i will try replying to my OP, in the hope that all will see it.
a little more detail:
last summer my right rear tire was getting noticeably soft. it had always ended up with a small amount of chloride in the bottom of the rim since i acquired it. when i asked about replacing the valve stem, i was told that there was little chance of it being a bad valve to blame, but rather a hole in the tube.
well, i replaced the valve stem, once the folk here had explained to me how it was constructed
- and it hasn't puddled chloride in the rim since. i have also not had to add any air since i replaced the stem.
in any case, i decided to get new chloride-free tubes and have the wheels cleaned up, so off to the tire folks it goes.
royse, i have decided to go that route - try it and see how it goes, worry about beet juice if and when i feel like i've got to have more weight.
richard: my sympathies. i have a bad back too, but only slightly bad.
steve: slowing down pains me to even consider
as far as lesser inflation goes, royse suggests 12 - sound right to u?
bob: ty for the link
tim: thanks for the heads up. as far as my mowing technique goes - 2/3rds of first lap of main lawn, 1st gear full throttle. from there on out, 2nd gear full throttle for the rest of the main lawn and the west 40
(which is actually about an acre and a half in trails and clearings) too.
i am nervous about dropping my revs. my lawn has sections that grow at very different rates. there's no good way of saying "well i'll just mow the areas that need it." as a result, by trying to find a happy medium, inevitably some of it is going to be thicker/longer than optimum. i cherish the PTO speed. how does the tradeoff between PTO speed and ground speed go?
thanks for all the replies and ideas, folks