Riding lawn mowers

[slick]

Hey guys, I'm looking at buying a rider this year, and I was just wondering about your good and bad experiences. What brand do you use, motor, deck size etc.. Also are the big box stores comparable to actual dealers? I've heard there is a quality difference if you get one from lowes, homedepot, Sears, instead of say a toro or john deere dealer. Thanks for your help!

[Bradyfc]

I went with a zero turn toro last year and couldn't be happier with the mower. With the zero turn it cut my mow time from about 4 hours on my lawn tractor to 1.5 hours on the zero turn.

[hookr88]

Ditto on the zero turn. However, the ride is a little rougher due to the speed and shorter wheelbase. The mowers at the dealers will be heavier duty. The deck will be a heavier gauge and I'm sure but not positive that the components will be as well. Kind of like buying a 3/4 ton truck vs. a 1/2 ton.

[KFhunter]

first - name your budget
 
500 bucks?
1000 bucks?
1500 bucks?
 
10k?
 
this would save you over a grand by the time you add bagger over new
http://spokane.craigslist.org/grd/2892180114.html
 
not as good a deal - decent mower
http://spokane.craigslist.org/grd/2886646089.html
 
that was just a quickie search on CL - if you need to fianance it on a CC then buy a push mower
 

[jayrod9528]

I work at a John Deere dealer. So here is how it works. Lowes and Home Depot are only allowed to cary the "entry level" line such as the "D" series and the smaller zero turn. These mowers a good but, not great the run briggs and straton engines and are lighter duty. The dealers carry the entry level and then the carry what they like to call a premier model. They have Kawasaki engines and are heavier duty frames and decks. The entry level is the same price at the dealer as it is at lowes. The nice thing about the dealers are they can help you find the correct mower for your budget and you get to look at the whole line. The thing about the box stores is they really don't have a clue when it comes to mowers. They know as much as the brochure tells them. They will sell you a bagger but, neglect to tell you you need bagger blades (we see this all the time). All your warranty is done through the dealer not the box stores. If you have more questions just shoot me a PM I would be happy to answer any questions you have about the mowers. PS Im a parts guy not a salesman. 

[slick]

Looking to spend $1500 cash. No debt for a lawnmower. Thanks for the info jayrod9528! I'll be checking out a john deere, kubota, and toro dealerships on Saturday.

[KFhunter]

lotta green and yellow kool-aid drinkers out there, never understood it myself

[BigGoonTuna]

generally the one thing most people think about the most: the engine and its horsepower, is the last thing they should worry about.  realistically, that's the one thing that tends to not fall apart on riding mowers.

i would make sure you're getting something with a well-built, sturdy deck.  husqvarna's LS series come with fabricated(not stamped) steel decks.  pretty nice for our climate where everything rusts out.  i've seen a lot of rusted out decks, and if yours ever gets to the point where you need to replace it, it's not very friendly on the wallet(a bare bones deck can run $400...that's without the spindles, blades, and idlers you need to make it function).

craftsman, husqvarna, and poulan(as well as probably some others) are all made by AYP.  there are varying degrees in quality but most of the parts will interchange and they're readily available(as well as relatively cheap).   john deere is all over the board, they make everything from the junkers you see at home depot to some really high end machines.  generally speaking the parts can be expensive, and you have to get most of them from the dealer.

my favorite riders have always been the rear-engine snappers.  they're light, uncomplicated mechanically(i.e. less things to break), and you can stand them up on the back end to service the deck and transmission.  their design hasn't changed in decades, which really says something about how good they are.  however, they aren't a tractor type mower, so you can't accessorize them like most other riders, but that's a waste of time anyway, IMHO.

[jayrod9528]

Ohh yeah one more thing John Deere MADE IN THE GOOD OLD USA. 

[SnakeEyes]

I invested in a John Deere in 1998 and it is still going strong. It was not cheap at $4000 but I have several friends who have bought the cheap riders and they do not last. I feel I have saved money in the long run.

[jjdavis2222]

Maybe assembled in the USA but I doubt all those parts come from the USA. Not much is anymore!

[jayrod9528]

Maybe assembled in the USA but I doubt all those parts come from the USA. Not much is anymore!

Sorry, your skepticism is well founded as not may things are made in America anymore; however just because you doubt this does not make it true. They actually have shown the plant on the history channel watching the parts being made and then assembled. You may have a point that not every bolt is made in america but, the major components are made in America. As far as "American Made" you can't get much closer than a John Deere mower. 

Kawasaki engines: Lincoln Nebraska
Briggs motors: many locations in the U.S.
decks transmissions and frames: Wisconsin or in North Carolina

[rasbo]

love my huskie,mowing two acres with it for years

[Knocker of rocks]

I invested in a John Deere in 1998 and it is still going strong. It was not cheap at $4000 but I have several friends who have bought the cheap riders and they do not last. I feel I have saved money in the long run.

I bought a Scott's that year too, and it's still going strong.  I only have 3/4 of an acre.

[dontgetcrabs]

This will be my 9th season with a John Deere.  It has never let me down. I have just under an acre of mostly bermuda grass that I mow twice a week.  I went through a couple Craftsman mowers that did not hold up very well.  I did spend some coin on it, but it has already out lasted both previous mowers and is still going strong.   

[Whitpirate]

lotta green and yellow kool-aid drinkers out there, never understood it myself

Friend of mine has a 14 year old Kubota tractor.  Went to buy some parts.... can't get 'em, don't make 'em anymore, we can sell you a new tractor sir....


I own 3 John Deere.  Bought parts for my 1961 yesterday and ordered another.  Case closed for me.

If it ain't green, it ain't mean.

[MIKEXRAY]

I would worry about horse power.  My friend had an 18 Hp  rider and the engine was always bogging down in longer grass. I made the decision based on using his to get a bigger engine.  I got the 22  or 25 hp ( can't remember )  and am really glad I did, no sputtering through long grass &  It powers through everything. Mine is a 42 inch and plenty big . Good luck,   Mike

[Happy Gilmore]

My Dad bought a Craftsman(I think 20hp) about 4 years before he passed away. That was 6 years ago. Mom's still mowing with it once a week. Their lawn is about 1/2acre+ and another 1.5 of pasture. I mow around the sprinkler heads with it then take out the old 1962 JD with brush hog. I mow whenever I go visit. It still starts up and mows as good as the day he bought it. I think it was in your budget range for price. Not sure what they are now.

It's never had a problem, has hydrostatic drive which is really nice and mows right through high grass in the pasture with no problem. Mom can operate it easily.

When I worked as a ranch hand for a while, we had a top of the line JD with four wheel steering, big deck etc. It was a royal POS. Constantly had issues. Had electrical bugs, a hydrostatic problem, broke a part on the deck and couldn't get a replacement forever. Spent more time at Huperts than mowing grass one summer.

[Special T]

I have had a couple of craftsman mowers. I had a couple of rock choppers. one i used, the other i used as parts. I now have a much newer one that is 24hp 48in deck.  They are not the most burly mowers however aftermarket parts are availabe on the internet for half the price of buying through sears. If you service them each year or 2, change the oil, filter, sharpen the blade, the only real thing you willl wear out is the mowerdeck... I don't think anyone makes one of those cheap. 

[Happy Gilmore]

I have a 12hp Craftsman I bought from a friend for $150. Still runs great but I broke a piece on the deck and haven't fixed it yet. Pulley froze up. I cleared the pasture in front of my house with it. Ran through rocks until the blades were flattened and mowed down all the salmon berry bushes with it...tough little machine. I beat the tar out of it until the pulley froze up. I think the mower was about 13 years old+ when I bought it. Smokes a little but, still runs like a top. Smokes a little more when I ran all my old boat gas through it......about 8 gallons...it didn't seem to mind at all.

[Boss .300 winmag]

The biggest thing IMO is preventative maintenance, at least once a year pull the deck, clean it, hit all the grease points, change oil and all filters, sharpen blades or replace them when worn out, and keep it clean out of the rain. See lots of riding mowers outside in the rain, just can't imagine how many problems these people have with their mowers. Go team green LA-125 series JD.

[BigGoonTuna]

a funny thing about mower decks...most of them have grease zerks on the blade spindles, well, those are largely put there for the benefit of the old timers that like to grease everything.  anyhow, both the bearings in those spindles are usually sealed!  the shaft has a hole in the center, so all you're doing by greasing is filling up the cavity with grease.

it's not always the case, for example commercial zero turns generally have tapered bearings that require greasing, but your run of the mill craftsman doesn't really require it.  in fact, the one place that should have a zerk, the pivot point where the belt tensioner is located(and frequent cause of thrown belts), rarely has one.  usually takes a bunch of PB blaster and a mallet to get back in working order...

[splitshot]

  hey,  what is wrong with the old push mowers.  no noise, no gas, no oil, no start, and they are cheaper.  you can not let the grass grow very long cause then you need to invest in a goat.  mike w