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Looking for advice re: purchasing a reliable lawn tractor
#2
Tiger Small Engine
Tiger Small Engine
#4
StarTech
StarTech
#7
StarTech
StarTech
#11
StarTech
StarTech
#13
Tiger Small Engine
Tiger Small Engine
#15
Tiger Small Engine
Tiger Small Engine
#16
bkeller500
bkeller500
#18
old yooper
old yooper
#20
MyGrassHasCrabs
MyGrassHasCrabs
#25
MyGrassHasCrabs
MyGrassHasCrabs
#51
T
TobyU
You had a single so you prob had a 42 inch deck.
I prefer the singles to the twins as you can get a twin on some 42s but as you go larger deck size eventually you will only get a twin. Twins have more things to go wrong -and they do!
The Kohler "courage" single is fine after 2008 and the MTD and other Chinese/ Loncin are working out well too.
They have far fewer probs than the Briggs do.
You won't find many Kawasaki singles and the twins - I'd rather have a Kohler 7000 series or whatever they are calling it this year!
Valve train issues with Kawasaki that should not happen. That's a low quality, haphazard assembly thing like Briggs.....
T
TobyU
There will always be an occasional outlier in the statistics but snapped rods with oil level above the add mark are not a common occurrence.
You had a single so you prob had a 42 inch deck.
I prefer the singles to the twins as you can get a twin on some 42s but as you go larger deck size eventually you will only get a twin. Twins have more things to go wrong -and they do!
The Kohler "courage" single is fine after 2008 and the MTD and other Chinese/ Loncin are working out well too.
They have far fewer probs than the Briggs do.
You won't find many Kawasaki singles and the twins - I'd rather have a Kohler 7000 series or whatever they are calling it this year!
Valve train issues with Kawasaki that should not happen. That's a low quality, haphazard assembly thing like Briggs.....
#57
Tiger Small Engine
Tiger Small Engine
#58
Sean OM
Sean OM
#63
Sean OM
Sean OM
#65
Sean OM
I don't know if they will outlaw them in the next few years. I am not sure they have to. It is going to happen whether there is a law or not. The convenience of electric for cities, and suburbia outweigh the advantages of gas. It is less work and makes less noise. The prices are starting to get close enough in that lower tier, that most people especially professionals are already going to buy electric for their next upgrade.
For larger country properties and professionals, it is a bit of a different story. The price drops and 'range' aren't there yet. But I looked at autonomous mowers for the first time in a couple of years and their range is going up and prices have fallen drastically.
Then you have the whole, 'lawn care is a waste' movement going on as well. And I WILL say, that I mowed in strips this year like every two weeks and mosquitos and crickets were non-existent because dragonflys were ALL over the place eating them in the longer grass. No algae issues in the pond either. zero spent on fertilizer, pesticides and herbicides. The lawn did not look like a golf course, but it never did anyway.
Sean OM
I don't know if they will outlaw them in the next few years. I am not sure they have to. It is going to happen whether there is a law or not. The convenience of electric for cities, and suburbia outweigh the advantages of gas. It is less work and makes less noise. The prices are starting to get close enough in that lower tier, that most people especially professionals are already going to buy electric for their next upgrade.
For larger country properties and professionals, it is a bit of a different story. The price drops and 'range' aren't there yet. But I looked at autonomous mowers for the first time in a couple of years and their range is going up and prices have fallen drastically.
Then you have the whole, 'lawn care is a waste' movement going on as well. And I WILL say, that I mowed in strips this year like every two weeks and mosquitos and crickets were non-existent because dragonflys were ALL over the place eating them in the longer grass. No algae issues in the pond either. zero spent on fertilizer, pesticides and herbicides. The lawn did not look like a golf course, but it never did anyway.
#66
T
TobyU
People today are really funny about convenience and I think it's a terrible trait.
They're willing to pay more for it too and I believe in frugality or even cheapskated-ness.
However, the only people these are going to be more convenient for will be people with quite small yards and those who are willing to cut them quite frequently.
In some of the suburb areas this may be the case but in a lot of areas in the country especially a lot of these newer upper scale developments going in where almost everyone who lives there is definitely a white collar professional, The lawns are far too large to cut with a battery-powered mower.
Now I'm talking standard push mower size lawns. In reality, most of these big expensive homes are going to need a rider or in the more likely scenario, they're paying someone to cut their grass anyways!
But for many people whatever convenience there may be will be greatly overshadowed by the sacrifice they have to make to deal with the battery powered mower which is lower power, not nearly as long or indefinite cutting time, and having to cut the grass far more frequently.
Plenty of people are quite spoiled with gasoline mowers knowing you can go 8 10 or 12 days and sometimes longer between cuts and it doesn't make it that much more difficult to cut.
Try that with a battery powered mower and it's not going to work.
Anything over a minor trim is going to cut your battery capacity down to under half of what it's rated.
Now, blower is a string trimmers.. there's nothing more convenient than having a small rechargeable drill size battery to slap on one and pull the trigger and it works great!
However, you better not need one for over 15 or 20 minutes or it's going to be a hassle and an inconvenience.
T
TobyU
You said convenience that outweigh the advantages of gas. This will probably be true for some of these professionals you mentioned. I'm assuming you meant white collar professional people in that and certainly not lawn care professionals who cut grass for a living because you covered that in your next paragraph.I don't know if they will outlaw them in the next few years. I am not sure they have to. It is going to happen whether there is a law or not. The convenience of electric for cities, and suburbia outweigh the advantages of gas. It is less work and makes less noise. The prices are starting to get close enough in that lower tier, that most people especially professionals are already going to buy electric for their next upgrade.
For larger country properties and professionals, it is a bit of a different story. The price drops and 'range' aren't there yet. But I looked at autonomous mowers for the first time in a couple of years and their range is going up and prices have fallen drastically.
Then you have the whole, 'lawn care is a waste' movement going on as well. And I WILL say, that I mowed in strips this year like every two weeks and mosquitos and crickets were non-existent because dragonflys were ALL over the place eating them in the longer grass. No algae issues in the pond either. zero spent on fertilizer, pesticides and herbicides. The lawn did not look like a golf course, but it never did anyway.
People today are really funny about convenience and I think it's a terrible trait.
They're willing to pay more for it too and I believe in frugality or even cheapskated-ness.
However, the only people these are going to be more convenient for will be people with quite small yards and those who are willing to cut them quite frequently.
In some of the suburb areas this may be the case but in a lot of areas in the country especially a lot of these newer upper scale developments going in where almost everyone who lives there is definitely a white collar professional, The lawns are far too large to cut with a battery-powered mower.
Now I'm talking standard push mower size lawns. In reality, most of these big expensive homes are going to need a rider or in the more likely scenario, they're paying someone to cut their grass anyways!
But for many people whatever convenience there may be will be greatly overshadowed by the sacrifice they have to make to deal with the battery powered mower which is lower power, not nearly as long or indefinite cutting time, and having to cut the grass far more frequently.
Plenty of people are quite spoiled with gasoline mowers knowing you can go 8 10 or 12 days and sometimes longer between cuts and it doesn't make it that much more difficult to cut.
Try that with a battery powered mower and it's not going to work.
Anything over a minor trim is going to cut your battery capacity down to under half of what it's rated.
Now, blower is a string trimmers.. there's nothing more convenient than having a small rechargeable drill size battery to slap on one and pull the trigger and it works great!
However, you better not need one for over 15 or 20 minutes or it's going to be a hassle and an inconvenience.
#67
Sean OM
The white collars are in the mindset time is money. And a lot of them don't like to get greasy dirty.
But it is funny watching people and seeing how they are skimping because everyone does it, they just skimp at different things.
I agree once you get to about half acre lots, things change. However, that is kind of where the autonomous mowers kick in as well. I just saw one that was rated for almost an acre and a couple of years ago that didn't exist. There isn't a rule that says you have to mow the lawn all in one shot either. I mean time isn't a factor if you aren't doing the work. It could mow part of the lawn, recharge itself and mow another section repeatedly until the lawn was done.
for a hand tool that is a different story because you are operating it so you are either waiting for the recharge, paying for the convenience of another battery or buy the gas tool and have to deal with all the issues with gas tools.
Sean OM
The white collars are in the mindset time is money. And a lot of them don't like to get greasy dirty.
But it is funny watching people and seeing how they are skimping because everyone does it, they just skimp at different things.
I agree once you get to about half acre lots, things change. However, that is kind of where the autonomous mowers kick in as well. I just saw one that was rated for almost an acre and a couple of years ago that didn't exist. There isn't a rule that says you have to mow the lawn all in one shot either. I mean time isn't a factor if you aren't doing the work. It could mow part of the lawn, recharge itself and mow another section repeatedly until the lawn was done.
for a hand tool that is a different story because you are operating it so you are either waiting for the recharge, paying for the convenience of another battery or buy the gas tool and have to deal with all the issues with gas tools.
#68
T
TobyU
Of the many gas handheld tools like this I have owned and used over the decades, I don't find there to be a lot of issues as at all. The only thing that would be mildly aggravating would be mixing up the two cycle gas which I still prefer because the four cycle ones are fairly wimpy and the lifespan doesn't seem to be very good but that's how everything works today. They don't want you to get 20 years out of a piece of equipment that only cost around a hundred bucks like so many of us have done with so many of these over the years.
I tend to be fairly unbiased about these things and have used most of all of them.
I do however certainly have preferences. Lol
As I mentioned, I don't think you can beat the convenience of a string trimmer or a blower that is battery powered for ease of use if you're just blowing off a smaller driveway or your walkway after a mow.
But anyone who needs to use one over 20 minutes or so, and sometimes only 15 to 18,.... The convenience is now loan I have to switch battery packs and I would have been much happier to just grab the gasoline one start it and complete the entire job.
These professionals with time is money....
A lot of them really do like to go into that mindset and phrase because they're trying to justify their own laziness or sometimes lack of knowledge of actually how to do a situation and other times maybe ability.
I guess even i, maybe....if I became an absolutely absurd high amount lottery winner who was set for multiple lives and hadn't worked for any of the money...might.... Stop being a cheapskate but I really doubt it!!
I would go out and buy several expensive vehicles but not a single one of them would be new because that's a waste and you get hosed and pay a premium. These purchases are usually just because of vanity and pride and they want their butt to be the first one that's ever set on the seat in their mind
But more often, they rationalize it due to the warranty and the expectation of having no problems so peace of mind, convenience and no aggravation expected.
Financially, except for some one-off outlier specific nitpick situation, you will always be better off to get a good deal on something used or like new but not exactly do and when you have that kind of money you can certainly afford to pay to get it fixed if something does happen but in the law of numbers, it won't as many times as it does so you'll have more money.
Had a big discussion on a car group one time with some guy who was very proud of his income which obviously wasn't in the realm of a vulgar amount lottery winner as I mentioned.... But had no intention of ever doing front brakes on his fairly new $62k expedition. I'm assuming it was at least two to three years old or why would he be doing brakes in the first place and even that's a little new of an estimate because maybe there should be a warranty until at least 3/36000.
Regardless, he went into a diet tribe about how much he makes per hour and how it would be financially stupid and even irresponsible to take off work to spend the time to do these brakes.
-LIKE he had any idea on how to actually do them or had the tools to do the job! RIGHT....
But see he turned it into a talking point, pedantic, nitpicking situation because NOWHERE HAVE I EVER NOR WOULD I recommend someone take time off work or from any other paid activities to put some front brakes on their vehicle!!
Any normal human being would know the recommendation is to do it in some part of that free time almost everyone has throughout their week or two week or pay period or whatever. Lol
When you bring this up, then, they go into how busy they are and making up more excuses. Lol
Hardly anyone, I would actually go all the way and say nobody works that much!
This same guy probably sits around and watches at least five if not 10 hours plus a week of TV and he probably hangs out in a club, sports bar etc wasting multiple hours a week drinking an extra couple of beers socializing or just chilling, instead of just eating those wings as a meal and leaving.
So while I understand many people talk about time being money, I feel it's mostly just a rationalization or justification because the time I'm talking about using would not otherwise be used for making money so it would not be a trade off and you would not be sacrificing money for the time.
Most people like this are simply lazy or feel it's beneath them or take them mentality they have achieved enough in life not to be bothered by menial tasks as that.
I really can't say I blame them as far as lawn Care etc.
Personally, I hate autonomous mowers and the idea of them but I really can't believe that in 2024, we're still cutting grass!
I lost the desire to cut grass when I was a kid after doing it about two times.
I still like operating a zero turn for about 7 minutes and after that it's just work so I'm done.
The ONLY reason I ever cut mine is so the local jurisdiction won't come out and place a notice at or on the property because then if I didn't cut it they would do it and add it to property taxes.
I hate most things that you have to do repeatedly.
Things I choose to do repeatedly because I enjoy them are completely different situation.
T
TobyU
Yes, but when you say -all the issues of gas tools- it already sounds like you have quite a preference towards battery ones. LolThe white collars are in the mindset time is money. And a lot of them don't like to get greasy dirty.
But it is funny watching people and seeing how they are skimping because everyone does it, they just skimp at different things.
I agree once you get to about half acre lots, things change. However, that is kind of where the autonomous mowers kick in as well. I just saw one that was rated for almost an acre and a couple of years ago that didn't exist. There isn't a rule that says you have to mow the lawn all in one shot either. I mean time isn't a factor if you aren't doing the work. It could mow part of the lawn, recharge itself and mow another section repeatedly until the lawn was done.
for a hand tool that is a different story because you are operating it so you are either waiting for the recharge, paying for the convenience of another battery or buy the gas tool and have to deal with all the issues with gas tools.
Of the many gas handheld tools like this I have owned and used over the decades, I don't find there to be a lot of issues as at all. The only thing that would be mildly aggravating would be mixing up the two cycle gas which I still prefer because the four cycle ones are fairly wimpy and the lifespan doesn't seem to be very good but that's how everything works today. They don't want you to get 20 years out of a piece of equipment that only cost around a hundred bucks like so many of us have done with so many of these over the years.
I tend to be fairly unbiased about these things and have used most of all of them.
I do however certainly have preferences. Lol
As I mentioned, I don't think you can beat the convenience of a string trimmer or a blower that is battery powered for ease of use if you're just blowing off a smaller driveway or your walkway after a mow.
But anyone who needs to use one over 20 minutes or so, and sometimes only 15 to 18,.... The convenience is now loan I have to switch battery packs and I would have been much happier to just grab the gasoline one start it and complete the entire job.
These professionals with time is money....
A lot of them really do like to go into that mindset and phrase because they're trying to justify their own laziness or sometimes lack of knowledge of actually how to do a situation and other times maybe ability.
I guess even i, maybe....if I became an absolutely absurd high amount lottery winner who was set for multiple lives and hadn't worked for any of the money...might.... Stop being a cheapskate but I really doubt it!!
I would go out and buy several expensive vehicles but not a single one of them would be new because that's a waste and you get hosed and pay a premium. These purchases are usually just because of vanity and pride and they want their butt to be the first one that's ever set on the seat in their mind
But more often, they rationalize it due to the warranty and the expectation of having no problems so peace of mind, convenience and no aggravation expected.
Financially, except for some one-off outlier specific nitpick situation, you will always be better off to get a good deal on something used or like new but not exactly do and when you have that kind of money you can certainly afford to pay to get it fixed if something does happen but in the law of numbers, it won't as many times as it does so you'll have more money.
Had a big discussion on a car group one time with some guy who was very proud of his income which obviously wasn't in the realm of a vulgar amount lottery winner as I mentioned.... But had no intention of ever doing front brakes on his fairly new $62k expedition. I'm assuming it was at least two to three years old or why would he be doing brakes in the first place and even that's a little new of an estimate because maybe there should be a warranty until at least 3/36000.
Regardless, he went into a diet tribe about how much he makes per hour and how it would be financially stupid and even irresponsible to take off work to spend the time to do these brakes.
-LIKE he had any idea on how to actually do them or had the tools to do the job! RIGHT....
But see he turned it into a talking point, pedantic, nitpicking situation because NOWHERE HAVE I EVER NOR WOULD I recommend someone take time off work or from any other paid activities to put some front brakes on their vehicle!!
Any normal human being would know the recommendation is to do it in some part of that free time almost everyone has throughout their week or two week or pay period or whatever. Lol
When you bring this up, then, they go into how busy they are and making up more excuses. Lol
Hardly anyone, I would actually go all the way and say nobody works that much!
This same guy probably sits around and watches at least five if not 10 hours plus a week of TV and he probably hangs out in a club, sports bar etc wasting multiple hours a week drinking an extra couple of beers socializing or just chilling, instead of just eating those wings as a meal and leaving.
So while I understand many people talk about time being money, I feel it's mostly just a rationalization or justification because the time I'm talking about using would not otherwise be used for making money so it would not be a trade off and you would not be sacrificing money for the time.
Most people like this are simply lazy or feel it's beneath them or take them mentality they have achieved enough in life not to be bothered by menial tasks as that.
I really can't say I blame them as far as lawn Care etc.
Personally, I hate autonomous mowers and the idea of them but I really can't believe that in 2024, we're still cutting grass!
I lost the desire to cut grass when I was a kid after doing it about two times.
I still like operating a zero turn for about 7 minutes and after that it's just work so I'm done.
The ONLY reason I ever cut mine is so the local jurisdiction won't come out and place a notice at or on the property because then if I didn't cut it they would do it and add it to property taxes.
I hate most things that you have to do repeatedly.
Things I choose to do repeatedly because I enjoy them are completely different situation.
#69
Sean OM
Sean OM
#72
BubbaSam
BubbaSam
#112
E
Earthquake Landscaping
E
Earthquake Landscaping
This is Rumour Control... These are the facts...
Yup, for starters, there are so many accurate posts on this thread that I wouldn't know where to start to accurately quote them..
For me, my first experience with a John Deere, was buying one (D-160), from a Big Box Store, when a Landscaping Company was, literally, thrown in my lap. ( Another story for another day).
Having a rip roaring case of O.C.D., I actually read the manual from front to back. Wow!! The manual states that the warrantee, is 2 years, or 120 hours, whichever comes first. Are you 'effin kidding me? If you used it all day, five days a week, that equates to a three week Warrantee!! WTF??
It got more interesting when it came to the Hydro-static trans.. " The drive is sealed, and as such, requires no maintenance.". The drive is a "Tough - Torque" K46.. Now, there's a point to note.. The trans was built to the specs provided by John Deere, who probably saved about a buck, by specifying that there was to be no drain hole in the case. So, at 50 hours, I removed the trans from the tractor, popped off the vent plug, and upended it over a bucket for the night. I then refilled it with Amsoil premium synthetic. The improvement in performance was noticeable. In spite of my O.C.D. scheduled maintenance, it still ate parts on a regular basis. Spindles, despite regular lubrication, self destructed. Etc, Etc.
I got asked why I'd bought that "POS".. My only defence was that I'd relied on the John Deere reputation.. Just because it's green, doesn't mean it's a John Deere.. It's just another cheap POS, sold by your neighbourhood box store.
They're like chainsaws.. when you are at the lowest price point, you get the lowest quality / build that there is. They ( the manufacturers) , just use the name to sell crap products.
Yup, for starters, there are so many accurate posts on this thread that I wouldn't know where to start to accurately quote them..
For me, my first experience with a John Deere, was buying one (D-160), from a Big Box Store, when a Landscaping Company was, literally, thrown in my lap. ( Another story for another day).
Having a rip roaring case of O.C.D., I actually read the manual from front to back. Wow!! The manual states that the warrantee, is 2 years, or 120 hours, whichever comes first. Are you 'effin kidding me? If you used it all day, five days a week, that equates to a three week Warrantee!! WTF??
It got more interesting when it came to the Hydro-static trans.. " The drive is sealed, and as such, requires no maintenance.". The drive is a "Tough - Torque" K46.. Now, there's a point to note.. The trans was built to the specs provided by John Deere, who probably saved about a buck, by specifying that there was to be no drain hole in the case. So, at 50 hours, I removed the trans from the tractor, popped off the vent plug, and upended it over a bucket for the night. I then refilled it with Amsoil premium synthetic. The improvement in performance was noticeable. In spite of my O.C.D. scheduled maintenance, it still ate parts on a regular basis. Spindles, despite regular lubrication, self destructed. Etc, Etc.
I got asked why I'd bought that "POS".. My only defence was that I'd relied on the John Deere reputation.. Just because it's green, doesn't mean it's a John Deere.. It's just another cheap POS, sold by your neighbourhood box store.
They're like chainsaws.. when you are at the lowest price point, you get the lowest quality / build that there is. They ( the manufacturers) , just use the name to sell crap products.
#115
K
keninnsw
K
keninnsw
Maybe its time we levied the Chinese suppliers for the cost of landfill so they'd produce better qualityThis is Rumour Control... These are the facts...
Yup, for starters, there are so many accurate posts on this thread that I wouldn't know where to start to accurately quote them..
For me, my first experience with a John Deere, was buying one (D-160), from a Big Box Store, when a Landscaping Company was, literally, thrown in my lap. ( Another story for another day).
Having a rip roaring case of O.C.D., I actually read the manual from front to back. Wow!! The manual states that the warrantee, is 2 years, or 120 hours, whichever comes first. Are you 'effin kidding me? If you used it all day, five days a week, that equates to a three week Warrantee!! WTF??
It got more interesting when it came to the Hydro-static trans.. " The drive is sealed, and as such, requires no maintenance.". The drive is a "Tough - Torque" K46.. Now, there's a point to note.. The trans was built to the specs provided by John Deere, who probably saved about a buck, by specifying that there was to be no drain hole in the case. So, at 50 hours, I removed the trans from the tractor, popped off the vent plug, and upended it over a bucket for the night. I then refilled it with Amsoil premium synthetic. The improvement in performance was noticeable. In spite of my O.C.D. scheduled maintenance, it still ate parts on a regular basis. Spindles, despite regular lubrication, self destructed. Etc, Etc.
I got asked why I'd bought that "POS".. My only defence was that I'd relied on the John Deere reputation.. Just because it's green, doesn't mean it's a John Deere.. It's just another cheap POS, sold by your neighbourhood box store.
They're like chainsaws.. when you are at the lowest price point, you get the lowest quality / build that there is. They ( the manufacturers) , just use the name to sell crap products.
#117
BubbaSam
BubbaSam
#121
T
TobyU
How smart is have a very bad tendency of one of the rear deck supports breaking the weld and falling off of the deck.
This is because the bean counters etc have them put one little maybe half inch long weld if you're lucky in two spots on one side only.
If they would actually weld it like any actual professional welder or even a backyard welder would do instead of having some program machine do it that little tiny bit, it would never fail.
The other ways that someone might feeling need to replace a deck I don't understand unless the thing totally rusted out but that's also so rare and if that's the case that means someone is mowing wet grass and or not cleaning the grass underneath and not treating it or maybe spraying the underneath with WD-40 or anything like that or they're using that awful deck wash Port which does far more harm to a machine than good.
I seen a few decks get thin here and there but it's not the entire deck and they can always be patched up with some sheet metal, and old coffee can or license plate or just some of the good metallic HVAC tin foil tape works surprisingly well.
Everything else like spindles either police brackets and stuff can all be replaced and repaired.
So I am a little interested to know why you had to replace the deck and I'm thinking that and most people situations, or a specially in mind, I certainly wouldn't have bought a new deck because a new deck is outrageously high and it comes bare where you have to transfer everything over or buy those new parts too and that's like going to be 300- $400 so that's a no-go for me.
Batteries, of course I make no judgments on because they're all junk now and anything after 3 years is on really borrowed time if you get that long.
The starter gear had something else going on.
Either there was some slight mismatch with the alignment and mesh and it was putting unnecessary pressure on it or it was being cranked excessively every time it started and not starting within 2 to 3 revolutions or under 3 seconds of cranking like it should.
There have been people with mowers who don't realize this is a problem and they are doing about three sets of extended cranking every time they go to mow their grass when they start their mower for the day.
Other people may be in a situation where their mower is started far more than it's really designed to be.
The thing is really designed to be started no more than once a week and use the entire time and then put away.
That's the most common use.
There's only a smaller percentage of people who have to turn off their mower to refuel or who will turn it off between cutting the front and rear lawns or different days etc or those who cut more than one lawn with it but again not the vast majority of people.
Most of those gears are the plastic dark colored one and I will agree they are cheap and junky.
Did you replace them with OEM Briggs & Stratton gear or did you use them from eBay Amazon aftermarket?
I will not buy the brand name starters because they're overpriced and the aftermarket ones work quite nicely, if not better, but the gears are a crapshoot..
There are some good aftermarket ones and some not so good ones so if I ever had one fail under three or four years I would probably just go back to a Briggs & Stratton one and try that one.
Most mowers go their entire 20-year life and never have the gear fail or at most are on there second gear from a big replaced one time.
Anything beyond that has some type of issue that's not in the normal use parameters.
But overall, yes, you're doing pretty decent.
A whole lot of people got 17 to 20 plus years from these consumer grade mowers whether it be husqvarna, Craftsman (which most of those were made by Husqvarna also for that time period), MTD brand products like Troy-Bilt, Cub cadet and even yard machines, or John Deere's.
Now let's don't think for one second that the l, la, d, and E John Deere's are one bit better because they're painted yellow and green and called a John Deere. They are department store mowers sharing most of the same parts as the other brands. They just cost a little more because of the color scheme and the brand. 
They have even had more steering gear failures than the MTD products and probably right about the same as the Craftsman's because steering is their weekly too which also applies to Husqvarna but they just don't saturate most markets as well as Craftsman did during the day.
But my point is so many people got this kind of time and service out of these mowers because they were still fairly well built.
I get troy-bilts coming out of regular basis with belts that are 17 years old that are still spinning the blades and still moving the mower. They are cracked to pieces and have big chunks of rubber missing but you could still mow the yard with them!
So you could have had more problems especially if it has a Briggs engine like with compression release, blown head gaskets if it's a single, or if it was a Kohler courage single, the self-destruction because of the improperly torqued/fastened bolts on the top engine case cover.
So I guess you're doing okay but I just come to expect that out of those mowers because they were pretty good.
Most things are getting quite a bit watered down now and we probably won't fare quite as well in the future especially not with walk behind mowers and those new Briggs engines.
T
TobyU
I would call that quite a bit of trouble for the mower actually mainly because of the deck. A lot more deck should never have to be replaced!
How smart is have a very bad tendency of one of the rear deck supports breaking the weld and falling off of the deck.
This is because the bean counters etc have them put one little maybe half inch long weld if you're lucky in two spots on one side only.
If they would actually weld it like any actual professional welder or even a backyard welder would do instead of having some program machine do it that little tiny bit, it would never fail.
The other ways that someone might feeling need to replace a deck I don't understand unless the thing totally rusted out but that's also so rare and if that's the case that means someone is mowing wet grass and or not cleaning the grass underneath and not treating it or maybe spraying the underneath with WD-40 or anything like that or they're using that awful deck wash Port which does far more harm to a machine than good.
I seen a few decks get thin here and there but it's not the entire deck and they can always be patched up with some sheet metal, and old coffee can or license plate or just some of the good metallic HVAC tin foil tape works surprisingly well.
Everything else like spindles either police brackets and stuff can all be replaced and repaired.
So I am a little interested to know why you had to replace the deck and I'm thinking that and most people situations, or a specially in mind, I certainly wouldn't have bought a new deck because a new deck is outrageously high and it comes bare where you have to transfer everything over or buy those new parts too and that's like going to be 300- $400 so that's a no-go for me.
Batteries, of course I make no judgments on because they're all junk now and anything after 3 years is on really borrowed time if you get that long.
The starter gear had something else going on.
Either there was some slight mismatch with the alignment and mesh and it was putting unnecessary pressure on it or it was being cranked excessively every time it started and not starting within 2 to 3 revolutions or under 3 seconds of cranking like it should.
There have been people with mowers who don't realize this is a problem and they are doing about three sets of extended cranking every time they go to mow their grass when they start their mower for the day.
Other people may be in a situation where their mower is started far more than it's really designed to be.
The thing is really designed to be started no more than once a week and use the entire time and then put away.
That's the most common use.
There's only a smaller percentage of people who have to turn off their mower to refuel or who will turn it off between cutting the front and rear lawns or different days etc or those who cut more than one lawn with it but again not the vast majority of people.
Most of those gears are the plastic dark colored one and I will agree they are cheap and junky.
Did you replace them with OEM Briggs & Stratton gear or did you use them from eBay Amazon aftermarket?
I will not buy the brand name starters because they're overpriced and the aftermarket ones work quite nicely, if not better, but the gears are a crapshoot..
There are some good aftermarket ones and some not so good ones so if I ever had one fail under three or four years I would probably just go back to a Briggs & Stratton one and try that one.
Most mowers go their entire 20-year life and never have the gear fail or at most are on there second gear from a big replaced one time.
Anything beyond that has some type of issue that's not in the normal use parameters.
But overall, yes, you're doing pretty decent.
A whole lot of people got 17 to 20 plus years from these consumer grade mowers whether it be husqvarna, Craftsman (which most of those were made by Husqvarna also for that time period), MTD brand products like Troy-Bilt, Cub cadet and even yard machines, or John Deere's.
Now let's don't think for one second that the l, la, d, and E John Deere's are one bit better because they're painted yellow and green and called a John Deere. They are department store mowers sharing most of the same parts as the other brands. They just cost a little more because of the color scheme and the brand.
They have even had more steering gear failures than the MTD products and probably right about the same as the Craftsman's because steering is their weekly too which also applies to Husqvarna but they just don't saturate most markets as well as Craftsman did during the day.
But my point is so many people got this kind of time and service out of these mowers because they were still fairly well built.
I get troy-bilts coming out of regular basis with belts that are 17 years old that are still spinning the blades and still moving the mower. They are cracked to pieces and have big chunks of rubber missing but you could still mow the yard with them!
So you could have had more problems especially if it has a Briggs engine like with compression release, blown head gaskets if it's a single, or if it was a Kohler courage single, the self-destruction because of the improperly torqued/fastened bolts on the top engine case cover.
So I guess you're doing okay but I just come to expect that out of those mowers because they were pretty good.
Most things are getting quite a bit watered down now and we probably won't fare quite as well in the future especially not with walk behind mowers and those new Briggs engines.
#122
RYANS'
RYANS'
#129
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bertsmobile1
Big box store was your first mistake because big box = big profit for the store
They are made by JD & are substantally better than the exact same design ( JD probably pay royalties to AYP ) machines with the AYP brands on them .
Just because you cheaped out on the gear does not mean the gear is trash.
As a foot note I have a couple of the small 225 & 255 ZTRs in my repair run .They were used commercially for 5 years then sold to my customers
Both required substantial repairs to the deck lift but after that was done they have been running fine for the past 5 or so years
B
bertsmobile1
The 100 series are RESIDENTIAL mowers so 120 hours or 2 years is about rightThis is Rumour Control... These are the facts...
Yup, for starters, there are so many accurate posts on this thread that I wouldn't know where to start to accurately quote them..
For me, my first experience with a John Deere, was buying one (D-160), from a Big Box Store, when a Landscaping Company was, literally, thrown in my lap. ( Another story for another day).
Having a rip roaring case of O.C.D., I actually read the manual from front to back. Wow!! The manual states that the warrantee, is 2 years, or 120 hours, whichever comes first. Are you 'effin kidding me? If you used it all day, five days a week, that equates to a three week Warrantee!! WTF??
It got more interesting when it came to the Hydro-static trans.. " The drive is sealed, and as such, requires no maintenance.". The drive is a "Tough - Torque" K46.. Now, there's a point to note.. The trans was built to the specs provided by John Deere, who probably saved about a buck, by specifying that there was to be no drain hole in the case. So, at 50 hours, I removed the trans from the tractor, popped off the vent plug, and upended it over a bucket for the night. I then refilled it with Amsoil premium synthetic. The improvement in performance was noticeable. In spite of my O.C.D. scheduled maintenance, it still ate parts on a regular basis. Spindles, despite regular lubrication, self destructed. Etc, Etc.
I got asked why I'd bought that "POS".. My only defence was that I'd relied on the John Deere reputation.. Just because it's green, doesn't mean it's a John Deere.. It's just another cheap POS, sold by your neighbourhood box store.
They're like chainsaws.. when you are at the lowest price point, you get the lowest quality / build that there is. They ( the manufacturers) , just use the name to sell crap products.
Big box store was your first mistake because big box = big profit for the store
They are made by JD & are substantally better than the exact same design ( JD probably pay royalties to AYP ) machines with the AYP brands on them .
Just because you cheaped out on the gear does not mean the gear is trash.
As a foot note I have a couple of the small 225 & 255 ZTRs in my repair run .They were used commercially for 5 years then sold to my customers
Both required substantial repairs to the deck lift but after that was done they have been running fine for the past 5 or so years