Did I break this mower?

Re: Did I break this mower?...I think NOT.

(1) Overloading will not destroy an engine----Just stall it.

(2) A failed engine must have another cause. Diagnose this and then apportion blame.
(My conclusion...Overreacting employer needs to calm down.)
 
my honda did the same thing on 5 inches of grass.Did I make myself pay for it"?heck no I use lawnboys now.oh yeah there is no gurauntee on a mower that is used commercialy.
 
Remydon said:
Situation: I work for a guy who runs a small landscaping company, and we also have a mowing circuit. We were going through about 5 yards, with him hitting the flat areas on his zero-point and me doing the slopes and trim work with a Honda self-propelled mower. I don't know the exact model number, but he claims he paid ~$1000 for it, so must be higher end.

We had mowed 4 yards earlier in the day, it was about 90-95 degrees out. On the fifth, with grass at about 8 inches tall. I had the self-propel lever fully depressed, letting it pull me at the pace it wanted to go (a brisk walk). After 15 strips on the last yard, the mower suddenly died (no slow down). I tried to restart it, but the rope didn't want to go, so I checked for clogs. No grass, but I did find a bit of mud and a lot of dried clay on the axle. I chipped away what I could until the blade moved easily, then tried to restart. It went a few feet, died, and gave off white smoke. Checked gas, saw it was pretty low, and I sent the owner's teenage daughter who was out helping to get a can and fill it up. Tried again after, still no joy, more white smoke. Called the owner over, and at that point he accused me of blowing it up by pushing it too hard. There was oil on the deck with gas mixed in, so it looks like a blown gasket. He claims the mower will feed faster than the blade can keep up if the self-propel is fully depressed, and that I blew it up by running it to fast.

Is there any truth to this? My husband is an engineer, he thinks this is crap (the mower was only a month old), and the guy either didn't have enough oil in it, or it was a lemon. Or possibly it overheated, since it was a hot day and it's air cooled. I just wanted to get some input from experienced operators before I cover the repair costs for his equipment like he wants me to. He claims the failure was due to operator abuse, which the warrant won't cover. Again, appreciate any input!
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when you tilted the mower on it`s side to clean out the bottom, and tilted it with carb side down then you had oil go into the carb through the engein breather tube i see this alot. it wont start because of oil now on the spark plug. check the spark plug .
 
beg said:
my honda did the same thing on 5 inches of grass.Did I make myself pay for it"?heck no I use lawnboys now.oh yeah there is no gurauntee on a mower that is used commercialy.
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This is incorrect. While it varies from one manufacturer to another, there is usually at least a 30 day warranty even for commercial use. Many factories offer a longer commercial warranty on their higher end equipment, and some factories do not even differ between consumer and commercial use. Always check your owners manual for the actual warranty coverage time frame and exclusions.
 
You did not break it and even if you did it is his business he should take care of it. He should get off his zero and check the equipment between each job. If you were a full time employee maybe it would be your job to check oil etc. In this case it is his responsibility to maintain his equipment.
Remydon said:
Situation: I work for a guy who runs a small landscaping company, and we also have a mowing circuit. We were going through about 5 yards, with him hitting the flat areas on his zero-point and me doing the slopes and trim work with a Honda self-propelled mower. I don't know the exact model number, but he claims he paid ~$1000 for it, so must be higher end.

We had mowed 4 yards earlier in the day, it was about 90-95 degrees out. On the fifth, with grass at about 8 inches tall. I had the self-propel lever fully depressed, letting it pull me at the pace it wanted to go (a brisk walk). After 15 strips on the last yard, the mower suddenly died (no slow down). I tried to restart it, but the rope didn't want to go, so I checked for clogs. No grass, but I did find a bit of mud and a lot of dried clay on the axle. I chipped away what I could until the blade moved easily, then tried to restart. It went a few feet, died, and gave off white smoke. Checked gas, saw it was pretty low, and I sent the owner's teenage daughter who was out helping to get a can and fill it up. Tried again after, still no joy, more white smoke. Called the owner over, and at that point he accused me of blowing it up by pushing it too hard. There was oil on the deck with gas mixed in, so it looks like a blown gasket. He claims the mower will feed faster than the blade can keep up if the self-propel is fully depressed, and that I blew it up by running it to fast.

Is there any truth to this? My husband is an engineer, he thinks this is crap (the mower was only a month old), and the guy either didn't have enough oil in it, or it was a lemon. Or possibly it overheated, since it was a hot day and it's air cooled. I just wanted to get some input from experienced operators before I cover the repair costs for his equipment like he wants me to. He claims the failure was due to operator abuse, which the warrant won't cover. Again, appreciate any input!
Click to expand...
 
Remydon said:
I'm not 100% sure on 8 inches, it was 2 weeks worth of growth in Northern Virginia with a bunch of rain, for whatever it's worth.

It was never asked of me to check or add oil to any equipment.

My husband did go talk to him. He was told to leave when he pointed out that either a.) he watched me "abuse" the equipment and did nothing to stop it or b.) he didn't see me and has no idea at what speed I was mowing. Eventually he got him to calm down and agree to take it in and see what the shop says. Still haven't heard back.
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It does not matter even if it was your fault you can not be made to pay for equipment damage. A new Honda should enjoy 8 inches of grass with no sweat.
Gp
 
NO!! I dont think so. Ive cut 8 " grass and had no problem. If it had plenty of oil it should have been fine. Keep om pluggging and dont worry.

Ken Riddle
South Carolina
 
I vote no - you did not.
Whomever is your leader or mechanic should have checked the oil and all before giving you the go signal. If that was the cause ?
You were the operator and made it cut as fast as you could. Nothing wrong with that. I never saw any mowers with limiting cutting instructions in the book.
I would like to know what did break. An indictment for abuse can't be supported unless the autopsy says you murdered it.
Get er done! lol
 
If I may venture an opinion,
at one month old, I am going to guess that he put this mower directly into service, and never changed the "Break in" oil, which is not designed for continuous service but is suppose to be changed out in about 5 hours run time. This could lead to overheating and seizing. Just MHO.
 
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