The lawn mower thread

[JonMad]

Fed up with mountfield engine crap that fails to start 50% of the time. Petrol or electric cordless. Preferably under £300. Ideally powered. What you got?

[Zonda_]

My dad's Mountfield always starts on the button, literally. My electrician mate said to stay away from the battery powered ones.

[Mito Man]

Wasn’t the forum consensus on this last time round to buy a Honda ISY?

[IanF]

Honda for me. Unless you need a sit-on?...

[DeskJockey]

How big is your lawn? We've got a leccy one with a cord and it does everything we need. Paid something like £50-75 four years ago. Only had to replace the blade a few times and had my sparky neighbour redo the lead as it was broken.

[JonMad]

Well, it's not big but awkward. Several separate sections around our driveway at the front, trees to navigate round, and the rear garden is sloped hence I've liked having the self-propelled one. I can't help thinking a cordless electric one is the way to go for zero maintenance (which is probably why my Mountfield one was knackered in the first place).

[dinny_g]

Honda for me.

Seems to be the board default...

I have a Toro and, aside from a collection mechanism that is prone to clogging up if you're cutting really long grass, I can't fault it.

[integrale_evo]

We have a petrol something or other with a Honda engine. It's had zero maintenance for the last ten years but still works fine. I think the deck will be rotted out before the engine dies

Some of the modern cordless electric ones look pretty good, but it can be expensive to buy into if you've not got anything else in their system.

I've got some einhell drills and a grinder so bought a strimmer which uses the same batteries and it's great, seems to last forever so I have wondered whether their battery mower which takes two batteries would be any good. Would be handy just for the lack of noise, and I'm sure would be fine for normal trimming but possibly not if it gets too long.

[Jobbo]

My Honda Izy is now a decade or so old, has never been serviced (the oil is still nicely clean looking) and always just works. Twice I've 'broken' it through maltreatment; a plastic clip which holds the clutch cable onto the handle took a hammering and broke, so I got another online for a couple of quid and clipped it back on. And I managed to knock the drive belt off by being hamfisted over some rough stuff; it went back on easily without dismantling anything.

I wouldn't buy anything else now; while I'd like a ride-on, that's not strictly necessary (I only have 1/3 of an acre and there are a lot of bushes and flowerbeds).

[speedingfine]

I bought an Izy on SJJ's recommendation, can't fault it

[NotoriousREV]

My 15 year old Mountfield is going well. The electric starter stopped working but it fires up on the first pull so I’m not bothered. I’ve never done any maintenance on it whatsoever. The only problem I have is that the handle has snapped so I need someone with a welder to put it back together.

[Jobbo]

I bent the crankshaft on my old Mountfield by running over the corner of a raised drain. Not had the same problem with the Izy, even when doing similar stupid things with it (I ran it over a concreted-in piece of ironwork a few weeks ago, causing it to stop rather suddenly).

[JonMad]

Izy ordered. Ta.

edit: over budget --> evonomics.

[mik]

I bent the crankshaft on my old Mountfield by running over the corner of a raised drain. Not had the same problem with the Izy, even when doing similar stupid things with it (I ran it over a concreted-in piece of ironwork a few weeks ago, causing it to stop rather suddenly).

Was looking for this Fred when I noticed the above? Sure you bent the crank? I ask as I discovered that they have sacrificial flywheel keys comme ca which are designed to deform if this happens and protect the crank. I hit a big tree root and a couple of rock with mine and it started running crap and kicking back horribly when you tried to start it - just when you reached full-pull it would rip the starter cord out of your hand. Most unpleasant. Pain to get to without a decent puller, but easy enough to replace : ran great again.

Anyway - the old SP470 went to a new owner tonight as I now got an ex-display SP53H that had never seen grass. 167cc Honda engine which should be more frugal (saves refuelling time/hassle as opposed to pennies), wider cut, and a nifty single-lever height adjust system. I was keen on this one as it raises higher than most to 90mm - needed for a couple of sloped and rougher grass sections (I wouldn’t call them lawns). Bigger and slightly wider wheels should resist it digging in if it is still damp.

Gravity fed fuel so no primer pump. Auto choke too so just turn the tap on and pull to start. Doddle.

Size comparison, and a library image as I haven’t taken it anywhere scenic for magazine shots yet.

[duncs500]

Very snazzy mik.

[mik]

First new mower I’ve ever had Duncs, so obviously I have it booked in for a full geo and corner-weighting : can’t trust that Mountfield will have done this to a tolerance I will be happy with. It then goes in for a paint correction, and nano-tech PPF. Considering a remap.

[Mito Man]

Start twiddling the gubbernor. You want that puppy spinning fast enough to launch to orbit.

[Jobbo]

I didn’t strip my Briggs & Stratton engine down to check for myself, Mik, but the lawnmower guy said I’d bent the crank so I believed him.

I’ve been very happy with the Honda Izy I replaced it with, and it must be 13 years ago now so I can’t check!

[DeskJockey]

First new mower I’ve ever had Duncs, so obviously I have it booked in for a full geo and corner-weighting : can’t trust that Mountfield will have done this to a tolerance I will be happy with. It then goes in for a paint correction, and nano-tech PPF. Considering a remap.

Painting the wheels too?

[mik]

First new mower I’ve ever had Duncs, so obviously I have it booked in for a full geo and corner-weighting : can’t trust that Mountfield will have done this to a tolerance I will be happy with. It then goes in for a paint correction, and nano-tech PPF. Considering a remap.

Painting the wheels too?

Don’t be ridiculous