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The Lawn Mower is as unique as the people who own and maintain them. How do you select the Lawn Mower you purchase?

You left out one important choice, Price, that is a big consideration.:thumbsup:

okiepc said:

You left out one important choice, Price, that is a big consideration.:thumbsup:

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Price is a big consideration but I didn't list price because I knew it would be the top choice without consideration for the rest. With the price range being so wide, $200 to 12K depending on your individual needs I think people should consider parts of the list offered before purchasing or making a choice. What would you consider to be the next most important thing in spending your money, what would you want?

True, you are correct, price would be number 1. & all of your choices you listed matter. I see what you are asking.

Personally I think you need to look at Warranty before anything else with anything you buy today and it can be tricky. Like Toro offers a three year 240 hr on one of there mowers, another offers the same three year warranty but with unlimited hours and the mower is basically the same but there's over a thousand dollars difference in price, what do you buy?

I think for me it's PERFORMANCE AND RELIABILITY first, then EASE OF USE. I agree, the warranty is VERY important, but if the mower is horrible all around it doesn't matter how long the warranty is. I would return it!

I'm kind of surprised that you did not include dealer support as a criterion in your poll. Would you buy an expensive brand name mower if the nearest dealer / service center was hundreds of miles away ?

Also, the criterion of manufacturer is ambiguous. For example, I'm more concerned with the motor manufacturer in a simple push mower than the overall manufacturer. In a more expensive and complex mower like a ZTR, I might care more about the mower manufacturer than the brand of the engine.

MowerMike said:

I'm kind of surprised that you did not include dealer support as a criterion in your poll. Would you buy an expensive brand name mower if the nearest dealer / service center was hundreds of miles away ?

Also, the criterion of manufacturer is ambiguous. For example, I'm more concerned with the motor manufacturer in a simple push mower than the overall manufacturer. In a more expensive and complex mower like a ZTR, I might care more about the mower manufacturer than the brand of the engine.

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Or you could buy a Honda and the mower manufacturer and engine manufacturer would be the same! :laughing:

MowerMike said:

I'm kind of surprised that you did not include dealer support as a criterion in your poll. Would you buy an expensive brand name mower if the nearest dealer / service center was hundreds of miles away ?

Also, the criterion of manufacturer is ambiguous. For example, I'm more concerned with the motor manufacturer in a simple push mower than the overall manufacturer. In a more expensive and complex mower like a ZTR, I might care more about the mower manufacturer than the brand of the engine.

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It's like I said before with pricing, I could have included it, I could have included dealer support and engine type and the list goes on. The choices in the the poll are just some of the things I've seen posted here and some other forums that people seem to think are important to them and possibly sway them one way or another in there purchase.. Now posting what you did and giving your input again shows the things that could influence your decision and maybe someone else in what mower you or they would buy and why. :thumbsup: Checking a choice in a poll is fine but unless we have input like you posted it means nothing.

How about this?
Anyone who doesn't do his own research before plunking down his money is a fool.

Anyone who is doing do his own research maybe reading this thread and getting advice or opinions.

The best thing about this forum is that there are people on here who do it for a living. They are professionals. I am not, but I have a large lot. This is a fantastic resource for someone like me.

You guys have saved me a lot of headaches and money and I appreciate it very much.

I selected my exmark after talking to a bunch of local pros. Most of them used exmark and the local dealer is close to us and is a great guy. He cares about his product and his customers.

Bomba said:

I selected my exmark after talking to a bunch of local pros. Most of them used exmark and the local dealer is close to us and is a great guy. He cares about his product and his customers.

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A good dealer on any kind of equipment is a major plus. Our local dealer sells Exmart Kubota and Skag.

I voted Performance and Reliability but ease of maintenace is a positive too.

wjjones said:

I voted Performance and Reliability but ease of maintenace is a positive too.

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Ease of maintenance is a big deal for me

Bomba said:

Ease of maintenance is a big deal for me

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Yep the more you can do your self puts $$ back in your pocket.

wjjones said:

Yep the more you can do your self puts $$ back in your pocket.

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Yes, because once you've paid for it it's maintenance costs and fuel/oil.

Why would you choose by color?

Well, unless it's pink!:laughing:

X-man said:

Why would you choose by color?

Well, unless it's pink!:laughing:

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Speaking of pink, are there any females on here? I know a lot of women who love to mow.

wjjones said:

Yep the more you can do your self puts $$ back in your pocket.

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That is true too. About 99% of the maintenance on my mowers are done myself.

Which reminds me I need to replace the carburetor gasket on my push mower:laughing:

I first look at what it looks like and then look to see if it has a briggs under the hood cause I want looks and dependability

Personally I look for quality and durability.

Old Goat said:

How about this?
Anyone who doesn't do his own research before plunking down his money is a fool.

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this X 2.........:thumbsup:

be well

swampdog50

I look at durability quality of cut and what will work best on the largest amount of the properties we do then dealer support and warranty. Price is mildly important when you get to a certain level of mower regardless of color you'll be spending $10k-$12k per machine. If you're doing it for a living you can't afford down time. So spend the extra 10%-20% up front to make more on the back end.

I wish there was an option to select two since I find performance/reliability & brand were a breaker for me. I was raised on Craftsman & the mower I have is also a Craftsman. Performs well & is the brand I know & prefer

mmanter said:

I wish there was an option to select two since I find performance/reliability & brand were a breaker for me. I was raised on Craftsman & the mower I have is also a Craftsman. Performs well & is the brand I know & prefer

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The problem with branding is that a lot of it is meaningless today. Thirty years ago I owned a Yardman push mower with a magnesium deck that was made right there in my town (Jackson, Michigan) and was powered by a B&S engine made in the USA. It lasted me 12 years before I moved out of town and sold my house. Today Yardman brand mowers are made in China with cheap stamped steel decks and crappy B&S engines with Chinese parts, and are sold in Walmart stores. A lot of Craftsman branded tools are much the same. If you want to know if a brand is worth owning, see if it is sold through full service dealers.

MowerMike said:

The problem with branding is that a lot of it is meaningless today. Thirty years ago I owned a Yardman push mower with a magnesium deck that was made right there in my town (Jackson, Michigan) and was powered by a B&S engine made in the USA. It lasted me 12 years before I moved out of town and sold my house. Today Yardman brand mowers are made in China with cheap stamped steel decks and crappy B&S engines with Chinese parts, and are sold in Walmart stores. A lot of Craftsman branded tools are much the same. If you want to know if a brand is worth owning, see if it is sold through full service dealers.

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Amen mower mike, i went with dixie choppers, because they are made in America in Greencastle, Indiana. Still a great American built piece of equipment. I am a Veteran owned company based out of Indianapolis and go out of my way to purchase "made in the USA" equipment for a few reasons 1 it's built to last 2 it's never been on a cargo ship 3 to set an example for my kids, have pride in American labor and products. Not to mention just not a huge fan of china or the Middle East. I even only use co-op/country mark American drilled and refined fuel.

Ric said:

The Lawn Mower is as unique as the people who own and maintain them. How do you select the Lawn Mower you purchase?

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I voted manafacturer. IMO MTD is a good low end mower, though not as good as they once were. For a more professional mower I like eXmark Pioneer or Lazer Z.

Not to say there are not other good mowers on the market, but that is where I go.

mechanic said:

I voted manafacturer. IMO MTD is a good low end mower, though not as good as they once were. For a more professional mower I like eXmark Pioneer or Lazer Z.

Not to say there are not other good mowers on the market, but that is where I go.

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Both my push mowers are MTD's, never had any major issues.

X-man said:

Both my push mowers are MTD's, never had any major issues.

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Comes back to how well someone takes care of the machine. My sister in law and dad In law bought the same craftsman mower last year. He takes care of it proper lol changes and air filter changes. And blade changes. Hers came to me a week ago. She never changed the break in oil. Her air filter was cakes with dirt all the little grooves in the paper were filled. She never emptied bag so the clippings stuck and got so thick you could pull the rope. I cleaned and tuned it up and it has a knock. I gave it back and told her not to use it with the bent rod. She is going to go buy a new one this week lol

exotion said:

Comes back to how well someone takes care of the machine. My sister in law and dad In law bought the same craftsman mower last year. He takes care of it proper lol changes and air filter changes. And blade changes. Hers came to me a week ago. She never changed the break in oil. Her air filter was cakes with dirt all the little grooves in the paper were filled. She never emptied bag so the clippings stuck and got so thick you could pull the rope. I cleaned and tuned it up and it has a knock. I gave it back and told her not to use it with the bent rod. She is going to go buy a new one this week lol

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I've always believed in the saying: "If you treat it good, it will treat you good." And I take damn good care of my equipment. In the four years that I have been running my business, I have never had a major breakdown.

For me the important things are performance and reliability, because I am buying it to work, also the ease of maintence is preferable, the last thing I pay attention to is color