Lawnmower?

GO Dawgs · 02-24-05, 07:47

Any of you guys purchased a pushmower recently, if so what kind I want a bagger on it

cwcad · 02-24-05, 08:18

i have used the sears push type lawn mower all of my adult life. i personally prefer the side discharge type. i just got a close out notice on a push lawn mower from sears.com this very date. check it out. they are simple and durable with just a moderate amount of up keep. if you have a small to medium size lawn you will not be disappointed.

sharpen the blade often.. change the fuel filter twice a season.. along with plugs and a oil change and you will have a lawn mower that will last for at least seven years. that is how old mine is and it is still running strong.

MongooseGA · 02-24-05, 08:28

We bought a Honda this past summer. I'm not sure of the model number, but it's the best one they offer. 6.5 HP engine, RWD, variable speed transmission, dual blades, composite shell, etc... It's got enough power to spin the wheels on my driveway on full throttle. Mulch and bagging capable. It starts the first pull everytime, and it doesn't die in thick, wet grass.

I think it was $700, IIRC.

GearHead_1 · 02-24-05, 09:00

I repair small engines as a side hobby. I like both Snapper and Toro mowers. Get a commercial mower with a Honda engine and they'll last you 20 years with regular maintenance. Seriously, no joke. Buy a Sears/MTD or one of the other local house brands and even with a Honda engine you might be looking at 7 years out of them before the regular repair costs make you question whether its time to buy a new mower.

Corey Bit Spank · 02-24-05, 09:17

Bowens used to make the best mower

And then TB bought them out and well...oh well

kompressornsc · 02-25-05, 10:25

Get a real (reel) mower! This is all I've had for the last 10 years. Works beautifully and cuts better than a rotary-no dead tips so your lawn is always green.

Edit: And I still havne't figured out how to get an IMG to show up instead of just linking!

kevmo327 · 02-25-05, 02:06

What gearhead said is 100% right on.

I made the moistake of buying an MTD/Yard Machnes at Home Depot...what a POS...I am having more issues wiht it and not it need a new carb.

IN the past, when i have had bigger lawns I always had a Honda or a lawn boy...both are outstanding machines. (I think Honda has the edge though).

PrinzII · 02-25-05, 03:02

I am a huge Toro fan. We had a Toro that lasted us for over 30 years and the thing is STILL running strong.

GearHead_1 · 02-25-05, 04:09

Reel style lawn mowers do offer the best cut however aren't practical for the average home owner. Of course that's the reason golf courses use them to cut their greens. They are pricey up front, have a very limited number of manufacterers, parts are more difficult to come by and are quite costly when repair is needed. There are a bunch of great lawn mowers out there. Ariens makes very nice mowers as does Husquavarna (though I don't like the clutch set up on Huskies). LawnBoy has great mowers though they have been aquired by Toro and now appear to be their entry level offering. LawnBoy's 2-cycle engine is what made them a great mower and 2-cycles are no longer available (thank you EPA). I've been less impressed with LawnBoy's recent 4-cycle offering though I still sell a few of these. Honda makes good mowers though they are a little spendy up front and you can get their engine on a number of other mowers (Honda's engine is the best part of Honda). I personally don't care for their composite decks (Harmony models) and have seen a number of these with cracks in them. MTD makes the majority (probably 60% of all mowers sold) of "house brand" mowers including Craftsman. Interestingly enough you can get a Honda engine on some of the lesser Craftsman mowers and even Honda isn't proud enough of them to put their name on the engine. It just isn't the same engine as some of their better products. I really like Snapper mowers though some mechanics don't care for their drive systems I find them very easy to service and maintain. I believe them to be a lot of mower for the money.

Most people even when looking at a commercial and consumer mower side by side won't pick up the differences. The differences are significant and many. You can find lots of mowers for less than $300 (including Toro) but I would suggest looking at some of the commercial mowers in the $600 - $700 range if you kind find a way to swing it. I would recommend staying away from Toro's Personal Pace model mowers. Commercial lawn mowers have engines that are designed to last 10 times (no joking) as many hours as traditional home owner mowers. Most Brigss & Stratton engines are designed to last for around 250 hours. That doesn't sound like a lot but consider the average user cuts lawn for less than an hour a week for about 2/3 of the year. When you look at it this way the mower might last 5,6 or 7 years. Commercial engines are designed to go over 2000 hours. They also usually have either steel wheels or bearing inserts in the wheels and the decks are significantly heavier gauge steel or better yet aluminum.

All this said I've seen cheap mowers last 15 years when owners maintain them and I've seen $1200 Toro 2-cycle mowers destroyed in a cutting by not using mixed fuel. In the long run it usually comes down to what you can afford and how long you expect it to last.

I'm sure this is way more than most people want to know about lawn mowers.

cwcad · 02-25-05, 04:37

Quote:

Originally posted by GearHead_1
Reel style lawn mowers do offer the best cut however aren't practical for the average home owner. Of course that's the reason golf courses use them to cut their greens. They are pricey up front, have a very limited number of manufacterers, parts are more difficult to come by and are quite costly when repair is needed. There are a bunch of great lawn mowers out there. Ariens makes very nice mowers as does Husquavarna (though I don't like the clutch set up on Huskies). LawnBoy has great mowers though they have been aquired by Toro and now appear to be their entry level offering. LawnBoy's 2-cycle engine is what made them a great mower and 2-cycles are no longer available (thank you EPA). I've been less impressed with LawnBoy's recent 4-cycle offering though I still sell a few of these. Honda makes good mowers though they are a little spendy up front and you can get their engine on a number of other mowers (Honda's engine is the best part of Honda). I personally don't care for their composite decks (Harmony models) and have seen a number of these with cracks in them. MTD makes the majority (probably 60% of all mowers sold) of "house brand" mowers including Craftsman. Interestingly enough you can get a Honda engine on some of the lesser Craftsman mowers and even Honda isn't proud enough of them to put their name on the engine. It just isn't the same engine as some of their better products. I really like Snapper mowers though some mechanics don't care for their drive systems I find them very easy to service and maintain. I believe them to be a lot of mower for the money.

Most people even when looking at a commercial and consumer mower side by side won't pick up the differences. The differences are significant and many. You can find lots of mowers for less than $300 (including Toro) but I would suggest looking at some of the commercial mowers in the $600 - $700 range if you kind find a way to swing it. I would recommend staying away from Toro's Personal Pace model mowers. Commercial lawn mowers have engines that are designed to last 10 times (no joking) as many hours as traditional home owner mowers. Most Brigss & Stratton engines are designed to last for around 250 hours. That doesn't sound like a lot but consider the average user cuts lawn for less than an hour a week for about 2/3 of the year. When you look at it this way the mower might last 5,6 or 7 years. Commercial engines are designed to go over 2000 hours. They also usually have either steel wheels or bearing inserts in the wheels and the decks are significantly heavier gauge steel or better yet aluminum.

All this said I've seen cheap mowers last 15 years when owners maintain them and I've seen $1200 Toro 2-cycle mowers destroyed in a cutting by not using mixed fuel. In the long run it usually comes down to what you can afford and how long you expect it to last.

I'm sure this is way more than most people want to know about lawn mowers.

not at all. since i took care of my lawn mower all that you said seems to hold true. that is exactly what mine has done. the push lawn mower that i have has lasted just as you said it would. although i also have a riding lawn mower now. have had it for two years so the push lawn mower does less than it used to. even with that said, i am still sure that it could mow the whole lawn and do a good job.

with less than $150.00 invested it has been a good an economical lawn mower.

6cyl's_of_fury · 02-25-05, 07:01

FWIW, I have used only reel mowers and they are usually well built and last a lifetime. My father has a Rover and it is so trouble free its not funny. And the cut is soooo much better!

I think this what you were after kompressornsc?

To post a hosted picture, you need to:

open the picture and put your mouse over the picture ->
right click and select "properties" ->
put your mouse over the Adress(URL), right click and select "select all" ->
right click and select "copy" ->
Then paste address into image tags ( as shown below )

[ img]insert adress here[/img]
^
when you do it, dont leave a gap here like I did and hey presto, you will have a picture!

the actual address for you picture is:
http://autopia.org/gallery/data/500/12043mower.bmp
and not
http://autopia.org/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=12107&papass=&sort=1

GearHead_1 · 02-25-05, 07:12

Quote:

Originally posted by 6cyl's_of_fury
FWIW, I have used only reel mowers and they are usually well built and last a lifetime. My father has a Rover and it is so trouble free its not funny. And the cut is soooo much better!

I think this what you were after kompressornsc?

If this is the the type of reel mower being discussed then I must say "my bad". I assumed it was the motorized reel mowers and had directed my comments accordingly.