What made me switch? Several things--the weather here in the summer is extremely hot and humid. I had been pushing that old $100 Murray around for 6 years and feeling like I was going to have a stroke afterward. Then the Murray started having carb problems--it would only run for 10 minutes at a time. My wife finally had pity on me and told me to go buy a good mower, something self propelled that would be dependable and last a long time. She didn't have to tell me twice!! Now I still have enough energy to do the edging and weed-eating so my yard looks better!