Mower brand

[djdicetn]

A JD sold at lowes and the same model sold at the JD dealer is made at the same factory by the same people and sold to both for the same price.
Either way they are junk.
I would buy from the dealer always
They will test it and make sure all is right.
The dealer will sell it at the same price as lowes.

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Carscw,
So is what you are saying.....if you buy a JD 100 series regardless of where you buy it you are, as forum user Ric put it, "buying a low end mower at best". But if you purchase one of the JD series 300, 500 or 700 series lawn tractors(available ONLY at the dealer) then you are getting a real "John Deere quality" piece of equipment?

 

[Carscw]

Carscw,
So is what you are saying.....if you buy a JD 100 series regardless of where you buy it you are, as forum user Ric put it, "buying a low end mower at best". But if you purchase one of the JD series 300, 500 or 700 series lawn tractors(available ONLY at the dealer) then you are getting a real "John Deere quality" piece of equipment?

Yes a JD 100 is a low end mower at best.
And yes you can only get the 300 and up from the dealer.
And did not know JD made a quality mower.
JD makes good farm tractors but as far as mowers go why not save some $ and get a craftsman better price and better built

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[djdicetn]

Yes a JD 100 is a low end mower at best.
And yes you can only get the 300 and up from the dealer.
And did not know JD made a quality mower.
JD makes good farm tractors but as far as mowers go why not save some $ and get a craftsman better price and better built

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Well put, Carscw(but you may have hurt the feelings of some JD owners:0)
When I looked at the JD dealer and the best Zero Turn they could show me in the $6,000-$7,000 range was the EZtrak Z645 that had a "stamped" 9 gauge deck I wasn't real impressed. I mean it was "nice" but kinda pricey compared to the other ZTR's I had looked at in that price range. Then the sales manager tried to convince me that JD had determined that stamped decks had a superior cut to fabricated decks and I wasn't ready to buy into that story. But like you said, the 2006 Craftsman 54" YS4500(made by Husqvarna) for $1,800 was a great mower for that price and if my son takes as good of care of it as I did he'll probably get another 10 years out of it. With a mulch kit that mower cuts "almost" as good as a ZTR costing 2-3 times that much money. Definitely a good bang for your buck!!

 

[Ric]

Now I'm not a fan of JD and JD mowers sold at Lowes and HD are a low end mowers at best, but there still a better mower than a Craftsman.

 

[djdicetn]

Now I'm not a fan of JD and JD mowers sold at Lowes and HD are a low end mowers at best, but there still a better mower than a Craftsman.

Ric,

Like the Avatar!!!!! My reply to user Carscw was to elude to his statement about bang for your buck. My previous Craftsman in the fall of 2006 was a $2,000 lawn tractor I bought at end-of-season for $1,800. Basically a Husqvarna with a little cheaper 24hp Briggs & Stratton Intek, a 54" deck(10 gauge) and a Hydrogear trannie I still consider it a very good buy(actually the 2006 Consumer Reports lawn tractor review listed two John Deere's as #1 & #2, with this particular Craftsman model was rated as #3 and for the price a "CR best Buy/Recommended" lawn tractor). I can't really compare to what Lowes sold JD's for in 2006, but the model they currently sell that is "similar" to that Craftsman appears to be the D170(54" 26hp) lawn tractor. Based upon it's MSRP of $2,800 I would still purchase a Craftsman for a lot less money(although, Sears' line of Craftsman lawn tractors is pretty slim pickings compared to what they had in 2006....most likely a sign of their diminished prominence as a retailer and speculated potential bankruptcy after K-Mart tried, apparently unsuccessfully, to bail them out).

 

[Carscw]

My brother inlaw has a JD300. ( I told him not to buy junk) and it would not cut his grass after not cutting it for two months was about a foot tall it would bog down in first gear and had to cut it twice I came over with my 2009 craftsman lts1500
And cut it at all most full speed and only had to cut once.
My 22 year old ace mower by MTD will out cut them both

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[CZLawnCare]

If you want a real machine pick up one of these, I'd like to see a craftsman pull that as well as my x304

 

[CZLawnCare]

Forgot to attach thsi pic.

 

[Carscw]

Not sure why you think a craftsman will not pull that?
You do know that they both use the same engine or are you one of the ones that think JD makes there own engine?
There is a reason no one uses a JD to make a race mower or a mud mower. The frames are not as strong as a craftsman or a Murray.

You paid the extra money for a name that is not half as good as it once was.

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[CZLawnCare]

I have the john deere exclusive kawasaki engine so i do think i have a different engine than a craftsman