I am Looking to buy a new riding mower???

J

Jay2

Forum Newbie
Joined
Dec 23, 2016
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1
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1
Good Morning,

New to the group btw...

I am looking to purchase a new lawn tractor! I have totally confused myself over a few topics and not sure which way to go! Looking for some input!!

1. Big Box stores vs. Dealer ( Do you get what you pay for? )
2. Fabricated vs. stamped deck
3. 1-5 acres ( rolling - not flat ) not a whole lot of trees to navigate around...

Reason I'm asking, just put a mower to rest that I had for some time now ( it was a red one from a blue store )

*** Constantly making repairs & had to replace deck belts 2-3 times a season! just all kinds of problems all the time, Battery would always have to be jumped off and so-on...

I have always bought the ( "Look on Sale" Sunday paper deals at the Big Box Stores ) and wondering.. If I should go ahead and spend the money on one of the Green or yellow brands from a dealer! I am not commercial , residential only! just want a dependable mower!
 
B

bertsmobile1

Lawn Royalty
Joined
Nov 29, 2014
Threads
64
Messages
24,702
Firstly, every mower tosses belts and very few modern ones have design flaws that causes them to toss belts, Hustler seems to be the odd one out here.
A fabricated deck will last for a lot longer than a pressed deck and will take a lot more punishment.
Now do you have 1 acre , 5 acres or 1.5 acres.
! acre almost any residential over $ 3000 will do fine
1.5 same story
5 acres then you are looking at a bottom end commercial or top end residential

While all the big box sores claim what they sell is exactly the same as what the dealers sell, this is bollocks
Same shape , same pressings, same colour , thinner steel & budget engine.

dealers are their own worst enemy.
In theory they should advise you on the best mower for your yard but too many simply push you towards the one with the biggest mark ups.
While I don't blame then as in many cases they are paying more for their stock than the big box sell a similar model for, they really need to clean up their act atherwise there is no reason to goto one.
Check the dealers showrooms and workshops if the shop is 90% showroom & 10 % workshop then they are a minni version of the big box.
Check their ratings on things like face book, google them looking for troubles with their service.

Just remember , unless you can do all the servicing yourself and there fore will need a trip to the dealer.
Don't expect them to be overly concerned with a big box discount mower.
It is tandamout to you spitting in their face today then asking them to help you tomorrow.
No dealer make any money doing warranty services, so warranty services on mowers from a big box get done as a loss leader. ie when there is nothing for the mechanics to do .
 
BWH

BWH

Well-Known Member
Joined
Mar 22, 2011
Threads
31
Messages
346
Jay2, That was good advise from Bertsmobile he had a lot of good points. I could only add that there are some fine upper end residential mowers out there, I have had the opportunity due to the blade sharpening business I operate to try some of the good ones and there are a number of good ones. If your mowing 6 hours or less a week I don't think you can justify the cost of a commercial mower. (unless money isn't an object) I agree that if your an acre and a half you should stay away from the cheaper Big Box mowers they are designed to run for a certain amount of hours and they add up up fast mowing larger acreages. Although I did have a customer that bought a 52" Big Box mower and would shine it up and sell it on Craig's List every two years and buy another, this particular mower didn't have a hr. meter so the unsuspecting buyer of a very clean one owner was usually getting a fairly high hour machine.

I enjoy shopping for a new mower and if your looking for a upper end residential you will be working with dealers, they usually will allow a demo if you serious and that's the best way to compare rather than what anyone says it easier to find one that works for you.
 
N

neetan

Active Member
Joined
Apr 4, 2016
Threads
8
Messages
81
Good Points by all!

Now you have to decide what you may want to deal with? The other options are like the Ford deal, trade up/sell off every 3-4 years. Time / ability to repair / amount of hassle you want to deal with is the issue, but the cost of ownership = time and effort on your side.

Major issues still need to addressed! How big is your lawn? Will decide the $ you have to spend.

Good luck.





bertsmobile1 said:
Firstly, every mower tosses belts and very few modern ones have design flaws that causes them to toss belts, Hustler seems to be the odd one out here.
A fabricated deck will last for a lot longer than a pressed deck and will take a lot more punishment.
Now do you have 1 acre , 5 acres or 1.5 acres.
! acre almost any residential over $ 3000 will do fine
1.5 same story
5 acres then you are looking at a bottom end commercial or top end residential

While all the big box sores claim what they sell is exactly the same as what the dealers sell, this is bollocks
Same shape , same pressings, same colour , thinner steel & budget engine.

dealers are their own worst enemy.
In theory they should advise you on the best mower for your yard but too many simply push you towards the one with the biggest mark ups.
While I don't blame then as in many cases they are paying more for their stock than the big box sell a similar model for, they really need to clean up their act atherwise there is no reason to goto one.
Check the dealers showrooms and workshops if the shop is 90% showroom & 10 % workshop then they are a minni version of the big box.
Check their ratings on things like face book, google them looking for troubles with their service.

Just remember , unless you can do all the servicing yourself and there fore will need a trip to the dealer.
Don't expect them to be overly concerned with a big box discount mower.
It is tandamout to you spitting in their face today then asking them to help you tomorrow.
No dealer make any money doing warranty services, so warranty services on mowers from a big box get done as a loss leader. ie when there is nothing for the mechanics to do .
Click to expand...
 
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