Your Ideal Mower?

[Rivets]

If you cannot figure out which part of the industry Bert and I are in, you better look into a new line of work. Even the totally inept posters on this forum can understand what we are talking about. Niether one of us has hidden our occupations from anyone. A lot of people are laughing at this thread right now, and I wonder why? Oh, because the two of us are calling you out and probably have together done more research on equipment needs than you have. Hint, we both work closely with, engine and equipment manufacturers, parts distributors, technical service reps and Joe the consumer.

 

[rwraysmith]

I never assume anything. Wow, you guys sure don't have a lot of patience for someone who's new to the business and trying to learn.

 

[primerbulb120]

Please understand that my examples in this post may not be on lawnmowers. However, the points I am trying to make apply to lawn mowers too.

I have run into plenty of poor designs while working on equipment. For example, a Homelite pressure washer on which the carburetor couldn't be serviced without removing the engine. My ideal mower would be easy to repair as well as easy to use.

Another thing I appreciate is cheap parts. MTD in particular has very expensive parts, while I can get Homelite and Ryobi parts for much less. I have bought a Ryobi air filter cover online for $1, shipping included.

I see no problem with using this forum to find out what people are looking for in a mower or any other lawn equipment.

 

[bertsmobile1]

I never assume anything. Wow, you guys sure don't have a lot of patience for someone who's new to the business and trying to learn.

Forums like these are self help venues designed to help the confused, not exploit the gullible.
They run on honesty & trust.
Honesty is like love & trust, the more you give out the more you get back.

Others like to exploit resources like these groups for their own greedy personnal gains, to take & not give.
The cyber equivalent of rape & pillage.

If you want to get something you have to give something.
You have given nothing.

It may have escaped you that I actually responded with a short list of things that need to be addressed.

If you are genuine then all you need to do is read .
There are a lot of posts here and the item that needs to be addressed will be in the original post so you only have to read the first and perhaps the second post in each thread.
Not hard to do especially on the bosses time.
I did it when I first joined the group seeking sources of information which is dennied to Australians on Australian web sites, on my own time after working a 14 hour day. I did this with more than a dozen mower groups till I found one which suited my needs.
I did not go the lazy way and ask " where do you lot get your information from '' and expect others to do MY WORK for me.
And most important I was up front & honest when I joined telling all who I was & why I was here and true to the ideals of this group, BECAUSE I GAIN VALUABLE INFORMATION from the member I ALSO GIVE BACK to the forum.

You appear to have no idea which sector Riv & I are in so that shows either you are thick, lazy, inept or have no connection with the mowing industry.
For all we know you could be a bone lazy student doing a thesis on internet groups trying to get some one else to do your work for you.
You could be a lazy advertising moron looking for a theme for next seasons campaign.
And after a quick reply to Primer, this is the last you will get from me on this thread unless you start to GIVE something worthwhile back.

 

[bertsmobile1]

Please understand that my examples in this post may not be on lawnmowers. However, the points I am trying to make apply to lawn mowers too.

I have run into plenty of poor designs while working on equipment. For example, a Homelite pressure washer on which the carburetor couldn't be serviced without removing the engine. My ideal mower would be easy to repair as well as easy to use.

Another thing I appreciate is cheap parts. MTD in particular has very expensive parts, while I can get Homelite and Ryobi parts for much less. I have bought a Ryobi air filter cover online for $1, shipping included.

I see no problem with using this forum to find out what people are looking for in a mower or any other lawn equipment.

I would have assumed that a "Kohler Certified Technician" would have no problems opening a trade account with any one of a thousand retailers or even wholesale distributors. So I am at a loss why you have trouble accessing parts at a reasonable price.

Second I would have thought you have seen companies bending over backward to make things cheaper only to vanish from the face of the earth because they end up on too thin a margin and some one else manages to get a similar product to market a few cents cheaper.

Factories are not magic places where you construct a building put in a machine and parts start flying out at no cost to you.
In order to be healthy and strong every sector of an industry needs to be able to make a reasonable profit.
Greedy individuals destroy this by searching out the absolute cheapest source and oft this source is supplying inferior products.
Imagine an Amercia where the only retail shop left standing was Walmart selling what you seem to want, bone cheap parts sourced from overseas, and the 100,000,000 Americians involved in manufacturing and the retailing & distribution of those manufatured products was unemployed so are forced to get by the best they can including , dealing drugs to YOUR children, breaking into YOUR house , stealing YOUR car , or mugging YOU or members of YOUR family.
An extreme example, but to a lesser degree that is what happens.
Manufacturing is closing down in Australia and a lot of ex employees end up buying mowing franchises, resulting in many of them paying the franchise agent for the priviledge of working 14 hours a day and the reasonable margins have dropped down to just above substance.
I know this because in desperation they come to me for help & advice, try to trade down some of their gear or sneak in some aftermarket parts rather that buy the overpriced parts through the franchise.

 

[primerbulb120]

I would have assumed that a "Kohler Certified Technician" would have no problems opening a trade account with any one of a thousand retailers or even wholesale distributors. So I am at a loss why you have trouble accessing parts at a reasonable price.

Second I would have thought you have seen companies bending over backward to make things cheaper only to vanish from the face of the earth because they end up on too thin a margin and some one else manages to get a similar product to market a few cents cheaper.

Factories are not magic places where you construct a building put in a machine and parts start flying out at no cost to you.
In order to be healthy and strong every sector of an industry needs to be able to make a reasonable profit.
Greedy individuals destroy this by searching out the absolute cheapest source and oft this source is supplying inferior products.
Imagine an Amercia where the only retail shop left standing was Walmart selling what you seem to want, bone cheap parts sourced from overseas, and the 100,000,000 Americians involved in manufacturing and the retailing & distribution of those manufatured products was unemployed so are forced to get by the best they can including , dealing drugs to YOUR children, breaking into YOUR house , stealing YOUR car , or mugging YOU or members of YOUR family.
An extreme example, but to a lesser degree that is what happens.
Manufacturing is closing down in Australia and a lot of ex employees end up buying mowing franchises, resulting in many of them paying the franchise agent for the priviledge of working 14 hours a day and the reasonable margins have dropped down to just above substance.
I know this because in desperation they come to me for help & advice, try to trade down some of their gear or sneak in some aftermarket parts rather that buy the overpriced parts through the franchise.

I am not and have never been a small engine professional. I repair and sell lawn equipment as a hobby. I became a Kohler certified technician by passing the free technician certification test on Kohler's website. This does not make me a Kohler dealer, nor does it give me any special access to wholesale parts distributors.

I am not going to argue with you about cheap parts. I simply appreciate when manufacturers chooses to supply their parts to consumers at a low cost. FYI, in my earlier post I was comparing the prices of OEM parts, not cheap Chinese aftermarket parts.

 

[Rivets]

Mr. Smith, now you say you are a newbee to this business?? Then, as a retired instructor I will revert to teaching mode. Rule #1, in this industry and in research you get out what you put in. This means you have to give something to get something. Rule#2, when asked a question, give an honest answer. Don't try to sidestep the question or be evasive. Any of your customers will see through you in an instant. Rule #3, as a newcomer trying to do things the easy way will very seldom work. We have all made many mistakes and have earn our scars to prove it. Rule #4, patience and understanding the information you receive are not always easy. You are dealing with Joe Public, who many times does not know how to communicate his problem to you or he may not understand what you want him to do to solve the problem. Rule #5, there is not cure or repair for stupid. You need to learn and practice Rule #4 more often than you want to. That concludes this lesson, more to follow when you have mastered these five. Time for you to do your research.

 

[rwraysmith]

I don't know if anyone can give an answer or have an answer for the Ideal mower. Everyone will have complaints and think this or that needs to be changed or this or that added and to what he or she thinks will be the ideal mower. Most of the Pro's or guys that are making a living in lawn-care like myself want something simple and don't worry about buying all the bells and whistles that you can get on a lot of the mowers out there today. The more you add the more the price goes up and it's just more stuff to go on the fritz. The thing that they do look at is cut quality and discharge. I'd look for ways to improve what's already there and not adding more B&W.

Thanks, Ric. I've recorded your feedback and really appreciate the input.

 

[rwraysmith]

Please understand that my examples in this post may not be on lawnmowers. However, the points I am trying to make apply to lawn mowers too. I have run into plenty of poor designs while working on equipment. For example, a Homelite pressure washer on which the carburetor couldn't be serviced without removing the engine. My ideal mower would be easy to repair as well as easy to use. Another thing I appreciate is cheap parts. MTD in particular has very expensive parts, while I can get Homelite and Ryobi parts for much less. I have bought a Ryobi air filter cover online for $1, shipping included. I see no problem with using this forum to find out what people are looking for in a mower or any other lawn equipment.

Primer, thanks for the mature and thoughtful response. While my company doesn't make the items you address in your post, we can do something to enhance safety and make you more productive on a job. For the second item, think of the mower as a command module of sorts that can make your other gear like trimmers, edgers, blowers, etc., last longer with less down-time. Is this something you might be interested in?

 

[primerbulb120]

I'm afraid I don't have much feedback about equipment operation. I fix a lot of equipment, but I don't spend much time using it. I have one string trimmer and one lawn mower that I use once per week during mowing season. Aside from testing machines I've fixed, that's all the yard work I do.

I don't understand what you mean about the mower being a command module or influencing the durability of the other equipment. Could you explain this in more detail?