Please help me purchase a new mower to mow 1/2 acre. I have specific requirements.

[bertsmobile1]

Always a spare bed.
And yes the USA is a big market, but it also a finite market.
Back in the old days stores used to keep large inventories , local distributors used to keep big inventories and I beneift form that as new caches of BSA parts regularly turn up as old bike shops close down.
However that was before the tripple bottom line accounting came in and when companies were run by managers and not accountants pretending to be managers.
So now days no one has much in the way of stock.
Being an ind駱endant service man I buy a lot of parts from the USA and at first was staggered at what appeared to be available.
However I have now come to realize that there is a big diference between what is actually available and what is on offer.
I order a lot of parts listed as being in stock from a lot of USA dealers only to find 3 months latter that they actually do not exists and Jacks, K &T , Messers etc are simply putting up what their suppliers told them they could get, so those obscure parts that I thought were pentifull because they were on offer from a dozen or more companies actually did not exist and were part of a phantom inventory that once was there but no one bothered to delete when they were all gone.

As the Op had gone to great length to select his mower there was an assumption that he intended to keep his new prize for a long time not toss it out like a disposable razor after the first use simply because he did not pay much for it.
That is of course one of my problems as I buy quality stuff that I maintain & use for a very long time, it is a generational thing.
Object are valued because of their quality & function not because of the price tag.
I could no more toss out a good quality mower just because I got it cheap than waste a bucket of money fixing rubbish that was expensive.

 

[Shughes717]

Always a spare bed.
And yes the USA is a big market, but it also a finite market.
Back in the old days stores used to keep large inventories , local distributors used to keep big inventories and I beneift form that as new caches of BSA parts regularly turn up as old bike shops close down.
However that was before the tripple bottom line accounting came in and when companies were run by managers and not accountants pretending to be managers.
So now days no one has much in the way of stock.
Being an ind駱endant service man I buy a lot of parts from the USA and at first was staggered at what appeared to be available.
However I have now come to realize that there is a big diference between what is actually available and what is on offer.
I order a lot of parts listed as being in stock from a lot of USA dealers only to find 3 months latter that they actually do not exists and Jacks, K &T , Messers etc are simply putting up what their suppliers told them they could get, so those obscure parts that I thought were pentifull because they were on offer from a dozen or more companies actually did not exist and were part of a phantom inventory that once was there but no one bothered to delete when they were all gone.

As the Op had gone to great length to select his mower there was an assumption that he intended to keep his new prize for a long time not toss it out like a disposable razor after the first use simply because he did not pay much for it.
That is of course one of my problems as I buy quality stuff that I maintain & use for a very long time, it is a generational thing.
Object are valued because of their quality & function not because of the price tag.
I could no more toss out a good quality mower just because I got it cheap than waste a bucket of money fixing rubbish that was expensive.

Bertsmobile, by reading your posts I do believe you have many years of experience with mowers. You must realize though that just because parts may be scarce in your part of the world it doesn't mean it's that way everywhere. I will give you an example. I come from a long line of row crop farmers. I can operate any piece of farm equipment made. International harvester was purchased by case in the 1980s and became case IH. The international 1066 tractor hasn't been made since the 70s and parts haven't been made for them for 30 years, but you can still get parts for that tractor.

Yes the op purchased a 10 to 12 year old mower, however, it has low hours on it. He is also only mowing about an acre or less. Not a lot of stress on a mower like that. If he maintains it properly there shouldn't be too many mechanical issues. If something does come up there should still be parts available in the U.S.. Parts may not be made for that mower anymore, but there also aren't nearly as many of them in operation as there were 10 years ago. Still plenty of supply, but much less of a demand these days. It is a great idea for a businessman such as yourself to stock up on parts. Great way for you to make a profit when someone needs a part for a mower that is no longer made. It just doesn't make sense for a homeowner to go out and stock up on a bunch of parts he/she may never use.

 

[bertsmobile1]

Bertsmobile, by reading your posts I do believe you have many years of experience with mowers. You must realize though that just because parts may be scarce in your part of the world it doesn't mean it's that way everywhere. I will give you an example. I come from a long line of row crop farmers. I can operate any piece of farm equipment made. International harvester was purchased by case in the 1980s and became case IH. The international 1066 tractor hasn't been made since the 70s and parts haven't been made for them for 30 years, but you can still get parts for that tractor.

Yes the op purchased a 10 to 12 year old mower, however, it has low hours on it. He is also only mowing about an acre or less. Not a lot of stress on a mower like that. If he maintains it properly there shouldn't be too many mechanical issues. If something does come up there should still be parts available in the U.S.. Parts may not be made for that mower anymore, but there also aren't nearly as many of them in operation as there were 10 years ago. Still plenty of supply, but much less of a demand these days.

I run mowers that were made locally in the 60's and I can buy almost any thing I need . because they were made form simple pieces so can be made if not available at a reasonable price.
The landlord runs a fleet of 500 series Internationl-McCormacks from the 50's & 60's, ( see you and raise you 10 years ) again they are simple machines , parts are simple to make and if not available can be repaired or remade. And they all date from a time when these machinse were expected to run for decades and parts inventories reflected the expected useage of the machines, not the annual profit of the manufacture.

Just because the machine has low hours does not man that the spindle housing are not full of water & corroded nearly through or the DPO has not run over heavy full hard fence wire which has been running around under the spindle housing for so long that they are just about worn through, or the DPO managed to find every big rock in the district & all the spindles are full of cracks

There is a blanket assumption that some one out there is holding stock of obsolete mower parts and these parts will be available whenever the OP should require them and this assumption is totally unreasonable & unrealistic.
Now I am not holding gun to his head & demanding that he buy spindles, it was no more than a prudent suggestion based on information I had and he most likely does not have.
Now I did economics & I know the theory that if you want somethig then some one will supply it, but that is an economic theory not a financial reality.
We are working in the age of minimum inventory & very clever computer controls that can very accurately determine exactly how many of a particular part will be necessary to produce in order to keep a particular piece of equipment running for a fixed amount of time.
Otherwise Cub would be making parts that they can not sell so will have to either keep them for so long the warehousing will cost a lot more than the profit or remainder them at a loss and neither add much to the bottom line.

Now for all I or you, know there could be 10,000 of these spindles sitting in a warehouse but on the other hand the 50 available on evilbay this week might be the very last ones available on the retail market.
Now while the blind faith in the market theory of supply meeting the demand because of the demand,is admirable & the very basis of American society.
I am led to recall the old joke about the bus load of people that drove off the top of the grand canyon.
'While all in the front were panicking and preparing for their ultimat departure the economist in the back was texting to his brokers to buy shares in parachutes becaue he knew that according to the economics of supply & demand by the time the bus got 1/2 way down to the canyon floor the demand for parrachutes on the bus would be at a peak so some one has to meet the demand?…... he died along with all the rest.

 

[Shughes717]

I run mowers that were made locally in the 60's and I can buy almost any thing I need . because they were made form simple pieces so can be made if not available at a reasonable price.
The landlord runs a fleet of 500 series Internationl-McCormacks from the 50's & 60's, ( see you and raise you 10 years ) again they are simple machines , parts are simple to make and if not available can be repaired or remade. And they all date from a time when these machinse were expected to run for decades and parts inventories reflected the expected useage of the machines, not the annual profit of the manufacture.

Just because the machine has low hours does not man that the spindle housing are not full of water & corroded nearly through or the DPO has not run over heavy full hard fence wire which has been running around under the spindle housing for so long that they are just about worn through, or the DPO managed to find every big rock in the district & all the spindles are full of cracks

There is a blanket assumption that some one out there is holding stock of obsolete mower parts and these parts will be available whenever the OP should require them and this assumption is totally unreasonable & unrealistic.
Now I am not holding gun to his head & demanding that he buy spindles, it was no more than a prudent suggestion based on information I had and he most likely does not have.
Now I did economics & I know the theory that if you want somethig then some one will supply it, but that is an economic theory not a financial reality.
We are working in the age of minimum inventory & very clever computer controls that can very accurately determine exactly how many of a particular part will be necessary to produce in order to keep a particular piece of equipment running for a fixed amount of time.
Otherwise Cub would be making parts that they can not sell so will have to either keep them for so long the warehousing will cost a lot more than the profit or remainder them at a loss and neither add much to the bottom line.

Now for all I or you, know there could be 10,000 of these spindles sitting in a warehouse but on the other hand the 50 available on evilbay this week might be the very last ones available on the retail market.
Now while the blind faith in the market theory of supply meeting the demand because of the demand,is admirable & the very basis of American society.
I am led to recall the old joke about the bus load of people that drove off the top of the grand canyon.
'While all in the front were panicking and preparing for their ultimat departure the economist in the back was texting to his brokers to buy shares in parachutes becaue he knew that according to the economics of supply & demand by the time the bus got 1/2 way down to the canyon floor the demand for parrachutes on the bus would be at a peak so some one has to meet the demand??.. he died along with all the rest.

The fact is the mower hasn't been made for 10 years and parts haven't been made for several years either, but there are still plenty available today. I believe the op advised that the mower had been stored inside. I realize there could be moisture damage to the bearings and spindles. If that it's the case then the parts can be purchased once the bearings fail. No need to stock up on them once it's repaired. You seem to me to be a bit of a dooms day prepper. Not knocking that, but it's not necessary for a homeowner to stock enough parts to build a whole new machine. If a part eventually breaks and there are no more out there then sell the mower to a dealer such as yourself for scrap parts and get another mower.

 

[Alaska_Guy]

Looks like my thread has gotten off topic...

I pulled the deck off, checked the spindles, did a thorough check of the whole unit and it is in GREAT shape. The only thing missing was the dispersal shoot where the grass clippings come out. I was able to buy a new one from cub for $50. I was curious what mulching plug would work with this unit. If anyone has any information on that I would appreciate it. I got mixed reviews that the LX1040 mowers mulching plug would work with the 2000 series and thought maybe someone here could confirm or deny.

Thanks for the helpful insight for those of you that have stayed on track. :thumbsup:

A web link on a mulching plug would be great!

 

[Shughes717]

Looks like my thread has gotten off topic...

I pulled the deck off, checked the spindles, did a thorough check of the whole unit and it is in GREAT shape. The only thing missing was the dispersal shoot where the grass clippings come out. I was able to buy a new one from cub for $50. I was curious what mulching plug would work with this unit. If anyone has any information on that I would appreciate it. I got mixed reviews that the LX1040 mowers mulching plug would work with the 2000 series and thought maybe someone here could confirm or deny.

Thanks for the helpful insight for those of you that have stayed on track. :thumbsup:

A web link on a mulching plug would be great!

Cub Cadet Mulch Plug For 2150 2155 2166 2176 2165
Cub Cadet Mulch Plug For 2150 2155 2166 2176 2165
$21.99 from eBay - oneals-deals
oneals-deals Store Be sure to add me to your favorites list ! This is a brand new genuine Cub Cadet Mulching Kit or Mulch Plug for a all 38 and 42 ...

I googled mulching attachment for cub cadet 2166 and got this eBay add poped up.

 

[Alaska_Guy]

Thanks! I went ahead and purchased that mulch plug you listed.

I also wanted to give an update. I went ahead and greased all the zerk fittings, removed the reverse safety switch and mowed my front lawn yesterday. It did a great job and only took me about 15 minutes. A job that would easily have taken half an hour before.

Really appreciate all the assistance and looking forward to many more years of mowing with this unit.

 

[Shughes717]

Thanks! I went ahead and purchased that mulch plug you listed.

I also wanted to give an update. I went ahead and greased all the zerk fittings, removed the reverse safety switch and mowed my front lawn yesterday. It did a great job and only took me about 15 minutes. A job that would easily have taken half an hour before.

Really appreciate all the assistance and looking forward to many more years of mowing with this unit.

Glad to help. Sorry we hijacked your thread.:ashamed:

 

[1striper1]

Glad to help. Sorry we hijacked your thread.:ashamed:

I'm sorry too but I'm not ashamed. I'm so happy for you! The mower engine will barely get HOT in 15 minutes of mowing.

IMO....when you are done mowing and have the unit parked, before you shut off the engine, let it run for a few minutes to cool the engine down. The longer the better.

Are we going to argue about this process now guys? Bert? :laughing:

 

[Shughes717]

I'm sorry too but I'm not ashamed. I'm so happy for you! The mower engine will barely get HOT in 15 minutes of mowing.

IMO....when you are done mowing and have the unit parked, before you shut off the engine, let it run for a few minutes to cool the engine down. The longer the better.

Are we going to argue about this process now guys? Bert? :laughing:

No arguement from me. I have learned that by allowing my mower to idle for a few minutes before shutoff reduces the chances of backfire. My dealer instructed me to shut it off at full throttle. I have heard several mechanics and others on this site say the same. It just doesn't seem right to me. Here we go again. Sorry Alaska guy :smile: