OT: Purchasing a Lawn Tractor - Advice?

[wade moore]

As I said in the Yard Work thread from a few days ago, I just bought a new house in August. The previous owners did little to nothing to care for the yard. I essentially have 1/2 acre of some grass, weeds, and a lot of dirt. Due to moving in, finances, etc. I was not able to do any prep for the spring last fall.

So. I am going to be buying a Lawn Tractor this week or next mostly with my tax return money. Technically I have about $1500 available, although it could be stretched if absolutely necessary. Price is a big concern for me, and if I could get something a little less expensive I have many other things in my fixer-upper house that the money could be used for.

So. I have looked at the big Home Improvement chains (Home Depot and Lowe's) and on Sears' Website. I want to avoid getting a 'no-name' brand that is going to end up not satisfying my needs. Everyone seems to tout John Deere to no end, of course the problem is they are so expensive. The cheapest I found at the stores was $1499 and that is without any attachments besides a built in mulcher. Otherwise there are Craftsmen mowers for about $999. I know Crafstmen is a great brand, but I know little about their rep with Lawn Tractors.

Added piece. There are 3 functions that I am really looking to have, whether it be via attachments or built in.

1) Mulching - I have about 10-15 large oak trees. So I have TONS of leaves. I have started a mulch pile and would like to utilize this feature.
2) Aerator/Spreader - This is a must. I want to do some major work on the lawn and this would make my life MUCH better
3) Bagger - obvious use, would really like to have this.


So... any experiences (good or bad) with any of the brands out there? If I hear that an $800 Murray is the best Mower ever, I would consider it - but my initial though tis negative to brands like this.

Oh.. and before anyone says, "buy used", I've decided against this... I know the pros to it, but I'm not going to do it.

[CraigSca]

I bought a John Deere L110 a couple years ago when I got my half acre house. I love it, and in admittedly only one season, it has given me no trouble at all. I think it retails for $1799, however, so it may be a stretch financially.

Two things - my neighbor bought a Husqvarna a likes it a lot. It retailed for over $3300 but he got it for about 40% off as it was purchased by someone and returned the next day. If you're looking to save a lot, try going that route - just continue to check the local Home Depot, Lowes, etc., to see if they have any "still under warranty" returns.

The other thing I've heard (and the reason I bought an L110) - it has an automatic transmission. My only experience is with an automatic, but only because I had been told that's the way to go. You don't want to constantly be dealing with a clutch, especially if you have assorted trees and shrubs around the yard.

[Tigercat]

I have always been under the impression that Craftsmen aren't too bad for the price, although some models hold better than others. I know a couple of people who have Scotts, and they speak well of them and they are cheaper than getting a Deere, and seem to be a little more reliable than Craftsmen.

Of course this is all second hand knowledge, I have been an apartment dweller for my adult life, the only lawn and garden I need to upkeep is a little patch of weeds that occationally grows around the cement by my door.

[cartman]

Hi Wade,

I'm in the same boat you are. I've been looking for one as well. For a 1/2 acre, you probably have plenty budgeted for a tractor. The only possible gotcha would be your soil for the aerator. Depending on your soil, you might need a little more horsepower to dig in the soil. But probably not much, since I don't think an aerator is considered a ground engaging attachment.

Craftsman is a solid brand to pick. You are correct in the premium on the John Deere name. Sears has a bunch of lawn tractors on sale right now, and some are a really great deal. There are several in the $800 to $1200 range, which would leave you extra left over for the attachments you are looking for.

[spleen1015]

Lawn Tractor for 1/2 acre?

[wade moore]

CraigSc - the L110 is actually the one retailing at $1499 right now that i was looking at... had not thought about the transmission.. hrmm...

cartman - yeah, this is why i'm feeling 'decision' time is because of the Sears sale...

spleen1015 - it takes me upwards of 4-5 hours to mow it by hand. Everything I've read is that .5 acres is the cutoff point. It's not a NEED but would make a HUGE benefit.. especially when you add the aerating piece.

[Castlerock]

Originally Posted by spleen1015

Lawn Tractor for 1/2 acre?

That was my thought as well. A Lawn Tractor is a fun toy but it is not necessary. Since price is an issue why not get a self-propelled walk-behind mower. If you need to aerate, rent one for the day. Buy a cheap spreader and push it for the couple of days a year that you fertilize. That will save a lot of cash that can be used for other things.

[Castlerock]

Originally Posted by wade moore

it takes me upwards of 4-5 hours to mow it by hand. Everything I've read is that .5 acres is the cutoff point. It's not a NEED but would make a HUGE benefit.. especially when you add the aerating piece.

I hadn't read your response before my post. 4-5 hours? Wow, I never guessed it would take that long. I can do my 1/2 acre in a little over an hour with a regular mower.

[Buzzbee]

Wade - I faced a similar situation a few years ago. I have a 3/4 acre lot and had been using a 1986 Murray (hand me down from wife's grandfather). It went kaput and I had to buy a new mower.

I ended up with an L110 for a few reasons:

1) Murray's are cheaper, but I wasn't thrilled with the design. Even though ours lasted for 14 years, quite a bit had been replaced over the years to keep it in working order. The Murray's just didn't seem durable when compared to other brands.

2) Automatic transmission. After having the belt drive Murray, and having to stop, move the lever anywhere from 1-6 depending on the grade and the speed I wanted to cut, the Deere transmission was enticing. It has been well worth it. I have a fence around my yard and the ability to change speeds with the push of a pedal is VERY nice.

3) Home Depot no payments for 12 months plan. Yes, we had to sign up for the Home Depot credit card, but it allowed us to take the cash and put it in a CD and earn interest for a year rather than paying for it up front. Then, in the 11th month we paid the full amount, paid no charges or interest, and then cancelled the Home Depot card. The mower was the only thing we ever put on it, so we didn't get hit with any other interest or fees either.

4) Bad experiences with Troy-Built mowers, which was one of the other brands available. Growing up we had a Troy-Built push mower and while it started easy, and cut good, it was a pain in the ass to change from bagless to bagging. Also, they were real picky about where it was serviced to not void the warranty. That ended up being very inconvenient.

That is my experience. Take it for what it's worth.

[wade moore]

Originally Posted by Castlerock

I hadn't read your response before my post. 4-5 hours? Wow, I never guessed it would take that long. I can do my 1/2 acre in a little over an hour with a regular mower.

Wow, I don't see how you do it in that time... Maybe I'm slow, but that is just insane to me. Growing up we had a lot less than 1/4 of an acre and I could not do it that quickly.

[Castlerock]

Originally Posted by wade moore

Wow, I don't see how you do it in that time... Maybe I'm slow, but that is just insane to me. Growing up we had a lot less than 1/4 of an acre and I could not do it that quickly.

Well, maybe I have less than a half-acre of grass. The lot is 2.5 acres but it's not all lawn. At any rate, if I mulch the grass, I can do it in 1:15 (max-speed and no stopping). If it took 4-5 hours, I would be considering other options.

[cartman]

I've been looking at the automatic transmissions as well. It appears that they add $200 to the price of a manual transmission model. I've pretty much settled on the Craftsman #27568. It's a 24hp with a 42 in. deck, and automatic.

If you have a Sears card, then they are offering no payments/no interest until September. The nice thing about their offer is that even if you don't pay it off by September, they don't hit you with the saved up interest. The interest doesn't start to accrue until September.

[wade moore]

Not sure why you would choose that Craftsman over the JD L110, purely on Horsepower? The JD comes with mulching, is automatic, and costs $200 less... This one for me personally stretches me quite a bit out of what I want to spend as I'd be up at $2k after attachments...

[cartman]

Yep, there were a couple of things that drew me to the Craftsman. The HP was a big difference. I've got almost two acres, with really thick turf in some areas. I also plan to use it for hauling rocks around the property. It's a two cylinder engine vs. a single in the Deere. Also the gas tank is twice as big, so I can mow the front and back without having to refill. The Craftsman also has an Electric clutch for operating attachments like a spreader, sprayer, cultivator, or brush cutter.

But the purposes you are looking to use your tractor for are going to be different than mine.

[wade moore]

Originally Posted by cartman

Yep, there were a couple of things that drew me to the Craftsman. The HP was a big difference. I've got almost two acres, with really thick turf in some areas. I also plan to use it for hauling rocks around the property. It's a two cylinder engine vs. a single in the Deere. Also the gas tank is twice as big, so I can mow the front and back without having to refill. The Craftsman also has an Electric clutch for operating attachments like a spreader, sprayer, cultivator, or brush cutter.

But the purposes you are looking to use your tractor for are going to be different than mine.

Do you NEED an electric clutch for those attachments, or it is just nice to have? I'm particularly interested in the spreader.. I think what I've seen was a drop spreader/aerator so it shouldn't matter, but just checking..

[cartman]

Originally Posted by wade moore

Do you NEED an electric clutch for those attachments, or it is just nice to have? I'm particularly interested in the spreader.. I think what I've seen was a drop spreader/aerator so it shouldn't matter, but just checking..

For the spreader it's a "nice to have", but for the cultivator and brush cutter, it's almost a necessity. Otherwise the attachments would be running all of the time, and you'd have to get out and manually raise/lower the attachment.

[wade moore]

So.. just went and bought this..

http://www.sears.com/sr/javasr/produ...=Lawn+Tractors

17.5 HP, Automatic, Koehler engine, mulch kit... also got an aerator that I have to put together.. it gets delivered week after next (based on my availability to be home)...

I ended up with the Craftsman because of a) the cost and b) when I went into Sears and had someone coming to offer help within 10 seconds vs. my 30 minutes and never finding anyone at both Lowe's and Home Depot....