The Great Big Lawnmower Thread

Bravobabe

Thanks

Given a choice between new Starjet (petrol) or the used Iseki (Diesel) ??????

I'm presuming that the 22hp machine may be more aimed at the domestic market and the Iseki would be more commercial.

Iseki is coming in a bit dearer but looks more suitable to current needs (cut 5 acres twice a week for May - Sept)

my3cents

I've not been in the commercial grass cutting line for a good few years but it was golf courses and those with a lot of grass to cut that could afford Iseki tractors. I don't know the model but my neighbors bil is a commercial landscaper and he has an Iseki tractor for grass cutting and he reckons its the best machine he's ever bought.

fryup

I need to get the steering wheel off my ride on, i took out the locating pin...but it won't come off..it seems to be rusted onto the steering column/bar

is there any handy way of getting it off??

blackbox

fryup wrote: »

I need to get the steering wheel off my ride on, i took out the locating pin...but it won't come off..it seems to be rusted onto the steering column/bar

is there any handy way of getting it off??

Soak it overnight with penetrating oil.

Most of them are plastic so you can't use a blowtorch.

Is there anywhere you can get a hammer at it near the shaft?

Be careful not to hit yourself in the face if it comes off suddenly when pulling it!


.

fryup

but how can i squirt wd40 up it?? there's only a half inch gap at the base

and i can't get a descent swing at it with a hammer

my3cents

fryup wrote: »

but how can i squirt wd40 up it?? there's only a half inch gap at the base

and i can't get a descent swing at it with a hammer

WD40 is fairly rubbish as a penetrating oil, use a genuine penetrating oil which will find its way into every tiny gap it can get into, it doesn't need to be put directly on where the joint is provided it can drip down to it or wick up into it.

If the mower is running I'd take it for a bumpy ride while hanging onto the steering wheel.

CJhaughey

mix ATF and acetone 50/50, unbelievable as a penetrating oil and lubricant.
Can you fit a two jaw pullers to the wheel?
or perhaps a bearing splitter behind the wheel and pull off that?

sheelbee

my3cents wrote: »

WD40 is fairly rubbish as a penetrating oil, use a genuine penetrating oil which will find its way into every tiny gap it can get into, it doesn't need to be put directly on where the joint is provided it can drip down to it or wick up into it.

If the mower is running I'd take it for a bumpy ride while hanging onto the steering wheel.

Not the best piece of advice.

philstar

If its difficult to rotate a flywheel by hand..is that a sign that the engine has seized up?

mine won't start, i took off the starter motor and checked it and its perfect but when engaged to the flywheel it struggles

my3cents

sheelbee wrote: »

Not the best piece of advice.

Just how fast does your lawn mower go :eek:

my3cents

philstar wrote: »

If its difficult to rotate a flywheel by hand..is that a sign that the engine has seized up?

mine won't start, i took off the starter motor and checked it and its perfect but when engaged to the flywheel it struggles

If it goes around at all then its probably not seized. If you look up what engine it is you should be able to find out what features it has for starting. I say features as company's have different ways of improving starting. One is to have some way to reduce the compression (by letting air out of the cylinder) when the engine is turning very slowly. In your case that decompression feature might not be working as an example http://www.briggsandstratton.com/eu/en/support/faqs/compression-system

To check further start by removing the plug(s) (no compression) and then see if the crank goes around much more easily that should show you your engine isn't seized.

fox0512

philstar wrote: »

If its difficult to rotate a flywheel by hand..is that a sign that the engine has seized up?

mine won't start, i took off the starter motor and checked it and its perfect but when engaged to the flywheel it struggles

We talking ride on?...the flywheel will move free ish until you come up on compression stroke and then free out again...if its stiff all way round then there is issues im afraid...to rule out any probs like hydrolock from fuel or oil just remove spark plug and see does flywheel free up

philstar

^^^^^^^^^^

yes, ride on...geared, 18hp B&S

(is hydro-lock to do with hydrostatic?)

fox0512

philstar wrote: »

^^^^^^^^^^

yes, ride on...geared, 18hp B&S

(is hydro-lock to do with hydrostatic?)

No its oil or petrol gone in front of piston...if you remove plug a wheel turns easy then thats your prob....you could also have timing issues BUT wheel should free up at some point...if its a struggle to turn flywheel all way round then your seized.... much oil showing on dipstick?

philstar

oil is at correct level,

timing issues ....valves (OHV) ?

my3cents

I just put this out here as its something dumb that really had me stumped this year. I had poor starting and poor running with no power and continuous hunting in the spring with a 16HP Twin Honda. The problem turned out to be my own stupid fault for using stale fuel. The only upside was the engine got a very good service.

Don't know about your twin OP but I have certainly had problems with hard starting on a single cylinder Briggs OHV engine because of valve clearance (timing) issues. In that particular case iirc the exhaust valve opens on part of the cycle when you wouldn't expect it to just a fraction to reduce the cylinder pressure for starting. If the clearance is to great then the valve doesn't open, compression stays high and the engine won't turn over fast enough to start.

fox0512

philstar wrote: »

oil is at correct level,

timing issues ....valves (OHV) ?

yes....you took plug out??....model number should be stamped on top of OHV cover...send me the model number and i can give you valve clearance spec...if they do need adjusting you will need a feeler gauge...

jimmyw

philstar wrote: »

If its difficult to rotate a flywheel by hand..is that a sign that the engine has seized up?

mine won't start, i took off the starter motor and checked it and its perfect but when engaged to the flywheel it struggles

I rebuilt a ride on engine for the brother, and at the end I had the same issue.Problem was that I was using ****e jump leads and the motor wasnt getting the right current.Of course the flywheel jey sheered, but thats another story.Its on my YT channel (not that I am advertising it ).

fox0512

Dodgy fuel catches us all out from time to time.....storing fuel in a plastic containers doesnt help....

Does anyone have a good electric mower they could recommend? Did get a chance to measure the lawn but it takes about 30 mins wit a 21 inch petrol mower mulching.

fox0512

Deleted User wrote: »

Does anyone have a good electric mower they could recommend? Did get a chance to measure the lawn but it takes about 30 mins wit a 21 inch petrol mower mulching.

Any particular reason for electric?....for me, having to drag around a cable with me would be a nightmare.

Discodog

Deleted User wrote: »

Does anyone have a good electric mower they could recommend? Did get a chance to measure the lawn but it takes about 30 mins wit a 21 inch petrol mower mulching.

Electric won't mulch & the biggest will be 16 inch. A good electric, like the Bosch battery mowers, are the same price as a petrol mower.

j timber

Has anyone any experience of a husqvarna rider 13 bioclip mower?
I have a castlegarden ride on with a honda engine at the moment but thinking of changing to the above.
I usually mulch so would the husqvarna be a better machine compared to a mulching plug?
The husqvarna is a centre pivot which would b handy for trees
Is it bad for the lawn mulching all the time with moss and weeds?

my3cents

The husqvana afaik doesn't attempt to pick up the grass so doesn't get clogged when mucliching in the same way a mower that picks up with a plug in it does.

sheelbee

j timber wrote: »

Has anyone any experience of a husqvarna rider 13 bioclip mower?
I have a castlegarden ride on with a honda engine at the moment but thinking of changing to the above.
I usually mulch so would the husqvarna be a better machine compared to a mulching plug?
The husqvarna is a centre pivot which would b handy for trees
Is it bad for the lawn mulching all the time with moss and weeds?

Constant mulching promotes moss and thatch.

fryup

whats the average price for a service on a ride-on ?

blades sharpened, change of oil, cables changed etc ?

esbpgen

Hi Manuel! Years too late but the problem was probably a loose safety switch on either the seat or rear collector plate. I've had this model since 2004 and it's still motoring!!

fox0512

fryup wrote: »

whats the average price for a service on a ride-on ?

blades sharpened, change of oil, cables changed etc ?

It can cost anywhere from 130 to 200eur depending where you bring it and type of ride on..

The service should incl oil, plug/s, fuel filter, air filter, blades sharpened and balanced.. control cables oiled, level deck if needed and some greasing up....cables would not normally be changed on a service unless broken which would cost extra...

fox0512

j timber wrote: »

Has anyone any experience of a husqvarna rider 13 bioclip mower?
I have a castlegarden ride on with a honda engine at the moment but thinking of changing to the above.
I usually mulch so would the husqvarna be a better machine compared to a mulching plug?
The husqvarna is a centre pivot which would b handy for trees
Is it bad for the lawn mulching all the time with moss and weeds?

If I want to mulch and buying a new machine the first thing ill look for is engine hp...personally I dont like smaller engines like 12.5 - 13.5hp etc for the job unless your garden is small ish and you can bring your speed down a tad to accommodate for lower HP but with reguluar cutting its not so much of an issue as your just trimming... sharp blades are key to successful mulching...mulching can throw around weed seed and such but it doesnt really matter if you apply lawn care like weed n feed etc IMO

IF you have some twisting to do in garden the Bio 13 is a nice mower for the job!

blackbox

j timber wrote: »

Has anyone any experience of a husqvarna rider 13 bioclip mower?
I have a castlegarden ride on with a honda engine at the moment but thinking of changing to the above.
I usually mulch so would the husqvarna be a better machine compared to a mulching plug?
The husqvarna is a centre pivot which would b handy for trees
Is it bad for the lawn mulching all the time with moss and weeds?

I have a Husqvarna rider 15AWD since 2008. Gets a lot of use as I mow around 2 acres, so collecting was always out of the question. Rider is great around trees and AWD great for me as I am on a hillside. Most of my grass is more like a park than a lawn, but it does a fairly neat job on the small front lawn. Mower can get clogged if grass is long and wet, but otherwise does a pretty good job of mulching.

As other poster mentioned, keeping blades sharp is essential.

If you want clippings to be invisible you will need to mow every week. I don't know how that compares to your present mower.

Mower has 4 belts, so one seems to fail every year! I keep spares as they always seem to break on the Saturday afternoon of a holiday weekend. I've had belt tensioner springs break too. Mine has Kawasaki engine which has been flawless (regular servicing). I had to do a repair job on hydraulic transmission last year (worn part).