Mowing craftsman garden tractor

[RaydaKub]

Ray,
My dad had a 112 that I mowed for many hours with on two properties. Looking back I suspect my grandfather would be amazed how fast one person could mow his large lawn today. He would have two of his helpers and himself mowing his 4 acres of lawn, an all day job. The old push mowers were slow and cumbersome to operate. Today I could mow and trim the same yard on Saturday morning and be done before lunch

I hear you there. That old 110 took me about 7 hours to mow the entire yard, including trimming close to trees and buildings. When I went to college, my dad bought a Super C Farmall with a 6' Woods belly mower. The next summer we had been busy on the farm all day and my mom reminded us we had company coming. Dad jumped on the C, I jumped on the 110. All I did was trim mowing while he did the rest. He finished in 1:15, I finished in 1:20.

 

[TheGoose]

I bought a craftsman about 2-3 years ago that turned out to be total junk (Husq. made). It definitely is much less quality than the craftsman I bought about 15 years earlier. I have to repair the deck often (broken spindles), the motor does not run as smooth, it uses way more gas, and it does not leave a nice cut. I replaced it with a Deere X304 all wheel steer. I wish I hadn't wasted ~$1500 on the sears and used that extra 1500 for a better deere. I use the Husq. mainly as a backup mower (when it runs). These days the big box store stuff is just cheap made junk that is designed to last 3-4 years and then buy a new one. My advice is to find the best "major equpment brand" out there and buy it whether it's a deere (not big box model), kubota, etc.

 

[fried1765]

They sure don't make em like they used too. Like I mentioned before I still have a 1972 Murray with sleeve hitch and about 5 Brinley implements 100lb wheel weights that's seen A lot of ground work. Only plastic part is the shift knob. B& S 16 hp twin. It was the ticket in '72 for gardening.
Although the 46" deck only lasted a few years. It was bought for gardening and never even had the deck on it till sometime in the 80's. Wouldn't give you 2 cents for a Murray today if they're even still made. Some of the old craftsmanship were good too, but the decks were and still are the weakest link.

I still have my dad's 15HP Briggs 1972 Craftsman, and it will be used again this season.
They did not come with hour meters, but it has been used a lot, perhaps as much a 2000 hours.
Still mows like a champ.
I have a big box JD at a second home. I'll bet it will not last 10 years.