mowers which one

[fatcat]

Hi all just moved into a new house and well i need a mower and wondering is there much difference between mowers? the land is flat and small. shall i just get a victor at kmart or bunnings. but its the whipper snipper i'm keen on. i saw at mitre 10 there is a whipper snipper attachment that is a chain saw for $150. i hate chain saws to dangerous but at least i will be 1.5 m away bit safer..... cool a chopping we will go.... be handy on trips in the defender oh and there's a few things the fendy will be pulling out the ground cool.

p.s sorry not landy topic

[harry]

ring the garden men, mowing lawns is a pain.
and don't buy a bloody two stroke, sorry, victa is out unless its a four stroke, no petrol/oil mixing, and when it stuffs up it can be fixed.
did i mention that i hate two strokes?

[953]

Simple, buy a honda, it`ll outlast U.:wasntme:
Cheers Dean.

[George130]

I bought a 4 stroke mulcher mower so I don't have to worry about the catcher filling up. Had it 4 years and it's still going strong:).

[Bigbjorn]

Yes, indeed. Never have a two stroke mower, PIA. I do three lawns mine and a couple of aged family members. I now use a Rover 21" cut with 5.5hp industrial Briggs and Stratton, Iron bore, electronic ignition, and float bowl carbie. Probably too big and heavy for your "small" block, but get a smaller version for many years trouble free mowing. Other solution is get a few geese, but don't get a gander. Bloody great lawnmowers, first class intruder alarms, top Christmas dinner, but bloody impossible when they have goslings.

[solmanic]

Second that Brian - Rover, 4 stroke, 5HP, indestructable and still easy to start after 12 years.

[Range Blitzer]

I have 4 mowers. They all have names, 4 legs and are covered in wool. Pretty easy to look after. Its a bit like having one of those automatic pool cleaners going all the time.:D

[B92 8NW]

I have owned 14 Lawnmowers and three ride-ons (which is quite extraordinary, that's 0.77 mowers per year of my entire existence:D) as I used to repair small engines before my Landies.

Of those 3 ride-ons; a rover, a greenfield and a toro:

Both the TORO and Rover have a 12HP B&S engine. They use a fair bit of oil (toro is almost new), they lack torque at low engine speed. They have a narrow power band, so its hard to match sensible ground speed to good blade speed. They are noisy. They use tonnes of fuel when put under load.The greenfield has been rolled, every panel bent, bogged, drowned after sliding in a drainage ditch, worked hard, run into trees, abused, poorly maintained, flogged and both drive clutches destroyed. It has a 6.8 HP Honda engine. Everything else is falling to bits except the Honda motor.

Nothing will kill it! It has excellent torque from idle to flat out, good fuel economy, and boy does it REV:D

walk behinds:

Older Victa 2-strokes with the cast carburettor are almost bulletproof, but I have found newer Victas are rubbish. The plastic carb lets it down, they are a PITA.

Smaller B&S 4 strokes (ie. 3HP) I have found do not have sufficient power to cut lawns quickly and efficiently. I have also blown up 4 b&s engines, the 3.5HP motor is not designed for farm use.

I currently use for domestic purposes a 5.5HP I/C B&S and it is excellent.

IMHO Honda would be the way to go. Or Shindaiwa. The japanese have got small engine manufacture to an artform.

[LandyAndy]

HONDA
Spend the money buy the best.
Andrew

[Barra1]

I have owned 14 Lawnmowers and three ride-ons (which is quite extraordinary, that's 0.77 mowers per year of my entire existence:D) as I used to repair small engines before my Landies.

Of those 3 ride-ons; a rover, a greenfield and a toro:

Both the TORO and Rover have a 12HP B&S engine. They use a fair bit of oil (toro is almost new), they lack torque at low engine speed. They have a narrow power band, so its hard to match sensible ground speed to good blade speed. They are noisy. They use tonnes of fuel when put under load.The greenfield has been rolled, every panel bent, bogged, drowned after sliding in a drainage ditch, worked hard, run into trees, abused, poorly maintained, flogged and both drive clutches destroyed. It has a 6.8 HP Honda engine. Everything else is falling to bits except the Honda motor.

Nothing will kill it! It has excellent torque from idle to flat out, good fuel economy, and boy does it REV:D

walk behinds:

Older Victa 2-strokes with the cast carburettor are almost bulletproof, but I have found newer Victas are rubbish. The plastic carb lets it down, they are a PITA.

Smaller B&S 4 strokes (ie. 3HP) I have found do not have sufficient power to cut lawns quickly and efficiently. I have also blown up 4 b&s engines, the 3.5HP motor is not designed for farm use.

I currently use for domestic purposes a 5.5HP I/C B&S and it is excellent.

IMHO Honda would be the way to go. Or Shindaiwa. The japanese have got small engine manufacture to an artform.

I read this and then had to re-read it and young man are you ever SOOOOOO right!!!!

[carjunkieanon]

Worked as a gardener for a few years. I reckon get a Honda lawnmower.
That said, I've got a Kawasaki whipper snipper that does the whole lawn with ease. More fun too.

[DEFENDERZOOK]

just dont get one of these........they appear to be too hard to start........




http://www.livevideo.com/video/jlstigger70/B0D1C2489B3E4AE4909239B3D128CA13/funny-video-of-a-girl-destroyi.aspx

[Grizzly_Adams]

HONDA
Spend the money buy the best.
Andrew


I'll second that opinion! :cool:

[Mudnut]

I don't have a large yard, And used to hate mowing. The main reason for this was starting the mower. I have had a series of second hand, and cheap mowers. I would work up a sweat just trying to start them. By the recommendation of a friend, purchased a Honda 4 stroke mower. Was the cheapest in their range (but still used by many pro gardeners). It starts 1st or 2nd pull every time, since I have owned it for over a year. In my opinion money well spent. This is even with fuel that has been sitting in it for months. (as I said not a large yard).

Good luck in your search,

Ken

[amtravic1]

Buy a Honda, cost more but will outlast you and still be going strong.

Ian

[gofish]

Go the rover. They are fantastic & the B&S seems a good unit. 8 years now with a fair bit of abuse & never missed a beat...& then you'll have another "rover" in the shed :D

[Quiggers]

Honda. I have one that drives itself, how lazy is that?

Damn good device, always starts and doesn't drink much juice.

GQ

[Pedro_The_Swift]

Kubota!

my self driven used to start first go every time, till I had to shorten the starter cord,

now it has ONE compression to light up,,


still starts every time;)

[feral]

MTD.

Just on 13 years now and only had one service. 5hp B&S engine with a 18" cut Twin blade.

When you are cutting Buffalo, Kikuyu or Couch and you fill 2 x 240 lt council supplied wheelie bins every fortnight it feels like a tree plantation.:eek:

Would you like to buy some shares? :D

[Bigbjorn]

Professional grounds care guy I know has all Briggs and Stratton industrial iron bore gear where applicable. He would not have another Honda, says parts are too damn dear and cost far too much to rebuild. He employs 15-20 people in peak season and has everthing from whipper snippers to tip trucks and truck towed tree chippers. His ride-ons are all Greenfield after bad experiences with a few others over the 25 years since he started the business. He reckons a ride-on with less than 15hp is barely capable of carrying a large operator around without expecting it to cut long grass on rough grounds in large lots as well. For acreage mowing he favours a diesel tractor with a linkage carried roller mower after the humps and hollows and coarse growth have been subdued by slashing for a couple of years. He does very few domestic house blocks these days, mainly customers of long standing. He says most home owners won't pay the commercial rate and they can usually find a desperado with a trailer and a mower or two to do the job for $20 which wouldn't reimburse him for the travelling. Kids after some pocket money & people cheating on the Social are other reasons for the low rates he says.

[Dunnie]

Death to 2 strokes! B&S are fine and you can bolt on a new one for next to nothing if they fail. Hondas are wonderful, I used one on our small farm property in the UK but you may not get your value for money on a domestic block. Here in Perth we had a lawnmower service that cost about 1/4 the cost of buying a mower per visit and he knackered up the little bit of grass that we have.

[BMKal]

Kubota!

my self driven used to start first go every time, till I had to shorten the starter cord,

now it has ONE compression to light up,,


still starts every time;)

I'll second that. Have had a Kubota since I bought the house in '91. Can't beat it.

[barryj]

just dont get one of these........they appear to be too hard to start........




http://www.livevideo.com/video/jlstigger70/B0D1C2489B3E4AE4909239B3D128CA13/funny-video-of-a-girl-destroyi.aspx (http://www.livevideo.com/video/jlstigger70/B0D1C2489B3E4AE4909239B3D128CA13/funny-video-of-a-girl-destroyi.aspx)


What a classic!

My neighbour had trouble with his mower one day and just picked it up while it was still running and smashed it into the septic tank. Then went out a bought a new mower.

I gained a fair amount of caution with him after this and avoided him :o.

[barryj]

I have a 1991 Rover Craftsman with a 3.5hp B&S 4 stroke since new. Always starts with full choke and first pull. Just keep the filter clean and it will last.

I just bought another the same off ebay for $122 for the Daughter and Son-In-Law.

On the 2 stroke issue, Rover used to have a Suzuki 2 stroke on a Rover base. I bought one for our church yard in 1994 and it still runs well today. Uses almost half the fuel as my 4 stroke and throttles up by itself when the grass is thick. We also have a Rover Lawn King 18hp ride on.

We just bought a Rover 560 pro cut self propelled mower so I will see how that goes. It's a bit thirsty so far (8 hours old) but should improve.

On the line trimmer, I bought a McCullock mac 25 around 1982 and it still runs well. It just won't die. It's on it's second spark plug. Shame they don't make these anymore.

I recently bought a Stihl trimmer as well and these are nice machines.

[barryj]

Professional grounds care guy I know has all Briggs and Stratton industrial iron bore gear where applicable. He would not have another Honda, says parts are too damn dear and cost far too much to rebuild. He employs 15-20 people in peak season and has everthing from whipper snippers to tip trucks and truck towed tree chippers. His ride-ons are all Greenfield after bad experiences with a few others over the 25 years since he started the business. He reckons a ride-on with less than 15hp is barely capable of carrying a large operator around without expecting it to cut long grass on rough grounds in large lots as well. For acreage mowing he favours a diesel tractor with a linkage carried roller mower after the humps and hollows and coarse growth have been subdued by slashing for a couple of years. He does very few domestic house blocks these days, mainly customers of long standing. He says most home owners won't pay the commercial rate and they can usually find a desperado with a trailer and a mower or two to do the job for $20 which wouldn't reimburse him for the travelling. Kids after some pocket money & people cheating on the Social are other reasons for the low rates he says.


Wise words once again Brian.

The iron bore Briggs and Stratton are long lasting.

I wonder what the Rovers that are coming from China will be like?

[weeds]

i brought a victa 2 stroke 17 years ago and it looked like it was 10 years old when i brought it

one set of blades....that's it no maintenance what so ever, the air filter is buggered and i have not even bothered to change it

buy now i expected the plastic carby and the crankcase seal to bugger up....touch wood

start second pull everytime

no catcher but the exercise with raking the grass is always handy

the best $50 dollars i have ever spent

[barryj]

i brought a victa 2 stroke 17 years ago and it looked like it was 10 years old when i brought it

one set of blades....that's it no maintenance what so ever, the air filter is buggered and i have not even bothered to change it

buy now i expected the plastic carby and the crankcase seal to bugger up....touch wood

start second pull everytime

no catcher but the exercise with raking the grass is always handy

the best $50 dollars i have ever spent

My first mower in 1980 was a victa and it was $50 second hand as well. It lasted up to 1991 when the front wheels gave way and it became and excavator on the brand new turf lawn of the house were renting :eek: :(.

The base was so sandblasted that I could see through it so to the tip it went. It needed new rings every 6 months or so but that was cheap and easy to do. It used to carbon up the exhaust port but that too was easy to fix.

[ATH]

I bought a Rover with a 3HP B & S motor approx. 26 years ago and it's still going well.
I change the oil and wash the filter every year and it's had 1 new blade and half a clutch as the thing flogged itself to bits when the bolts loosened off I never noticed.
Normally starts first time but if it doesn't a quick fiddle with the fuel mixture fixes it.
Happy mowing.......
Alan.

[tempestv8]

I have a 2 stroke Briggs and Stratton iron bore mower on a 19" deck and two four stroke Honda mowers on 19" and 21" decks.

The Briggs & Stratton seems indestructible but its a rough running motor - at idle, it's like a Harley motor.

Both Hondas on the other hand, are very very smooth running, and start easier than the B&S.

Both Hondas are catchers, and even though I bought a genuine Honda mulching kit with the right blades, the Honda mower is a poor mulcher. Reasonably good catcher though!

If I had to buy another mower, I'd first look at whether or not I can get by with a good quality mulching mower, as this means that I don't have to worry about catching all the grass clippings.

To this note, I'd therefore buy a Toro Recycler (available in Bunnings) or a Toro Super Recycler (available in specialist mower stores). There's nothing out there that will mulch as good as these puppies.

True mulching mowers cut the blades of grass multiple times so the trimmings go back onto the ground without leaving a trail of mess. This helps to fertilise the ground and that's a good thing. The clippings also help to keep moisture in the lawn.

Lawrance Lee

[mcrover]

Hi all just moved into a new house and well i need a mower and wondering is there much difference between mowers? the land is flat and small. shall i just get a victor at kmart or bunnings. but its the whipper snipper i'm keen on. i saw at mitre 10 there is a whipper snipper attachment that is a chain saw for $150. i hate chain saws to dangerous but at least i will be 1.5 m away bit safer..... cool a chopping we will go.... be handy on trips in the defender oh and there's a few things the fendy will be pulling out the ground cool.

That is a pole saw and is very dangerous to use on wood on the ground, they are only used for cutting high branches from trees. A chain saw used properly is safer so if your going to buy any sort of chain saw, go and do a course, it will give you confidence and knolage

[QUOTE=953;637124]Simple, buy a honda, it`ll outlast U.:wasntme:
Cheers Dean.

Deans the man, he uses this stuff all the time and I also recon Honda is the best BUT in saying that they are pricey and your only talking a house lawn and I bought one of those yellow ones from bunnings which are only cheap and Ive had it for 3 years and only put fuel in it.



I have owned 14 Lawnmowers and three ride-ons (which is quite extraordinary, that's 0.77 mowers per year of my entire existence:D) as I used to repair small engines before my Landies.

Of those 3 ride-ons; a rover, a greenfield and a toro:

Both the TORO and Rover have a 12HP B&S engine. They use a fair bit of oil (toro is almost new), they lack torque at low engine speed. They have a narrow power band, so its hard to match sensible ground speed to good blade speed. They are noisy. They use tonnes of fuel when put under load.Check your valve clearances and only run 10w30 oil or they will use a fair bitThe greenfield has been rolled, every panel bent, bogged, drowned after sliding in a drainage ditch, worked hard, run into trees, abused, poorly maintained, flogged and both drive clutches destroyed. It has a 6.8 HP Honda engine. Everything else is falling to bits except the Honda motor.

Nothing will kill it! It has excellent torque from idle to flat out, good fuel economy, and boy does it REV:D

walk behinds:

Older Victa 2-strokes with the cast carburettor are almost bulletproof, but I have found newer Victas are rubbish. The plastic carb lets it down, they are a PITA.

Smaller B&S 4 strokes (ie. 3HP) I have found do not have sufficient power to cut lawns quickly and efficiently. I have also blown up 4 b&s engines, the 3.5HP motor is not designed for farm use.

I currently use for domestic purposes a 5.5HP I/C B&S and it is excellent.

IMHO Honda would be the way to go. Or Shindaiwa. The japanese have got small engine manufacture to an artform.
Only thing is that Hondas are assenbled in Japan but the Shindawas are not, like the Honda parts these days (like everything else( Shindawas are made in China only designed in Japan)






Professional grounds care guy I know has all Briggs and Stratton industrial iron bore gear where applicable. He would not have another Honda, says parts are too damn dear and cost far too much to rebuild. He employs 15-20 people in peak season and has everthing from whipper snippers to tip trucks and truck towed tree chippers. His ride-ons are all Greenfield after bad experiences with a few others over the 25 years since he started the business. He reckons a ride-on with less than 15hp is barely capable of carrying a large operator around without expecting it to cut long grass on rough grounds in large lots as well. For acreage mowing he favours a diesel tractor with a linkage carried roller mower after the humps and hollows and coarse growth have been subdued by slashing for a couple of years. He does very few domestic house blocks these days, mainly customers of long standing. He says most home owners won't pay the commercial rate and they can usually find a desperado with a trailer and a mower or two to do the job for $20 which wouldn't reimburse him for the travelling. Kids after some pocket money & people cheating on the Social are other reasons for the low rates he says.

You might want to tell your mate to try a Scag ride on, we have one at the golf course and it is the best centre deck mower I have ever used and extremely reliable and strong and it is zero turn which makes it easy to use.

It would outlast about 3 or 4 of those Greenfield (so called comercial) domestic type lawn tractors.

What about one of these, wouldnt take long to cut the lawn :D

Only 20' wide cut, makes fairways look like carpet :D

[fatcat]

cheers for that guys cant wait one day to go till i get my first real mower and i recon a course is a great idea cheers

[Johnsy]

I just bought a Sthil 'Easy2Start' wipper snipper and it has been amazing, and the best part is the missus has no more excuses about how hard it is to pull start!!!! it really is just like the ad where the little dog (rat) jumps up and pull starts the machine...:D

RRP $319 but i got a ripper of a deal for $285...

I have got a Victa with the Tecumseh (USA) motor and apart from a couple of spark plugs, a few air filters, blades and oil changes it runs like a dream...15 years later!


Johnsy

[Jojo]

http://www.automower.com

Nothing else (except sheep, maybe).