[AT] Semi-off topic Zero Turn mowers
Cecil R Bearden
crbearden at copper.net
Mon Apr 28 03:38:59 PDT 2014
I don't know if Briggs still has that crappy solid state ignition that
will not work when the flywheel gets a little surface rust on it, but I
will not buy anything with a late model Briggs engine on it. I may
have told this story before, but I lost a storage van that had over $30K
of parts in it because my fire fighting tank trailer had a Briggs engine
with solid state ignition on it. As far as I am concerned they are not
even good enough to be a boat anchor.
I have bought some pumps with the Chinese Honda copies on them, and I
have installed the Harbor freight engines on my sprayers. They work fine
and st \art with the first or second pull on the rope. I also have one
on a portable air compressor. I should probably better describe that
Briggs engine, it was solid state ignition, but was not overhead valve.
It was on a Pacer Pump. I got a letter from Briggs stating that they
had a worldwide network of servicing dealers, and sent me a copy of the
internet list of OKC dealers. I had replaced both the ignition
components and the carburetor. When the flywheel got a little surface
rust on it, it would cause the engine to misfire. It would run at about
half speed with the choke closed. I thought it was the fuel line
plugged. Replaced the carb with a new one, and then it ran the same. I
replaced the coil armature, and same problem. I sanded the flywheel &
magnets, and it ran fine. 2 days later, when I needed it, it would not
run at all. The flywheel had rusted overnight with the morning dew.
This was a great design to be on a Pacer pump that was intended to be
used to transfer liquid fertilizer. I only pumped water with it.
Guess I was lucky I was not trying to fight a fire on the house.......
Cecil in OKla
On 4/27/2014 2:44 PM, charlie hill wrote:
> Yeah my engine preference would be Kawasaki or Honda with B&S just
> based on reputation and parts availability.
>
> Charlie
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: R Fink Sr
> Sent: Sunday, April 27, 2014 1:31 PM
> To: at at lists.antique-tractor.com
> Subject: Re: [AT] Semi-off topic Zero Turn mowers
>
> I don,t know why but she loves to cut grass and has a brother the same
> way. I think them two would spend all day on a mower cutting.
> And I just saw the comment on kohler engines and agree they are as bad
> as onan to buy parts for.
> R Fink
> PA
>
>
> On 04/27/14, charlie hill<charliehill at embarqmail.com> wrote:
>
> Yep that's a good plan if you can make it work!
> Charlie
> -----Original Message-----
> From: R Fink Sr
> Sent: Sunday, April 27, 2014 8:57 AM
> To: [1]at at lists.antique-tractor.com
> Subject: Re: [AT] Semi-off topic Zero Turn mowers
> Charlie I have solved the lawn problem we mow 2 1/2 to 3 A. I just keep
> old JD 214 running good and wife does all mowing.
> R Fink
> PA
> On 04/27/14, charlie hill[2]charliehill at embarqmail.com> wrote:
> Thanks Mike. Yeah I've seen the ZTR's with ATV tires on them before.
> It seems to help a lot but can tend to tear up the turf too.
> Charlie
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Mike
> Sent: Sunday, April 27, 2014 12:02 AM
> To: Antique tractor email discussion group
> Subject: Re: [AT] Semi-off topic Zero Turn mowers
> Charlie, I'm in the same boat you are in. I mow about 3 acres and do so
> on a 1995ish Simplicity Sovereign with a 48" deck. It's a good old
> mower, but I practically live on the thing in the summer. I've looked
> at
> the Bad Boy mowers at TSC, and they look like they are built really
> well, but as someone else mentioned, no local dealer support. I looked
> at the Scag TigerCat, but can't justify 8K for mowing my lawn. I am
> leaning heavily toward the John Deere Z series, local support and
> people
> love them. A friend of ours has an older Z series, and readily admits
> that he uses it like a brush hog. The only thing he's needed to change
> is the belt. We used to live in a more hilly area and lawn care guys
> that would mow slopes put ATV tires on the their machines, no more
> sliding around.
> Mike M
> On 4/26/2014 11:14 PM, Bill Bruer wrote:
> > Charlie, I've been running a Hustler FasTrak for 6 years. The FasTrak
> was
> > their "homeowner" line when mine was new. The main difference between
> it
> > and the pro mowers at that time was that the FasTrak has an
> integrated
> > pump
> > and motor unit for each rear wheel while the pro series had a central
> pump
> > with separate motors. I don't know what is in their current lineup.
> >
> > Mine is only a 44" deck because that is what fits best around and
> between
> > the obstacles in my yard. I got the optional Honda v-twin engine (18
> HP)
> > though I've heard nothing but good about the standard Kawasaki
> engines. I
> > have had absolutely no trouble with the mower. I do my own
> maintenance.
> > The mower has right at 400 hours on it now. I regularly mow about 3
> acres
> > and a few times have used it in some fairly tough stuff that it
> probably
> > wasn't designed for. It tops out about 7 MPH but that's as fast as I
> care
> > to mow.
> >
> > I see mostly Hustlers on the commercial trailers around here. A
> friend
> > who
> > runs a lawn care business in south Florida swears by Exmark. Both
> brands
> > are very similar in design and build; I've even heard some people
> claim
> > they
> > are made by the same company (they aren't). When I was buying the
> local
> > Exmark dealer was just too high on price. I expect my mower to
> outlast
> > me.
> >
> > Bill Bruer
> > Murfreesboro, TN
> > [1][3]bill_bru at bellsouth.net
> >
> >
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: charlie hill
> > Sent: Saturday, April 26, 2014 1:45 PM
> > To: Antique tractor email discussion group
> > Subject: [AT] Semi-off topic Zero Turn mowers
> >
> > I'd like to hear peoples opinions of different
> > brands of ZTR mowers. I'm not interested in
> > particular brands or what is cool or popular.
> > I'm looking for the most bang for the money
> > in terms price, reliability and serviceability.
> > Cheaper is better but price isn't everything.
> > I don't want a small machine and I don't want a
> > huge one. I do place some importance on speed.
> >
> > Thanks
> >
> > Charlie
> >
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