New self propelled mower thoughts

[Code54]

Curious what you heard about them - seems the push mowers are well liked from what I read but would love to hear if something different is out there.
I looked at the ExMark 30" but it seems a lot of the guys are having issues with them (Spindles, belts, and complaints about lack of power in the thick stuff)

 

[Stowe Boy]

I was faced with similar decision. After looking at all the players. I went with a Honda HRX series mower. No regrets.

Friend has the 30” Examark. It has been a flawless mower for his needs.

 

[Code54]

Have to say the Honda is a nice mower! That 2K for the Exmark stings a bit, and i'm a little scared of it since I been reading of a lot of problems.... Just not sure what i want yet. Nice thing is I have some time before the grass grows and I need to take the plunge!

 

[Doofy]

Never had a small self-propelled walk behind mower. Wife does our lawn mowing and she forbade self propelled...said she needed the exercise. Who am I to argue?

 

[MossRoad]

My father-in-law has a Toro with the personal pace system. He is 90 years old. Up until last year, he mowed his 1/3 acre lawn every 2-3 days with that for the last 7-8 years. Yes, every 2-3 days. Last year, he had some health issues, and I took over mowing his lawn. I have to say, that personal pace system is fantastic. It's like going for a walk. You walk fast, it moves fast. You slow down, it slows down. You speed up it speeds up. Effortless! He always brags to me that his model Toro was the #1 Consumer's Report mower that year. :laughing: I know that sometimes that doesn't mean a lot, but in this case, they got it right. We got him 3 blades, and I kept 2 sharp on the wall for him. I highly recommend it.

I see Toro makes some commercial grade walk-behind mowers. See if they have them with personal pace. See if you can get a dealer to let you test them out. Really nice system. :thumbsup:

 

[newbury]

I also have an 8 or 10 year old Toro, manual lost, don't know if it's with "personal pace" but it's got about the same mechanism laid out in the new manuals.
About the only thing I've done for maintenace is new filter, keep the oil changed, sharpen the blade, try and use alcohol free gas. I'm still amazed when it fires up on the first or second pull. I might even invest in a new sparkplug this year.

 

[frugalangler]

I can't argue about Toro, I've got a late '80's self propelled, one of the few that has a blade clutch and allows to stop mower blades but not engine so no restart when you empty catcher if using that, or pausing to move sticks out of the area. It still starts on the second pull and frequently even the first, when I go for parts the counter guy tells me it's one of the only ones that people keep fixing because they like them so well. If I ever have to replace it, I hope I can find an equal!

 

[Code54]

The blade brake (clutch) is the way to go. I don't have it on my current mower but will on the next one I buy.

I think the commercial Toro is also the same as the Exmark if I recall correctly. Been talking to some landscapers that are not big fans of the Exmark's as they have had tranny issues. Now granted their use is extreme but still concerning. Been hearing a LOT of great things on the YBravo's and they very well built. Also like the 5 year warranty and the fact it is a 25" deck. Still have not made a final decision but am leaning towards the YBravo due to the value.

 

[Stowe Boy]

Do the current Exmarks have the tranny issues? I was under the impression this was fixed with new builds. Maybe I have been misled. My friend’s Exmark has been flawless. If I could get past the price, I would get one.

Yes. Blade brake is great.

 

[Snobdds]

I have a commercial John Deere JE75 that my dad bought in the mid 90's. It has a yamaha engine and still starts on the first pull. It got to be too heavy for him so he gave it to me. I have used it hard the last 10 years and I will fix anything that goes on it. It is the best mower I have ever had. It has a very fast blade speed that cuts the grass instead of just tearing it off. The best thing is I can still get any part for it at my local JD dealer. Every year for the past couple of years I have been replacing some parts, not because it needs it, just because I don't want it to ever die.