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Does anyone have or know where I can find a listing of the original sale prices for old lawn Boys? There is an old embossed tag on the shroud of my 5238 with $114.95 on it. I wonder if that could be the original selling price in 1969?

parkboy said:

Does anyone have or know where I can find a listing of the original sale prices for old lawn Boys? There is an old embossed tag on the shroud of my 5238 with $114.95 on it. I wonder if that could be the original selling price in 1969?

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Search the "net" for vintage and retro lawnmower advertisements, sales brochures, lawnboy vintage promotional materials, small gasoline powered lawnmowers ... and so on .... PATIENCE is key !! .....:thumbsup:..Boobala

parkboy said:

Does anyone have or know where I can find a listing of the original sale prices for old lawn Boys? There is an old embossed tag on the shroud of my 5238 with $114.95 on it. I wonder if that could be the original selling price in 1969?

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114 bucks sounds about right for a new 1969 pusher D-400 19 inch. I remember my father bought a new 1977 pusher D-400 21 inch brick top for around 180.

That price sounds about right for 1969-70 era. We sold Lawnboy that we got through Lawnboy Distributors Southeast in Atlanta. They were part of the OMC Group. Interestingly, they were the first distributors of Wisconsin-Robin engines made by Fuji in Japan in the US for our area. Sorry I didn't save any price list's from them. Most of the Snapper, Toro, Lawnboy, and other premium line walk behinds were well over $100 by then. Sears still sold their price leader 2 -cycle Power Products 18 inch mower for $19.95.

Unclelee's ad copies really illustrate how relatively expensive the old two-stroke Lawn Boys were. The ad from 1973 shows $99.50. That same year, my Dad bought a conventional Briggs powered mower for $50.00. It lasted only a few seasons. When you look at how many of these old Lawn Boys are still running, it only proves that you got what you paid for. BTW, I just love looking at those old ads. They take me back to a time when many products were easily serviced and made to last.

2smoked said:

Unclelee's ad copies really illustrate how relatively expensive the old two-stroke Lawn Boys were. The ad from 1973 shows $99.50. That same year, my Dad bought a conventional Briggs powered mower for $50.00. It lasted only a few seasons. When you look at how many of these old Lawn Boys are still running, it only proves that you got what you paid for. BTW, I just love looking at those old ads. They take me back to a time when many products were easily serviced and made to last.

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Because women ( if they did work ) worked in offices and men worked in factories so men could tell sh#t from clay and were not afraid to pay for quality
Back in 1972 $ 99 was what , a week's wages , a fourtnites pay , a months pay ?
now days people pay less than 1 days pay for a push mower & expect to get a quality item
For a weeks pay they demmand a ride on.

and as you said you only get what you pay for.

bertsmobile1 said:

Because women ( if they did work ) worked in offices and men worked in factories so men could tell sh#t from clay and were not afraid to pay for quality
Back in 1972 $ 99 was what , a week's wages , a fourtnites pay , a months pay ?
now days people pay less than 1 days pay for a push mower & expect to get a quality item
For a weeks pay they demmand a ride on.

and as you said you only get what you pay for.

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Thanks to everyone who responded! That tape may very well be the original price tag. I know a basic 2 cycle Wizard mower with a Power Products engine sold for about $49.95 at that time. They were a pretty short-lived machine. I have not seen one for many years. By comparison, the many Lawn Boys that are still goin' prove they were some of the very best machines ever made.

A little more on earlier mower prices. This is a 1948 Craftsman. It is the first Rotory mower that they offered.
It was manufactured by the Rotory Power Mower company or RPM. The RPM company was purchased in 1952 by OMMC, and became Lawnboy. Notice the $144.50 price tag.

This ad is from 1951 or 52. The Dunlap mower on top with the Power Products engine was also manufactured by RPM for Sears.

Here is a Craftsman advertisement from 1959. As you can see, the Lawnboy's from the same era were a bit more pricey.

I agree with 2smoked, Lawn-Boys were relatively expensive, and available only at a Lawn-Boy dealer (with a couple exceptions). After Toro bought them out and were made available at big box stores, prices seemed to come down a bit.

Interesting old adds on lawnmowers, thanks Lee, for posting the pics.

Using the CPI inflation calculator, the $99.50 starting price for a Lawnboy in 1972 would be $ 578.05 today.

unclelee said:

Using the CPI inflation calculator, the $99.50 starting price for a Lawnboy in 1972 would be $ 578.05 today.

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Pretty cool lookin old advertisements ....... love the nostalgia ......THANKS millions unclelee....Boobala

Back in 1999, I was shopping for a new mower (to replace my aging 8255). I almost bought an Echo LM-212P (with a 2 stroke engine). It was 349.95, but you needed to buy an optional discharge chute to not bag with it. The Lawn-Boy 10323 was I think 299.00 and no chute required, went with the LB.

I'm still looking for this Echo mower on Craigslist, never have found this extremely rare mower.

Jeff

Here is a pic of the Echo mower, from an Echo sales brochure.

unclelee said:

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Holey crapola... THAT was a hell of a lot of money for a mower 40 years ago .... I guess thats why there are
still plenty around... ya get what ya pay for.... at least , back then....Boobala...:smile:

unclelee said:

A little more on earlier mower prices. This is a 1948 Craftsman. It is the first Rotory mower that they offered.
It was manufactured by the Rotory Power Mower company or RPM. The RPM company was purchased in 1952 by OMMC, and became Lawnboy. Notice the $144.50 price tag.

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Those buck-horn handle bars look amusing. They give the appearance that you drive the lawn mower rather than push it!

unclelee said:

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I'm kind of surprised that the old school D-400 with mechanical points and condenser is fetching more money than the top of the line 21 inch solid state model on the left. I suppose if the D-400 had the shaft drive self-propel then that would probably explain that.