Mowers Reviews

It has no on and off switch, which is a safety hazard. But the 1st time my sick husband had to use it, in bad weather, it didn't work.

Nice compact charger. Hard to believe that it does not have an on-off switch. I don't think it's a good idea to hook a charger to your battery hot and I will install a switch on mine.

When I bought this charger, I thought I could take it out to the street and jump-start my car battery. Wrong!! This charger works great - but only when it is plugged into a wall socket. It is a BENCH charger, not portable. I took the battery out of my car, and in a few hours I had a completely charged battery. It has maintained its charge now for at least a month with no loss in power. Works great when its plugged in!!

Since buying this mower, and can that I enjoy mowing the lawn more than I ever have. It takes very little effort to push, and it's quiet enough I can listen to headphones (and not disturb the neighbors).

But: on uneven ground the cut can be inconsistent, long grass and seed stalks don't get cut, and my very steep front lawn proves quite a workout where it wouldn't be with a self-propelled mower.

That said, I would not hestitate to get another one.

The first thing that attracted me to this item was the fact that I could use it pretty easily without a lot of fuss. I was not attracted to the idea of pushing and dragging a gas-powered mower, or getting fuel for one. This product is lightweight, durable, easy to use, and it works! Add to that the fact that it doesn't contribute to the problems with pollution or give more reason for concern about the fickle fuel supply, and that makes it an extra special treat. I have used it on grasses that were more than a few inches tall, and it works like a charm. The sharpener and grass catcher are great to have, but not a necessity. The handle could be more comfortable, and the blades get stuck if you go over anything huge, but those aren't problems that can't be easily solved.

I was worried that a reel mower might be impractical for cutting my 5000 square foot lawn, but it turns out that this mower is very easy to push, and the 20" cutting swath makes the job go fast. It only takes a few more minutes to mow my entire lawn with this mower than it did with a rotary mower. Now I don't have to worry about exhaust, dust, or noise when I mow. The height adjusters tend to get knocked out of place with the slightest bump, but a bungee cord remedies the problem.

I purchased the Yardman from Handyman on 4/25/01- it was last year's model. Last week the mower would not start and when I took it to the shop, they said the battery was dead and was not under warranty. I am very disappointed and feel that some restitution should be made since this was last year's model and I am sure that battery had been used for demonstrations to customers many times before I purchased it.
I would appreciate your opinion......Thank you.

I've owned an MTD tractor for 8 years. If you are not aware, MTD is a parent company that makes various "brands" including Yardman, Murray, various "hardware store brands" and Cub Cadet. The Cub Cadet brand represents their "high end" line, and not surprisingly, they are quite a bit more expensive.

I would recommend that Yard Man tractors be considered for smaller plots of mowing, as they do require more maintenance and more careful attention to routine inspections. In eight years, I had changed the drive pulley four times, had the carburetor fixed, fiddled with deck adjustments countless times, and replaced numerous cotter pins and washers that rattled off the machine while running. Still, I suppose, eight years of hard use on a two-acre plot, despite such maintenance, was not bad for a low priced tractor.

If you are willing to go an extra [price]to [price], there are two tractors that have big advantages over Yard Man: the Simplicity Regent and the Toro 16-38hxl. The latter is priced at [price]but has a commendable reliability record. On the other hand, if you don't intend to use the Yard Man on more than one acre, and are marginally handy with routine maintenance, then it is probably a good buy in the long run. They have undoubtedly made some improvements since the one I had, and I know of some owners who really like them. Do keep in mind that almost all brands of lawn tractors use Briggs and Stratton engines, so that is not really a purchasing factor (B&S has recently made great strides in developing quiter, more reliable engines). If the free shipping deal is still running, that's an extra incentive, too.

I bought my second MTD lawn tractor last year. There may be better machines, but I haven't found one at anywhere near this price. The first one (single cylinder / 38" cut)did 8 years of fairly heavy duty mowing and cart hauling. I had to replace one sealed blade spindle bearing and had to put tubes in the tires so they would hold air towards the end(not a big problem). This machine was sold to a friend who is still using it. The new one is the 17 HP twin Briggs/42" cut(incredibly smoother) and it handles like a dream. Bigger, more comfortable and tighter turning. Also like the "no-scalp" wheels on the mower deck. I have the "7 speed-shift on the go" transmission, which I love. You need only use the forward/reverse lever right in front of you to change direction and can slow down for close trimming by using the "clutch" which actually just changes the ratio of the drive pulley and does not "slip".Big green machines may be better, but I can not justify the price compared to the performance of the MTD. One thing every competant individual will want to do is unplug the "ridiculous" reverse mowing cutout so one can mow backwards around obstacles. The dealer "cannot" do this by law, but curiously, the law does not require the switch, only that it must work when delivered if origionaly installed! I would buy another MTD in a minute!

This system is a nightmare all the way around because it is designed so it is tilted downward from the MTD 400 frame so the bags drag on the ground and neither I nor any of the servicemen I've consulted can do anything about it.
Because they drag, the bags wear through around the edges in about a month's time, and because they drag duct tape is not the answer.
Fortunately, even with holes in them and after the dump handles break off, because they drag on the ground, you can with care continue to catch the grass and empty it for about a season. If you buy replacement bags from the dealer they cost about $75 a pair and you have to mount them on the frames. Wholesale on the Internet you can get a pair for about $27-35.
This tractor isn't made any more and when something other than routine maintenance comes up the dealers just shrug and roll their eyes. The deck takes four hours to remove if you know what you're doing. Now that transmission parts are wearing out, and you can't get them it is good to reconsider if you are considering buying one of these machines used.
If you are really determined however, I can make you such a deal....

I bought a grass catcher for my Toro lawn tractor, made by the Arnold Corporation. Model:OEM-190-602. Today, i tried to install it! First off, the framework was bent, where the liftable hood is screwed on! After much pulling in the bench vise, i finally got it to close! After that, i tried installing the tube and collector thing that goes on the deck! The rubber bungees were too long! Then the bungees that hold the tube parts together were too long! And the tube was too long! And the name was wrong: "Fast attach"! And, the hood wouldn't open far enough to get the grass bags out! So, i guess i'm stuck with the thing, or i have about 10 hours of modifications to make it fit! The place where i bought it sent two "scalawags" out to install it, but 10 minutes later, they threw their hands up, tossed the pieces back into the box-and LEFT!
So, what do i do now? Please advise!
Thanks: Rusty Jones

Hello i Need a chute for my mower will u be intrestred in selling me the Chute? Contact me if you will sell me the chute
SuperBluePanda@juno.com <<~~ I Check email Every Day

THIS HAS PRETTY MUCH TURNED ME OFF THE ROBOT MOWER. ORDERED A NEW BATTERY APRIL 30. STILL HAS NOT EVEN SHIPPED AS OF 5/31/06,
MEANWHILE, I'M USING NEW BATTERY POWERED WALK-BEHIND. I DON'T KNOW IF THE NEW BATTERY WILL EVER ARRIVE AND THEN NOT SURE THE ROBO MOWER WILL WORK WHEN IT DOES GET HERE AFTER THIS LONG OF WAIT.
VERY POOR, POOR SERVICE.

LINDA ROBINSON
SEMINOLE, TEXAS

I would rate the mower itself at 4. Very safe, no debris goes flying from it, and quiet too. You or a family member get to or eventually will name it. A very good quality device, extremely convenient, fairly tough as well. It can take getting wet as well, though the perimeter switch can't(despite claims otherwise). It does get stuck on slope or divots though, and can't go where wire needs to be less than 6 six feet apart, like wide grass paths. Also, one fall I tried letting the mower get the leaves and it doesn't do that well at all. Less frustration with just raking them.
The batteries are not so great. I have two. One w/ the purchase of the mower, then another 9 months later for a backup. One (probably the original, but all the swapping made that impossible to tell since I didn't mark it differently) went completely dead while in the charger between mowing seasons, just as instructed to, even though it worked fine the prior year. The other has its run time trickling down. Started at close to 4 hours, approximately 2 now. Wouldn't mind this if they were cheaper, but how many car batteries go out in 1-2 years as these are doing? That's w/ some of the car batteries weighing less. I don't know much about battery technology, but there must be better for this price.
One other item, the blades don't maintain sharpness well, despite picking up every tiny stick in the grass that might meet up w/ them every mowing. This requires buying new blades each year as well. So maintainence of at least $200 yearly. This is still a reasonable price to pay though for shifting the workload and to avoid the biting insects and sunburns.

I'm a single mother of a seven year old with ADHD. My friendly robotics lawnmower that I bought last year was a godsend. Generally the battery lasts long enough on one charge to mow either my front or back yard. With a backup power source, I will be able to do my whole yard in one morning while my son sleeps or runs around the yard with my attention on my kid, not the lawnmower. This is the best form of multitasking that has ever happened.

As another reviewer stated, you need a LOT of these. I have a rather modest yard with a few trees, have so far used 200 of these, and hope the 50 more on their way will be enough. I've also found that they break pretty easily, so be careful with them.

You actually need a bunch of these things to make the wire stay down properly. I would instead suggest sticking with what you get with the iMow and using those in conjunction with burying the wire about 3 inces into the earth.

Not only is burying the wire cleaner and cheaper (I used a ... garden hoe and it worked perfectly) but you don't need to be purchasing these things like it's going out of style.

I found you need to place these a lot closer than the directions suggested at first. Especially if iMow is set to the lowest setting.

However, if you do want to go the peg route you will not find plastic stakes for cheaper. The only other place I found them was in camping stores ...

The item is advertised as having a powerful 6.5HP engine, but what arrived at my door was a 6HP lawn mower with a mediocre engine. For small lawns this is probably a great product, but for large lawns I would not recommend it, especially since you can find a comparable item at your local big-box store for a little less. If shipping were not such a problem in my area I would have returned it. However, I do not feel "ripped off" but simply that I did not make the best selection I could have for the amount of money I spent.

Came in assembled, just filled in oil and gas and it started right up. Self propelling action helps in mowing quickly. I gave 4 stars bcos I think packaging could have been little better for a 93lb mower. But so far looks good. Also the description says 6.5hp engine, but actually its a 6.0 hp engine. I will recommend this mower for its price

$2400 sounds like a lot to spend on an air filter but when you consider saving close to $317,000, it's a bargain.

Ordered this item, got it pretty fast with the amazon prime shipping upgrade. Problem was, the tray that catches debris was damaged in shipping, it's a sheet of plastic maybe 1/10" thich and suffered a fatal blow by the assembling hardware rattling around in the box during shipping. Now the return process is pretty simple, except that a replacement won't be available for another month...

Amazon has so monopolized the online buying market that the only way to get a $20 replacement blade is to buy one for $31 from the "black" market.

These guys just cancelled my order today after waiting for 3 weeks.

$15.99 is too much for this simple and small lawn mower blade but what can you do. Home Depot sells the mower but not the blade. Maybe somebody should give the management a drug test.