WWMD: Lawn tractor predicament

[sethschmautz]

Have had a 21hp craftsman YS4500 for about 8 years. A few years ago it started smoking a bit and this year it broke the connection rod and the motor is toast.

The motor is a 21hp Briggs and Stratton that is (from what I can tell) unavailable anywhere. The replacement is a 19hp version. You can find this motor for around $550 and replacement looks to be very straight forward. The holdup for me is that all of the reviews that I have read (on Briggs and Stratton's own website) say that this motor has been problematic. I expect that most people coming to their website to leave a review probably have had a bad experience, but there are A LOT of bad reviews.

The alternative is to spend ~$2k (give or take for a John Deere garden tractor or maybe a Troy Bilt zero turn) on a new mower. I could do a motor swap 3x before spending that much on a new mower, but here may be a host of other things that are about to fail.

The lot is a fairly steep .5 acre lot.

Any thoughts out there from small engine people?

Seth

[skizix]

Have had a 21hp craftsman YS4500 for about 8 years. A few years ago it started smoking a bit and this year it broke the connection rod and the motor is toast.

The motor is a 21hp Briggs and Stratton that is (from what I can tell) unavailable anywhere. The replacement is a 19hp version. You can find this motor for around $550 and replacement looks to be very straight forward. The holdup for me is that all of the reviews that I have read (on Briggs and Stratton's own website) say that this motor has been problematic. I expect that most people coming to their website to leave a review probably have had a bad experience, but there are A LOT of bad reviews.

The alternative is to spend ~$2k (give or take for a John Deere garden tractor or maybe a Troy Bilt zero turn) on a new mower. I could do a motor swap 3x before spending that much on a new mower, but here may be a host of other things that are about to fail.

The lot is a fairly steep .5 acre lot.

Any thoughts out there from small engine people?

Seth

How toast is toast? Not possible/economically feasible to have your OG motor rebuilt?

For new: you can't go very wrong with JD or TB, though my bias would go to Troybuilt (I grew up across the river from TB HQ though - my midwestern-born/raised wife would probably disagree).

But seriously...0.5 acres? Push mower?

[SKIP IN7RO]

But seriously...0.5 acres? Push mower?

This.

[t-the-east]

Just throw a different brand engine in it.

Or.. a nice 21” Honda self propelled mower from Home Depot for $4-500. It’ll take you 20 minutes to mow the lawn. Nice cut and a little exercise

[sethschmautz]

This is an hour to an hour and a half minimum on the riding. Maybe I undershot the estimate.

Seth

[sethschmautz]

How toast is toast? Not possible/economically feasible to have your OG motor rebuilt?

Good question. I took it into sears where I bought it. They inspected and said the motor was toast and that it would need a new one. They said they would do it, but would be somewhere between $1500-2000 with parts and labor and I should just buy a new one.

Maybe I'll call around a bit more.

Seth

[wooley12]

8 years from a Craftsman? Good job. I think you got your money's worth. Now run away. I got 30 years from a Wheel Horse on two motors, some wheels, mower deck, electrical, etc., etc. but it was a hobby at the end. I don't think the big box models are as good as what the dealers have. My 2 cents.

[zion zig zag]

It’ll take you 20 minutes to mow the lawn.

20 minutes for a half acre of lawn with a push mower? A job estimating for a landscaping business is probably not in your future.

[creaky fossil]

Buy replacement motor.
Remove broken engine.
Swap 'em.
Done.

$200 push mower bought in 04 seized a main bearing 10, bought replacement motor & swapped 'em, same mower chassis still going with 2d motor now.

You can do it.

But I agree on the riding mower gig. WTF, whippersnapper? Can't push a little aluminum chassis & Tecumseh/B&S around your lot?

[GeezerSteve]

A riding mower for a 1/2-acre lot? Weakling

And, yeah, Honda makes the best small engines. Be sure to use non-ethanol gas in small engines cuz ethanol is tough on small engine carburetor diaphragms.

20 minutes for a half acre of lawn with a push mower?

It takes 25 minutes +/-5 minutes to mow our 1/2-acre lawn with a Honda push mower in mulching mode. Add a few minutes if bagging.

[Todd Zander]

You dont want to traverse a zero turn if its steep, they only do up/down well.

New motor and craigslist it

[zion zig zag]

It takes 25 minutes +/-5 minutes to mow our 1/2-acre lawn with a Honda push mower in mulching mode. Add a few minutes if bagging.

Maybe if it's completely flat and open with nothing to mow around (trees, fences, beds, etc.), otherwise I'm calling bullshit.

My lot is .42 of an acre. Of that, I have house, driveway, garage, landscaped areas, etc. So maybe .20 acres of grass, and it takes me longer than 30 minutes to mow.

[zion zig zag]

http://www.encoreequipment.com/wordp...oductivity.pdf

Google pointed me to the above doc that shows 1 hour and 55 minutes for an acre, assumed flat and no landscaping, 21" walk behind.

[creaky fossil]

And, yeah, Honda makes the best small engines.

True, one Honda motor would've lasted me that entire 14 yrs rather than half of it. But the initial outlay would've been more than $200 for the whole mower, and the replacement motor I bought was something like $165 w/ shipping, whereas a Honda motor would've cost... if it had to be replaced. More wasted metal with non-Honda, but fewer spent $$. If flush, a Honda is the wisest money spent.

[GeezerSteve]

Maybe if it's completely flat and open with nothing to mow around (trees, fences, beds, etc.)

That's what I got. The rest of our property is garden beds, gravel, etc.

Anyway, an able bodied person with a 1/2-acre lawn doesn't need a goddam riding mower fer chrissake. Fucking weaklings

[Rideski]

Sell the mower chassis and skid steer scrape the lot and xeriscape.
Spend the next summer biking and hiking more.

[sethschmautz]

You dont want to traverse a zero turn if its steep, they only do up/down well.

New motor and craigslist it

This is really helpful re zero turn. We have a traverse in the middle that always gives me the willies. I always feel like I'm about to flip the riding and end up leaning hard uphill (highside!) to try to keep the upper wheels on the ground. Probably isn't as bad as I think.

[Game Over]

To mow a 1/2 acre in 30 minutes with you'd have to go 5.65 MPH. And that's if you were perfect with no overlap.

Thats as fast as a 10 minute 30 second mile (arguably somewhere between running and jogging)

[GeezerSteve]

Per this calculator it takes 30 minutes to mow 1/2 acre @5.2mph assuming a 10% overlap. Okay, 5.2mph is faster than I mow. 4mph (brisk march) is more realistic (as is 10% overlap), so I'm probably closer to 40 minutes or, more likely, our lawn is a bit smaller than 1/2 acre.

Compare 42" zero turn riding mower @ 5mph --> 17 minutes, i.e., 23 minutes faster. Big fucking deal. Get a good pusher.

[creaky fossil]

This is really helpful re zero turn. We have a traverse in the middle that always gives me the willies. I always feel like I'm about to flip the riding and end up leaning hard uphill (highside!) to try to keep the upper wheels on the ground. Probably isn't as bad as I think.

You're missing serious training options by using that TX Wheelchair. Strained to the maximum, you could use some detail shears made for fly-tying, and get those blades of grass one at a time.

With modern BlueDenturesTM technology and associated eardangles, I'm sure you could continue your Day Job while attending to the eternal job of cutting one blade of grass at a time. Just think of Daniel-san and Mr Miyagi. It's not really about sanding a floor, or painting a wall.

I tell ya what, though: if you stay with that TX chair, I want to see you go all-in and be at this event in 2018.

[t-the-east]

20 minutes for a half acre of lawn with a push mower? A job estimating for a landscaping business is probably not in your future.

This is the best quote, guess what type of business I’ve owned for the past 20 years?

A riding mower for a 1/2-acre lot? Weakling


It takes 25 minutes +/-5 minutes to mow our 1/2-acre lawn with a Honda push mower in mulching mode. Add a few minutes if bagging.

Add in the hydrostatic or commercial gear driven mower with the 3rd or high gear, you can run behind these things. Especially if you have 18-23 year old employees to run behind it, so yeah, about 20-25 minutes per half acre

[bigdude2468]

Be careful if you pursue the new tractor option. The John Deere D series that is sold at Home Depot, Loews etc is quite adequate for 1/2 - 3/4 of an acre provided it is not too hilly. The same goes for the Cub Cadet, Simplicity and whatever other brands are made by MTD and stamped with a name. If you search "John Deere hydrostatic transmission failure" you will find all kinds of issues. The same with the MTD lawn tractors. The John Deere D series is intended to compete with MTD at the bottom of the price point. They are fine as long as you don't have a lot of hills which will over heat the transmission. Recently bought a new house with an acre so I needed to buy a rider of some kind so I did a lot of research. Two different John Deere dealers told me the same thing as well as an independent repair shop. If you bump up to a John Deere X series which is what I did it is a much heavier tractor, has a one piece frame instead of a fabricated steel frame that is bolted together and the transmission is larger, beefier with a cooling fan to dissipate heat. The X series has a five year warranty covering the entire tractor. BTW, the D series transmission is $700 + labor to replace.

[Shredhead]

I’d just hire tte.

[Todd Zander]

how about a walk behind that has quick attach attachments? 32" deck and your on your feet for the hilly section. and its a snowblower.

[sethschmautz]

how about a walk behind that has quick attach attachments? 32" deck and your on your feet for the hilly section. and its a snowblower.

Hmmm?