Quality Pushmower

charbuggie · Mar 26, 2014

I can not find a quality pushmower. I bought a quality Snapper two seasons ago and it is junk now. I mow about a half acre and part of it is on a hillside and I have to use a push mower when mowing the hill. I do not like a self-propelled mower, too hard to maneuver when trimming under my trees and bushes. Here is my list of wants in order of importance:
Great looking cut and mulch capability. I do not bag my clippings.
Solid Construction, quality ball bearing wheels and a strong handle that will not break after a season or two. You would not believe how many times I have had to have handles welded and braced to make them last.
Power, good reliable engine with power to mulch and cut.

Thanks,
Rob

exotion · Mar 27, 2014

You don't like self propelled because you've never had a quality one probably. I say look at Honda mowers

Ric · Mar 27, 2014

charbuggie said:
I can not find a quality pushmower. I bought a quality Snapper two seasons ago and it is junk now. I mow about a half acre and part of it is on a hillside and I have to use a push mower when mowing the hill. I do not like a self-propelled mower, too hard to maneuver when trimming under my trees and bushes. Here is my list of wants in order of importance:
Great looking cut and mulch capability. I do not bag my clippings.
Solid Construction, quality ball bearing wheels and a strong handle that will not break after a season or two. You would not believe how many times I have had to have handles welded and braced to make them last.
Power, good reliable engine with power to mulch and cut.

Thanks,
Rob

I really don't know why a self propelled mower would be better but to each his own. The problem with the push type mowers are that very often there on the cheap end of the mowers. Honda does have a push type mower that would be the quality you're looking for but they have a hefty price tag. The Honda HRC216PDA is a commercial push type and it runs $750.00 It runs the Honda GSV 160cc engine.

http://powerequipment.honda.com/lawn-mowers/models/hrc216pda

21" commercial rear bagger/mulcher
Push type
Easy to start commercial 160cc engine
MicroCut® Twin Blades - better cutting performance
Rugged, durable steel deck with front bumper and edge guards

lzn197 · Mar 28, 2014

You mentioned you mow on hills. That can be a problem with modern 4 cycle engines because the oil in the sump, moves to one side and the engine does not get sufficient lubrication. The best thing for you would be to find a good used Lawn-Boy mower with a 2 cycle engine. The oil is mixed with the gas so you don't have any of the lubrication problems of the modern 4 cycle. If you want to stick with a modern 4 cycle engine, you probably would need to go to a commercial machine and they are heavy and expensive.

robert@honda · Mar 28, 2014

Honda's HRC (commercial models) mowers feature a triangular-style handlebar brace. While this does not allow the handlebars to be folded, it is an extremely strong and robust design. Here are couple of images:

fderob · Mar 28, 2014

robert@honda said:
Honda's HRC (commercial models) mowers feature a triangular-style handlebar brace. While this does not allow the handlebars to be folded, it is an extremely strong and robust design. Here are couple of images:

Hi Robert! I have a question which has nothing to do with the handlebars.
I just purchased the HRC216HXA. Love it!! However, I would like to replace the fixed front wheels with swivel wheels. I know the HRZ (guess the Z means Zero Turn) 216TDA has a kit installed on it to allow for swivel wheels. Could this kit be put on the HRC? It looks like the decks are similar. I checked with Honda Parts and I assume I would have to order the component parts. Also, the wheels on the HRC are 9 inches. I assume the HRZ front swivel yokes will handle the 9 inch wheels and the width of the HRC wheels? Please advise. If this could work it would make the HRC even sweeter to handle. Thanks.

Ean · Mar 30, 2014

At our gin we have a cheap weed eater 20 in push mower change the oil once a year still runs great new blade every 2 years it's 6 years old

robert@honda · Mar 31, 2014

fderob said:
Hi Robert! I have a question which has nothing to do with the handlebars.
I just purchased the HRC216HXA. Love it!! However, I would like to replace the fixed front wheels with swivel wheels. I know the HRZ (guess the Z means Zero Turn) 216TDA has a kit installed on it to allow for swivel wheels. Could this kit be put on the HRC? It looks like the decks are similar.

The mower decks are similar, but not exact. The swivel wheels were specifically designed for the HRZ mower only, and never offered as a conversion kit for other models. The HRZ was its own full model, not just another model with swivel wheels installed. For example, I know the HRC's deck is made from a thicker heaver steel vs. the HRZ's deck. No way to know for sure if you could get the front and rear wheels to a similar height to mow correctly, either. The HRZ has a remote-control cable to lock / release the swivel wheels and I for sure this won't mount or work on the HRCs handlebars. Then, there's the cost; just the front wheels and special swivel parts alone retail for $267, not including the cables, controls, etc., and no guarantee it would actually work. Here's a shot of the parts catalog for the HRZ's front wheels:

Finally, and most importantly, is the safety factor. Many parts of the mower deck, including the wheel adjusters, axles, etc. are engineered to be structural/supporting parts for the engine and blades; configuring a mower to use non-approved parts could severely compromise the integrity of the original design, putting undue stress and strain on other components.

Ric · Mar 31, 2014

fderob said:
Hi Robert! I have a question which has nothing to do with the handlebars.
I just purchased the HRC216HXA. Love it!! However, I would like to replace the fixed front wheels with swivel wheels. I know the HRZ (guess the Z means Zero Turn) 216TDA has a kit installed on it to allow for swivel wheels. Could this kit be put on the HRC? It looks like the decks are similar. I checked with Honda Parts and I assume I would have to order the component parts. Also, the wheels on the HRC are 9 inches. I assume the HRZ front swivel yokes will handle the 9 inch wheels and the width of the HRC wheels? Please advise. If this could work it would make the HRC even sweeter to handle. Thanks.

I have a couple of questions for you, I'm just curious. Why would you want the swivel wheels? What do you think you're going to gain?

fderob · Apr 2, 2014

Thanks Robert! Regarding Ric's question. I have an Ariens LMS21 with swivel wheels that I have been using for the past 10 years. Before that I had John Deere 21s with fixed wheels. The swivel wheel set up is easier to use. The HRC which is commercial grade replaces the Ariens which has seen better days (too much service time on this machine). The swivel wheel makes it much easier to navigate around beds without having to lift the front to make the curves and turns. The result is less stress on this old body.

robert@honda said:
The mower decks are similar, but not exact. The swivel wheels were specifically designed for the HRZ mower only, and never offered as a conversion kit for other models. The HRZ was its own full model, not just another model with swivel wheels installed. For example, I know the HRC's deck is made from a thicker heaver steel vs. the HRZ's deck. No way to know for sure if you could get the front and rear wheels to a similar height to mow correctly, either. The HRZ has a remote-control cable to lock / release the swivel wheels and I for sure this won't mount or work on the HRCs handlebars. Then, there's the cost; just the front wheels and special swivel parts alone retail for $267, not including the cables, controls, etc., and no guarantee it would actually work. Here's a shot of the parts catalog for the HRZ's front wheels:

Finally, and most importantly, is the safety factor. Many parts of the mower deck, including the wheel adjusters, axles, etc. are engineered to be structural/supporting parts for the engine and blades; configuring a mower to use non-approved parts could severely compromise the integrity of the original design, putting undue stress and strain on other components.

Quality Pushmower

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