Ride-On Mowers - please advise

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shootingstar

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Hi
going to buy one this week.
got quote - €999 Its a McCullogh ride-on l/mower, briggs & statton engine, 10.5HP.

i have no idea if this is good/bad?
can someone pls recommend something to me? have bloody huge garden... no way im walking up and down mowing it
 
Ride on mowers take a bit of looking after-then again no more than a car I suppose, I think the main thing to look out for is belt wear from the drive pulley to the blades. Also locate a good parts/repair place for it, usually hire shops would be a good place to start.
 
hi bullbars

im going to buy new from a shop. my OH is a mechanic so if anything goes wrong he will be able to fix etc..
i need a good brand name and recommended horsepower? (i think)?? OH in Dubai and i want to buy this week. went outside this morning, i now officially live in a meadow:eek:
 
Mechanic would have no probs keeping her ticking over, McCullough also manufacture chainsaws etc. There are bigger and I think better brands like Husqvarna (spelling) but if this is purely for domestic use it shoulsd be fine. the more expansive models would be aiming toward the landscapers & full time gardeners ie. machines that would be running all day everyday situation. If its a meadow your in then a ride on is the best option!!
 
Kubota is an excellent make.
There was one in my last work place which had a few acres and no problems with it.
 
My dad was looking into buying a ride on last year. He felt that one that mulches was a must. Horse power, how it bags the grass and whether it mulches are the important questions. In the end, between maintenance, running costs and the initial cost price plus the time spent on actually cutting and maintaining it yourself and eventually replacement, he figured that he'd be much better off to pay someone to cut it for him.

We have a ride on mower ourselves- its an old one mind you. My OH won't let anyone else cut the grass with it because he feels it is too dangerous- every now and then he has to unblock the feeder to the grass collector and it is potentially quite dangerous.

One good idea is to ask someone who cuts grass in your area to recommend what kind of mower to buy, what features etc. And do the maths- are you really better off to buy one or get someone to do ti for you? Personally would love to get someone to do it for us but our garden is too big and the cost would be too high.
 
hi vanilla.

my garden is too big. was charged €70 the last time. OMG!! i`d rather cut it with a scissors than pay that again. Mind you, the guy who did it, did a great job. but couldnt afford those prices every other week.

im going to call him and get advise. however i cant see him offering it lightly knowing he`ll be out of pocket because of it!
 
Same here- cost too much seeing as you'd have to get it done every two weeks. If the season lasts five months ( ?) then that would be €700 or so per annum. I dunno if you'd get a decent ride on for under a grand though. But if your OH is a mechanic at least you know you won't have big repair and service costs.
 
ya hehe.. OH can unblock all the feeders etc. I`ll pretend to be all independent and all brave at attacking the mower myself but when he sees me struggling he`ll take it off me ;) i`ll do the whole "oh im a girl" thing and cry...

*makes mental note to check seat size for his rear & not mine*
 
shootingstar said:
I`ll pretend to be all independent and all brave at attacking the mower myself but when he sees me struggling he`ll take it off me ;) i`ll do the whole "oh im a girl" thing and cry...

LOL. Mind you sometimes I think sitting on a little tractor mowing the lawn outside in the sunshine is a lot more appealing than whatever I'm up to inside the house! Usually chasing small tots around the place. So maybe the whole 'unblocking the feeder thing' is a con on OH's part!
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Shootingstar,

What size is you garden. Is it flat? Is it an elevated site? Price can be deceptive. I have an elevated site and had to go for something with higher HP and also an oil pump. That pushes the price up. If you have a fairly flat garden, you won't need higher horse power.

Also make sure that the one you get has a mulching plug or kit. When you get the grass down to a managable level, you won't need to pick the grass up, which depending on the size of your garden can be a pain.

Hope this is useful.
 
Hi Wolfspeed.

Garden level but in bad condition. Theres about a 3rd of an acre there. Its not possible to walk on the grass its so hard and very high at present? In fact you couldnt call it grass i was looking at it this morning and yep im defo living in a meadow/jungle. What is the mulching thing for?
 
Mulching cuts the grass very very fine and spreads it out as it cuts so you don't have to collect at all which makes it very fast. You do have to cut more frequently though.
 
if garden has grown into meadow - you better strim before cutting with mower as it can damage the belt cutting a meadow with a normal ride on

just bought 13.5hp castlegarden - very happy with it - however bag does fill up quickly - might try mulching kit however guy in shop did not recommend it for some reason - i have option to convert

for 1/3 acre - 10.5hp machine should suffice
 
Surreal said:
might try mulching kit however guy in shop did not recommend it for some reason - i have option to convert

for 1/3 acre - 10.5hp machine should suffice
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I agree a 10.5hp should do you for a 1/3 of an acre. The mulching kit can be taken off and you use a collection box as usual. Great inventions - I have an acre and a quarter - lot of grass to be collected, once it is cut down I mulch for the rest of the year.
 
We recently bought a ride-on for a larger (1 acre) garden. During my research, I read that the grass needs to be bone-dry for a mulcher to work efficiently. Your typical Irish summer may not provide these conditions.

Secondly if you have children, they will supposedly drag grass into the house on their shoes particularly if the lawn is damp.

Someone who has a mulcher might comment if this is actually the case.
 
10.5Hp seems a bit low for a ride-on mower really but then again so does the price. How wide is the cutting deck on it? Is the a collection box on it?

I'd step it up a bit to maybe 13.5Hp or 15Hp if you can afford the difference. Basically the bigger the Hp the easier job the mower will have cutting the grass. Lower power means bigger effort which probably means shorter lifespan and higher maintenance.

If you have a collection box on a low Hp mower then it does not have the power to blow even slightly damp grass into the box. This will cause the mower to get clogged every few minutes. A bigger machine will have a better chance of collecting the grass more efficiently even when it is wet.

Try and go for one with a hydrostatic drive rather than a gear box 'cos it will be easier to operate.

To give you an idea a 15.5Hp Castlegarden with a 102cm deck and a large (320Lt) collection box will cost you in the region of €3000. A 12.5Hp castlegarden with a 72cm deck and small collection box will cost in the region of €2000. So your quote at €999 seems cheap but I'd have my doubts about the quality of the machine at that price.

Hope that lends some prospective.
 
wolfspeed said:
I agree a 10.5hp should do you for a 1/3 of an acre. The mulching kit can be taken off and you use a collection box as usual. Great inventions - I have an acre and a quarter - lot of grass to be collected, once it is cut down I mulch for the rest of the year.
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i didnt know there were options to use a collection box... interesting. i didnt ask those Q`s.

Squire mentioned he doesnt think 10.5 will be good enough?? :confused: i go and see a few more today on my lunch i think...
 
i upgraded from a Honda 2315 to a Honda 2417 three weeks ago. The difference was unbelievable. i cut over 3/4 acre and mulch when the conditions are right. As previously stated the one problem with mulching is the grass getting into the house so I only mulch the top half of the garden which no one bothers with anyway.
 
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