Would you buy the same mower again?

[Ken22]

I bought a YTH2148 Husqvarna 15 years ago. 350 hours. I bought Husqvarna because they make good motorcycles and other equipment in Sweden. It is a piece of junk. Granted the motor is Briggs and Stratton, but i had to replace it because the cam went flat. Found a reasonable used replacement. Have had to beef up all welds on the deck. Deck does not raise sufficiently in the front. Poor adjustment method. Now I am making front steering link so that I can adjust the front end alignment. It is currently towed out bad and has no adjustment. Recently had to replace the electric clutch. Good thing that the spare engine that I had, had a clutch. It was thicker and required steering link adjustments.

Replaced a YTD2042 I inherited because of many of the problems you had.

 

[leew0004]

Here's one that everybody can chime in on. Would you buy the same mower again, or would you go with a different model? Do you have any regrets about your purchase?

I'll start. My first mower was a John Deere 365 with 48" deck. Loved that machine for 430 hours until we sold it. But I will say that the only thing different I would do is go up to a machine that had the power to handle a 60" deck instead of the 48" deck.

How about you?

I bought my John Deere Model D125 in 2016. Other than a flat tire, I've had no problems. It has over 170 hours on the clock now. I mow nearly 2 acres.

 

[leew0004]

I bought my John Deere Model D125 in 2016. Other than a flat tire, I've had no problems. It has over 170 hours on the clock now. I mow nearly 2 acres.

 

[rsu11]

If I remember right I read about someone with the same problem and was suggested to raise the seat and move the seat back ?? I never looked into it as I'm 5'7" and have my lap bars set as far ahead as they will go to be comfortable for me.

Yep, that was me. Haven't raised the seat yet, but will give it a try. It's not a big deal...I can still use the mower comfortably. It just surprised me that the seat can slide back into the engine housing.

 

[Ken22]

Yep, that was me. Haven't raised the seat yet, but will give it a try. It's not a big deal...I can still use the mower comfortably. It just surprised me that the seat can slide back into the engine housing.

Maybe Gravely engineers and QC staff are all short ?.

 

[crypkema]

I bought a 22 inch Yard King mower with a Honda GCV160 engine in 1990. It still runs like a champ. The throttle return spring recently broke. That cost me about $5 to repair. It doesn't use any oil, and just runs like a champ.

 

[7394]

I have previously posted about my vintage MTD 22" Briggs Flathead push mower. Yes I would buy that exact mower again. But that time & quality is gone.

Anyhow in Aug 20th, 2014,....... I got my NEW Toro MX Z. With all the bells & whistles including the Kawasaki engine. That mower continues to be fine & dandy. I take great care of my stuff. But besides the push mower, this Z is a great machine. It's only nearing 6 years old, so jury is still out for long term. But today I would buy another just like it if I could.
In fact almost did, shop selling on eBay had one leftover, but the guy was stuck on his price, & I guess I was stuck on mine as well.

Anyhow these are 2 that I would buy again, in a heartbeat.

 

[pelicanroost]

Bought my Ferris Evolution almost 8 years ago. Absolutely no regrets.

 

[de3]

I started out with a Dynamark,then moved on to a sears 18 hp garden tractor,used it for a few years until i went broke buying gas for it....now i've owned a bx1500 kubota now for 17 years,and i would buy another if needed,as far as push mowers i've owned 3 lawn boys,a snapper and a HRR Honda and several mowers that were gave to me....now I own a HRX 217H And a HRC Commercial.....And yes I would buy again

 

[lamrith]

I will touch on two units here.
Original ride on I had was a Kubota T1560 I bought in 2002 or so. Solid unit all the way around. If you have rough ground to mow on I can highly recommend the unit. The suspension really works and saves your back. Mine ran 15yrs with little to no maintenance and it held up great considering. The bagger system was deck powered and solid. It would only clog when trying to mow too fast in tall and wet grass (trying to mow between rainstorms).

I bought a Ferris 400S in 2018 to replace the Kubota. My 1st Zero turn. I went Ferris for the suspension system. Great mower so far. There was a learning curve and I still make the occasional spin mark turning. The deck had supposedly been leveled by the dealer, but I was getting a lip in the cut on one side and was worse when turning, so I re-adjusted it a hair and that stopped the issue. It has cut my mow times by 2/3 and has my lawn looking the best it has in years, I simply love this mower so far. To the point I have taken over mowing duties from my son who is less than happy at losing a source of allowance. I just find it relaxing to put music on and cut the lawn now, it is my 1hr escape from everything. I have even taken to alternating cut pattern each week, both to stop ruts from the mower weight, but also because the deck cuts so well it makes a nice pattern. I will give the Ferris a sold A-, pricing was inline with other comparable machines but it adds suspension which for me was important. Everything is pretty accessible for maintenance.
I added the turbo-pro bagger system late last year. The bagger I will say is not great. For some reason Ferris designed it so it really chokes down the exit from the deck and the blades of the fan system are not down in the grass path to help force it thru. It tries to use a venturi type effect to move the grass. With the heavy grass here in western Wa (why I needed a bagger as mulching does not work), the system just does not work well and is prone to clogging at the deck where it cannot be reached without pulling the assembly of the deck. The Kubota bagger system did not restrict the deck exit and had the fan down in the discharge path physically moving the grass, it would only clog if the grass was extremely high and wet. Unlike the Kubota I cannot hear it change pitch either when it is starting to backup and give me a chance to slow down or stop to let it clear itself. No warning until I start to see the deck spit grass out the front corner after the chute is fully clogged. I give the bagger a D. The unit is solidly built, materials look durable, but it was extremely expensive and the design just does not work that well.