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I have a 12+ year old Honda Master Series Lawn mower that I am having a hard time starting. I have changed the spark plug and oil and have kept the air filter clean. I have run the gas out of the lines every time I finish cutting my lawn. I am wondering is I should bring it to a professional repair shop or just buy a new one.

I used my neighbor's new Honda today and it seemed to cut my grass better. I think his has the double mulching blade which I am sure that mine does not have.

It is a hard decision. This Master Series Honda has been a great mower and is like an old friend! The Aluminum deck looks perfect. The handles have a little rust but everything has worked fine. It has just become harder and harder to start until today when I could not get it to start.

So repair or buy new?

WELCOME to LMF...
I am a repair something you like, type of guy...
But then I do my own repairs & I do enjoy repairing things and I especially like repairing My own things...
If you fit in the throw away and buy new.... that's your answer... If you really like your old mower, Then repair it and try for another 12 years from it... :smile:KennyV

WELCOME TO LMF!
Unlike KennyV, I am a "buy-a-shiny-new-one" kind of guy! :laughing::laughing:
But seriously, if you like the mower a lot I would take it in to be fixed, but if you really liked the cut of the new Honda, I would buy that. The new Honda (specifically the HRX217HYA) has a lot of awesome features...including:

• NeXite deck---this deck is very nice. It will not rust, and with the grass I have, I don't need to clean the underside of it!
• GCV190 engine---this engine is super powerful (the other classes of Honda mowers only have the 160 cc engine!).
• Blade-Brake Clutch---you can have the engine running and the blades stopped (I love this feature!!).
• It has the Clip Director, where you can just use a lever to go from mulching to bagging (or anywhere inbetween)...no mulch plug!
• Mulching is superior!!
• Bagging is awesome too! With grass, the bag takes a long time to fill up!

Honda Lawn Mowers: HRX217HYA, HRX217K3HYA

Here is a picture of my HRX217HYA and how good it bags:


Good luck, and tell us what you decide! :smile:

KennyV said:

WELCOME to LMF...
I am a repair something you like, type of guy...
But then I do my own repairs & I do enjoy repairing things and I especially like repairing My own things...
If you fit in the throw away and buy new.... that's your answer... If you really like your old mower, Then repair it and try for another 12 years from it... :smile:KennyV

Click to expand...

How much do you think it would cost to repair my old Honda? Like I said it has recently run it has just been getting harder and harder to start. Once started it runs and restarts easily. I have changed the oil and spark plug this year but it still has been hard to start as before.

Rouillier said:

How much do you think it would cost to repair my old Honda? Like I said it has recently run it has just been getting harder and harder to start. Once started it runs and restarts easily. I have changed the oil and spark plug this year but it still has been hard to start as before.

Click to expand...

I don't know how much it would cost, but here are some threads that might help you figure out what is wrong with it:

http://www.lawnmowerforum.com/small-engine-mower-repair/6504-honda-mower-difficult-start.html

http://www.lawnmowerforum.com/gener...86-honda-gcv160-hard-starting-easy-start.html

Good luck! :smile:

I'll guess it's a carburetor / fuel supply issue. With a new spark plug, there's rarely a problem with spark. Might want to inspect the choke very closely; if it's not working 100%, it will be hard to start the engine.

Worse case might be just to remove and replace the entire carburetor. Looks like a new one is $43, which, if you are otherwise happy with the cut quality, is a lot less spendy than a new mower.

I did buy the new mower but kept the old one as well. I finally brought it in to be fixed for about $90. I will get it back tomorrow and I hope it starts easily. I want to use it at my mother-in-laws to cut her wooded yard. Tons of leaves which need to be bagged.