HF mower?

[RPW]

With HF I'm in the "somethings good somethings bad". Things like their mig wire is crap, 14in. chop saw blades, crap. Wirefeed weld so far going on three years no problem, chopsaw going on 6 years no problem. Bench top drill press about 10 years, no problem except for power switch which was easy to replace. It just depends. I don't have any use for a finish mower so couldn't tell a good one from a bad one but HF does have a pretty good return policy. To hedge your bet get the 1 or 2 year extended warranty and then use the crap out of it. If it makes it the first year then you probably won't have any major problems. Otherwise return for refund.

Good luck.

 

[sweettractors]

Well I said it before and I will say it again. A guy down the road bought one. Its basically a copy of my Caroni. His is the 6' one and he has mowed 4 acres about 30 times a year with it for 4 or so seasons now. I know him very well and he greases it a few times a year and that is it. He changed the gear box oil after the first season and has had no issues. I know he paid $800 so this is a steal.

As for getting parts from HF, I had to once and its been 7 years ago or so but I do not remember it being a issue. I know it was free and they shipped me a whole assembly.

I would take the risk for that price. It has to be as good if not better than the $1000 I spent on a King Kutter back in 2003. Now that was a mistake.

Chris

Would you take your family and fly a "Jinma" or "Chinese built" plane? Ken Sweet

 

[rtimgray]

With HF I'm in the "somethings good somethings bad". Things like their mig wire is crap, 14in. chop saw blades, crap. Wirefeed weld so far going on three years no problem, chopsaw going on 6 years no problem. Bench top drill press about 10 years, no problem except for power switch which was easy to replace. It just depends. I don't have any use for a finish mower so couldn't tell a good one from a bad one but HF does have a pretty good return policy. To hedge your bet get the 1 or 2 year extended warranty and then use the crap out of it. If it makes it the first year then you probably won't have any major problems. Otherwise return for refund.

Good luck.

You know, the extended warranty that HF might just do the trick. I had forgotten about that. i don't know what it would cost for that unit, but if you bought it and it didn't break within that time frame, you're probably in good shape. If not, you could probably get your money back and only be out the time and effort.

Good suggestion.

 

[Dargo]

To hedge your bet get the 1 or 2 year extended warranty and then use the crap out of it. If it makes it the first year then you probably won't have any major problems. Otherwise return for refund.

Good luck.

If it's really junk, you'll just waste your money and time. After I toasted 3 of their crap portable band saws that I had purchased their warranty on, they said no more. They offered to refund my money on the junk portable band saw but said the money I paid for the warranty was "used". What a rip off on a rip off POS from Horrible Freight.

As I said before, I'm willing to gamble about $20 or so there (possibly a slight bit more, but not much) on their pot luck stuff. Their "warranty" isn't worth the paper it's written on if what you buy is pure junk. I'd imagine on something that's really high end for that place (over $300), you may get one or maybe 2 replacements and then you'll be done and have wasted all your time and money on the warranty. If you really think about it, some things are positively not worth it if they are given to you free of charge. Seriously, think about it.

 

[Diamondpilot]

Would you take your family and fly a "Jinma" or "Chinese built" plane? Ken Sweet

Yes, I would if I knew the guy doing the maintenance. I do all the maintenance on my stuff and I trust the mechanic I have working on my jet.

The Japaneses is getting ramped up to give the US and European aircraft manufactures a run. Brazil is currently a very large player.

Chris

 

[Yandaddy1110]

I had one of these 60'' Chinese rear mowers, got it new in the crate off CL. Put it together , it functioned well.2 issues, 1. wheels start losing chucks of rubber over a short time, but still function 2. Paint on some parts(near welds) started coming off in sheets. Sheet metal was thick, welds were good, casters heavy duty. I think if it got good regular maintenance, it would last.Sold cause 60'' was too big for my tiny Yanmar.
I would buy another one if I needed one.

 

[CompactTractorFan]

Would you take your family and fly a "Jinma" or "Chinese built" plane? Ken Sweet

Nooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!! :confused2::confused2::confused2:

 

[CompactTractorFan]

If it's really junk, you'll just waste your money and time. After I toasted 3 of their crap portable band saws that I had purchased their warranty on, they said no more. They offered to refund my money on the junk portable band saw but said the money I paid for the warranty was "used". What a rip off on a rip off POS from Horrible Freight.

As I said before, I'm willing to gamble about $20 or so there (possibly a slight bit more, but not much) on their pot luck stuff. Their "warranty" isn't worth the paper it's written on if what you buy is pure junk. I'd imagine on something that's really high end for that place (over $300), you may get one or maybe 2 replacements and then you'll be done and have wasted all your time and money on the warranty. If you really think about it, some things are positively not worth it if they are given to you free of charge. Seriously, think about it.

My Grandfather swears that their brands are better than DeWalt or any other non-Chinese brand...

 

[Soundguy]

seals are a non issue.. ID, OD and thickness.. maybee lip style.. single or double. that's what you need to know to repalce just about ANY seal from a real parts shop.

matched belt sets? no problem. napa and car quest can order those.. by the centimeter if i recall correctly.

soundguy

Download the pdf from the web page and check it out.

No breakdown of the gear box, if something as cheap and easy to replace as a seal goes it is going to become more work to find it than R&R.

It does look in the picture like the gear box has a stamped back cover and from the pdf a cast front cover. There better be a real good way to keep the front cover in location for gear life. And the Chinese aren't real great at tight fits and locating on their cheap stuff. Without a breakdown of the gear box (and my guess at the stamped back cover) I've got to wonder how the ring gear is supported, two front bearings?

The blades drive by 2 V belts, who knows how wide. They adjust by sliding the gear box instead of a spring tensioner. If one breaks or stretches they will need to be replaced as a matched set. The belt covers are a bunch of bolted together pieces of sheet metal, it won't be a quick adjustment.

I've never ordered repair parts from HF so if someone has it would be nice to find out lead time. Something as simple as blades could be a hassle if it takes a couple of months to get them. A bearing would mean the mower is down. I would look at it as a throwaway. If something goes wrong after the warranty it will probably be more hassle to fix than find another one.

IMHO You would be better off finding a decent used one. If you have time to look the price won't be much different.

 

[Dargo]

My Grandfather swears that their brands are better than DeWalt or any other non-Chinese brand...

On most Milwaukee tools, I'd agree that they are as good as, or better than, any other high quality, name brand, piece of equipment. For some reason Milwaukee turned out a Yugo with their 28v cordless tools. If your grandfather thinks the 28v Milwaukee cordless tools are the best, go buy him a complete set of 18v tools from HF for about $20 and he will think he's in heaven. Yeah, they are that bad. Everything else I own made by Milwaukee is great. Their 28v cordless tools can't hold a candle to the 18v house brand sold at HF.