Well the old Murray finally died after 17 years or hard labor. Snowblower, hauling dirt, fertilizing, dethatching, etc... Nothing really heavy. Been looking at 2016 reviews and Craftsman comes out on top??? Have about 3/4 acre lawn but a decent size driveway that needs snow cleared. (none this year though) Was going to go look at the Deere's tonight but the local dealer closed at 6. Are the Deere's at Home Depot the same ones that the dealer offers? Just a lower grade model? Just like GM with either a Caddy or a Cavalier? Any recommendations? I open to more then Just Deere of Craftsman. Just haven't bought one in 17 years! Thanks!
- Thread starter Tom Bond
- Start date
tracto-man
Member
We've got a craftsman, bought new 2 or 3 years ago. We mow about 5 acres. Fortunately just added a ancient Simplicity to the fleet that has been handling the fields
much better then the Craftsman. I really wish we had got the biggest size. I forgot the name of the one we have but it goes faster than most and turns really tight
though not a zero turn. The few parts that broke Sears replaced for free. If we were buying another and price didn't matter I would get Craftsman's biggest mower,
especially for the bigger wheels, and thus better snow pushing, hauling capabilities.
much better then the Craftsman. I really wish we had got the biggest size. I forgot the name of the one we have but it goes faster than most and turns really tight
though not a zero turn. The few parts that broke Sears replaced for free. If we were buying another and price didn't matter I would get Craftsman's biggest mower,
especially for the bigger wheels, and thus better snow pushing, hauling capabilities.
The Deere dealers offer a much wider variety of products versus the big box stores. I would go on Deere's website and check out the listings to see what model best suits your needs. Deere is certainly not the only option but from where I stand I know I can get parts and service easily. Sears is almost an hour in any direction and the future cloudy. Other than TSC I do not know at least locally who handles Cub Cadet and most likely they are past two Deere locations away. For me Cub Cadet was the best when it was an IH product handled by IH dealers.
The big bad Craftsman is built by American Yard Products. Most of them have Twin V engines. Pretty darn tough machines. NOW what you want to do is find your local Husqvarna dealer. Go where your heart leads you as to how much you want to spend but you will be buying some tough machines. Far as I know they are all AYP machines. Also I would tell you to get it with a Briggs engine and not a Kohler Also ask about the diameter of the rear axel. Should be one inch not three quarter. The smaller ones may snap if really abused. Only have seen two but ALL of the tractors out there are subject to this fault if equipped with Hydrostatic drives. I have two Husqvarnas and Love them. Good tough machines. A 46 and 54 inch deck machines. 21 and 22hp. Smaller is a hydro and the bigger is a six speed manual beast. Use the smaller machine with my Agri Fab "trac vac" unit. Sucks the ground clean! Look at my neighbors. I am just getting ready to do mine.
I have had a Deere X500 for a couple of years and like it. I thought I would hate the foot controlled transmission control but I really like it. Depending on what attachments you desire you could get by with the X3XX series which has a couple of power steering equipped units in that group. I chose the X500 in part because I want to add a tiller at some point. At least where I live you can find certain Deere attachments used if you so desire.
Adirondack case guy
Well-known Member
Looks like the front axle on the Husky Varny need a little help. The front wheels are a bit off camber in the pic.
Loren
Loren
pat sublett
Well-known Member
As far as "home owner type" lawn tractors, Craftsman and Husqvarna are made by AYP (American Yard Products) most of the rest are typically made by MTD (Modern Tool & Die). The Box John Deer falls into the home owners catagory, AYP historically has made a little better product than MTD.
tracto-man
Member
Not to be argumentative but I've had really bad luck with Huskyvarna's. The big one we got first literally the chassy broke in 2 and then next one blew up at random.
The big Sears by me has an absolutely pitiful parts selection for my Craftsman tractor. Belts, blades, and oil. But here's a little trick for you. Craftsman and Kemore are made by someone else but Sears typically reuses the OEM part numbers and the OEM exploded views. If you do a google search on their part number you will always (in my experience) find the part on Amazon or similar for about 1/3 the price. So who cares where the closest Sears is? Shop in your jammies and pick the part up from your front porch.
Case it point: I have an old Sears Gamefisher outboard and finally ripped the guts out of the recoil. It turns out the outboard was built by Chrysler and I bought the repair parts from an online marina for way less than half of what Sears wanted.
From what I understand John Deere dealers sell the same models as the box stores. Those models are made to compete with the box stores.
The next level of Deere mowers are more expensive but, the quality is alot better. I have a Deere 314 made in 1983 that I can still get parts for.
My main mower is a 2005 Deere x475 that I bought as a used low hour machine. My thought was a better quality used machine was a better
choice than new machine of lesser quality. Good luck in your decision.
The next level of Deere mowers are more expensive but, the quality is alot better. I have a Deere 314 made in 1983 that I can still get parts for.
My main mower is a 2005 Deere x475 that I bought as a used low hour machine. My thought was a better quality used machine was a better
choice than new machine of lesser quality. Good luck in your decision.
I've had good luck with a used (500 hrs.) Husqvarna LGT-2554. It has the 2 cyl. Kohler Courage that runs well and starts right up. Really cut down my mowing time from the 46" deck MTD I'd been using. It's adequate for plowing snow with chains, but just used it for that one year as I have a sub-compact Mahindra for that now (and a neighbor that likes to show off his big Case-IH by plowing out all the nearby drives).
Married2Allis
Well-known Member
As Bob said, all comes down to $$$. Even the 'good' bulletproof garden tractors of 30-40 years ago were in $3000-5000 range. Sears may have a good replacement warranty on their cheaper tractors, but who wants to have it break down when the grass is growing or chew up drive belts constantly? I would go with a decent size Husqvarna or Simplicity.
If I'm just using a garden tractor to mow lawn, the first thing I like to check the quality of the mower deck and how well it can float over uneven terrain. If the mower deck isn't up to the job, the rest of the tractor doesn't matter. The same goes for a snow blower attachment.
ditchwitch
Well-known Member
I just bought the Craftsman Pro Series 54 inch cut with the 26 hp Kohler motor. I have a little over
2 acres of just grass to cut. So far i have been pretty impressed with it. Its not the one with
power steering though. We actually just bought this place last year and i had them to leave a John
Deere D170 54 inch cut mower that come from Lowes. When i started looking for another I looked at
the JD i believe it was X500 the price was pretty hefty. The D170 from Lowes was around 2500 or
2700. He said that's why its at lowes. The x500 from the JD Dealership was little over 5000. Went
back to Sears and bought the Pro Series with and extended warranty for right at 1000 less than the
JD x500. So for 5 years they will come to my house and fix it if need be and that was the better
deal.
2 acres of just grass to cut. So far i have been pretty impressed with it. Its not the one with
power steering though. We actually just bought this place last year and i had them to leave a John
Deere D170 54 inch cut mower that come from Lowes. When i started looking for another I looked at
the JD i believe it was X500 the price was pretty hefty. The D170 from Lowes was around 2500 or
2700. He said that's why its at lowes. The x500 from the JD Dealership was little over 5000. Went
back to Sears and bought the Pro Series with and extended warranty for right at 1000 less than the
JD x500. So for 5 years they will come to my house and fix it if need be and that was the better
deal.
ditchwitch
Well-known Member
Ouch looks like Tracto-Fire
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