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I know some of you will disagrea, but I think push mowers have been obsolete for years.
If my 32 inch walk behind is to big for a area to cut then i just use my trimmer. If I come across a new residential customer that wants it done by a push mower, I tell them to call someone else. I dont think its feesable or worth my time to PUSH a tiny mower back and forth ALL day long. I dont even own a push mower nor plan on ever buying one....obsolete I tell you. haha

AmericanTurf said:

I know some of you will disagrea, but I think push mowers have been obsolete for years.
If my 32 inch walk behind is to big for a area to cut then i just use my trimmer. If I come across a new residential customer that wants it done by a push mower, I tell them to call someone else. I dont think its feesable or worth my time to PUSH a tiny mower back and forth ALL day long. I dont even own a push mower nor plan on ever buying one....obsolete I tell you. haha

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I only use push mowers on my residential yards.
And a few I use a toro real mower on.
The cut is much better than a big mower.
All my home owners want a checker board pattern.

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What would you use on an incline to steep for a rider? Not your 4 cyl 32". You have to wrestle that thing around on some of the inclines I mow. And you run risk of destroying yr 4 cyl engine.
2cyl push mowers are the shiznit.

Thanks carscw. I have to disagree that a push mower cuts better than a walk behind with a 13 hoarse power engine. A 32 inch is not a HUGE mower.
Do you charge extra for checker pattern cuts? Saying it takes twice as long. You can do stripes with a walk behind to.

Park mower. You must be a rookie. Haha!! Nothing and I mean nothing cuts a steep incline better than a walk behind. I got a walk behind for two reasons. Residential lawns that are small and for hills that my grasshopper can't get on.

AmericanTurf said:

Thanks carscw. I have to disagree that a push mower cuts better than a walk behind with a 13 hoarse power engine. A 32 inch is not a HUGE mower.
Do you charge extra for checker pattern cuts? Saying it takes twice as long. You can do stripes with a walk behind to.

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All my yards get a checker pattern. Yes you can do stripes with a walk behind but looks like crap.
Nothing gives a better cut than a snapper push mower.
All my yards are kept under 2 inches and never look like they need to be cut so a push mower is what works for me.
Now if I was doing yards with fescue or other weeds I would use a big mower

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AmericanTurf said:

Park mower. You must be a rookie. Haha!! Nothing and I mean nothing cuts a steep incline better than a walk behind. I got a walk behind for two reasons. Residential lawns that are small and for hills that my grasshopper can't get on.

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Over 15 years mowing commercially.
You have your mind set. Your right no one can tell you otherwise.

I keep a small push mower on the trailer and many times will use it to trim places that my Zero Turn won't get into. It is faster than taking a trimmer and cutting it. I would not use it to cut a whole yard but there are times when there is a place like between a building and a fence or something like that where it is a major time saver. For me anyway.

yeah i know. i just hate push mowers. haha! in most cases its faster for me to whip out a small area with a trimmer, than walk back to the truck, start the thing up, walk back to location to cut, then walk back to the truck again. by all that time i could just have just trimmed it out. push mowers are just my opinion. I understand why others would rather use them.

I use push mowers (well, self-propelled "push" mowers)....partly because I don't feel like spending tons of money on a larger mower when they work fine for me, but also because I like their maneuverability. And I'm not going to argue if their cut is better than a larger walk-behind or ZTR, but my 21 in. mowers have a nice cut.

I use a push mower but i like the lawn tractors cut much better. but my question is, how do you make a level and same height cut on an area with a trimmer?

metz12 said:

I use a push mower but i like the lawn tractors cut much better. but my question is, how do you make a level and same height cut on an area with a trimmer?

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It's not easy. You just have to go slow. Because I know what you mean....you do an area with a trimmer and some areas you scalp a bit. :ashamed:

thats what i'm saying! that sounds time consuming when you can do a few swipes with a push mower.

metz12 said:

thats what i'm saying! that sounds time consuming when you can do a few swipes with a push mower.

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Well some people just have like a strip of grass to mow so buying a mower would be useless.
Other people have steep inclines where push mowers can't operate. That is where I would get a wheeled string trimmer if possible! But they are not cheap, either! They are around $300-$400! Look at this: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias=aps&field-keywords=wheeled+string+trimmer.

(Newegg.com - Husqvarna Outdoor 961730002 Husqvarna HU625HWT Wheeled Gas String Trimmer)

oh well if its only a strip i would use a trimmer too. but those walk behind trimmers are cool! there is a guy that i know mows his lawn with one of those!

metz12 said:

oh well if its only a strip i would use a trimmer too. but those walk behind trimmers are cool! there is a guy that i know mows his lawn with one of those!

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Yeah they are cool! :cool2:

There's not much area a 32 walk behind can't get. What it can't get I can do with a trimmer. I'm a real good and FAST trimmer. Haha!!! I used to work for a mowing business years ago that did 500,000 grand a summer. We had many crews. That company had no push mowers. Trimmers were required to trim fast and be able to walk up to 5 miles a day. I guess that's were I learned push mowers are obsolete. But i agree some companies are smaller and can't afford walk behinds. I feel if you spend 2000.00 on a walk behind, it will save that much money in time. Also here where I'm at most yards are bigger than usuall.

AmericanTurf said:

There's not much area a 32 walk behind can't get. What it can't get I can do with a trimmer. I'm a real good and FAST trimmer. Haha!!! I used to work for a mowing business years ago that did 500,000 grand a summer. We had many crews. That company had no push mowers. Trimmers were required to trim fast and be able to walk up to 5 miles a day. I guess that's were I learned push mowers are obsolete. But i agree some companies are smaller and can't afford walk behinds. I feel if you spend 2000.00 on a walk behind, it will save that much money in time. Also here where I'm at most yards are bigger than usuall.

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yes, walk behinds do work well, and there is alot of things that you can get to with them. and also, you can get alot of places with a small enough riding mower (like my yard machines) you can mow and then the areas that are left you can do with a trimmer. but talking to me, i like the garden tractor cut. with a striper:thumbsup: but a walkbehind is a great investment)

AmericanTurf said:

There's not much area a 32 walk behind can't get. What it can't get I can do with a trimmer. I'm a real good and FAST trimmer. Haha!!! I used to work for a mowing business years ago that did 500,000 grand a summer. We had many crews. That company had no push mowers. Trimmers were required to trim fast and be able to walk up to 5 miles a day. I guess that's were I learned push mowers are obsolete. But i agree some companies are smaller and can't afford walk behinds. I feel if you spend 2000.00 on a walk behind, it will save that much money in time. Also here where I'm at most yards are bigger than usuall.

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500.000 in a summer and let's say 15 workers so how much did they really make?
And out of the more than 1000 homes in the country club I do they could not get one yard.
If you had a million $ home you would not want a 500 pound wide tire rut making mower on your grass.
I use push mowers because that's what the HOA wants and that's where the big money is.
And I get to brag about how my yards look.
If I was to use big mowers I would like everyone that has a big mower need more yards to cut.
I have to turn away new yards I give them away to friends.

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Like I have said before there is no right or wrong just different ways of doing things.
What works for one might not work for the other

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The push mower has its place but a good walk behind is worth its weight in gold to someone who is really good with one. I carry two self propelled push mowers on the trailer but there used for trimming unless the the yard is so small nothing else works.
Like American Turf said there's not much area a 32" or 36" walk behind can't get you just catch the rest with the FS-90

Look at the attached picture. No ruts. Used with my Grasshopper. It looks awesome. I charged this customer $35.00 per cut. It takes me 20 min. from the time I pull up until the time I pull away. You cant make money push mowing. It takes you way longer, and dont look any better.

Your right I would not cut that with my push mower I will leave that to the mow and go guys.

I just don't like that look big tire tracks just looks like a mess to me.
I just hold my self to a higher standard then that.
And $35 for a yard that big is that all you think you are worth?

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Carscw said:

Your right I would not cut that with my push mower I will leave that to the mow and go guys.
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Before you leave it to a mow and go guys, you first need to figure out what a mow and go is.

$35 bucks in 20 min is a money maker for me. I can do 3 of these lawns by the time a push mower is half way done with this lawn.
Higher standard. Haha!!! Some real winners in this forum.

Ric said:

Before you leave it to a mow and go guys, you first need to figure out what a mow and go is.

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Your right I have much I need to still learn.

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AmericanTurf said:

$35 bucks in 20 min is a money maker for me. I can do 3 of these lawns by the time a push mower is half way done with this lawn.
Higher standard. Haha!!! Some real winners in this forum.

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Yea $35 in 20 min, Gosh that's only $105 and hr. I'd say that's a pretty good money maker :licking: I wished I could have a couple of dozen of those a week. :thumbsup:

AmericanTurf said:

$35 bucks in 20 min is a money maker for me. I can do 3 of these lawns by the time a push mower is half way done with this lawn.
Higher standard. Haha!!! Some real winners in this forum.

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So your doing a $65 yard for $35
At $35 a yard you have to do 4 every hour or 5 to my 1

And like I said I would not cut that yard or any yard in that area.
The thing is we don't provide the same service.
You do yards fast and cheap and that's fine I know you make money.
I do yards that the homeowner does not mind paying for a good job.
Bottom line is your way works for you and my way works for me. As long as you enjoy what your doing and you make a good living is all that matters.
There are to many lawn care guys out there that will cut yards cheap just to get them so I went after the ones that don't mind paying big $ for a perfect manicured yard

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Carscw Can I ask how many homes or lawns do you cut weekly?

Ric said:

Carscw Can I ask how many homes or lawns do you cut weekly?

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I have 45 res yards and over 300 HUD homes
The HUD homes I sub out

28 of my res get cut with a reel mower every 4 days the rest get cut every 5 to 6 days.
My cheapest yard is 75 a cut because he is family.

I run a 3 person crew myself my wife and my son

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AmericanTurf....those lawn stripes in your picture do look nice. But the thing is you said you can get 3 lawns done by the time a push mower is halfway done with one. That is true on that lawn, but chances are I would not do that yard with a push mower! Yards that are smaller look nice when done with a push mower. Some people only want their yard push mowed, or like skinnier stripes.

lawn mower fanatic said:

AmericanTurf....those lawn stripes in your picture do look nice. But the thing is you said you can get 3 lawns done by the time a push mower is halfway done with one. That is true on that lawn, but chances are I would not do that yard with a push mower! Yards that are smaller look nice when done with a push mower. Some people only want their yard push mowed, or like skinnier stripes.

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Absolutely correct in my opinion

lawn mower fanatic said:

AmericanTurf....those lawn stripes in your picture do look nice. But the thing is you said you can get 3 lawns done by the time a push mower is halfway done with one. That is true on that lawn, but chances are I would not do that yard with a push mower! Yards that are smaller look nice when done with a push mower. Some people only want their yard push mowed, or like skinnier stripes.

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I think that was the point he was trying to make, the push mower is something he wouldn't do that yard with. I believe he was talking about using the Grasshopper that's why he said he could do three like that in the time it would take someone with a push to do that same lawn or at least that's the way I under stood it. I do believe your right though that a push mower on smaller yards are hard to beat.

Hay ric, I used to live in Florida..saint petersburg for 6 years. I saw a lot of dixie choppers. I went to work for a guy mowing. I dint last a day. lol. Fricking 100 degreas out. Props to you hot state mowers!

AmericanTurf said:

Hay ric, I used to live in Florida..saint petersburg for 6 years. I saw a lot of dixie choppers. I went to work for a guy mowing. I dint last a day. lol. Fricking 100 degreas out. Props to you hot state mowers!

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I'm alright with the temps, it the dang temps with the high humidity that gets you. The first year I started the business I was at 210 lbs when summer finished I was 177 lbs. Who needs weight watchers :laughing:

Ric said:

I'm alright with the temps, it the dang temps with the high humidity that gets you. The first year I started the business I was at 210 lbs when summer finished I was 177 lbs. Who needs weight watchers :laughing:

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:laughing::laughing: There are a lot of lawn care businesses already. If everyone started a lawn care business who was trying to lose weight, there would be way too many businesses! :laughing:

Ric said:

I'm alright with the temps, it the dang temps with the high humidity that gets you. The first year I started the business I was at 210 lbs when summer finished I was 177 lbs. Who needs weight watchers :laughing:

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hey ric, since you live in florida, you must still be mowing correct?

I don't know who's leg he trying to pull. But I know this much: nobody pays someone a $175 to cut a small residential lawn. Not even in Hollywood.

AmericanTurf said:

I don't know who's leg he trying to pull. But I know this much: nobody pays someone a $175 to cut a small residential lawn. Not even in Hollywood.

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Who are you referring to that charges people too much in your opinion? Carscw?

i have only one customer and it takes 2 weeks to mow his yard, so when i finish it is time to start over. i guess here in indiana we have bigger yards.

Stihl_powered_LawnBoy said:

i have only one customer and it takes 2 weeks to mow his yard, so when i finish it is time to start over. i guess here in indiana we have bigger yards.

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So are you saying 80 hours or a couple hours a day?
At 1 acre every 45 mins that's a lot of acres.

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metz12 said:

hey ric, since you live in florida, you must still be mowing correct?

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Correct were still mowing, I just came in from mowing this morning. It's slow though not like summertime mowing.

Stihl_powered_LawnBoy said:

i have only one customer and it takes 2 weeks to mow his yard, so when i finish it is time to start over. i guess here in indiana we have bigger yards.

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:shocked: How many acres is it?!?!? 11-20 acres like your profile says your yard is??

Stihl_powered_LawnBoy said:

i have only one customer and it takes 2 weeks to mow his yard, so when i finish it is time to start over. i guess here in indiana we have bigger yards.

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Maybe doing it wrong?

My honey found this ultimate push mower in the opportunity shop for $20...great for the lawns at home, gives a nice clean cut and delivers a fair (but not excessive) work out at the same time...

I repair and tune up push mowers for a living. Push mowers are alivhe and well. I rebuild mowers for landscapers and homeowners. 5 days a week. I will complete around 11 to 15 per day. I have the best job.

I have a Craftsman self propeled mower ,it was great for an old guy like me ,BUT IT QUIT ,it would not go,sooo i got my old murry push mower an finished the job,,,ALLWAYS KEEP A BACKUP...

paulgee67 said:

I have a Craftsman self propeled mower ,it was great for an old guy like me ,BUT IT QUIT ,it would not go,sooo i got my old murry push mower an finished the job,,,ALLWAYS KEEP A BACKUP...

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Yes, I try to have more than one of many pieces of equipment, just in case. That's why I have two mowers and two trimmers. Definitely in the lawn care business, where if you don't have working equipment, you are not making money. :tractor: = :2cents:

I use a push mower all the time, mainly for the trailer park I mow for.

Other than that I use my Craftsman rider. But push mowers are definitely not obsolete.

X-man said:

I use a push mower all the time, mainly for the trailer park I mow for.

Other than that I use my Craftsman rider. But push mowers are definitely not obsolete.

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I don't know if the push mower is obsolete or not :smile: or if it will ever be obsolete but it does have it's uses. You mow a trailer park, well if your parks our like some of ours here in Florida the lot sizes are about to small for even your Craftsman rider so a push mower is about the only way to go to make things look decent. Now they may be out dated for some of the commercial operators and crews because of the String Trimmers used today.

AmericanTurf said:

I know some of you will disagrea, but I think push mowers have been obsolete for years.
If my 32 inch walk behind is to big for a area to cut then i just use my trimmer. If I come across a new residential customer that wants it done by a push mower, I tell them to call someone else. I dont think its feesable or worth my time to PUSH a tiny mower back and forth ALL day long. I dont even own a push mower nor plan on ever buying one....obsolete I tell you. haha

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Not for all yards. Our yard has many trees and gardens plus a pond that is ringed with a stone walkway and flowers. Our Honda push mower is perfect for the in and out and around trimming that is too inaccessible for our X300. A self propelled walk behind would just add weight and additional friction. Push mowers still have a place and in our case are the perfect machine.

Ric said:

I don't know if the push mower is obsolete or not :smile: or if it will ever be obsolete but it does have it's uses. You mow a trailer park, well if your parks our like some of ours here in Florida the lot sizes are about to small for even your Craftsman rider so a push mower is about the only way to go to make things look decent. Now they may be out dated for some of the commercial operators and crews because of the String Trimmers used today.

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My trailer park has some nice size yards. About a quarter of them I use my tractor.