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Buying a Ride-on Mower - Advice please


Demonic69
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Morning all

We're in the process of buying and moving house. The new place has a fair sized garden, plus the possibility of some extra land in the future. With my dodgy knees (and my love of things with which to tinker) I'm considering a 2nd hand ride on. There's no way we could afford new as we've so much work to do to the house already. I've seen a few around £550, all running, some MTDs, Westwoods Toros etc. I'd also like, if possible, for it to be able to help with picking up fruit that's dropped from the trees. The Westwood V-Twin seemed like it had a brush type collector that could work.

Any advice on brands/models to look out for or avoid? Anything to consider when buying?

 

Cheers

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I bought a used champion for £500 that has been cracking. Supposedly mulch capable, at some point over winter I will try and find some mulching blades for it and see how it does. 

 

I have never ever used a ride on with grass collection that works unless the grass is very dry indeed and only having a minor trim. I ended up removing the collector from mine and using a leaf blower instead. I tend to cut once a month rather than weekly though. 

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my ride on is 20 years old..and going fine

  1. keep it clean
  2. hose the cutting deck out everytime you use it 
  3. keep the blade sharp
  4. USE A "HIGH-LIFT BLADE"...(IT WILL CREATE THE SUCK TO LIFT THE GRASS AND BLOW IT INTO THE COLLECTOR)
  5. for £500 you should get a decent mower with a garuntee..(2nd hand trade in)
  6. READ THE INSTRUCTION BOOK as it will proberly need levelling using the adjustment screws
  7. check the tyre pressures ..as this is part of the levelling of the mower
  8. lubricate it as per the handbook
  9. read the hand book again..:lol:
  10. dont cut the grass too short....and if your blade/blades are blunt it will tear the grass and it will have a brown tinge to it...

 

they are brilliant machines...and a lot of fun...but must be looked after

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3 minutes ago, JohnfromUK said:

I have a Wheel Horse (later taken over by Toro) dating to 1977 with a Kohler engine, and still running well, but some parts are now getting difficult to obtain.  Good machines (American), and change hands on eBay.

Hi John

Are those the sit-on type? More like a mobility scooter?

1 hour ago, Wb123 said:

I bought a used champion for £500 that has been cracking. Supposedly mulch capable, at some point over winter I will try and find some mulching blades for it and see how it does. 

 

I have never ever used a ride on with grass collection that works unless the grass is very dry indeed and only having a minor trim. I ended up removing the collector from mine and using a leaf blower instead. I tend to cut once a month rather than weekly though. 

Cheers WB, I'd not thought about using a blower, I'll investigate!

1 hour ago, ditchman said:

my ride on is 20 years old..and going fine

  1. keep it clean
  2. hose the cutting deck out everytime you use it 
  3. keep the blade sharp
  4. USE A "HIGH-LIFT BLADE"...(IT WILL CREATE THE SUCK TO LIFT THE GRASS AND BLOW IT INTO THE COLLECTOR)
  5. for £500 you should get a decent mower with a garuntee..(2nd hand trade in)
  6. READ THE INSTRUCTION BOOK as it will proberly need levelling using the adjustment screws
  7. check the tyre pressures ..as this is part of the levelling of the mower
  8. lubricate it as per the handbook
  9. read the hand book again..
  10. dont cut the grass too short....and if your blade/blades are blunt it will tear the grass and it will have a brown tinge to it...

 

they are brilliant machines...and a lot of fun...but must be looked after

Thanks for that Ditchy. I think I'm looking forward to the mower more than she's looking forward to the house :)

1 minute ago, AVB said:

I have a Stiga mower and my neighbour a Stiga ride on. They are Italian. Very well made and have a very solid feel to them. 

They seem a really good price even new!

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Just now, Demonic69 said:

Yep, that's the kind of beast I want

They come up on eBay quite a lot.  Mine came from a skip(!) about 10 years ago.  Sometimes they go cheap in local auctions.

A few things to be aware of;

Parts are a bit tricky (mine is over 40 years old).  You can get blades (set of 3 on mine), belts etc., but less common parts are harder.  Kohler engine parts are OK, but genuine ones are sometimes expensive.  I have used 'pattern' Chinese parts (fuel pump, points set) that have been OK.  Engine is electric start (only) and so a battery is needed.  I suspect things like starter may be hard to get and/or expensive if it fails.  Like most American things, it uses a lot of petrol, but there are very few diesel alternatives, and those there are are very expensive.

The cutting deck takes off quite easily and cutting decks are prone to corroding through.  I have a spare I bought from eBay.  There are two types, side discharge and rear discharge, mine being a rear type.

There are a variety of other attachments made, (snow plough etc) but don't seem to be around much in the UK where mowers seem the only common attachments.  It would happily pull a small trailer or sweeper.

Tyres are very expensive for what they are.

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I have a Kubota with a 4ft mulching deck and it handles the 3 aces of mowing I have to do with ease and has done for the last 10yrs. 

Take note of what Mr Ditchman has posted and you will not go far wrong. DO NOT buy one of those cheapy Chinese heaps of rubbish. My neighbour purchased one and it spends more time back at the supplier than it does cutting grass. 

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6 minutes ago, Walker570 said:

I have a Kubota with a 4ft mulching deck and it handles the 3 aces of mowing I have to do with ease and has done for the last 10yrs. 

Take note of what Mr Ditchman has posted and you will not go far wrong. DO NOT buy one of those cheapy Chinese heaps of rubbish. My neighbour purchased one and it spends more time back at the supplier than it does cutting grass. 

What are the cheapy Chinese ones?

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