Ride on Lawn Mower

Declan1

Having been a "city dweller" for as long as I can remember we are now moving to a property with a little land around it and I need to get a ride on mower and I was hoping that you might be able to help recommend a good one, or at least point me in the right direction. (I could cut my grass with a strimmer up to now!)

The total site size is 1.8 acres although the property and out buildings occupy a chunk of that. The ground is all reasonably level. There are some obstacles e.g. trees, hedges, washing line but most of the plot is unobstructed. The budget is around the 2k mark (including import duties if option below is used).

I have the ability to source a machine in the USA, I've been told that this will save me a few quid so if anybody has any advice in this regards I'm all ears! I am told that most Irish/UK machines will feed the cut grass straight back to the collection box where as many US machines feed outwards then rearwards and there is potential for wet or damp grass to clog up this area.

Many thanks.

Stroke My Trout

I think the acre and a half you have would be borderline in the need for a ride on, have a little more and cut it close, and near to trees and hedging with a 5.5 hp Honda self propelled. It was bought in the late 1980s, has always cut this, and takes around two hours at the height of season.

Do you just want a ride on? I tried one out and while it's great on the wide bits, I know I'd have to take the Honda to do the awkward bits. And it seems a bit pointless in that case:)

celticmicky

Declan1 wrote: »

Having been a "city dweller" for as long as I can remember we are now moving to a property with a little land around it and I need to get a ride on mower and I was hoping that you might be able to help recommend a good one, or at least point me in the right direction. (I could cut my grass with a strimmer up to now!)

The total site size is 1.8 acres although the property and out buildings occupy a chunk of that. The ground is all reasonably level. There are some obstacles e.g. trees, hedges, washing line but most of the plot is unobstructed. The budget is around the 2k mark (including import duties if option below is used).

I have the ability to source a machine in the USA, I've been told that this will save me a few quid so if anybody has any advice in this regards I'm all ears! I am told that most Irish/UK machines will feed the cut grass straight back to the collection box where as many US machines feed outwards then rearwards and there is potential for wet or damp grass to clog up this area.

Many thanks.

Most of the America machines known under the AYP umbrella used to be side chute machines. The likes of Husqvarna, McCulloch, Rally and Craftsman. As you said, they had a reputation - rightly so - for being poor collectors in the wet.

They are now mainly direct chute machines (chute up the middle of the mower). This is better for collecting the grass clippings, especially when it is wet.

In my opinion it is hard to beat Castelgarden. They are made by the same company that makes Stiga, Mountfield, Atco and Alpina. They have also made ride ons for John Deere, Makita, Massey Fergusson, Efco, Oleo Mac and Viking.

They also make the Honda ride on lawnmowers for Honda.

There is a good range to choose from with Castelgarden. They feature both hydrostatic gearboxes (operated like an automatic car with a forward pedal and reverse pedal, the more you press the faster you go.) and a manual gearbox - where you select the gear you want manually. The drawback of a manual gearbox is it can be a little jumpy when taking off, however it is cheaper than the hydrostatic equivalent models.

There is a little information on ride ons in the link below
http://www.esaleslocal.com/lawnmower-info.htm

Declan1

@stroke my trout: Thanks for your reply. The majority of the ground is open with the obstacles at the periphery so it is definitely worth getting the ride on. I would hope to do it in well under 2 hours on the ride on.

@celticmicky: Many thanks for the informative post. From looking at descriptions online many of the US machines still appear to have the side chute. It's good to know that there are plenty of direct chute machines so I will keep on looking.

secman

I bought a castlegarden 18.5 HP in 2008 and wouldn't be without it for 2/3 or so of an acre.

Secman

Philm_12

On 1/2 acre. Used to have an early robotic mower - Husqvarna. Lasted years. Have a Stiga ride on at present but saw a Bosch robot mower in B&Q the other day. €1700. Will defo be checking it out myself maybe next year.

Grass cutting on the ride-on is OK - but not grass cutting at all is even better. Leaves you time to do important things........like watching the grass being cut whilst enjoying a cool drink!

Details on https://www.bosch-indego.com/gb/en/

There are larger robot mowers available. Check out the WWW.

keltoms05

Philm_12 wrote: »

On 1/2 acre. Used to have an early robotic mower - Husqvarna. Lasted years. Have a Stiga ride on at present but saw a Bosch robot mower in B&Q the other day. €1700. Will defo be checking it out myself maybe next year.

Grass cutting on the ride-on is OK - but not grass cutting at all is even better. Leaves you time to do important things........like watching the grass being cut whilst enjoying a cool drink!

Details on https://www.bosch-indego.com/gb/en/

There are larger robot mowers available. Check out the WWW.

have to say i don't i'll ever buy a robot lawnmower, there's a certain enjoyment i get out of cutting the grass with a mower

Squiggle

It's worth paying the extra few bob for a hydrostatic mower imo and I wouldn't be without it. Mulching plugs are available now too for many models if you want that option. Personally wouldn't go for side shute mower. Echo what's been said about Castlegarden above even though I have a Mountfield myself.

AlexMer

Anybody know of anyone that bought a cub cadet ride on mower? Thinking of purchasing one but a lot of reviews dont seem to be too great, mostly coming from america, but a lot of them are old reviews to. Any help or advice would be great!