on 5/21/2007 9:52 PM gorehound said the following:
Basically what the subject says. I have a 20 year old Lawn Chief that now is
breaking down every time I mow. I have up to two thousand (but wouldn't mind
spending less) to spend on a mower and a little less than an acre of grass.
What brand of mower would be recommended in my situation? I was offered a
"deal" on a Sabre (by John Deere), but my wife doesn't want to buy used. Any
suggestions?

Thanks
Shane


Let's examine what a rider mower is. 4 wheels on a chassis holding a
place to sit and an engine to drive the thing around. Other items are a
steering wheel, brake, transmission, and 1, 2, or 3 blades that spin and
cut grass and other things that are taller than the height of the blades.
They come in various colors, Red, yellow, green, etc. They have a brand
name on them somewhere. Note that the brand name does not necessarily
mean that the mower was made by the owner of that brand name, or even
in America. Someone said, don't get a Craftsman. Sears does NOT make
anything!!. They don't make Craftsman tools and they don't make Kenmore
appliances. They have them built by other manufacturers and put their
own name on it. When you buy a Craftsman mower, you could be getting a
Husqvarna or an MTD (which bought out Murray). MTD includes the brands;
Bolens, TroyBuilt, Cub Cadet, and Yardman, among others.
You could spend a thousand dollars more for a tractor that has a brand
name that will make your neighbors jealous. But, like automobiles, brand
names don't mean shit. You can get a lemon of a BMW, and get a very
reliable car buying a Hyundae.
I've had two Garden Tractors in the 20 years that I have lived here. I
bought them both at Agway (a franchise farm equipment store).
One had 'Southern States' written on the side and was Green. It was a
manual transmission type, which was nice. You just set the throttle to
the speed you wanted, put the thing in the gear you wanted, and then put
your feet up on the hood and drive around your yard, only steering when
you needed to. Of course, you may have had to change gears when going
uphill. I had a plow attachment for it, but here in the northeast, when
you can get 3 or 4 major snowfalls in the winter, I couldn't push the
new snow past the previous snow fall banks, so my driveway kept getting
narrower. After 10 years or so, I gave it away to a friend who lived in
a rented house. It still ran, but the body was pretty banged up. Dents
and scratches, rusty undercarriage, and a mower deck whose bottom edge
was pretty well eroded off. He got the plow too. I bought another Agway
mower, but this one was red and said Agway on the side. Didn't matter, I
knew it was a Murray. I got a snow blower for this one and I am still
using it.today.
So, my point is, get one that you can afford, and don't worry what it
says on the side, or the color. If you don't like the color, pick up a
couple of cans of Rustoleum while you are there and repaint it to the
color you like.
You can save that few extra hundred for not buying a prestigious brand
to buy that snowblower attachment (if you live where it snows, that is) :-)



--

Bill
In Hamptonburgh, NY
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