Mowing DR Products - Lawn/Leaf Vacuum - Owner Experiences

[jonathancase]

Greetings, fellow MF Forum readers.

Looking at good quality lawn/leaf vacuums where I can find local dealer maintenance/support. In our rural part of East TN, choices are limited... local Farmers' Co-op and a Tractor Supply. Fortunately, the folks at Co-op are reliable and know us well, and they are DR dealers.

Respectfully asking any forum reader who may be a DR product owner (particularly Leaf/Lawn Vacuums) to share their overall experience/satisfaction/lessons learned/recommendations. Would you buy again?

Looking specifically at the mid-range model (Pro 321). Any issues with the manual start vice the electric start? Specific point of interest, mating up the system with the MF MMM. Can the unit easily handle high volume grass/leaves/pine needle discharge from the mower without frequent clogging. What about hose life? Any feedback will be welcomed with gratitude.

Thanks in advance! Make your Saturday a great one!

JC

 

[irvingj]

BTDT, like it a lot!

Never had an issue with their Chinese engine, which is what mine has (think they may now offer a US-made engine). It starts very easily on first or second pull; this fall will be its 3rd season, but I also used it one year at my niece's place, which had a TON of oak leaves all over -- it got a real workout that year! (Most of mine are maple & ash leaves, which are smaller.)

Does a great job of both chewing up the leaves so they take up less space (Notice the teeth on the impeller? They really work!), and picking up 99% of the leaves in one pass. I don't have a lot of pine needles, but I bet it would pick those up well, too.

It dumps very easily, but you do need to have some height or else pull it forward as you dump -- when in "dump" position, the lower lip of the trailer will pretty much touch the ground. I'm fortunate that I have a steep bank to dump over.

Some years ago I simply removed the flapper-damper thing on the MMM so I could fit the tractor/MMM into my narrow parking space, so I didn't have to deal with that at all. Took some time to cut the plastic MMM attachment piece so it would fit my deck, but that came out OK, too. I just leave the two mounting brackets on all the time, which used the existing flapper mounting holes; each bracket was made from two 90-degree steel pieces welded together.

I did end up purchasing another length of hose -- as it came, it was just a bit too short and would often pull off. With the added 2 feet or so, no problem.

So far, no issues with the hose, and I don't recall ever having it clog up. Not sure which model I have (haven't gotten it out yet), but it was also a mid-range model -- not the best/biggest. When I get it out, I can let you know which one it is.

I disassemble the canvas bag thing, fold it flat and store it in the garage; the engine I remove (using its optional wheel attachment) and roll that into the garage behind the boat; the trailer part I just leave outside.

This was my second DR product, and I've been pleased with both, though I understand that DR has been sold and is now part of a larger lawn & garden conglomerate.

 

[irvingj]

...Just checked my paperwork -- the model I got was the Premiere 200.

 

[tookielee]

neighbor had a large pull behind vac / shredder, not DR brand.
2 issues I saw with it were incredible amount of dust it created
when doing dried leaves, and you can't just make a pile and burn
them. They are shredded so fine that air doesn't circulate thru
them, so the pile will just sit there and smolder for days.
I use a lawn sweeper, kind of a PITA, but best solution I've
found so far, and we have a LOT of leaves to deal with. Good Luck