dknelson99
New member
- Joined
- Nov 3, 2008
- Messages
- 1
You guys have had much better luck with this thing than I have. Mine is a total piece of junk and I wish I had never bought it. I'm just finishing up my second season with this one. 8 HP, chipper, etc. Pretty much everything that can break on this unit has done so.
I was planning to buy a DR Power or a Cyclone Rake when my wife ran across this one sitting in front of a house for sale. An older gentleman had bought it and then passed away before it was ever used. His wife had decided to sell the house so had this for sale. It was brand new, still had the tags hanging on it and I paid $850.00 which was pretty good for this larger unit. Big mistake.
I had to replace the engine the first summer. This is something that you need to watch for. On the 8 HP unit, there is a short pipe..maybe 6" long...on the engine oil drain. The purpose is so that you can drain the oil without it running down on the mounting base. Apparently due to vibration, this short nipple broke off right where it screws into the engine. Perhaps it was threaded to deep or something. I was mowing and then got a whiff of hot oil. Looked back and saw nothing but smoke. By the time I got off the mower and walked back to turn off the engine on the vacuum, it seized and died. I replaced the engine with a new 8 HP Briggs. It came with a Tecumseh. If yours has the short nipple at the oil drain, I would recommend replacing it with a plug.
Hose was worn out after first season. Constant turning is just too much wear on this cheap hose. Replaced it this year.
The chute mentioned in a previous post, the one that goes from the top of the blower to the trailer busted on mine also. I've had to repair it a couple of times.
The chipper chute also broke right where it goes into the metal part of the chute at the blower. Have it half way repaired also.
The stamped metal hold down on the front of the trailer that holds the front of the trailer down pulled out of the sheet metal under the trailer. I reinforced it on the inside by using a strip of 1/8" x the width of the trailer steel strap. Drilled holes to match the existing holes and put new bolts in it.
Yesterday as I was getting ready to vacuum some leaves, I did an inspection and saw that the bolts that bolt the blower enclosure to the engine had broken off. I had to take the blower assembly apart, remove the fan, drill out and retap the holes in the engine to a larger size and then put it all back together.
The rubber straps on the rear door kept breaking. I finally built some latches to replace them.
This is probably the worse investment I've ever made in lawn equipment. It's one of those things that I have to repair constantly and I truly hate it. In the spring, I will be replacing it with another brand. Have some research to do before deciding which one though.
I was planning to buy a DR Power or a Cyclone Rake when my wife ran across this one sitting in front of a house for sale. An older gentleman had bought it and then passed away before it was ever used. His wife had decided to sell the house so had this for sale. It was brand new, still had the tags hanging on it and I paid $850.00 which was pretty good for this larger unit. Big mistake.
I had to replace the engine the first summer. This is something that you need to watch for. On the 8 HP unit, there is a short pipe..maybe 6" long...on the engine oil drain. The purpose is so that you can drain the oil without it running down on the mounting base. Apparently due to vibration, this short nipple broke off right where it screws into the engine. Perhaps it was threaded to deep or something. I was mowing and then got a whiff of hot oil. Looked back and saw nothing but smoke. By the time I got off the mower and walked back to turn off the engine on the vacuum, it seized and died. I replaced the engine with a new 8 HP Briggs. It came with a Tecumseh. If yours has the short nipple at the oil drain, I would recommend replacing it with a plug.
Hose was worn out after first season. Constant turning is just too much wear on this cheap hose. Replaced it this year.
The chute mentioned in a previous post, the one that goes from the top of the blower to the trailer busted on mine also. I've had to repair it a couple of times.
The chipper chute also broke right where it goes into the metal part of the chute at the blower. Have it half way repaired also.
The stamped metal hold down on the front of the trailer that holds the front of the trailer down pulled out of the sheet metal under the trailer. I reinforced it on the inside by using a strip of 1/8" x the width of the trailer steel strap. Drilled holes to match the existing holes and put new bolts in it.
Yesterday as I was getting ready to vacuum some leaves, I did an inspection and saw that the bolts that bolt the blower enclosure to the engine had broken off. I had to take the blower assembly apart, remove the fan, drill out and retap the holes in the engine to a larger size and then put it all back together.
The rubber straps on the rear door kept breaking. I finally built some latches to replace them.
This is probably the worse investment I've ever made in lawn equipment. It's one of those things that I have to repair constantly and I truly hate it. In the spring, I will be replacing it with another brand. Have some research to do before deciding which one though.
