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Login to post Forums » Off-topic discussion » Lawnmower vent

May 17, 2010 3:38 p.m. tuna55 HalfDork

I've made two bad purchases over $20 in my life. One of them was this lawn mower.

9ish months ago I bought an old (1978) cub hydro 282 for $200 from an 'out of work' small engine mechanic. I bought it sight unseen, being desperate and unable to transport it. It seemed to run fine, but it was obviously a repower, and not a great one. I found that the engine had NO air filter. Fixed that easily enough. It started and mowed OK. I then went threw both drive belts, which I swapped, and then those same again, WTF!? The front wheels were worn so much it was pretending to be a snowplow. Welded bolts on for axles, replaced the drive belts, mowed. Next up is the throttle cable. Oh well, wired it WFO and moved on. I'll fix it later. Next up is the deck belt. When I get there I find the tensioner system is screwed. I pop it on perm style, no off/on, and mow. Mowing this past weekend, CLUNK. Threw a rod. Nice.

I am going to buy a stupid little two stroke motor on a deck with four wheels and spend $25 and be done.

Maybe I'll run it on two electric DC motors over the winter...
May 17, 2010 4:58 p.m. RX Reven' Reader

This sounds like the episode of Pawn Stars I watched last night.

$1,500 for a damaged two seat training glider…by the time the necessary repairs were made, they had $9,000 into it – mix matched parts ultimately gave it a slapped together look so it’s probably not worth more than $10,000.
May 18, 2010 6:38 a.m. carzan Reader

I've been ranting about crappy mowers for about 5 years now. Maybe it's the crappy gas sold these days, but I can't seem to get a mower to last more than a couple of seasons without major carburetor headaches. The late-seventies vintage B&S engine that I kept swapping from deck to deck finally wore out and I haven't been able to find a reliable cheap mower since. A friend sold me a newish Toro for $50 last year, but it has the carb with the little primer bulb which never seem to last. I guess I'll just keep my fingers crossed.
May 18, 2010 6:58 a.m. MrJoshua SuperDork

Yup, my crappy riding mower requires work EVERY TIME I mow. Gee, it sure is nice having the luxury of a riding lawn mower.
May 18, 2010 9:29 a.m. DaveEstey Reader

My parents' 19 year old Simplicity is still running strong. I don't think it's the gas.
May 18, 2010 9:48 a.m. Bobzilla Dork

I dunno.... no probs with the Dixie. Dad did have to change the engine on his commercial 60"er. It was 12 years old and had the crap run out of it for 9 years before he got ahold of it. Then he ran the crap out of it for the next 3 years. It had run so long the hour meter was broken.

I think it's all in what you buy. You know the old saying... you get what you pay for.
May 18, 2010 11:17 a.m. iceracer Dork

I must live right. I have a 1987 Craftsman mower with a B/S . carb has never been apart. always starts. no problem Them I have a snow blower. 1995 MTD with a Tecumseh. I took the float bowl of onse to clean the main jet. clean as a whistle. turns out the funky running was a blown exhaust gasket. All is fine now. I did have a wierd time once with the mower. Got it out of the shed, started right up. Decided to sharpen the blade, put it back on and it won't start. Turns out the blade has to be in a certain position. The blade adapter and keyway in the crankshaft had worn.. Got a new adapter and fixed the keyway. Small engine guy couldn't really explain why this was.
May 18, 2010 11:21 a.m. ultraclyde Reader

I inheirited a '94 Murray 42" cut with a 17hrse B&S when we bought our house. It's had it's ups and downs, lost a ton of trim pieces, had a new carb put on.....

I abuse the thing in a truly unconscionable manner. Leave gas in it over the winter. run over sticks, stumps, and anything else. mow down small trees.

I wouldn't trade it for a new mower even if I turned a profit. The new ones are junk.
June 30, 2010 9:40 a.m. tuna55 HalfDork

So I spent $950 on a used JD LT155 rider. Time is worth more than money. I also bought a li-ion trimmer to replace my corded jobber (which broke the week after the mower did). My total mow/trim time dropped from 2-3 hours with the push to 1.5-2 hours with the cub/corded combo to 45 minutes with the JD/li-ion combo. It's worth it. I did swap the drive belt and deck belt (WAY easier than on the cub) to be fair.
June 30, 2010 9:49 a.m. Dr. Hess SuperDork

If I can't do it with a weed whacker twice a year or my machete, it ain't gettin' done. That's my philosophy on yard work.
June 30, 2010 9:58 a.m. Wally SuperDork

I don't think it's the gas. I didn't winterize anything last year and every started right up. I will never buy anything with a briggs ever again. I never knew small engines could start every day until I got my Cub with a Kolher engine. Now I can save the begging and ether for date night
June 30, 2010 11:01 a.m. pilotbraden Reader

I have an International Harvester push mower that dad bought new in april 1979. Briggs and Stratton engine(5hp?). We used it for around the shrubs and trees, small parts of the yard etc. for 12 years. Then my brother kept it at his airplane hangar to cut the grass around the hangar. I got it in 2002 for my yard and it runs great. I change the oil evert 2-3 years, run any old gas (including 2 stroke) that is in the garage and it starts every time. The spark plug has been changed twice.
June 30, 2010 11:27 a.m. carguy123 SuperDork

Gee, and I here I thought you were talking about the discharge vent on the mower. So it's more of a Rant than a discharge vent
June 30, 2010 11:27 a.m. Giant Purple Snorklewacker SuperDork

I had an almost 40yr old Simplicity ride-on that after 12yrs of my own use, tossed a piston thru the side of the briggs.

I re-pwered it via ebay for the same motor. I changed a few bearings on the deck, welded up a reinforcement or two where it was cracking. New belts... ran it all last summer and in October it siezed up the gearbox while grinding leaves.

I paid a guy to finish the clean-up and now he cuts my grass. I'm done with it. My 10yr old will get a new push mower for his 12th birthday and I'll pay him 1/2 what this guy gets.
June 30, 2010 11:31 a.m. 914Driver SuperDork

If it's been repowered, check the pulley alignment; that's mainly why a belt is tossed. Lay a straight edge across one pulley, it should hit the next one at the same location.

I had one of these GE Elec-Traks for a while. Quiet, ran on batteries. It was heavy enough that I could push snow with it. I didn't want to own it when the ten deep cycle RV batteries went south, so it went down the road before that.
June 30, 2010 12:10 p.m. carzan Reader

914Driver wrote:

I had one of these GE Elec-Traks for a while. Quiet, ran on batteries. It was heavy enough that I could push snow with it. I didn't want to own it when the ten deep cycle RV batteries went south, so it went down the road before that.

Never heard of it. Gotta say I think it's kinda cool, though. (besides that whole having to periodically change batteries thing). How long would it run on a charge?
June 30, 2010 1:12 p.m. digdug18 HalfDork

Yes, the new gas/ethanol mix eats carb's. Using over a certain gas/ethanol mix will void your warrenty on an echo, stihl and certain other equipment.

Sta-bil marine formula, says it fights ethanol, but I dunno what it really does or if it even works.

Andrew
June 30, 2010 1:19 p.m. 914Driver SuperDork

My property is 340 X 80 ft,., no problem mowing the whole thing. My driveway is 150 ft. long, no problem pushing snow off it.

When I ripped down the street dogs would chase me like crazy because of the whine, I could always out run them. I don't know how long it would run. Mine was a 15hp model, they made smaller ones, fewer batteries.

Mine was an E-15, I've seen E-12s but didn't know about the rider with the blades underneath. They're still around, imagine mowing your lawn at night and not bothering anyone. =~)

http://www.kansaswindpower.net/GE%20ElecTrak%20Electric%20Garden%20Tractors.htm

Dan
June 30, 2010 1:48 p.m. Dr. Hess SuperDork

Add some HF 45 watt solar panels and I think the Feds would pay you big bucks on tax breaks for an alternative energy vehicle.

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