Looking for advice re: purchasing a reliable lawn tractor

[Bama66]

I truly believe that a person wanting a quality mower should never buy one from a "big-box" store like Lowe's or Home Depot. To get a much higher quality machine, you must purchase one from a dealership. I know you said you don't want another John Deere, but if you go to their dealership and compare their machines to the ones at your favorite big box store, it won't take you long to see the difference in the machines. I had several problems with my first riding mower or garden tractor that I bought locally from a big box store. It was a learning experience that I just had write off. Oil leaks, No start issues, electrical problems, and so on. That was over 30 years ago. I went to a nearby John Deere dealer and bought a higher end model than the other places carried. I mowed our half acre with it for 16 years and sold it for just about half of what I paid for it. The only reason I sold it was to buy a Zero Turn Mower, which I am still using to this day!! It is older now but still looks and runs like brand new!! I recommend that you find one with a Kawasaki engine on it or a Kohler engine on it!! You shouldn't have any trouble then!!
Good luck on your searches!!

I bought a John Deere F725 front deck mower (they don’t make any more). It is over 20 years old. I do all the maintenance myself including oil changes, filter changes,belt changes, transmission oil changes, deck leveling,etc. It has a Kawasaki engine with no problems so far and I mow 1.50 acres. I bought it from a John Deere dealer and also it’s a mulching mower. I think when I have to replace it, I’ll buy another JD for sure!

 

[Vic bellan]

Hi Folks, I'm looking to purchase a good reliable small lawn tractor (not JD!) for approx. 13K sq of lawn. I'm hoping to avoid Briggs&Stratton engines, specifically the 18HP
used in the JD E110 as there is some chatter that problems exist with these motors. Some Craftsman and Husqvarna models have Kohler engines, which might be a bit more
reliable. I'd be grateful for any/all advice.
And to explain the JD boycott, I purchased an E110 in 2020 and after 4 seasons, 160 hours of use and timely maintenance the engine failed. Fool me once...
Thank you in advance.
BuddyD

Look at Walker , made in USA, great quality & worth the $

 

[DinosaurMike]

I did not read all the posts, but make sure you look at turning radius for all of the riders/tractors you consider. I went from a Toro rider with a turning radius of a pickup truck to a TroyBilt tractor with the turning radius of a sports car. It made a big difference in mowing patterns. My TroyBilt is 20 years old and I would not make a recommendation based on the age of it as I hope there have been design changes for the better.
I wish you many good years of mowing with your choice.

 

[ukrkoz]

What's wrong with g'ol Briggs? I had Craftsman rider with it, bought in 2005, thing was indestructible. Sold it 2 years back without any issues.

 

[wolfen]

Kohler Command is the best single engine on the market. Too bad they quit making them. They just don't tear up. Biggest problem is carb issues and most of that is due to sitting with fuel in them too long gumming up the carb.

I had a Kohler Commander that was a piece of junk twin cylinder and BOTH cam houseings cracked

I recomend a JOHN DEERE riding mower, I have a X330 for alomst an acre and its a total complete beast

 

[davis2]

We have had great luck with the Cub Cadet Lawn tractors. They offer a XT1 and then a better XT2 models. Just make sure you buy it from a Local Dealer for that after the sale support. Cub Cadet Link: https://www.cubcadet.com/en_US/riding-lawn-mowers/lawn-and-garden-tractors

I have a 1980's Cub Cadet 782. I'd recommend the OP find an older tractor like mine, and it will last if cared for.

 

[davis2]

I have a Sabre 1742 as a backup, but it breaks more than my cub.

 

[RayMcD]

What's wrong with g'ol Briggs? I had Craftsman rider with it, bought in 2005, thing was indestructible. Sold it 2 years back without any issues.

Nothing wrong with the old i/c briggs, it's the new stuff that is absolutely junk out of the box...

 

[Jack3q]

I use a Kubota with a Kawasaki engine. Going on 30 years with regular maintenance and general repairs.

 

[TobyU]

That 13K sq ft is a bit much to mow with a push mower, even self-propelled. It is sloped from front to back and at my advanced age...
A lawn tractor is a nice luxury for me.I change up the mowing patterns so no ruts, etc. The failure on the JD was a failed connector rod which is probably more related to the eng. manuf. B&S, thus my search is excluding those motors if possible.
I've done my research, mine is not an isolated incident with JD machines. Additionally, I have had a Craftsmen snow thrower for 25+ years and never a problem. The Craftsman moves frozen water, the lawn tractor small blades of grass. Though hours per year are significantly less with the snow thrower, it's appalling to spend $1800 on a lawn mower and get 4 seasons of use out of it.

The only remotely typical way these engines snap rods are if they are low on oil.
They have plenty of other issues but none catastrophic like a snapped connecting rod and the associated crankshaft scoring.
SAE 30 conventional oil is the thing to use and keep it on or even slightly above the full mark.
Not a common failure though.
However many of these are deemed "blown" or not worth fixing due to the other common probs and due to shops charging way too much for the repair.