Ride on lawnmower

danyosan

Looking for a bit of advice here. We are going to be moving out to the country in a few months and we will definitely require a ride on (1 acre site).

I have never had any experience with ride-ons, so could someone recommend some brands to me, brands to avoid, is buying 2nd hand acceptable etc.

Thanks in advance guys.:)

Dummy

I bought a Castelgarden XT180 HD for a 3/4 acre garden a few weeks ago and am delighted with my purchase. Simple to operate. This is my first so I really have nothing to compare it to. Mine came with the gathering box and a mulcher and they also gave me a tow hitch (I am going to build my own trailer for it).

When looking around, pay attention to the HP of the machines. I was advised that it was better to have too much power than too little. My machine is 17.5 HP.

As with any ride on, read the do's & don'ts that will help preserve the belts and look after the machine - not too fast, not too low and watch for rocks & kerbs.

As for buying second hand - why take on someone else's woes? Better to buy new and maintain it well.

PoolDude

Did you read this?

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055276917

danyosan

PoolDude wrote: »

Did you read this?

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055276917

Thanks Pooldude, had a gander just now.

Could you PM me the name of the place you bought your ride on? I'm in Wicklow so not too far away.

The Sweeper

Danyosan, depending how large your property is, the tow hitch for a ride-on is worth its weight in gold. We're on an acre and can use it to move large loads of mulch and compost, shift cords of firewood, haul pruning clippings - beats the pants off the wheelbarrow!

secman

I also got a tow hitch with my Castlegarden HD190 but have to fit it myself, is it easy enough ? Had a quick look but not sure about doing it. Any advice ?

thanks
secman

legin2

Does anybody know where to get the best Deal for Ride on Lawnmowers?
I've being ringing around this week about the CASTELGARDEN TC13.5/92H
, There seems to be a huge price variation!
Price ranges as high as €3200 !!! from Tennyson Lawnmowers Kilkenny to €2195 from Croom Lawnmowers limerick (www.croomcycles.com) for the same model.
I have around 2k to spend and would prefer to buy new???

stapeler

I purchased a Husqvarna LT151 on Ebay from the UK recently and very pleased with it. Cost €2109 delivered which is a savings of €450 on the price here.
Here's the link on Ebay

GERMAN ROCKS

that lawnmower will just keep getting clogged get direct shoot

stapeler

GERMAN ROCKS wrote: »

that lawnmower will just keep getting clogged get direct shoot

Hasn't clogged yet after first couple of months, I guess a direct shoot might be a better option but my budget didn't stretch that far.

niceirishfella

legin2 wrote: »

Does anybody know where to get the best Deal for Ride on Lawnmowers?
I've being ringing around this week about the CASTELGARDEN TC13.5/92H
, There seems to be a huge price variation!
Price ranges as high as €3200 !!! from Tennyson Lawnmowers Kilkenny to €2195 from Croom Lawnmowers limerick (www.croomcycles.com) for the same model.
I have around 2k to spend and would prefer to buy new???

Hi,

I bought a castel 13.5hp twincut hydrostatic spring of last year.
Good machine - had to go in this spring for a bit of warranty - a bearing failed and it had an oil change which my supplier did FOC - very good guy to deal with and I'm on good standing with him.
Briggs and Stratton engine, fills the bag well, hydro operated, good mower all round - paid 2.5k new last year and negotiated a 15 month warranty to get me to the end of this years mowing season............i advise you to do the same then you effectively have 2 mowing season warranty like 2 years!
haggle hard for deal......

legin2

Thanks guys!
I was talking to lawnmower salesman this morning he reckoned I would need at least 15hp to cut half acre. Does this sound right or would a 13.5hp be sufficient?

niceirishfella

I'm on an acre (flat ground) and my 13.5hp is perfect.
I had a 12.5 previously and it was good too.
Depends on your terain .........if you half half an acre with no hills etc, 13.5horses will be fine.

squire1

Just noticed castlegarden are doing a new range of ride on mowers which are branded "Castle" rather than the castlegarden XT. From the catalogue the machines seem more or less the same but the bodywork on the castle is a bit less fancy. Might be worth looking into or asking about as they seem to be 10 or 15% cheaper than the fully badged castlegarden. Same engines and decks.

Agree with niceirishfella on the HP. On a flat site 13HP should be ok but any hills or heavy going would require 15.5 or 17.5HP. I'd rather have more horses than I need and constantly using a michine at it's power limit will shorten it's lifespan. Another important decision relating to the site size is the deck size. Obviously a 102cm deck with cut 0.5 acre quicker than a 92cm deck but if you have a lot of trees or flowerbeds on the site then the smaller deck might suit better.

Also agree that you should bargain hard on these items as there is a good bit of movement available to the retailer on price. There are plenty of suppliers out there so decide what you want and shop around for the best deal.

goodburger

Our castelgarden ride on exploded 2 weeks ago. We have it 4 years and had nothing but trouble. we are on .6 acre and the grass constantly got caught in the shoot and it was a bloody nightmare every time we had to cut the grass, we have to buy a new one now and i dont think we'll go for a castelgarden. we have heard tho that you can be lucky and unlucky with the brand we bought.

staker

is there something where there's a plastic drum or steel drum..... the plastics better-it doesn't rust??? i'm buying 1 soon too

Mailman

There is only small margin on lawn tractors and they do give a lot of warranty problems compared to walk behinds.
From now on in the season sales are going to drop off so if you find a dealer with one on the showroom floor he will probably give it to you at near cost just so that he doesn't have to carry it over the winter.
If you find one in a hardware store they'll definitely move it on at cost come august as they don't want it on the floor and want the money to put in to other stock.
If you are going to a dealer late in the season rather than looking for the cheapest price be open to looking at what swankier models they have left on the floor. You might get some nice deals there and get some nicer features like shaft drive for the cutting blades, shift on the go/hydrostatic transmissions or twin-cylinder engines.
Suss out the dealer and get a feel for whether the mechanics know what they are doing. Ride-ons are troublesome and do need to be fixed.
A dealer doesn't have to fix your lawnmower which you bought in a hardware store and will as often as not tell you to take it away. Rebuilding a hydrostatic box or trouble-shooting the crap electrics on ride-ons is no small undertaking and most dealers won't look at these problems unless they feel somewhat obligied to you for having purchased from them in the first place.
If you didn't buy your ride-on off them what chance you'll buy the next ride-on off them or a hedge-trimmer or brushcutter or walk behind lawnmower. Absolutely every dealer thinks this way.

Other points
Horse Power doesn't help you going up hills - the gearing is low on a ride-on so very little energy is actually used to drive the machine forward. Horse Power helps as the width of cut gets wider.
Horse Power is misleading - those 16,17, 18hp single cylinder briggs and stratton engines aren't a patch on smaller Kohler, Fuji Robin, Honda or Kawasaki engines. They have less torque and don't perform as well under load and in heavy grass they'll be under load. Twin Cylinders like the Briggs and Stratton Vanguards are a class ahead of the singles too. not as noisy, don't vibrate as much and easier on fuel.
Side chute collector machines are best avoided in Ireland as our grass is too heavy for them.
Do not use a tow bar on a Castel Garden Twin-cut; it'll rip the differential out of the machine. Castel Garden sell the tow bar because there is demand for it, not because it is good for the machine.
Lack of HP doesn't shorten a lawnmower engines life, lack of Oil does. if the engine is under load the oil degrades as there is no water cooling and SAE-30 lawnmower oil is very poor quality oil. The oil that comes with some of the US machines is reclaimed oil.
As for secondhand machines; when was the last time you bought a second-hand washing machine. a ride-on is a domestic consumer durable. you don't get rid of them until they are worn out. If you find a second-hand in good condition that machine will have an interesting history and there is a good chance it is stolen.

DenMan

Damn our back garden is a three quarter acre monster, uneven and I have been cutting it for years, the front is pretty big too!! I would love a ride on. I wonder is it worth to buy them second hand or buy new.

legin2

I ended up buying a Rally 17.5 hp Briggs & stratton I/C engine with 42" deck for €2800 at croom cycles. Have slight bit of a hill so decided to go for bit extra power. Very happy with it so far. was able to cut 6 weeks growth no problem and mulched afterwards. Not as fancy as castle garden machine but worked out a good bit cheaper!!

MayoForSam

I have about 2/3 of an acre around my house and my solution has been to plant a wildflower meadow down the back - I still have a front lawn and smaller back lawn for the kids but I don't see the point of having a vast expanse of boring green grass that needs cutting every week this time of year with an expensive, high maintenance ride-on mower. Gravel borders and paving around the sides also cut down on the amount of grass to be cut.

The wildflowers look great this time of year and only need strimming once or twice a year. Costs a bit for the seed but it's worth it if done properly with a bit of landscaping.

Give your gardens back to nature I say.

Mailman

unless you like pucking a sliothar around in which case it's great to have a big back garden.

I've one acre of grass, it takes six hours with a lidl walk behind mower. A decent ride-on is out of reach at the moment.

willemm

Deleted User wrote: »

I've one acre of grass, it takes six hours with a lidl walk behind mower. A decent ride-on is out of reach at the moment.

same here - except it's from Woodies with only 3 wheels (will find a fourth wheel for it sometime).

Besides I'd be worried I'd kill myself with a ride-on: garden ends with a 7ft drop.

AlexMer

Any advice on buying a cadet cub ride on? Seem to be great value but have no idea if they have a good or bad reputation, a lot of reviews seems to be quite old and all come from america

NIMAN

I have half an acre and couldn't imagine cutting it without a ride-on tbh.

Doing it really fast it takes me 30mins, but usually around 40mins if I want to do a nice neat job.

Can't think how long it would take with a push mower. Especially with more land than I have.