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Old age newbe

#1

L

Little Al

Hi, I live in the Midi Pyrenees region of France,& have reached the age of feeling a bit long in the tooth [75] to be walking around behind a mower, to cut my approx 2/3rd`s acre of grass, so joined to get some idea of the pro`s & con`s of ride on [mowers/garden tractors] My real hobby is collecting & restoring vintage chainsaws, which I also use as my heating etc. is wood fueled, but having gained much knowledge & info from chainsaw forums, I thoughtI would apply the same to clue me up on the iff`s & but`s in my quest to purchase said mower. So please forgive if I look a lot & don`t say a lot, as of this moment in time I know very very little on the subject [But I`m very willing to listen & learn] So if in future I possibly ask one or more dumb questions please bear with me] Thanks, Al.


#2

jmurray01

jmurray01

:welcome:​

Personally, if I was still able to, I'd keep on using a push mower until I couldn't! Good exercise I've found.

As for ride on mowers, you can't go wrong with a John Deere, but there are plenty others that would be good for mowing your grass.

I'm sure our more experienced Ride On enthusiasts will pitch in soon and give you better advice! :smile:


#3

Ric

Ric

Welcome to the forum Little Al.


#4

K

KennyV

WELCOME to LMF...
Hello Al, with your experience with chainsaws, you will come in very handy, giving tips on saws & other small engine tools... Good to have you with us... :smile:KennyV


#5

jmurray01

jmurray01

KennyV said:
WELCOME to LMF...
Hello Al, with your experience with chainsaws, you will come in very handy, giving tips on saws & other small engine tools... Good to have you with us... :smile:KennyV
Click to expand...
Oh! In that case, Al would be useful in the Chainsaw thread "Echo CS450 Chain Saws won't start"


#6

RobertBrown

RobertBrown

Little Al said:
Hi, I live in the Midi Pyrenees region of France,& have reached the age of feeling a bit long in the tooth [75] to be walking around behind a mower, to cut my approx 2/3rd`s acre of grass, so joined to get some idea of the pro`s & con`s of ride on [mowers/garden tractors] My real hobby is collecting & restoring vintage chainsaws, which I also use as my heating etc. is wood fueled, but having gained much knowledge & info from chainsaw forums, I thoughtI would apply the same to clue me up on the iff`s & but`s in my quest to purchase said mower. So please forgive if I look a lot & don`t say a lot, as of this moment in time I know very very little on the subject [But I`m very willing to listen & learn] So if in future I possibly ask one or more dumb questions please bear with me] Thanks, Al.
Click to expand...
Bonjour Al
I have no idea what is available in France. Maybe a diesel would be a consideration :confused3:


#7

F

fastback

Hi Al and welcome to the forum. You don't say what the grass or terrain is like. Do you have a lot of obstacles? At 2/3 of an acre you won't need a super huge deck. Also what type of engine do you prefer gas or diesel? Are you just going to cut grass or will you be cutivating your grape vines:laughing: Answers to any or all these questions could be helpful.

Paul


#8

Sammy the Red

Sammy the Red

Welcome Aboard !


#9

L

Little Al

fastback said:
Hi Al and welcome to the forum. You don't say what the grass or terrain is like. Do you have a lot of obstacles? At 2/3 of an acre you won't need a super huge deck. Also what type of engine do you prefer gas or diesel? Are you just going to cut grass or will you be cutivating your grape vines:laughing: Answers to any or all these questions could be helpful.

Paul
Click to expand...

Thanks to all for your welcome. My plot is pretty level but quite rough, with coarse grass,weeds etc There are 20 walnut trees & approx 100 metres of vines [ in two rows with enough space to get the special narrow track vine tractor between] There doesn`t seem to be much in the way of diesel power in the garden tractor size here, the ones I`ve seen are to large & way to expensive, from 9,000 euros / 12000$ up, so I think i`m looking at essence/gas, doesn`t have to collect grass but that would be a bonus The used market here is also pretty limited , although I don`t mind tinkering a bit so long as the [brand/model spares are available] at the moment I`m going cross eyed reading all the catalogues


#10

K

KennyV

What brand names seem to be available & the most common, & in use around your area? Give us some idea what you have to choose from...
:smile:KennyV


#11

L

Little Al

KennyV said:
What brand names seem to be available & the most common, & in use around your area? Give us some idea what you have to choose from...
:smile:KennyV
Click to expand...
Looking around some of the dealers in the area , it seems to be TORO, MTD, JOHNSERED, HUSKVARNA, MACULLOUCH.So any advice on any of the smaller ones in these makes would be welcome. Thanks


#12

jmurray01

jmurray01

Little Al said:
Looking around some of the dealers in the area , it seems to be TORO, MTD, JOHNSERED, HUSKVARNA, MACULLOUCH.So any advice on any of the smaller ones in these makes would be welcome. Thanks
Click to expand...
I had a bad experience with a Husqvarna walk behind mower, but a lot of people have said that the ride on versions are very good.

Worth looking into.


#13

reynoldston

reynoldston

Welcome to the forum. Always like to hear from that side of the ocean. jmurray from Scotland is a very good member and we hear a lot from him. The 0 turn mowers are getting popular in this country. Maybe you should look into one of them in a smaller size? Don't know what you want to spend on a rider. You say you heat with wood. What do you do as far getting fire wood. Cut down trees, cut into chunks and then split. I am also in my 70's and have been cutting my own fire wood for years. The problem is my body just won't take it anymore so I am to the point of buying my wood all cut and split. One of my chain saws is about 45 years that i still use at times but find my new Husky will cut a lot more wood with a lot less work. Collecting old chain saws sound like a fun hobby. I just started collecting old out board boat motors myself.


#14

L

Little Al

reynoldston said:
Welcome to the forum. Always like to hear from that side of the ocean. jmurray from Scotland is a very good member and we hear a lot from him. The 0 turn mowers are getting popular in this country. Maybe you should look into one of them in a smaller size? Don't know what you want to spend on a rider. You say you heat with wood. What do you do as far getting fire wood. Cut down trees, cut into chunks and then split. I am also in my 70's and have been cutting my own fire wood for years. The problem is my body just won't take it anymore so I am to the point of buying my wood all cut and split. One of my chain saws is about 45 years that i still use at times but find my new Husky will cut a lot more wood with a lot less work. Collecting old chain saws sound like a fun hobby. I just started collecting old out board boat motors myself.
Click to expand...

My neighbour has some 80 acres of mainly Oak, Silver Birch, Sweet Chesnut, Mountain Ash, which he coppices & sells for wood burning, cut to 50cm lengths & split. I help him cut & haul, & I take wood instead of cash in return for my labours ,so sourcing timber is no problem. As you say though the body rebels sometimes & doesn`t want to be put on, this is the reason for wanting a ride on mower as Iv`e got to the stage of not wanting to plod around behind a mower for up to a couple of hours which is what it seemed to be taking to mow & strim my plot The wood cutting is not a problem as I can do it as & when & the timber stands stacked for at least 3years so it`s an on going project, the mowing is more of a must do though otherwise it gets out of hand


#15

wjjones

wjjones

Welcome to the Forum....Al....:thumbsup:..


#16

F

fastback

Hi Al,

Are you going to be using the tractor to haul the wood? If you think this will happen then you may want to consider a garden tractor. They are a little more heavy duty and robust and will hold up better. If not than a lawn or yard tractor will do well. Just pick the size mower you want and your golden. I think in terms of quality you probably will get the same results in a given price range. If you find a make and model you like ask the dealer for someone who has purchased one and ask how they like the machine. Then its up to you.


#17

L

Little Al

fastback said:
Hi Al,

Are you going to be using the tractor to haul the wood? If you think this will happen then you may want to consider a garden tractor. They are a little more heavy duty and robust and will hold up better. If not than a lawn or yard tractor will do well. Just pick the size mower you want and your golden. I think in terms of quality you probably will get the same results in a given price range. If you find a make and model you like ask the dealer for someone who has purchased one and ask how they like the machine. Then its up to you.
Click to expand...

No I will not require the mower/tractor to haul timber, as my heighbor has 4 tractors that I can use to haul wood also a trailer with a HIHAB loading arm powerd from the PTO. so the the machine I`m looking to purchase will be solely for grass cutting


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