Craftsman life span

rmonio · Feb 25, 2004

I have to agree with Cerberus. Before I bought my JD4600, I had been using a Craftsman 23HP garden tractor with the 52' deck to cut my lawn and other assorted parts of my acreage. I have driven MANY hours on it, replaced some parts on the mower deck, change filters/oil/etc. - and it still runs very well. We still use it for finishing areas, my dad does touchup cutting in the pasture, etc. - and I even used it to blow snow early on. It still runs great and has no problems - even with everything it has been through. Your neighbor is definately off a bit on his expectations...

-Bob

Ledgemere Farm · Feb 26, 2004

I had an old hand-me-down John Deere 56 before that. It had a parking stand on it so you could stand it on it's hind end in the garage for the winter. It came with a 5 HP Tecumseh and a 2-speed trans. I remember my brother getting it new in the early 70's. I think John Deere's only fault is that they make their stuff so reliable that people keep them forever!!!

Ledgemere Farm · Feb 26, 2004

OK. To stay ON topic, my Dad had a 1972 or 1973 Sears 12 HP Suburban that he just retired because it finally died. I'd say 32 years is a pretty good lifespan heh? He hauled wood out with it and used it for fencing down back where you couldn't get with the bagger farm tractors. Ride that thing!

BrokerBob · Feb 26, 2004

It seems to me that the "how long will it last" question seems to pop up on a regular basis. Admittedly, I ask myself the same question with regard to a wide range of products which I have bought or I am about to purchase.

I owned a Craftsman for about seven years. I ended up buying a Kubota BX1800 simply because I fell in love with it. The Craftsman was in excellent shape and did not need to be replaced. I just gave it to a good friend. It continues to run well.

Like others on this forum, I consider myself mechanically "handy". Although there are plenty of people out there who will badmouth Craftsman after having traded up to Orange, Green or Blue; I think it represents one of the very best values on the market.

Craftsman units are easy to service. Parts are almost instantly available at very reasonable prices. Everything can be replaced, including the engine. My own view is that if well-cared for, the unit should practically last forever!!! Furthermore, just driving around places no load or strain on the unit. Go ahead and enjoy. Anyone who tells you not to use it because "you will wear it out" is probably revealing an inability to properly maintain power equipment.

My two cents.

BrokerBob

cowsgomoo272 · Feb 29, 2004

glad to hear that riding it for fun every now and then wont hurt /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif has any one used it to plow snow? i was thinking about getting a snow blade for it, and some weights and chains. but i'm wondering just how well it would work for plowing.

spencer200 · Mar 1, 2004

Well you know since its a Sears Craftsman I would think it would be covered by that famous Craftsman guaranty. If anything happens just bring it back for full refund or replacement!!! /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

frank_f15 · Mar 1, 2004

how well would it do plowing snow? depends on how much snow u are talking about! never tried my craftsman for snow plowing. it is stricky a summer machine , for me, don't think it could handel more than a few inches and around here it just would not do the job. don't think it would handel something like this. see attachment

byax65 · Mar 3, 2004

I bought a Craftsman 18hp garden tractor in '90, only ever used it for mowing, sold it to my dad in'97, he's never had to do a thing to it and it still runs/cuts fine.

My dad bought a Sears 7hp tractor in '66, my youngest brother still owns it today. Of course, the motor has been swapped out/upgraded a few times since. But my dad did some serious grading with that tractor for years. It didn't hurt that he was a tool and die worker and replaced cast iron parts with steel ones along the way. He now owns a Steiner which runs like a mini-bulldozer, it's amazing what he can do with that thing, but again, he replaced alot of parts with improved ones he made at work. He built a post hole digger for it, a hydraulic lift, a foot pedal for the hydro trans, took the hyd. off the blade and put some steel supports on in place for dozer work. He also uses his stumper attachment a lot on it. All in all a pretty tough little tractor.