muletrain wrote:

I'm going to buy a riding lawn mower for the upcoming year. I've been out
of the loop as far as brand quality ic concerned. I'm willing to pay up
to about 1500.00. A few questions I have:

1- When I last checked out mowers, John Deere used Kohler and Kawasaki
engines. Now they seem to be using B&S. B&S didn't have a glowing
reputation a few years ago. Has this changed at all? Do most major
brands use Briggs? Its all I seem to see.

You are on the right track. What made Kohlers great was the cast iron
cylinders or cylinder inserts. Now other makers use them and get good
results also. I would insist either cast iron cylinders or cast iron
inserts.

2- If you don't want to buy a Deere, what is the next most reputable
brand?

For riding lawn mowers the John Deere is still the most reliable, then
the Snapper.

If you go up to a lawn tractor, then John Deer is still the most
reliable, then the
Craftsman
Yard Machines/Yard-Man
Murray
Cub Cadet
and then Toro.

The difference isn't big, but about 10% of Toros have more problems than
John Deers.

In an article I saw a couple years ago, the best buy for under $1,500
was the Troy Built/Yard Man (same machines).

3- Are the mowers sold at Lowes/HD different than the mowers sold at a
dealer?

Lowes, Home Depot and Dealers sell some of the same products. You have
to ask the Lowes/HD where they get their machines fixed. They don't
carry parts typically and go through a local dealer. I have a Wheel
Horse/Toro that I bought from a dealer that has retired and closed up.
The closest dealer won't work on machines he didn't sell, so I have to
go further to a dealer that will. It is a pain. I would make sure you
can get parts and service. You probably will need it if you keep the
machine long enough.

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