Ok, we had a Craftsman at our previous house and I hit a stump and bent the shaft and ended up replacing it with another Craftsman which I've used for about 5 years. Now we're in a new house and it's a wooded lot that doesn't have a whole lot that actually needs to be mowed, but it's kind of rough. I hit another stump the other day. Never even saw it as there was only an inch or so sticking up and there was grass grown around it. I ended up with another bent shaft.
So now I've been reading a lot online and I keep seeing that a forged shaft is stronger than a cast shaft, but I can't seem to find which mowers have forged shafts and the vest wearing folks at Home Depot and Lowe's don't seem to be able to give me this information either. I just want something sturdy that's going to last for a while. I know that I need to be somewhat careful and not go around hitting stumps and whatnot, but I am not buying another Craftsman. Any recommendations?
So now I've been reading a lot online and I keep seeing that a forged shaft is stronger than a cast shaft, but I can't seem to find which mowers have forged shafts and the vest wearing folks at Home Depot and Lowe's don't seem to be able to give me this information either. I just want something sturdy that's going to last for a while. I know that I need to be somewhat careful and not go around hitting stumps and whatnot, but I am not buying another Craftsman. Any recommendations?