Mini tractor advice....

So, in my search for a better riding mower i turned up a new holland 45h. Hydro trans, kohler v twin, 48 inch deck.

Hood is busted and missing. Runs good, but massive oil leaks. Lime drains all the oul sitting still.

Its 50 bucks.

Will need belts, blades, oil leak repair, some sort of hood, and general sorting out.

I have 1.5 acres, all hill. I live in the south. I hate yardwork.

I am thinking that this tractor may be my answer once brought up to snuff. For the last 10 years ice been using side of the road murrays/mtds/etc. All pieces of E36 M3 that have been cobbled together from crap, eith crap, and requiring constant work.

Is the new holland what i want? Is it a good deal? Are Koehler enginez better than this E36 M3ty briggs ive been using forever? Are parts available? Pretty much, learn me pony tractors.

So, bump for the workday crowd.

The kohler v twin is a good motor. Much better than the Briggs.

If the hydrostatic unit is ducked, you've just got a paper weight.

What I've had good luck buying to flip are $100 tractors with "bad motors" but good everything else. A starter, a carb cleaning, plugs and wires and it's a $300 tractor for $150 and some time.

With everything you listed wrong, you'll most likely be chasing your tail trying to keep this one together and going, and with parts prices being all over the map, you might be cheaper in the long run getting a slightly more expensive starting point.

That thought has crossed my mind. Im sick of having to work on crap before i can cut my grass. My thought was, with a neglected higher end tractor that once its issues are solved it would be uears of maintenance only.

Id definitely check the hydro hefore purchase, just to be sure.

OP: "Will this cheap mower that needs lots of work help my current situation?"

Also OP: "I'm sick of having to work on crap before I can cut my grass."

I know this is GRM and finding cheap stuff and fixing it for cheap is kind of our mantra, but it really sounds like this would end up being another headache.

STM317 wrote: OP: "Will this cheap mower that needs lots of work help my current situation?" Also OP: "I'm sick of having to work on crap before I can cut my grass." I know this is GRM and finding cheap stuff and fixing it for cheap is kind of our mantra, but it really sounds like this would end up being another headache.

When you put it like that...n

Back in 2003 I faced this same dilemma. At the encouragement of a friend, I bit the bullet and bought a small commercial zero-turn mover with a Honda V-twin. It was more than I could afford at the time. I picked up some lawn jobs in my neighborhood to pay for it. Paid it off in 2 years. The machine has needed some maintenance over the years, but its still going strong. One of the best tools I ever got.

Put your time in making money mowing lawns than in making repairs to an old mower. Or get a small tractor with a mowing deck!

In the nature of full disclosure I am definitely listening to you guys. The only running mower I had at this point in time just lost a motor. Headed riding mower shopping now.

For "cheap garden tractor" (back wheels bolt on, weighs 600+ lbs, etc, not to be confused with lighter duty riding mowers) I'd recommend something with a manual trans.

STM317 wrote: OP: "Will this cheap mower that needs lots of work help my current situation?" Also OP: "I'm sick of having to work on crap before I can cut my grass." I know this is GRM and finding cheap stuff and fixing it for cheap is kind of our mantra, but it really sounds like this would end up being another headache.

It will be another headache, this is pretty much the exact situation I've just lived out.

Got sick of fiddling with the E36 M3 heap MTD i had every time i needed to mow. Bought an old Wheel Horse because it was cheap and came with a snow blower and plow and I figured it would be a quality tractor.

Came with the wrong deck, so I found a right one on Craigslist and put it on. By that time it decided it didn't feel like running, had fuel in the float bowl and spark and ran a bit on starting fluid, so I figured the carb was gummed up. Ordered a rebuild kit, then cracked the carb body trying to remove the seized main jet and had to order a new carb. Now the fuel pump won't stayed primed and seems generally weak and the starter solenoid seems to have failed.

It's a nice tractor and damn well built, but certainly has not saved me any time or headaches so far. Once it's fixed up and fully sorted hopefully that changes and it stays that way.

But if I had to do it again, I'd just spend a bit more to get a quality machine that is already sorted, maintained, and fully functional. YMMV

In reply to Furious_E:

Id pick out a new 1500 dollar riding mower with the best reviews, then put it on a Lowe's/home Depot store card offering 0% financing for 12 months.

Won't have to touch it other than basic maintenance for a few years, and it's hassle free.

I'd rather spend my time and energy working on the fun cars. No way in hell would I bother piecing together someone else's junk with an unknown history.

It's the same reason I've been converting my weed eater/edger/blower to electric instead of two stroke. I just want the stupid things to work when I need them with a minimum of maintenance.

And again, less time spent working on them means more time to spend working on the fun stuff.

My zero turn mower has been a huge increase in mowing productivity and I actually have fun mowing now compared to a self propelled and a riding mower. I bought it new but used ones can be found.

In reply to jrh2009:

I agree wholeheartedly with the sentiment of your post. I set out with the intent of reducing the amount of wrenching time needed on the lawnmower, then failed miserably once cheapness got the best of me

However, based upon what I watched my former neighbor go through a couple years ago with a brand spanking new Cub Cadet, I'm in no way convinced that a new mower from a big box store is guaranteed to be any less hassle. I swear that thing broke every other time he used it and I've heard plenty of similar stories to scare me off of that idea. I can deal with having to fix a couple hundred dollar mower that I expect to need work, but a brand new $1500 machine? That'll piss me off big time.

I think the ideal solution is buying something a little higher end than the big box specials, but buy it used at either an equipment dealer or from a little old farmer man or something who's had it maintained religiously at the dealer its whole life. Just my $.02

Count me in the "Berk it, buy new and not worry" camp. I've used a Husqavarna since '08 and it hasn't needed much beyond an oil change every year. Any issues beyond that have been related to heavy use that should have been done by a legitimate tractor.

In conclusion of the thread, at least from the original purpose, is that i spent the good money on a brand spanking new husqvarna riding mower. It was delivered today, and im goung to cut the grass tonight. Twice. Because i havent been able to due to not having a working mower at all since the teucumpseh windowed the block.