The Great Big Lawnmower Thread

ArmchairQB

18MonthsaSlave wrote: »

If it sticks when collecting you won't like the look of your lawn with lumps of mulch left behind of course a dealer won't tell you this when he has the chance to extract a few hundred euro of profit out of you.
Husqvarna product isn't that great.
If you are set on mulching enquire as to whether there is a chute plug and mulching blades available for your current machine.

Yeah I have a mulching kit for it never used it and trawling thru this forum maybe mulching isn't the way for me. Some earlier posts had same problem as me but upgraded to the 17 Honda ride on which seems to suit our climate a bit better. Thanks for the reality check!

18MonthsaSlave

sharpen your blades so much that you could shave yourself with them.
powerwash underside of deck
powerwash material of bag
step up the cutting height one notch and try to get your lawn under control then go for the height you want.

Discodog

18MonthsaSlave wrote: »

sharpen your blades so much that you could shave yourself with them.
powerwash underside of deck
powerwash material of bag
step up the cutting height one notch and try to get your lawn under control then go for the height you want.

Never, ever use a powerwasher near anything mechanical. You will blast the grease out of the bearings. One easy option is to drill the deck & insert a hose connector - some already have this.

All rear collector chutes are prone to clogging.

ArmchairQB

ArmchairQB wrote: »

Yeah I have a mulching kit for it never used it and trawling thru this forum maybe mulching isn't the way for me. Some earlier posts had same problem as me but upgraded to the 17 Honda ride on which seems to suit our climate a bit better. Thanks for the reality check!

Mulching can have great results if its done right. Cut the lawn very regularly (4 - 5 days in the summer) and keep a close eye on the weather. Keep the blades sharp and the deck as was said. I have had lots of success with it in the last 3 years. The key was if the lawn was cut 2 days ago and rain was coming for the next few days I would cut it again. Didn't have to do this often. If your using a tractor mower surely its only a hour tops to mow the lawn and clean the mower

18MonthsaSlave

Discodog wrote: »

Never, ever use a powerwasher near anything mechanical. You will blast the grease out of the bearings. One easy option is to drill the deck & insert a hose connector - some already have this.

All rear collector chutes are prone to clogging.

Which part of the deck body underside is mechanical other than the spindles themselves which don't foul as they are nowhere near the cutting edge of the blades.
Hose connector points on mower decks are marketing devices which in reality are nigh on useless .

Discodog

18MonthsaSlave wrote: »

Which part of the deck body underside is mechanical other than the spindles themselves which don't foul as they are nowhere near the cutting edge of the blades.
Hose connector points on mower decks are marketing devices which in reality are nigh on useless .

I disagree. The average person isn't going to be that accurate with a pressure washer. We used to retro fit hose connectors & found them excellent. Just start the engine & turn in the tap.

Brianmeath

amerie2010 wrote: »

I hope someone with some knowledge about lawnmowers can advise me on a petrol lawnmower to buy? I've a decent sized garden, living in an estate I'm looking to spend roughly under €200? Have no idea as to where to start with makes, models etc.

ArmchairQB wrote: »

Hi all, I am thinking of moving from Honda 15hp v-twin hydrostatic which collects the grass to a husqvarna R213c rider that mulches or rear discharges. I liked the Honda but if grass is even slightly damp it sticks and won't collect. Flicking through this forum there seems to be mixed views on Husqvarna. Any advice welcome

I love the rider mower. They do a fantastic cut. I know of a good few people who use them & can only say good things about them.

18MonthsaSlave

I remember visiting the German new age monk in Victoria's Way in Wicklow about 6 years ago and he was cursing and blinding about his Husky Rider as he tried to remove clumps of grass from the mower cutting deck.
He was a long way removed from a finding his Zen on that day.

ArmchairQB

Think I have moved on from the rider as it only mulches and if it drives me mad I am stuck with it, really like the machine but not prepared to risk it. I am now going back to a collector wich has mulching as an option. The 2 I am thinking of is upgrading my 15 Honda to a Honda HF2417 HME or a Husqvarna TC 342. Honda is a bit more expensive but I don't mind if it is a better machine. I am told by stepping up in size the damp grass clogging is less likely? Would love to hear opinions on what ye lads in the know think about each and which you would go with?

18MonthsaSlave

rear baggers with the discharge under the body of the mower even with just 12hp B&S consumer engines were always great collectors so I don't see a huge benefit in going for a bigger engine even if they sound sweeter.

My opinion is drop a gear, cut the grass more regularly when there is a growth spurt, sharpen the blades, powerwash deck and fabric of catcher and don't fertilise the grass by either artificial means or by leaving cut grass on the lawn.
Kill moss if it is there as that puts a huge load on the machine.

Long term you could consider replacing field grass with slower growing lawn grass but if you are out in the country it'll soon be displaced by field grass again.
I've never believed in replacing consumer durables until they reached the end of their lives.

Discodog

ArmchairQB wrote: »

Think I have moved on from the rider as it only mulches and if it drives me mad I am stuck with it, really like the machine but not prepared to risk it. I am now going back to a collector wich has mulching as an option. The 2 I am thinking of is upgrading my 15 Honda to a Honda HF2417 HME or a Husqvarna TC 342. Honda is a bit more expensive but I don't mind if it is a better machine. I am told by stepping up in size the damp grass clogging is less likely? Would love to hear opinions on what ye lads in the know think about each and which you would go with?

I have been using mowers commercially for donkey's years. You can never have too much horsepower especially with Irish grass. There are only two ride ons that will collect well in the wet, Etesia & Countax/Westwood.

The Etesias are mega money but amazing. Like with their mowers, the ride ons don't have a rear axle to get in the way so they don't need a shute. The rear wheels are on stub axles & driven by an overhead shaft. Both their mowers & ride ons will cut 6 inch grass, in the pouring rain & collect every blade of grass.

The Countax/Westwood machines use a rear sweeper. It's a little more complicated but when used correctly it's a good system. They also make brilliant leaf sweepers, drive sweepers etc & will give a lawn a superb striped finish.

18MonthsaSlave

I don't rate extra HP. I rate extra cylinders.
Manufacturers are happy to sell you a machine rated a few HP more because they cost roughly the same to manufacture but don't deliver much extra useable power. the difference between a single cylinder and twin or triple is like night and day on the same chassis.

Discodog

18MonthsaSlave wrote: »

I don't rate extra HP. I rate extra cylinders.
Manufacturers are happy to sell you a machine rated a few HP more because they cost roughly the same to manufacture but don't deliver much extra useable power. the difference between a single cylinder and twin or triple is like night and day on the same chassis.

It's about torque & ensuring that the engine is at optimum revs. I agree that twins are better. Most engines are governed down to comply with noise regs. It's usually easy to bring the revs up to the peak torque level & it significantly increases performance.

18MonthsaSlave

The torque curves on those bigger B&S engines never seemed much better than on their smaller sisters; you have to move to better designs rather than boring out the cylinder to get decent torque.

adjusting the governor is an option. easier on the old walk behind engines than ride-on engines but still do-able.

Discodog

18MonthsaSlave wrote: »

The torque curves on those bigger B&S engines never seemed much better than on their smaller sisters; you have to move to better designs rather than boring out the cylinder to get decent torque.

adjusting the governor is an option. easier on the old walk behind engines than ride-on engines but still do-able.

Always a Honda man myself. My Hondas are very fast - you almost have to jog behind them :pac: A lot of Briggs ride ons still have the white plastic clip on the throttle that you just remove. It's put on for Countries that impose noise limits.

r3nu4l

Wow! This thread is an education!!

Okay, I'm enjoying my self-propelled, walk behind, gardenacre mower and used it today to do the whole lawn with nice results. I say 'lawn' but in fact, I live rurally and it's coarse field grass.

However, as nice as it is to cut the grass with the walk-behind, I'm now opting for a tractor mower. These things are expensive and I understand that you get what you pay for but my budget will probably only stretch to 2700.

Any recommendations for something decent at that price range? I'm looking for a collector (rear discharge) with option for mulching.

Any more info required, just let me know and thanks in advance. My head is a bit all over the place trying to determine what would be good and what's rubbish, especially knowing that my budget is not going to get me the best available machine...

18MonthsaSlave

Don't buy a ride-on unless you absolutely need one.
Get a 21" or 22" walk behind with a variable speed drive and an engine that isn't a side-valve engine with a 90 litre bag. Expect to pay 800 to 1000 euro for a machine of that quality. I cna't recommed larger width walk behinds as they strangle you with their weight and that's not what you need on a saturday afternoon during your free time.

If you must get a ride-on and collect then ensure that it is a rear bagger, not one with a chute to the side and that it doesn't have a Chinese engine.
infinitely variable speed drive is highly desireable. heavy gauge deep drawn steel for the deck is good if you can find it.
Sweeper systems are rubbish and usually are the component which retires a lawntractor with a sweeper system at the end of their lives being uneconomic to repair.

If it looks and feels flimsy on the surface then it is flimsy where it matters too.

I don't want to recommend any particular brand but if you are looking for real quality then you won't find it in a hardware chain store.

ArmchairQB

Discodog wrote: »

Always a Honda man myself. My Hondas are very fast - you almost have to jog behind them :pac: A lot of Briggs ride ons still have the white plastic clip on the throttle that you just remove. It's put on for Countries that impose noise limits.

Went with the honda 17 hp which is a collector but can much at a flick of a switch a bit more heavy duty than I require but the collector works well when grass is that bit damp and along with the reliability of my previous Honda it is what swayed it in the end for me over the Husqvarna. Thank you all for your your opinions very informative!

Discodog

ArmchairQB wrote: »

Went with the honda 17 hp which is a collector but can much at a flick of a switch a bit more heavy duty than I require but the collector works well when grass is that bit damp and along with the reliability of my previous Honda it is what swayed it in the end for me over the Husqvarna. Thank you all for your your opinions very informative!

That should be a good machine. Try not to let the box overfill when the grass is damp to prevent it sticking to the shute.

I used to use a cut down chimney brush & rod to clean the shute.

Discodog

r3nu4l wrote: »

Wow! This thread is an education!!

Okay, I'm enjoying my self-propelled, walk behind, gardenacre mower and used it today to do the whole lawn with nice results. I say 'lawn' but in fact, I live rurally and it's coarse field grass.

However, as nice as it is to cut the grass with the walk-behind, I'm now opting for a tractor mower. These things are expensive and I understand that you get what you pay for but my budget will probably only stretch to 2700.

Any recommendations for something decent at that price range? I'm looking for a collector (rear discharge) with option for mulching.

Any more info required, just let me know and thanks in advance. My head is a bit all over the place trying to determine what would be good and what's rubbish, especially knowing that my budget is not going to get me the best available machine...

There is a 30 inch mower (not a ride on) called a Toro Timemaster. There's a thread about it here:

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=85939652

Some people are using it commercially & the verdict appears to be that it's good unless your grass is long or the ground is rough. It's certainly not too heavy or difficult to handle & falls well within your budget.

Don't be nervous of shopping around. I bought €1000 worth of Stihl equipment & was amazed to discover that a dealer in Donegal was the cheapest. As long as you have someone fairly local, that it a main dealer for the make you choose, then you will be fine for warranty repairs. if you buy online, which I have several times, just make sure that the dealer stamps the service book.

I saved around 50% buying a new Honda mower from ebay even after paying €30 carriage from the UK. Warranties are not linked to the selling dealer. Don't put too much emphasis on what any dealer tells you. He has product to sell. Do you own research & google is your best friend.

PS Don't rule out a used machine if it is in good condition

Discodog

18MonthsaSlave wrote: »

Don't buy a ride-on unless you absolutely need one.
Get a 21" or 22" walk behind with a variable speed drive and an engine that isn't a side-valve engine with a 90 litre bag. Expect to pay 800 to 1000 euro for a machine of that quality. I cna't recommed larger width walk behinds as they strangle you with their weight and that's not what you need on a saturday afternoon during your free time.

If you must get a ride-on and collect then ensure that it is a rear bagger, not one with a chute to the side and that it doesn't have a Chinese engine.
infinitely variable speed drive is highly desireable. heavy gauge deep drawn steel for the deck is good if you can find it.
Sweeper systems are rubbish and usually are the component which retires a lawntractor with a sweeper system at the end of their lives being uneconomic to repair.

If it looks and feels flimsy on the surface then it is flimsy where it matters too.

I don't want to recommend any particular brand but if you are looking for real quality then you won't find it in a hardware chain store.

The only ride on with a sweeper is the Westwood/Countax which is going to be outside the OP's budget. But, for the sake of other readers, I have to disagree with you. I Have run Countax machines commercially & done hundreds of hours with them. The sweeper collection system is superb & it's the only ride on that we could use on fine lawns, except for cylinder mowers.

There is no reason why the collector should fail. All the parts are replaceable, including the brushes. They do require a little routine maintenance & can be susceptible to corrosion if they are left full of wet grass. They are also not designed for rough, uneven ground. No other ride on will give the finish of a Countax.

Maidhci

Not sure if it's appropriate to post this here, if not, please feel free to move to relevant thread.

Basically, I have a 20+ year old Sigma 474B lawnmower and am wondering if anyone here has similar one that might be available for parts etc. etc.? I am interesed in the flap door (plastic) at the rear of the machine - the flap door is broken on mine and I have been unable to locate the part anywhere. Any help will be much appreciated.

18MonthsaSlave

http://www.gumtree.com/p/lawn-mowers/sigma-lawnmower-going-well./1111571027 in omagh
more like 25 years old

monkeynuz

Discodog wrote: »

The only ride on with a sweeper is the Westwood/Countax which is going to be outside the OP's budget. But, for the sake of other readers, I have to disagree with you. I Have run Countax machines commercially & done hundreds of hours with them. The sweeper collection system is superb & it's the only ride on that we could use on fine lawns, except for cylinder mowers.

There is no reason why the collector should fail. All the parts are replaceable, including the brushes. They do require a little routine maintenance & can be susceptible to corrosion if they are left full of wet grass. They are also not designed for rough, uneven ground. No other ride on will give the finish of a Countax.

I agree completely, the collectors on Westwood/countax are excellent have owned a couple over the years and they are far superior to anything else and very reliable, also had a lot of friends with them.

monkeynuz

Discodog wrote: »

There is a 30 inch mower (not a ride on) called a Toro Timemaster. There's a thread about it here:

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=85939652

Some people are using it commercially & the verdict appears to be that it's good unless your grass is long or the ground is rough. It's certainly not too heavy or difficult to handle & falls well within your budget.

Don't be nervous of shopping around. I bought €1000 worth of Stihl equipment & was amazed to discover that a dealer in Donegal was the cheapest. As long as you have someone fairly local, that it a main dealer for the make you choose, then you will be fine for warranty repairs. if you buy online, which I have several times, just make sure that the dealer stamps the service book.

I saved around 50% buying a new Honda mower from ebay even after paying €30 carriage from the UK. Warranties are not linked to the selling dealer. Don't put too much emphasis on what any dealer tells you. He has product to sell. Do you own research & google is your best friend.

PS Don't rule out a used machine if it is in good condition

I've heard good things of the toro as well, they do two versions the turfmaster for professionals and the timemaster for domestic, although you won't get much benefit from the extra size of collecting because the grass bag is a similar size to those on smaller mowers so you'll just be emptying it sooner, but for mulching I'd say it's a godsend.

SoupyNorman

18MonthsaSlave wrote: »

Don't buy a ride-on unless you absolutely need one.

Just wondered why you say this?

I’m a complete newb and will soon be moving to a new house complete with .56 of an acre and would have thought a ride on will be one the first purchases required. The current owner of the house has one so I've assumed I'll need one also.

CptMackey

SoupyNorman wrote: »

Just wondered why you say this?

I’m a complete newb and will soon be moving to a new house complete with .56 of an acre and would have thought a ride on will be one the first purchases required. The current owner of the house has one so I've assumed I'll need one also.

In a similar position. Have been looking at ride ons as I have an acre of grass to cut. looking at second hand mowers. Seen a husquvarna and a stiga. The first one has the cutting deck under the middle of the machine where as the stiga is front deck

Discodog

I wouldn't advise not to buy a ride on. Grass cutting is enough of a chore without making it harder. I would always go for a rear collector. The shorter the distance between the blades & the grass box the better it will collect.

The other advantage with a ride on is that it you can use it for other jobs for example by attaching a trailer.

18MonthsaSlave

Discodog wrote: »

I wouldn't advise not to buy a ride on. Grass cutting is enough of a chore without making it harder. I would always go for a rear collector. The shorter the distance between the blades & the grass box the better it will collect.

The other advantage with a ride on is that it you can use it for other jobs for example by attaching a trailer.

I would not advise using a trailer on a twincut rear discharge as it rips the rear axle out of them.
1/2 acre and under I recommend the best premium walk-behind you can get.
above half acre to acre if you are willing to discharge grass for a portion of it stay with premium walk-behind.
Beyond that get a ride-on or some sheep.

18MonthsaSlave

SoupyNorman wrote: »

Just wondered why you say this?

Consumer Ride-ons are unreliable money pits.