I need a tough push mower

Doc

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I need to purchase a tough push mower. It will be used primarily to mow my river lot, and some for trimming around the house & flower beds.
The river lot is rather rough. I'm wondering if the mowers with the huge back wheels are any easier to push & pull on bumpy ground?
I will be getting the power assist which helps move the mower but their are still times you have to push or pull it to get the job done.

Any brand recommendations or pointers on what might work well for me would be appreciated.
 

Mith

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Doc, have you come across Ariens?
Ive seen alot of thier tall wheel push mowers around here, and I know they are hard as nails.
A choise between collection, side discharge (great for long rough grass) and mulching.
You can adjust the speed, slow as a snail (for your rough bits) to a slow jog.
Big back wheels will help on bumps for sure.

The price isnt bad considering how tough it is, and the Kawasaki engine aswell.

Ariens Mower

Made in USA too, I know you guys like that.
 

Doc

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Thanks Mith. I have not run across Ariens anywhere. I'll look around and see if any of the lawn and garden places carry them.
Side discharge is fine for me. I could care less about mulching or using a bag grass catcher.
Since I have to lift it each time in and out of the trailer to haul down to the river lot weight is also an issue. I would like the self propelled model, but self propelled adds a lot of weight.
 

Mith

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Doc,
The ariens uses a 'rubber ring' type affair for the drive, so no heavy gearbox. Its the same as what snapper use for their tractors. You might find its a little heavier than a light duty lawnmower due to the additional material on it.

I would avoid Honda, if you are going to give it a hard life this will eventaully break, and Honda parts are very expensive to buy and fit.
 

Doc

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Just the kind of info I was after Mith. Thanks buddy!!!!
 

jwstewar

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A few years ago I got a Craftsman 22" w/ a 6.5 Briggs. It is not self propelled as I didn't want self propelled as I use it around all of our little pine trees going back and forth. It has been OK mower. It does have the big wheels on the back which helps it a lot on bumps. It pushes much easier than the much lighter dutry 21" mower I have that weighs much less. Did I mention this Craftsman is heavy?:D I'm a little disappointed in a couple of things with it. The discharge shute is always getting clogged. Have to stop quite a bit and clear that by either banging the mower or the ground or shutting it off and cleaning it that way. The other is the air filter. It doesn't get all that many hours on it since I'm only going around the trees every 2 or 3 times I mow, but I have to change the air filter at least once a year (I know I should do that anyway, but still) or it won't run. I will say it must be a decent engine on it though. Some how Monica managed to hit a cement block by our propane tank. Killed the mower instantly and bent the blade straight down to the point the mower wouldn't roll. I thought it was done for figuring she destroyed the motor. I had another mower that I took the blade off of and put it on and it fired up just fine.:D
 

Doc

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The Craftsman mower talk reminds me of one of the 1st mowers I ever bought. It was a Craftsman. It had the round and round crank thingy that you would turn & turn, then snap the handle closed and the mower would try to start. Well, mine had to sit for 15 minutes after it was warm before it would start again. I called it the mower with a built in break. I would do my best not to stall it, but inevitably it would stall a couple times while I was mowing. I would get so mad at that thing, but it never helped. I've had some other bad mowers but I've never had a craftsman since then. :eek:
 
B

bczoom

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Doc,

Would one of those DR Trimmer thingy's work for you? My dad has another brand of that and it works pretty well for the heavy stuff. Don't expect it to do as nice of job as a bladed mower but it's great in the thick stuff.

They're getting hard to come by (and I don't even recall the mfgr) but there's some old mowers that were lime-green, 2-cycle & electric start. Dargo might remember what they're called as I think he has/had one. If you can get your hands on one of those, you'll be set for years.
 

Jim_S

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Doc,

Would one of those DR Trimmer thingy's work for you? My dad has another brand of that and it works pretty well for the heavy stuff. Don't expect it to do as nice of job as a bladed mower but it's great in the thick stuff.

I think Ariens makes them. I had an Ariens snow blower. It was great. I got rid of it when we moved to the country and didn't have sidewalks.

They're getting hard to come by (and I don't even recall the mfgr) but there's some old mowers that were lime-green, 2-cycle & electric start. Dargo might remember what they're called as I think he has/had one. If you can get your hands on one of those, you'll be set for years.

Was it Lawn Boy?
 

nixon

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Doc said:
Any brand recommendations or pointers on what might work well for me would be appreciated.

Doc, I don't know if they are even made anymore . But , Yahzoo (no kidding )used to make some pretty decent mowers . They were all High wheel ,some self propelled ,and had some very robust blades .
 

RoadKing

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When I needed a mower, I wanted a tough and long lasting. I have anything but a smooth flat lawn. I decided to ask the experts.
I went to my 2 local cemeteries and asked them, Both said Lawn Boy 2cycle, that was 15 years ago it still starts on second pull even the first time in spring and all I've ever done is change one spark plug, clean the air filter twice a year and sharpen the blade.
 

Jim_S

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Yahzoo (no kidding )used to make some pretty decent mowers . They were all High wheel ,some self propelled ,and had some very robust blades .

I remember those. They were made in Yazoo City, MS. the company hq was in Jackson I think. looks like they have been bought by Husqvarna Turf Care and no longer make the consumer sized big wheel mowers i remember.

yazoo-kees mfg co


Here's lawn boy.
 

Doc

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I looked at yazoo-kees ZTR's when I was ZTR shopping. They looked good and heavy duty.

I had forgot about lawn boy. My dad had one. It always started and was so light and easy to push & manuver. Good pointers guys. I'll be shopping with my fingers tomorrow (calling around to see who has what and how much they are).
 

Doc

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I feel like I lucked out. In calling around I checked with the local lawn boy dealer. They don't make the 2 cycle mower anymore. They went to 4 cycle only in 2004. But, this dealer has some used ones. 25 years old. He has 12 of them left. 50 bucks each. These are the old 2 cycles w/ aluminum deck. The guy said some of the decks were eaten up by weed and feed or some type of fertilizer. But he said he has some in good shape. He'll give a 30 day guarantee on them. That's sounds great to me ...perfect for my river lot. :thumb:
I'll stop by after work today ....heck I might just buy two of them at that price.
 

Mith

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Doc, I would pick all of them up. I understand they sell for a decent price on ebay! There is a couple on there now for a couple hundred.
 

Jim_S

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....heck I might just buy two of them at that price.

I would get several. Maybe ask him for a discount for some with a bad deck but good motor. My Dad had an old aluminum deck that was solid. When he had engine problems he just bought a used one with a bad deck.

Jim
 
B

bczoom

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I'll put a 3rd vote on what Jim and Jim said.

I'd get a few. Heck, get 2 of them running and if you have a place to store it, leave one down next to the river.
 

Doc

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Good suggestions and right along the line of what I was thinking. I picked out 3 of them. Two are the old style self propelled. Driven by the rear wheels. These are before the time that the Government forced mowers to have the auto shut off if you let go of the handle. That law went into effect in 83.

I also bought one push mower. 2 cycle. New tecumseh engine. Aluminum deck for $50. I didn't have the truck with me yesterday so I'll be going back today to pick them up.

They are very low maintenance mowers. i won't mind leaving a $50 dollar mower at the river (covered with a tarp ..no shelter down there). I've had one mower stolen from down there. I left the mower I used to use down there but hidden a bit. Did that for 2 years with no incidents.

I'll let you all know how well these work out once I've mowed a few times.
 
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