the "new" one, which came with its own bag.

[LyleH]

I have a Toro self-propelled similar to the 20330, and I highly recommend Toro. You said your yard is large, so going for the self-propelled seems like a smart thing to do. Mine starts on the first pull even after 3 years of service, and even after not using it for a month or more. And the mechanism for propelling the mower is variable speed - basically you simply push on the handle to go forward. Push harder and you go faster. Most natural control I've ever used.

Also, the May Consumer Report recommends it, and has the 20330 rated the highest for a $300 machine. All rated above that are (much) more expensive. It is also rated as Excellent for mulching, so you can use it that way, too.

Toro, Husqvarna and Craftsman self-propelled units are tied for the least repairs needed.

LyleH

[neophyte]

Agree with Toro. My self-propelled is 16 years old, been through three blades (pine cones and small sticks galore here). I use it about 2 hours per week from May through October, then it sits in the garage for 6 months. Three weeks ago I got it out and dusted it off, checked the oil level (it was fine from an oil change last summer) and it fired up on the second pull as usual. My previous Toro lasted 20 years until the wheel drive mechanism (sealed gearbox) broke. My "new" one has a direct belt drive. The belt's been stretching a bit every year, probably time to replace it. I bought mine at an Ace Hardware, not sure the 2 "big box" home improvement chains carry Toro.

[AllGold]

Ombligo wrote:
Look for a used one at either a mower repair shop or on Craigslist.

No reason to pay full retail for one.

:agree:

I actually got my (self-propelled) push mower at Sears--but it was a good deal because it was USED.

[iaJim]

I'm with TLB! You've spent money on the motor, and I'll bet on big garbage day you can find a mower sitting along the curb that could make a deck/motor swap for your current motor. People throw these things away because they won't start, and typically, that's a $30 fix. I have a very old Snapper with its second engine. It's not a new Snapper branded engine, but Snapper doesn't make them anyway. These things are remarkably interchangeable. Don't spend money on a new mower. Fix/swap out parts of this mower or buy a used one that runs. Money ahead quickly!

[Grateful11]

The thing is none of the ol' great mowers, Snapper, Toro, Lawn Boy, etc. are made like they
used to be. The drive systems are different, the decks aren't made like they used to be. Don't
except to get a Snapper like you used to could. You can get the old Disc-Drive Snapper, that
were hard to beat, but you'll pay $700-$1000 for one.

http://www.snapper.com/products/walk-beh...er/hi-vac/

[MacGurl]

I probably don't trust myself to do a good assessment of a used mower via Craigslist and the like, though I might not worry about one through Sears, if they had such a thing at our local store.


I am indeed a mulcher though. I don't figure we need all of those bags of lawn clippings added to the landfill.

Thank you all for your thoughts so far. As much as I'd love a self-propelled, those really seem out of my budget. It's probably healthier for me to do all of the hard work anyhow.

[kap]

Saw on the news on Channel 5 KTLA this morning about 'green' lawn mower:
http://www.neutonpower.com/
Supposedly there is some type of special discounts.