Husqvarna or Honda

Blowheads

Evening,
I am in the market for a new mower, was going for a Honda 2417 @ €4200 but seen today the Husqvarna TC 342 @ €4000. The Husky looks like a very high spec machine, 42 inch, 22HP! and the same bells and whistles as the Honda for lessmoney

I know Honda has the name for ride-on's but can anyone offer advice which to go for?

Dig all

Blowheads wrote: »

Evening,
I am in the market for a new mower, was going for a Honda 2417 @ €4200 but seen today the Husqvarna TC 342 @ €4000. The Husky looks like a very high spec machine, 42 inch, 22HP! and the same bells and whistles as the Honda for lessmoney

I know Honda has the name for ride-on's but can anyone offer advice which to go for?

Kubota are a good mower very well built and made to last , your prob better off buying a good second hand one . Parts wouldn't be a problem either. Also their hydraulic driven blade is way more powerfull than belt driven ones . But I'd prob go for the Honda if you haven't an over big lawn.

my3cents

The Honda is a good machine have that one myself. Its not ideal on my rough paddock but its ten years old and in very good condition after some fairly rough use. Picks grass really well. Spares are expensive for it but I don't think the Husky spares are any cheaper. Any questions about it just ask.

Blowheads

thanks, does anyone have any experience with either the Honda/Husky above?

Gerobrien25

I have had the Husqvarna for 3 years now, haven't even needed to replace the cutting belt, just got it serviced every Novemeber. Previous mower I had to repalce the belt very 5/6 months and I'm cutting nearly 1.5 acres in total

_Puma_

Our Club recently picked up the TC 342 for cutting two soccer pitches (~3.5 acres) throughout the year so would expect fairly heavy usage on a good grass surface. Will expect it will need to be serviced at least once a year.

have2flushtwice

I'm in the market for a mower as well,
I had my eye on the 2417 Honda also. not new.

I got an old husky 12.5 lt, it must be 20 years old. it had the electric clutch for the blades and works great
i've another mower (a grey one - the name escapes me right now), with a 15.5 kohler engine in it, engine is a dream, but the deck blocks a lot.
usually when one doesn't start I try the other and it goes!

I'm watching Done deal and the second hand 2417's are going for anything from approx. 1600 up to 3400. if a new one is 4200, id probably get a secondhand one, pend a few quid on a service, dip the deck in galvanize (about 60 euro) and hope for the best?

Blowheads

I have decided for the new model 2417, Honda has the name and the dealer is close enough should anything go wrong. €4200 for straight deal.
The older model can be bought up north, Enniskillen for €3450.
good luck!

have2flushtwice

whats the difference between the older and the newer?
I saw a note about a smart start and an LED dash. that's nice, but to me that's not worth 1000.
with the new model id say there will be a few S/H coming onto the market this year.

Blowheads

the fuel cap in on the other side, there is a versa mulch where you can select mulch or bag via a level
new safety covers over the deck, there is some new legal requirement to have a button to allow cut in reverse
they have these fins on the blade to improve airflow- and a new deign bag to let all this air out. that means better collection in damp grass

I agree might not be worth the extra 1000. check a mountfield, made in the same factory, but not all the same bells and whistles, 20 hp there fore 3400 ish

have2flushtwice

yes I want some grunt in my mower. a 12 hp could be ok if its every week that its cut. but that doesn't happen. it might not be cut for 2 or 3 weeks in the summer, and that's where I need the blowing power and the ability to take a 3/4 with cut without going back to a snails pace to stop it clogging up. id be 15.5 hp at a minimum - that would manage it. 17 is probably ideal. I would love a 22 hp!!
have to go looking at a few shortly.
if I can sell my own two, and get 6-700 for both it would knock the sting out of the price.

celticmicky

Blowheads wrote: »

the fuel cap in on the other side, there is a versa mulch where you can select mulch or bag via a level
new safety covers over the deck, there is some new legal requirement to have a button to allow cut in reverse
they have these fins on the blade to improve airflow- and a new deign bag to let all this air out. that means better collection in damp grass

I agree might not be worth the extra 1000. check a mountfield, made in the same factory, but not all the same bells and whistles, 20 hp there fore 3400 ish

Castelgarden are made in the same factory and have a 22hp B&S engine at around 3300 with mulcher

gctest50

used little 3cyl diesel maybe ?

http://www.irishgrassmachinery.ie/category/second-hand-machinery/

might cost less to run over the years

have2flushtwice

there's a 500 euro difference in price of Husqvarnas, 15.5 new manual 2800 to 2200.

have2flushtwice

did a bit of googling, and found the 17.5 hydrostatic for a little bit more. 2400

http://www.mower-power.com/shannonside/product.asp?numPageStartPosition=1&strPageHistory=cat&strKeywords=&strSearchCriteria=&PT_ID=189&P_ID=938&btnProduct=More+details

my3cents

have2flushtwice wrote: »

did a bit of googling, and found the 17.5 hydrostatic for a little bit more. 2400

http://www.mower-power.com/shannonside/product.asp?numPageStartPosition=1&strPageHistory=cat&strKeywords=&strSearchCriteria=&PT_ID=189&P_ID=938&btnProduct=More+details

You really need to look at each model for yourself because even with good brand names they still make some items down to a price.

One area to check is the main chassis I've noticed big differences in the amount of metal used and the thickness of the main chassis on some models.

Blowheads

just an update, got the Honda 2417 yesterday.. just need the weather now!

have2flushtwice

Blowheads wrote: »

just an update, got the Honda 2417 yesterday.. just need the weather now!

Has it arrived?

Blowheads

yes, I got it the last day. not time yet to test it.. Saturday maybe

have2flushtwice

Blowheads wrote: »

yes, I got it the last day. not time yet to test it.. Saturday maybe

hoping to give mine a spin out as well. if the grass it too wet I'll just take it to the village for milk instead!

take a picture if you can. mine is pretty long at the moment. i'll give it a run up the middle for a short distance at a low cut - that will test any mowers ability.

Repolho

My local dealer has a second hand Honda 2216, 16hp V Twin engine, hydrostatic, 40" cut for €2000 with a 3month warranty. It has a new deck and collector bag. He reckoned that for that money, it was better than any new mower of a similar price.

Another user on here posted a link to this new Husqvarna CTH 174 mower for €2400.

I have to cut approx. 0.5 acre garden with a decent slope and quite wet & boggy. I also have a field beside the house that is 0.7acre. Previous owners grazed a horse on it but we're not sure what we want to do with it so for the time being I want to keep it tidy.

Would the above be suitable machines and if so which would be the better buy or can anyone recommend a more suitable machine. I really don't want to spend more that €2500.

Thanks.

BTW, one or 2 dealers I went to have said stay away from Husqvarna. I thought Husq's were a top brand. Anyone any feedback?

have2flushtwice

each dealer will have his own opinion for their own reasons. go and ask a few husky owners what they think.

whatever suits you is whats important.
id never buy a certain brand of car again, because it let me down.
id never buy a ransomes either, as I've had a greens mower and it was a b1tch to start every time.
I posted the link to the cth, and bought one - going to put it to the test tomorrow hopefully.
with the 0.7 ac, you will not be mowing it every week, maybe once a month.
so you will need a bit of grunt to get through it.
if you can find a local farmer with a few calves, they will graze it better than any horses will.

Brianmeath

I think castle garden are building the Honda mowers now??

Honda mowers only use one honda part, the engine.
Husqvarna, castle garden, mountfield, John deere or any of them only assemble garden machinery. They don't make engines or gearboxes. They buy all components & put them together.

Kevin McCloud

Brianmeath wrote: »

I think castle garden are building the Honda mowers now??

They are getting the small man in China to make them, same with alot of other Honda engines.

celticmicky

Kevin McCloud wrote: »

They are getting the small man in China to make them, same with alot of other Honda engines.

Hondas are made by GGP - they own Castelgarden, Mountfield, Atco, Alpina and Stiga. The Honda machines are made in one of their Italian factories.

Blowheads

OK, got to take it out for a spin yesterday. Honda 2417 new model
The grass was mostly dry/slightly damp. 0.7 Acre to cut. Grass was fairly long
First impressions:
1. Very easy to fuel given fuel cap location and size, no spillage
2. Steering a bit stiff, but I greased and oiled it when finished. should be better next time
3. Seat, seems a bit slippery, especially when you take foot off the pedal, you could slide forward a bit when you come to a sudden stop
4. Pickup, it picked up everything and absolutely packed the bag to the brim
5. Although the grass was not 100% dry, it never once clogged so am very happy with that
6. Grass box full "Beep" could be a bit louder, sometimes hard to hear
7. On new machines you have to depress a button on the dashboard if you want to reverse while the blades are spinning. This is not Honda's fault but nevertheless a pain in the ar$e if you have a lot of obstacles etc in the way

Overall so far am very happy

have2flushtwice

I'll compare yours to mine:
I had less than half acre, a lot of dead grass and heavy at that, not mowed since end sept.
fuel is under the bonnet, wide diameter filling, and clear container, making it easy to fuel with the can (and nozzle) and easy to see when it was getting full(and whats left)
2. steering was fine. great lock at the end of the lawn.
3. seat was fine. damn mower cut out when I was getting off it, I had the old mowers seat bypassed.
4. no problems. straight back up under the seat area.
5. no issues.
6. beep was annoying and loud, as it should be. turn off the blades and it stopped.
7.there is a key position which lets you reverse while blades are in motion.
8. when finished, I connected the water hose to the deck port to clean underneath.
very happy with my purchase overall.

Blowheads wrote: »

OK, got to take it out for a spin yesterday. Honda 2417 new model
The grass was mostly dry/slightly damp. 0.7 Acre to cut. Grass was fairly long
First impressions:
1. Very easy to fuel given fuel cap location and size, no spillage
2. Steering a bit stiff, but I greased and oiled it when finished. should be better next time
3. Seat, seems a bit slippery, especially when you take foot off the pedal, you could slide forward a bit when you come to a sudden stop
4. Pickup, it picked up everything and absolutely packed the bag to the brim
5. Although the grass was not 100% dry, it never once clogged so am very happy with that
6. Grass box full "Beep" could be a bit louder, sometimes hard to hear
7. On new machines you have to depress a button on the dashboard if you want to reverse while the blades are spinning. This is not Honda's fault but nevertheless a pain in the ar$e if you have a lot of obstacles etc in the way

Overall so far am very happy

Blowheads

flushy 2 times, what model/year is yours?
seems 2 happy campers with Honda..
What key position do you know for the reverse? I didn't see on, but didn't look for it either

have2flushtwice

its a cth 17.5 hp hydrostatic Husqvarna.

there was an icon on the key switch position, showing an arrow to the rear and a blade.

its a 151!

keltoms05

Anyone have any experience of the Husqvarna riders? 15.5 hp with option to mulch, no collection though.

Brianmeath

keltoms05 wrote: »

Anyone have any experience of the Husqvarna riders? 15.5 hp with option to mulch, no collection though.

Fantastic machine. Very reliable.
They dust grass even when wet they cut clean.