The Great Big Lawnmower Thread

celticmicky

bazual wrote: »

Well folks,

Lookin for a new tractor mower thats gonna do both my house and the folks house. Area is about 1.5 acres combined and my area is a bit of a slope so will need to be pressure lubricated (new term to me as of tonight). Father wants a collector and also possibility of mulching and would prefer the rear ejection. As per a previous post we were looking at the Husqvarna CT 151 or Husqvarna CT 153 which are around the 2500 mark, these are side ejection though with deflector available as an extra.

Anyone any suggestions, any other makes that have this oil pump pressure system I will need for the slope apart from the Husqvarna ones. Hoping to get something within the next week if possible as the old one packed in.

Cheers
B~

There are a few here with the oil pump in the engine that would suit your needs. The Intek Briggs and Stratton engine machines and the Honda engine machines will have the oil pump. www.esaleslocal.com/ridemowers.htm

bazual

celticmicky wrote: »

There are a few here with the oil pump in the engine that would suit your needs. The Intek Briggs and Stratton engine machines and the Honda engine machines will have the oil pump. www.esaleslocal.com/ridemowers.htm

You are a gent, I just spotted that the 13.5 upwards intek B&H engines have the oil pump. The old one was a Castelgarden and it owed us nothing so possibly the 13.5/90 or the XG145HD would suit. The father has not heard good things about the hydrostatic and would prefer a gear. Would it be true that you are losing HP to power the hydrostatic so a gear drive with the same power engine is better than a hydro?

Thanks for your help, just have to find a dealer in the sunny south east now.

James_M

Paul Kiernan wrote: »

I'm looking for a petrol self-propelled mower. Thinking of a cheap Woodies Pro-Lawn but concensus here seems to be that the Briggs engines are fine but rest of machine is crap? Same for the McCulloughs?

I'm wondering should I splash out on Hayter HY490 at nearly €900! Are they a reputable brand? Any other brands I should consider in this price range?

Also lawn is only about 45' x 55', is a mower like this going to be too heavy for all the turning required on this size lawn?

Thanks, Paul

I'm downgrading to electric and have just such a Pro-Lawn to shift. Let me know if you change your mind,,,

thewools

Lidl electric lawnmower anyone got one? See it's in lidl from tomorrow for 69.99...

Discodog

Paul Kiernan wrote: »

€900!
Also lawn is only about 45' x 55',

€900 to mow a postage stamp :eek:

The 16 in self propelled Izy on the ebay link would be perfect. Incredibly light & so easy to start. Collects well & is very manoeuvrable. Good warranty with full Ireland back up - it will come with the service book stamped.

On that size of lawn it should give you at least 10-15 years of use.

I have a 21 inch Professional Honda Roller & the 16 inch Izy. The plan was for the Izy to be a spare/second mower but I use it a lot as it is just so easy.

liam7831

Sorry lads this has prob been asked loads of times but im looking for a push mower which is also self propelled. iv got bout 500 to 600 to spend want a one with nice size bag

Farls

vanderbadger wrote: »

anyone any experience of honda 2417 ride on, seems expensive but looks good, has fan assisted blower and a wider opening to rear bag to help avoid blockages, have a honda 2415 ride on currently but have alot of lawn and find it a bit underpowered and it blocks alot..i kinda have honda in th ebrain as being the most reliable, do the john deeres or castle gardens work as well, they dont have honda engines do they?

First class mower, I had the 2315 and upgraded last year to the 2417 and it is twice the mower, dry or wet it lifts everything and rarely if ever cloggs. I have about 1 acre to cut and can't recommend it enough. Buy cheap buy twice...it costs a lot for a reason...its good.

tomrochford

Hi All,

I have approx 1.25 acres just lawned and will need to invest in a good ride-on lawnmower....... I want to be able to cut it as fast as possible....

Any ideas, or suggestions????

Only

Have a ride on mower but its not coping well with slopes here. No budget to get a better ride on so in the market for a self propelled petrol mower - preferably 5hp or more. Only glitch is, don't really want to spend €600+ ... anything decent out there for a garden about 1/3 of an acre?
Any recs of where to buy? Online or bricks and mortar.
Tx

celticmicky

tomrochford wrote: »

Hi All,

I have approx 1.25 acres just lawned and will need to invest in a good ride-on lawnmower....... I want to be able to cut it as fast as possible....

Any ideas, or suggestions????

You can't go wrong with a Castelgarden to be fair. 2011 XT190HD with a 40" cut and 18.5hp Briggs and Stratton engine, comes with mulching kit and tow bar as well as cruise control and a new steering system at 3090.00 euro inc vat. If you were to mulch that would mean you don't have to waste time collecting and then dumping the grass, just stick the plug in and away you go, although you do need to keep on top of the grass when mulching, you cant let it get too long or mulching won't be as effective.

celticmicky

Only wrote: »

Have a ride on mower but its not coping well with slopes here. No budget to get a better ride on so in the market for a self propelled petrol mower - preferably 5hp or more. Only glitch is, don't really want to spend €600+ ... anything decent out there for a garden about 1/3 of an acre?
Any recs of where to buy? Online or bricks and mortar.
Tx

21" Snapper with the new 6.5hp briggs and stratton ready start engine would cost you in and around 570.00 delivered to your door, imo its hard to beat, comes with the variable speed gearbox and 3-in-1 kit, mulch, collect or side chute.

IrishHomer

I am thinking of getting a new Castlegarden ride on that's got no bag it just mulches. I have been mulching past year i find it great less hassle and cleaner no piles of dead grass gunge anymore.

Any thoughts appreciated i have an acre of flat garden.

http://www.esaleslocal.com/xd140hd.htm

MidlandsM

IrishHomer wrote: »

I am thinking of getting a new Castlegarden ride on that's got no bag it just mulches. I have been mulching past year i find it great less hassle and cleaner no piles of dead grass gunge anymore.

Any thoughts appreciated i have an acre of flat garden.

http://www.esaleslocal.com/xd140hd.htm

good value there alright, can you afford a front deck articulated mulcher mower. If you can, thats the machine you want!

Only

Apologies in advance as I know I will kick myself when I get the answer but .... Have a Rally 92cm 'Hydro' Ride on lawnmower. Looking to sell it and buy a push mower instead BUT .. I can't seem to figure out where to find the model number / hours etc etc ... where am I missing them?:o

MidlandsM

Only wrote: »

Apologies in advance as I know I will kick myself when I get the answer but .... Have a Rally 92cm 'Hydro' Ride on lawnmower. Looking to sell it and buy a push mower instead BUT .. I can't seem to figure out where to find the model number / hours etc etc ... where am I missing them?:o

Model no etc on a sticker under the seat. Hours would be displayed by an hour neter on the dash, if it has one.

Only

MidlandsM wrote: »

Model no etc on a sticker under the seat. Hours would be displayed by an hour neter on the dash, if it has one.

Thanks a million!!!! Thought I was missing something with the hours clock but looks like it just doesn't have one ... assumed all of them had one somewhere:o

monkeynuz

Hi,

Just thought I would throw in my two penneth worth!

If I were you I wouldn't bother with a petrol cylinder mower for your lawn, children pets etc. don't get on well with perfect lawn nazi style gardening (although I adore cylinder mowers and grew up with one, learnt to use when I was about 6!)

Perhaps look at a Honda roller machine, I happen to have the professional model HRH536QX, think they retail at about €1600 now although you should be able to get a few hundred knocked off by haggling, if they won't play ball, phone up a U.K. firm and they almost certainly will.

I have had my Honda for 7 years now and touch wood it hasn't given me any trouble at all, the engine is good and strong, I would put a Honda engine up against any others and it would win hands down every time!

I think the 53cm cut of a walk behind like that should be fine for your size lawn.

The only problem with ride on mowers on smaller lawns is that you tend to spend more time manouevering them around than actually cutting the grass, also in my experience over the years, ride ons don't tend to last very long unless you spend ever such a lot of money on one, and I am talking about John Deere and Kubota (many thousands)

I am personally against mulching mowers, I had a very large very fancy Toro some years ago and the problem I found was; mulching will work best on the very wiry stiff grass you get in America or the Western Isles of Scotland, it never really worked with nice lush green grass, also because it was designed more for mulching the grass collecting didn't work very well, because more of the blades draught was used for recycling the grass through the blades a second time, so in summary it was rubbish at both mulching and collecting!

My choice of brands for walk behind mowers would be, Honda, Hayter or John Deere.

Choice for ride on mowers, John Deere, Kubota, Countax.

But in the end it all depends on your budget and preference, sometimes it is better to make a choice and live with it eve if it is the wrong choice but learn your lesson for the future, myself and the other guys on here can only give our own (biased) personal opinions!

All the best, and happy mowing!

rofno1

Hi All,

Anyone know where I can buy a service kit (oil,air filter, spark plugs etc.) for Castelgarden ride on?

Mine is due a service but I can't find anywhere online to buy parts.

Thanks in advance!

Rob

monkeynuz

Hi Rob,

Don't worry about a service kit for the brand of mower, it is the brand of engine you need to worry about.....it is probably a Briggs and Stratton, so look for a service kit for that, you may even have included with the pack of papers you got with the mower a booklet all about the engine...

hope this helps.

Monkey

MidlandsM

monkeynuz wrote: »

Hi Rob,

Don't worry about a service kit for the brand of mower, it is the brand of engine you need to worry about.....it is probably a Briggs and Stratton, so look for a service kit for that, you may even have included with the pack of papers you got with the mower a booklet all about the engine...

hope this helps.

Monkey

+, and ebays full of service bits for B&S engines. Also, you'll get SAE30 (most probably spec'd for your engine) oil locally in any hardware shop etc too.

leshogan

monkeynuz wrote: »

Perhaps look at a Honda roller machine, I happen to have the professional model HRH536QX, think they retail at about €1600 now although you should be able to get a few hundred knocked off by haggling, if they won't play ball, phone up a U.K. firm and they almost certainly will.

How big is your lawn and how long to cut it?

Also the self propelled, would this be at a brisk walking pace

I have an old mower that i push rather than walk as slow as the self propelled snail pace

Just wondering the speed of a decent mower

Laid a half acre lawn last september, still has to really thicken up and have the dilemma of cheap ride on or expensive push/walkbehind

I also like the stripes!

monkeynuz

Hi Leshogan,

Time taken for half an acre would be between 45-60 minutes dependent on how much grass you are collecting.

The speed would be about 3 mph, if you go for the four wheel version you can have 3 speeds I think up to about 4 1/2 mph I think.

The Honda I have just checked now retails at £1600, the Hayter Harrier 56 professional (which is 1 inch wider than the Honda) retails for about £1250.

Also another thing to look for in walk behind mowers is a blade brake control, which means you can go off and empty the grass bag without the engine cutting out, something you can't do with most other cheaper mowers.

Hope this helps.

Monkey.

fryup

its very similar to this model

Was working fine today and then all of a sudden i couldn't start it, the battery is fine, the engine on light comes on but nothing dead as a doddo

is there a starter motor for these?

MidlandsM

fryup wrote: »

its very similar to this model

Was working fine today and then all of a sudden i couldn't start it, the battery is fine, the engine on light comes on but nothing dead as a doddo

is there a starter motor for these?

sounds like one of the safety switches is gammy etc.

Paul Kiernan

celticmicky wrote: »

21" Snapper with the new 6.5hp briggs and stratton ready start engine would cost you in and around 570.00 delivered to your door, imo its hard to beat, comes with the variable speed gearbox and 3-in-1 kit, mulch, collect or side chute.

I bought one of these from celticmicky at http://www.esaleslocal.com/ a few weeks back. Great service, ordered it at lunchtime over the phone and it arrived in Dublin first thing next morning. Price was as good or better than any of the UK internet sites and will have better backup as they cover all of Ireland. I'm now getting the grass cut in half the time and with a lot less effort. Have only used it with the grassbox so far so can't comment on mulching, etc. but grassbox is huge and doesn't need much emptying. Variable speed is a godsend around trees and beds and one lever height setting is great as I need to raise it to drive over gravel paths.

monkeynuz

Hi Fryup,

Just to check the simple things first....have you checked the fuse box to see if any fuses are blown?

M.

fryup

^^^^^^^^^^^^

there seems to be only one fuse on this machine and its fine,

maybe bad earth?? but then again the engine on light wouldn't come on

monkeynuz

Hi,

Like MidlandsM said, could be a faulty safety switch, and reading his reply again has reminded me of a problem I had some years ago.

Same symptoms as you have said and it was cured by bypassing the switch under the seat, there was a little box under there to stop you starting the mower whilst not sitting down or something. Perhaps that is worth checking.

Also, not being funny if this your first time back on the machine this year, you arent leaving the blades/gears engaged are you?

My old ride on wouldn't start if the brake was off, also I have to keep my foot on the brake pedal for starting. Like I said doesn't cost anything to check the simple things first.

Hope this helps.

M.

fryup

^^^^^^^^

the seat safety switch is fine, but it could be the the blade engagement safety switch

btw - is it alright to have these machines on their side whilst checking underneath??

MidlandsM

Just prop it up well, with 2 props in case one goes, I like to use a few good concrete blocks to be sure to be sure...

There's other switchs to check, like the rear bag or box open switch, the clutch switch if its geared,the seat switch, blade engagment switch,the pedal brake engagment switch if it has one.