Ride on mowers - The good, the bad, the ugly?

[bootyinblue]

Kriso... where are you when I need you?

Folks, in the market for a new ride on mower and just want to guage who has one, who likes what they bought, who wishes they bought a different brand, who has one they want to sell :-)

Ideally I am looking for 42inch, auto, with 19hp or above motor.

Chucking open the floor to thoughts :woohoo:

[fishingnut]

maintenance, belts, maintenance

[51MPL]

good - you can do wheelies on certain ones. that's all i have to add greggy

[Surfingant]

Ideally I am looking for 42inch, auto, with 19hp or above motor.

Gee, that sounds like a lot of doof doof mobiles I see getting around

[Greenmachine]

I have a murray 12.5hp 38inch cut and an Mtd 16hp 42inch cut

The murray leaves the mtd for dead although my murray currently is dead.

I have been waiting for a part for my mtd for about 4 weeks and I am told it wont be in the country for a couple more. I will never buy an Mtd again, infact have only had it 6mths and cant wait to get rid of it.

[bootyinblue]

I have a murray 12.5hp 38inch cut and an Mtd 16hp 42inch cut

The murray leaves the mtd for dead although my murray currently is dead.

I have been waiting for a part for my mtd for about 4 weeks and I am told it wont be in the country for a couple more. I will never buy an Mtd again, infact have only had it 6mths and cant wait to get rid of it.[/quote]

Thats the sort of info I am looking for, although the doof doof comment did make me laugh. I have got it narrowed down to the John Deere D120 or the Husky 42inch one.

Anymore suggestions?

[haines490slc]

Don't get a john deer,

[bootyinblue]

Don't get a john deer,

How come?

[fishingnut]

A mate of mine does commercial mowing on a jd (4wd one) he loves it and wouldnt have nothin else

[RyanG45]

we have a cox lawn boss 16.5hp dont know big the cut is but havnt had a problem with it yet

[haines490slc]

Don't get a john deer,

How come?

have heard bad things about them and a few mates have had them and had issues, the Huskies are a nice machine, check ebay, heaps of good deals on there, I got a rover rancher 4 years ago and it has been abused ever since on my hilly acreage and hasn't missed a beat, just replaced blades and done a few oil changes on her.

[faulked]

much like every other mower man i use honda mowers as they are friggin awsome but i havent grown up and bought a ride on yet incidently the brush cutter fron trade tools for 199 is great value with heaps of grunt

crap head though its easilly replacable

[haines490slc]

honda don't make a ride on dude, and if they did, I would hate to see the price tag

[kriso]

im here , dude i have worked on them all, and still believe the green and yellow shits on the rest, Husq's are okay but parts cost heaps, JD has hassle free warranty where you can service your self with a maintenance kit and away you go. I have a JD LT180 that has over 450hrs and still runs and cuts like new. and as for getting parts its pizz easy, dont waste your time on a catcher the expensive and not one catcher i have used on any ride on is worth the coin for the finish you get unless it has a blower/ vacum connected to it. Give me a bell on my new number 0401 114 441 and will run through the rest. need to know what size block and terrain etc then will sort you out with a price through the connections.

[kriso]

Don't get a john deer,

hahahah let me guess your next line "deere by name dear by nature"

would love to hear your reasoning on this one

[kriso]

A mate of mine does commercial mowing on a jd (4wd one) he loves it and wouldnt have nothin else

hahaha yeah he would probably have a 495 or x748 depending on age ,man they are the ducks nuts i have had them in over 45 degree slopes in the pouring rain and not even using the diff lock -heaps of torque! is a like a V8 70 series cruiser of mowers lol

[haines490slc]

Don't get a john deer,

hahahah let me guess your next line "deere by name dear by nature"

would love to hear your reasoning on this one

have given it above mate, I got an old rover rancher $800 of ebay, 4 years ago, hasn't missed a beat, and it cops a flogging.

[kriso]

fair enough just thought there was more to it then heard from someone else. not having ago just thought you might of had a bad experience with them

[haines490slc]

no worries mate, my neighbour has one and hates it, keeps getting bogged, we have hilly blocks however, a few other blokes who have had them have also said don't touch them. But if you are an expert, your opinion is probably more valid. I will give you a call when I am ready for a new mower mate.

[daveylad]

I've had 2 Toro's 19hp Wouldnt go near again 1st one was for nice lawns in the Southern Highlands,NSW and managed okay with no hard work apart from throwing the odd belt, 2nd one was in Qld doing some real work and just couldnt handle it, the motor took on dirt and crapped itself just after the warranty ran out. 3rd mower was a Husqvarna 20hp, mulcher deck on a reasonable plot but a new plot,it lasted 3years and did okay but not as well as it should, but did take some hard work, I've since bought another one with a catcher and it is crap, wont take any thick cutting without smoking the belt and needing a new one at $104:00 each. Next one I.m going for the JD bit extra cash but you get what you pay for....actually you dont really but they seem to have the best reputation what I've heard of them.

[ellicat]

Horse.

Even the 1hp will do the trick. Mulches into handy sized balls too.

Runs on water and the Stallion model has five legs.

[Jords]

we've got a poulan pro, 24hp (from memory, was the top you could get) 42" cutting deck. Dad absolutely flogs it, our 'lawn' is actually steep rocky lantana hills (yeah samford!), and it manages ok. Blows something different every 4 or so mows, but parts/fixing it seems cheap enough. Still reckon he should just got what the neighbours got, which is just a tractor with a cutting deck

[bootyinblue]

Yea... I am looking for a machine that gives a bit better of a finishing cut than this one I ride!

[shortie]

all you need to do it COmbine 1 of these

This 1 of these and your set.

[bootyinblue]

Thanks Shortie.... I am glad I called Kriso before getting your suggestions :-)

[crazywalrus]

another option may be a better mower for your current tractor. I am not sure if these guys can help but all the commercial mowers use the finishing mowers on their tractors for mowing parks. Your Tractor may not have enough horses.

/>http://www.superiorequipment.com.au/equipment.php

[fishingnut]

A mate of mine does commercial mowing on a jd (4wd one) he loves it and wouldnt have nothin else

hahaha yeah he would probably have a 495 or x748 depending on age ,man they are the ducks nuts i have had them in over 45 degree slopes in the pouring rain and not even using the diff lock -heaps of torque! is a like a V8 70 series cruiser of mowers lol

Not sure what model? I know it's a 5 foot cut and cost 22g biggest ride they make I think ? He has 2 of them and recommends then to everyone, my boss has a husky but he's a wanker

[bootyinblue]

Good idea Ted, but the tractor is not here but at another parcel of land at Wivenhoe Dam.

The place here is fully irrigated and once I can work out how to turn them all in in sequence I a) will have no water left and have the greenest grass on the block.

[zan0_15]

i for one like the old cox ride on mowers, in my experience ya cant kill em :evil:

had one back when i was younger and still living at home on the farm.

had one incident though that will put the shits up me until i die! i was mowing the lawns one day and on the mower that battery was undderneath the seat, well didnt i get a shock when the battery decided it would break away from its mounts and arc in a big way on the underside of the chair and send a fair old charge into my leg :ohmy: the brunt of that charge was felt in the vicinity of the 'man jewells' which was not a fun experience :silly:

mowing the lawns was never the same!

[shortie]

i for one like the old cox ride on mowers, in my experience ya cant kill em :evil:

had one back when i was younger and still living at home on the farm.

had one incident though that will put the shits up me until i die! i was mowing the lawns one day and on the mower that battery was undderneath the seat, well didnt i get a shock when the battery decided it would break away from its mounts and arc in a big way on the underside of the chair and send a fair old charge into my leg :ohmy: the brunt of that charge was felt in the vicinity of the 'man jewells' which was not a fun experience :silly:

mowing the lawns was never the same!

never the same. lol

you trying to tell us you could never replicate the same problem.

[zan0_15]

im telling you that everytime i mowed the lawns after that incident i feared i would get off the mower a much lesser man!

[crazywalrus]

i for one like the old cox ride on mowers, in my experience ya cant kill em :evil:

had one back when i was younger and still living at home on the farm.

had one incident though that will put the shits up me until i die! i was mowing the lawns one day and on the mower that battery was undderneath the seat, well didnt i get a shock when the battery decided it would break away from its mounts and arc in a big way on the underside of the chair and send a fair old charge into my leg :ohmy: the brunt of that charge was felt in the vicinity of the 'man jewells' which was not a fun experience :silly:

mowing the lawns was never the same!

hmmmm ok well that explains the high voice :evil: :whistle:

[zan0_15]

[Guest]

cost effective

all you need to do it COmbine 1 of these

[attachment=42896]Children_s_Police_Tricycle_Toy1.jpg[/attachment]

This 1 of these and your set.

[attachment=42897]riding-mower1.jpg[/attachment]

[kriso]

from my exoerience in the trade is people killing machines by not buying the correct one in the first place, the hardest part is finding someone you can trust that actually knows what there on about and isnt just trying to see the biggest ticket item they can, many atime i sent customers away with a new ride on and told them to go buy that tv etc they wanted with the rest because other shops had told them they need to spend 8 grand etc to get the right machine. then theres the guys that but the cheapest model of a reputable brand , treat like a 5000 series tractor and shit can it to everyone when it breaks.

big thing to remember is they are still mowers not tractors so pulling the boat around the yard and trailers full of logs in 6x4 is for tractors not mowers. yes it might do it at first but transmission life will be drastically shortened. best thing you can do is tell your mower shop exactly what you intend to do with the machine and if you have trouble explaining it ask them to come out for a look especially when you have a undulated block. look at whats the tightest area you need to get through and how long do want to spend doing it. really if your on the right machine for the job and mow once a week in season and maybe once a fortnight or 3 weeks in winter you shouldnt really crack over 60hrs a year.

what type of grass you have also comes into play thicker lawns like buffalo etc use alot more torque to cut then your thinner blade grasses. ideally v twin engines are alot better for irrigated lush lawns as they produce alot more torque then a single cylinder engine and are generally more fuel efficent because they dont have to work as hard under the same work load.

Transmissions is another thing to look at while alot of companies market full drive to both wheels all the time this generally isnt good in tight areas as turning circle is greatly increased and also load on the transmission increased making a shorter life span. many on the market boast a diff lock feature, this is great as you can activate drive to both wheels only when needed but there is alot of models on the market where they have added diff lock feature to a transmission that wasnt really suited for that transmission ( orange swiss named machines feature this ) easy way to tell really is if its not a commercial mower and has diff-lock its probably not suited for it.

Not all engine are built equal! you can buy cheap shimano reels and dux nuts models for more money , its the same Kohler for instance has the command engine and also the courage series they are like chalk and cheese so have a chat to the mechanic at the shop and ask about the engine in the machine your looking at.

if presentation and cut quality is your thing blade speed is what you should be looking at. the higher the better if your mower is dropping heavily in revs when cutting tip speed is greatly reduced sacrificing the cut if you have thin spindley grass a high tip speed with step fluted blades will deliver the best cut. if you have a high soil content yard to mow expect a shorter life out of your blades as they will be sand blasted and dull spending a bit extra and buying blades with high boron content in the steel will last longer then normal hardened steel.

Hopes this helps a bit still heaps i have left out but have bored most enough on this. feel free to give me call or pm if you want to know more, but unfortunatley hung my machinary sales hat up six months ago but more then glad to help steer in the right direction.

[bootyinblue]

You did alright in selling me a JD machine today on the blower though!

Still not 100% convinced about the Vtwin machine as the grass here is far from uneven and terrain is not hilly. If its thick, then I reckon I will just do a higher cut.

But an awesome amount of relevant information in the above post for me or anyone else looking to buy a ride on.

[Do$tylz]

man... thats some good info re ride on mowers. Totally irrelevent to me as a ride on would not even be able to do a full circle in my yard, but still interesting info. Who'd have thunk that there would be so much to consider.

[kriso]

yeah thats just the main stuff , could go on about it for donkeys yonks but have bored most enough allready

Booty- the 120 is good but the 130 is alot more bang for buck. or even better by some sheep and go fishing on the weekends lol

[Lozzel]

Booty- the 120 is good but the 130 is alot more bang for buck. or even better by some sheep and go fishing on the weekends lol

Good thought Kriso, But, if Booty brought some "sheep" he wouldn't be capable of fishing on the week-ends :whistle:

[bootyinblue]

Well.... did my research and much to Kriso disgust I purchased this

/>http://www.craftsman.com/shc/s/p_10155_12602_07128856000P?vName=Lawn+%26+Garden&cName=Lawn+Mowers+%26+Tractors&sName=Lawn+Tractors&prdNo=3&blockNo=3&blockType=L3

24hp V twin, 42inch cut, yard cart, mulch plug, 2 year warranty for $3500 all up.