what lawn tractor to buy?( 1 year update)

[JB]

Re: what lawn tractor to buy?( 1 year update)

I would get a Kubota Diesel, but it is over your budget.<br /><br />Consumer Reports rates the John Deere best and most reliable.<br /><br />Good luck.

 

[hack_62863]

Re: what lawn tractor to buy?( 1 year update)

hey big dee murry and MTD are not made by the same company i know that they look alike and some of the parts interchange but every dealer i have talked to said they are not the same company

 

[dhammann]

Re: what lawn tractor to buy?( 1 year update)

Dig deeper Hack....corporate roots go deep

 

[neumanns]

Re: what lawn tractor to buy?( 1 year update)

Dang SBN, called the local wallyworld to tellem I would take a returned tractor. The told me there is one company that gets them all from all the stores in this region. Here I was hot on the trail of a cheap tractor...All for nothing.

 

[Mr.Ladyfish]

Re: what lawn tractor to buy?( 1 year update)

I'd say get whichever one the Mrs. is comfortable riding.

 

[one more cast]

Re: what lawn tractor to buy?( 1 year update)

 

[sloopy]

Re: what lawn tractor to buy?( 1 year update)

why not get an old pice'o'sh*t and fix it up?

 

[one more cast]

Re: what lawn tractor to buy?( 1 year update)

sloopy, I have Rhumatoid Arthritis and I just can't do the things i used to. The grass would be waist high by the time i got one together.I did find an 11 hp B&S motor with compression for $15 so I will get the old sears BBH (baby bush hog)going again.The small jobs like this that I once did for fun are now real work.Don't ever take your health for granted.

 

[JasonJ]

Re: what lawn tractor to buy?( 1 year update)

All this talk about lawn tractors, I just got a 97 Craftsman 19 horse 46 inch cut 6 speed from a friend of a friend that just rocks. It was always garage kept, well maintained, cleaned and waxed, looks brand new and runs perfect (He collects cars and babies everything). Paid $400 for it, which based on what I have been seeing out there is a bargain. All I have seen so far are ancient beater tractors for $500 or more, so I feel pretty good about this rig. It is true about the time factor, it took me over two hours to mow my yard with my Toro self-propelled, I should get it done in three minutes with this thing...

 

[one more cast]

Re: what lawn tractor to buy?( 1 year update)

sounds like a good deal to me. My new sears seems to be built pretty well, my old 10 hp sears is still in pretty good shape other then the motor is shot and the deck is pretty beat up from mowing a newly cleared field.

 

[JasonJ]

Re: what lawn tractor to buy?( 1 year update)

Here is a shot of the tractor, fresh from a good proper lawn cuttin'. I had removed the blades and sharpened them, and that was that. It turned a 2 hour job into a less than half hour job including trimming and touching up where the tractor could'nt get to.<br /><br />

 

[LadyFish]

Re: what lawn tractor to buy?( 1 year update)

Originally posted by Mr.Ladyfish:<br /> I'd say get whichever one the Mrs. is comfortable riding.

Uh huh, well that one looks like it would be a lot more comfortable than my non-self-propelled push-mower Mr. LadyFish.

 

[Mr.Ladyfish]

Re: what lawn tractor to buy?( 1 year update)

Uh huh, well that one looks like it would be a lot more comfortable than my non-self-propelled push-mower Mr. LadyFish.

Now sweetie don't get all upset, think about all the good exercise you get. Also we live on a canal. What would happen if you had a blonde moment and mixed up the "giddy-up" pedal with the "whoa" pedal? You might end up in the canal and get hurt. I'm just looking out for your well being. Either that or I'm just a cheap b**tard.

 

[one more cast]

Re: what lawn tractor to buy?( 1 year update)

Craftsman mower update. I can not keep blades on this mower. The ones that came on it were so cheap that they bent the first or second time I mowed with it. I put on a set of heavy duty blades at $16 each and everything was fine until my SIL borrowed it while his mower was being repaired. I got it back with bent blades.I didn't say anything to him because I may have bent them when I mowed a path to the back Field just before he took it. I drove 45 miles to the nearest sears store and they were sold out of blades. I found a set (the only set ) at home depot that fit my mower for $20. I put them on and I hit a rock that got kicked into the yard and now I have another set of bent blades.(lasted 30 minutes) My old sears mower has mowed the same area for 15 years with only 1 or 2 blade changes and never bent a blade. Sears quality has gone all to heck.The problem with these blades is the cutting edge is slanted down slightly on the ends and tilted forward. If the blade comes in contact with anything other then grass it digs in and twists. If you hit a high spot it don't just scalp the lawn it digs in like a plow. This winter I am going to see if I can a find a different type of blade that will work with my deck just by changing the mandrels.

 

[Ron G]

Re: what lawn tractor to buy?( 1 year update)

mom and dad bought a craftsman two years ago and has hated it every since .as for blades use a brand called gator blades there the best,i bought a tractor supply 25 horse huskee not a bit of problems out of it,

 

[JasonB]

Re: what lawn tractor to buy?( 1 year update)

Comment on Craftsman mowers and parts- most Craftsman mowers are made by AYP, part of Electrolux. Parts are readily available for the AYP produced mowers (GT5000, DYT 4000, and thers) at their parts website complete with parts diagrams. My 5 year old AYP mower is still going strong with it's little Tecumseh engine.<br /><br />Most "big box" mowers in general are made by one of 3 companies. AYP, MTD, & Murray. MTD includes the likes of Yardman, Huskee, White, Yard Machines, Cub Cadet, etc. Ayp makes most Craftsman, Husquavarna, Weed-Eater, Poulan, etc. Not sure what Murray makes anymore. Rumor has it that the John Deere Sabre series sold at HomeDepot is a rebadged MTD, but not the JD mowers sold through JD Dealers.<br /><br />My next mower will either be the Craftsman GT5000 or teh Cub Cadet 1050. I know, I know. one is a GT and the other is an LT.<br /><br />As said above, try some Gators, also sold at Lowes as "extremes". great blades.

 

[monoshock]

Re: what lawn tractor to buy?( 1 year update)

Are they mulching blades?<br />I replaced my mulching blades because they bent so easy, I use straight blades now, much better. Check this Stens link.<br /> http://www.stens.com/dealernet/cata...t=52&oemSearchSubmit=Go&maxResults=10&sType=3

 

[JasonB]

Re: what lawn tractor to buy?( 1 year update)

They aren't exactly mulching blades, but the mulch a bit. They have 30% more blade edge and the back is notched. Otherwise, they look like normal blade stock. I have found that they don't create quite as much vacuum under the deck and thus don't pick up as many solid objects like rocks, but they still lift the grass well. I can also mow at about 20% more ground speed. The catch is that they start struggling if you take over 1-1.5" of grass off at one time.

 

[sid the squid]

Re: what lawn tractor to buy?( 1 year update)

Nothing runs like a Deere

 

[one more cast]

Re: what lawn tractor to buy?( 1 year update)

I have not been able to find any blades with the 5 point star drive other then the ones I'm using.I think they are mulching blades so maybe I will try the bagging blades if I can find some.