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Hello All,
I am in need of a recommendation for a walk behind mower. My better half loves to cut the grass (I know how fortunate can a guy get) I do the laundry in return (I知 in the basement working anyway..so it works well) Here痴 the catch, we both work 40 hrs during the week and the weekend is the only time for lawn cutting. Last season in Ohio we had a real wet summer and the lawn was growing faster than she could cut it. I hopped up the Toro as best as I could.
Mounted an extra blade 90 degrees to the first, unhooked the governor and replaced it with a manual speed control and ran 60 weight oil to attempt to protect it from burning up. It sort of did the job for a while. It was only a matter of time before something gave. This past weekend it blew a ring and I figure it is time to get her something better. Is there a walk behind that will cut 6 inches of grass wet? This is the worst condition that it will meet. I know commercial lawn care professionals cut in any weather. Any ideas would be appreciated. I壇 like to keep the size to a 21 inch or so for storage purposes.

I forgot to mention. I have less than an acre. I would prefer electric start

No surprise something had to give after your " custom mods"

It ran an entire season with the mods. I was determined to get through that stuff.
it had a nice helicopter like sound.

I'd say look for the largest engine pushmower you can find. Maybe commercial line stuff. One thing for sure your gonna need spend some cash.

I was looking a the Exmark 21 series. Only 6Hp as far as I can tell. :thumbdown:

is price and issue? do you bag or mulch? I guess your comment about neding to stay at 21" width means a small ztr is out of the question. I think you have to go commercial to get the kind of power you may need, for whats its worth my 15 y/o snapper with a 6 hp engine and 21" deck(frp 216012) with do it ... although it was built back when 6hp meant something. It does matter if you bag, mulch or discharge. I doubt mine can mulch wet 6inch grass as well as it bagged it or discharged it. Snapper does now have the p21875 with electric start and 8.5 pounds of torque. It is pricey tho'

We mulch...I guess I'm good to about $1K. I'm serious on the power need.
Since my wife does the cutting......if she's happy.....I'm happy. Thanks for the reply!
I need to get one soon. I want to have information before I talk to the sales person.

See my solution was a small zt riding mower, obviously wont work for you. I bet the largest you can get with a 21 in deck is prob 8hp or whatever they call 8hp these days. that snapper I mentioned with 8.5 torque is prob the equiv. I saw a recommendation from someone where they suggested you ask the dealer what the pros were buying. Thats prob a place to start. However it seems like they would not do what your doing... they would cut more often or get a bigger deck. I bet most of the commercial 21 inch mowers do not have electric start...that is more a residential feature. The Toro timemaster has a 30 in deck with a 8.75 gross torque motor. They claim it can fit is the same space as a std mower for storage. It does have an electric start option. You can always hit craigslist for a real commercial walkbehind with a fabricated deck and all the power you will need.

If your trying to cut 6" wet grass your never going to find a lawnmower to do that. A 20 hp might do in on a 21" deck but it will need to be able to discharge the cut grass and not in a bag. Sorry but what you ask is not available at this time.

This will do what you want



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Thanks for all of your replies. Great folks here!
it is a funny thing. Jimrs you were reading my mind. Surplus Center has a 20hp Kohler vertical shaft that I was eyeing yesterday. I do some machining as a hobby (have lathe, tig welder, mill etc.)
I was going to check the hop up section of this forum to see if anyone has "upgraded" their mower with a bigger power plant. Some may think that it is overkill, but that's how I roll. Of course, the gas tank will need to be relocated (need a larger one) and I'll have to find a place for a battery. I could always just plug into a battery for starting and forgo the onboard power supply.:frown: The engine is equipped with an alternator. That would come in handy if my wife wanted to mow into dusk....headlights

carcsw the make and model didn't post. what was that a picture of?

does this future frankenmower have self propelled wheels? putting a 20hp enging on a 21 " deck will raise the weigh of the mower considerably!! not to mention adding the weight of a small battery. I doubt your wife will want to push it for long.

Yes, you are correct. I've read some of the posts in the build your own mower section of this forum.
I have reconsidered the size based on just what you are saying. A couple of HP up from stock will still keep things manageable. i had hoped for better financial conditions but when i checked the accounts, a new mower (of considerable quality) just isn't in the cards right now.:redface: So, i figured with the tools and skill that I have an engine change is manageable.

Hi All,
Just wanted to give an update on my search for mowing happiness. Well, a couple of weeks ago I did bring home an Exmark 21.
Powerful, You Bet! A real MAN痴 mower. Built like a tank. That Kawasaki engine is something else. And if you wanted to, you could run behind the mower.
The Mrs. wasn稚 pleased and liked the more 田omfortable feel of the Toro Recycler with electric start. The moral of the story, if your wife is going to use the mower, take her with you when you buy it. The store on the far west side of Cleveland would even let you start and try the mower. Once she 鍍est drove the Toro it was a done deal. All is well?..

sparks325 said:

Hi All,
Just wanted to give an update on my search for mowing happiness. Well, a couple of weeks ago I did bring home an Exmark 21.
Powerful, You Bet! A real MAN痴 mower. Built like a tank. That Kawasaki engine is something else. And if you wanted to, you could run behind the mower.
The Mrs. wasn稚 pleased and liked the more 田omfortable feel of the Toro Recycler with electric start. The moral of the story, if your wife is going to use the mower, take her with you when you buy it. The store on the far west side of Cleveland would even let you start and try the mower. Once she 鍍est drove the Toro it was a done deal. All is well?..

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I don't think you could have done any better, congrats!

Is it the 21 X or S; does it say "Kai" on the Kawasaki FJ180v engine decal?

Hi and thanks for the kind words. You know when she's happy?..well. I was just glad to get that resolved.
I believe it was an X but it didn't have the blade clutch. It is funny the specifications say 6.6 MPH but I could easily have done 8MPH:biggrin:! I'm a runner and I almost needed to change shoes. The engine was a Kawasaki FJ180v. Lot of compression. The better half couldn't turn it over. It takes a good arm, but man when it's going.....I was very impressed. It is a 21 incher that kicks _ _ _.:cool2:

sparks325 said:

Hi and thanks for the kind words. You know when she's happy?..well. I was just glad to get that resolved.
I believe it was an X but it didn't have the blade clutch. It is funny the specifications say 6.6 MPH but I could easily have done 8MPH:biggrin:! I'm a runner and I almost needed to change shoes. The engine was a Kawasaki FJ180v. Lot of compression. The better half couldn't turn it over. It takes a good arm, but man when it's going.....I was very impressed. It is a 21 incher that kicks _ _ _.:cool2:

Click to expand...

I'm in the process of comparing the eXmark 21 with the KAI engine, as well as the Toro 22156 (a commercial version of the super recycler, more or less).... my wife never cuts the grass, so if it was up to you which would you have chosen? I like the idea of the beefiness of the x-series, but also like the light weight of the Toro...

Hi Canuck88,
Well, it sounds like you may already answered your own question. If you like the light weight of the Toro you will not like the tank like feel of the Exmark.
I had fun and was extremely impressed with it for the 25 minutes it took to finish the yard after my wife had enough wrestling it around.
I知 of a lighter frame and work indoors as an avionics technician. Depending on your physical condition, amount of space you need to cover and cash you have to spend, your answer is in there somewhere. If you are fortunate as I was, try to find a shop that will let you try before you buy, or at least one that carries both models. If you find the Exmark a little too much mower at least you can exchange and although you will get a refund , the shop doesn稚 lose the sale.
Hope that helps.
Brian

sparks325 said:

Hi Canuck88,
Well, it sounds like you may already answered your own question. If you like the light weight of the Toro you will not like the tank like feel of the Exmark.
I had fun and was extremely impressed with it for the 25 minutes it took to finish the yard after my wife had enough wrestling it around.
I知 of a lighter frame and work indoors as an avionics technician. Depending on your physical condition, amount of space you need to cover and cash you have to spend, your answer is in there somewhere. If you are fortunate as I was, try to find a shop that will let you try before you buy, or at least one that carries both models. If you find the Exmark a little too much mower at least you can exchange and although you will get a refund , the shop doesn稚 lose the sale.
Hope that helps.
Brian

Click to expand...

Thanks Brian - I'm a pretty fit, active guy in my mid-30s, and our yard is about 0.25ac... I think the best thing is to just try the eXmark out...