I would have suggested a higher-end Deere also (I have an LX277), but the
original poster's budget was $1800 - you are not going to get a new
higher-end Deere for that. You may not even get a used one for that.

"Tim Fischer" wrote in message
news:_Erka.362248$F1.57556@sccrnsc04...
"JJ" wrote in message
...
Without starting a tractor war, my advice would be to stay away from MTD
stuff (Yard Machines, Troy Bilt at Loews, low end Cub Cadets, Huskee,
etc.).

Agree completely. I'd suggest buying a higher-end Deere than the ones at
HD, but any Deere is better than MTD by a moonshot.

Look in the archives. You'll find many people who've had problems with
MTD
and Craftsman and the other cheap brands. You'll also find a few who
swear
they've ran their MTD/Crapsman 30 years and it's still going. I believe,
as
you've found out, that this is the exception -- I had a Crapsman die after
2
seasons of use, and you got 3 out of your MTD. I think that's the norm.

-Tim