We have discussed here for a while that Becca and I were looking to buy
a lawn tractor. Didn't find anything used that I thought would be a
good value so we decided to look at new machines.

Looked in 4 places today and the local Sears store had a deal that I
couldn't refuse.

http://www.husqvarna.com/us/products...3v48/#features

They used this machine as a "loaner" for a good customer and it has 11
hours on the meter so technically, it is used but they threw in the 5
year new machine maintenance/warranty (even covers battery and belts)
and sold it to us for $1349 plus tax.

With a 23 HP twin cylinder engine and goodies like an automatic
transmission with cruise control, adjustable seat and steering wheel,
big turf tires, etc it is probably a little bit more tractor than we
really need, but for the money, it is a pretty good value. I really
like the 48" deck... big enough to cut back on mowing time but not so
big that it can't get into tight spaces.

Becca promised that if I bought it, I could take a picture of her
driving it in her bikini. I'm betting that before I do, she makes me
promise to not post it anywhere. <vbg>

Sheldon suggested that I look at this brand a while back and while I
don't have much personal experience with Husqvarna (other than their
chain saws), it seems to be a very solid brand so I'm giving it a try.

George L

John Deere makes a very good machine that is relatively easy to maintain.

Husqvarna is a very good brand with a solid reputation. One hopes you don't have to count on Sears for service, though. Just as long as you swear never to buy any Craftsman power tool or machine, you should be fine. ;-)). (Craftsman hand tools are great.)

N.

On 8/2/2013 3:13 PM, Nancy2 wrote:
> John Deere makes a very good machine that is relatively easy to maintain.
>
> Husqvarna is a very good brand with a solid reputation. One hopes you don't have to count on Sears for service, though. Just as long as you swear never to buy any Craftsman power tool or machine, you should be fine. ;-)). (Craftsman hand tools are great.)


Years ago I worked at a John Deere dealership. Their consumer lawn
machines are pretty good, but way over-priced.

Little known fact... most Sears Craftsman mowers are mad by MTD... same
company that makes Cub Cadet. But the high end, heavy duty Sears garden
tractors are made by.... wait for it... Husqvarna. That is why Sears is
selling them.

George L

On 02/08/2013 4:13 PM, Nancy2 wrote:
> John Deere makes a very good machine that is relatively easy to
> maintain.
>
> Husqvarna is a very good brand with a solid reputation. One hopes
> you don't have to count on Sears for service, though. Just as long
> as you swear never to buy any Craftsman power tool or machine, you
> should be fine. ;-)). (Craftsman hand tools are great.)
>


Fact is that a lot of the different makes are all made by the made off
shore manufacturer. They paint them different colours and put different
company emblems but they have the same engines, transmissions, decks
etc. A number of years ago I bought a John Deere lawn tractor which was
a bit of a lemon and it turned out to me an MTD product painted up with
the Deere colours and emblems. The transmission went on it and was
repaired under warranty. A few months later the new transmission crapped
out on me and when I took it back they balked at repairing it under
warranty saying that Deere would not let them do it twice.

On 8/2/2013 3:42 PM, Dave Smith wrote:
> Fact is that a lot of the different makes are all made by the made off
> shore manufacturer. They paint them different colours and put different
> company emblems but they have the same engines, transmissions, decks
> etc. A number of years ago I bought a John Deere lawn tractor which was
> a bit of a lemon and it turned out to me an MTD product painted up with
> the Deere colours and emblems. The transmission went on it and was
> repaired under warranty. A few months later the new transmission crapped
> out on me and when I took it back they balked at repairing it under
> warranty saying that Deere would not let them do it twice.

Partially correct. All John Deere LT series (consumer) lawn tractors
are assembled in the JD plant in Tennessee. MTD also has a plant in
Tennessee and they have at times been contracted to build some JD parts,
mostly stamped sheet-metal parts (like deck bodies, frames, etc).

The inexpensive John Deere LT series is assembled by John Deere, but
many of the parts are either contracted to other companies (pulleys,
belts, sheet metal, etc) or bought "off the shelf" like engines,
transmissions, etc.

FWIW... many of the LT series transmissions were/are built fro JD by
Tuff-Torq... another Tennessee company (TN is a "right to work" state
and labor is cheap there so you will see a lot of these companies
located there). many of their cheaper transmissions are "sealed units"
and supposedly not serviceable... just replaceable. But I do know some
mechanics who have re-built them after they got out of warranty.

So it is very possible that you had a tractor assembled by John Deere
from parts made by MTD, Tuff-torq and a multitude of other companies.

George L

On Fri, 02 Aug 2013 15:24:14 -0500, George Leppla
> wrote:

>On 8/2/2013 3:13 PM, Nancy2 wrote:
>> John Deere makes a very good machine that is relatively easy to maintain.
>>
>> Husqvarna is a very good brand with a solid reputation. One hopes you don't have to count on Sears for service, though. Just as long as you swear never to buy any Craftsman power tool or machine, you should be fine. ;-)). (Craftsman hand tools are great.)
>
>
>Years ago I worked at a John Deere dealership. Their consumer lawn
>machines are pretty good, but way over-priced.
>
>Little known fact... most Sears Craftsman mowers are mad by MTD... same
>company that makes Cub Cadet. But the high end, heavy duty Sears garden
>tractors are made by.... wait for it... Husqvarna. That is why Sears is
>selling them.

After a fair amount of research a few years ago, I bought a Murray,
46" cut I think it is. What a piece of crap - or I should say the deck
is a piece of crap. That seemed to be a recurring theme with the lower
to mid-priced ride-on mowers out there, from what I have read.

Still, I paid $4000 for it, so it's not one of the cheaper ones. I've
used a friend's ancient old Greenfield ride-on (Australian made I
think) and it's so robust and simple in design, nothing can go much
wrong with it. If I can find one of those I'm selling my Murray. I
also converted most of my 1.5 acres of lawn back to pasture and let
the sheep deal with the grass.

On 8/2/2013 4:57 PM, Jeßus wrote:
> After a fair amount of research a few years ago, I bought a Murray,
> 46" cut I think it is. What a piece of crap - or I should say the deck
> is a piece of crap. That seemed to be a recurring theme with the lower
> to mid-priced ride-on mowers out there, from what I have read.


Murry mowers were and are crap. They are bargain basement made as
cheaply as possible to specs. Ironically, some of the parts are made by
AYP (American Yard Products) which is partially owned by..... wait for
it..... Husqvarna.

George L

On Fri, 02 Aug 2013 17:06:53 -0500, George Leppla
> wrote:

>On 8/2/2013 4:57 PM, Jeßus wrote:
>> After a fair amount of research a few years ago, I bought a Murray,
>> 46" cut I think it is. What a piece of crap - or I should say the deck
>> is a piece of crap. That seemed to be a recurring theme with the lower
>> to mid-priced ride-on mowers out there, from what I have read.
>
>
>Murry mowers were and are crap.

Yeah, so I have learned...

> They are bargain basement made as
>cheaply as possible to specs. Ironically, some of the parts are made by
>AYP (American Yard Products) which is partially owned by..... wait for
>it..... Husqvarna.

That's the way it is these days...

About 6 years ago I wanted a LCD TV, after looking at all of them I
narrowed it down to a Sony and a Samsung. To me the picture looked as
good as each other. The Samsung was half the price of the Sony, so I
went with that. I later found out the panels themselves are identical.

Nancy2 wrote:
>
>Husqvarna is a very good brand with a solid reputation.
>One hopes you don't have to count on Sears for service, though.

Sears service centers are pretty good for small motor products, they
will repair or replace under warranty without question. I doubt
George will have a problem with that machine. Sears service centers
don't do routine maintenence, for that he can bring his riding mower
to any local small motor repair shop, and much of the routine
maintenence he can do himself, changing oil and lubing often is most
important, also keep tires properly inflated or the machine will
struggle causing premature engine failure, and clean under the deck
after each use so cutting goes much easier and puts no undue strain on
the engine, mower belts and bearings. And pays to have a set of ramps
so he can get underneath to scrape and wash the crud, and dress the
blades with a machinest file... filing preseves temper integrity, dry
grinding will heat the blade's cutting edge and soften the steel. Once
every hundred hours replace the blades with new and toss the old, old
blades are dangerous, they fatigue and develop microscopic fractures
around the mounting hole, they can split, fly off for hundreds of feet
and kill someone... mower blades have been known to penetrate building
walls and kill someone inside the house. Anytime someone approaches
the mower while operating stop mowing and disengage the mower blades.
My both tractors have a kill feature, if I lift my butt off the seat
while in gear and/or the blades are rotating the engine stops
instantly. Anytime I want to get off while the motor is running I
throttle down, disengage the mower PTO, put the transmission in
neutral, and set the brake. These machines are very dangerous and
unforgiving; no boozing, no debilitating meds, and dress properly,
sturdy footwear, use good sun screen and wear a wide brim hat...
melanoma is no joke... and wear a paper mask and ear protection.

>Just as long as you swear never to buy any Craftsman power tool
>or machine, you should be fine. ;-)). (Craftsman hand tools are great.)

Craftsman hand tools used to be okay, some 40 years ago... today they
are crap... only saving grace is that if they break they will replace
them no questions asked, but they are very ordinary low grade tools.
There are many brands of mechanic's tools that are leagues ahead.
The best gardening tools are made by Fiskars, no one else comes close.
http://www2.fiskars.com/Gardening-an...-Care/Products

On 8/2/2013 9:49 PM, Brooklyn1 wrote:
> Sears service centers are pretty good for small motor products, they
> will repair or replace under warranty without question. I doubt
> George will have a problem with that machine. Sears service centers
> don't do routine maintenence, for that he can bring his riding mower
> to any local small motor repair shop, and much of the routine
> maintenence he can do himself, changing oil and lubing often is most
> important, also keep tires properly inflated or the machine will
> struggle causing premature engine failure, and clean under the deck
> after each use so cutting goes much easier and puts no undue strain on
> the engine, mower belts and bearings.


The local Sears contracts service and warranty work to a local shop that
has a pretty good reputation. Maintenance I will do myself... lots of
experience with that. I have a set of ramps.... I don't like taking a
mower deck off a tractor unless I have to.

This mower deck has grease zerks at the top of every blade spindle tower
so you don't have to get under it to lube the bearings. Nice touch.

One nice part about the warranty is that if something breaks, they come
to the house to fix it.

We pick it up this morning.

George L

On 02/08/2013 10:49 PM, Brooklyn1 wrote:

>
> Craftsman hand tools used to be okay, some 40 years ago... today they
> are crap... only saving grace is that if they break they will replace
> them no questions asked, but they are very ordinary low grade tools.
> There are many brands of mechanic's tools that are leagues ahead.

That is great, except that broken tools can be knuckle busters, and who
wants the proper size tool to break in the middle of a job.


> The best gardening tools are made by Fiskars, no one else comes close.
> http://www2.fiskars.com/Gardening-an...-Care/Products


I have a couple Fiskars tools, a pole trimmer and a set of lopping
shears. It is sometimes annoying to have to open up the handles so far
to get the jaws around a branch, but the leverage makes the cutting a
lot easier and they will cut through branches that other shears have had
trouble with.

"Dave Smith" > wrote in message
...
> On 02/08/2013 10:49 PM, Brooklyn1 wrote:
>
>>
>> Craftsman hand tools used to be okay, some 40 years ago... today they
>> are crap... only saving grace is that if they break they will replace
>> them no questions asked, but they are very ordinary low grade tools.
>> There are many brands of mechanic's tools that are leagues ahead.
>
> That is great, except that broken tools can be knuckle busters, and who
> wants the proper size tool to break in the middle of a job.
>
>
>> The best gardening tools are made by Fiskars, no one else comes close.
>> http://www2.fiskars.com/Gardening-an...-Care/Products
>
>
> I have a couple Fiskars tools, a pole trimmer and a set of lopping shears.
> It is sometimes annoying to have to open up the handles so far to get the
> jaws around a branch, but the leverage makes the cutting a lot easier and
> they will cut through branches that other shears have had trouble with.
>
>
Easy to entertain old folks here in the Swamp. Just this year, there are 3
'zero turn' new tractor/mowers. Closest neighbor took down a peach tree,
the next guy's gazebo has a sort of tilt to it. Our own casualty was the
mail box. Easy fix. We have a pasture with nothing on it but one oak tree.
I'm wanting to go try 'zero turn' when the weather's cooler. Polly

On Sat, 03 Aug 2013 07:08:16 -0500, George Leppla
> wrote:

>On 8/2/2013 9:49 PM, Brooklyn1 wrote:
>> Sears service centers are pretty good for small motor products, they
>> will repair or replace under warranty without question. I doubt
>> George will have a problem with that machine. Sears service centers
>> don't do routine maintenence, for that he can bring his riding mower
>> to any local small motor repair shop, and much of the routine
>> maintenence he can do himself, changing oil and lubing often is most
>> important, also keep tires properly inflated or the machine will
>> struggle causing premature engine failure, and clean under the deck
>> after each use so cutting goes much easier and puts no undue strain on
>> the engine, mower belts and bearings.
>
>
>The local Sears contracts service and warranty work to a local shop that
>has a pretty good reputation. Maintenance I will do myself... lots of
>experience with that. I have a set of ramps.... I don't like taking a
>mower deck off a tractor unless I have to.
>
>This mower deck has grease zerks at the top of every blade spindle tower
>so you don't have to get under it to lube the bearings. Nice touch.\

All you need is a decent greaswe gun.

>One nice part about the warranty is that if something breaks, they come
>to the house to fix it.
>
>We pick it up this morning.
>
>George L

All ready to mow... get a couple of sombreros, the sun is hot there...
I wear this, good sun protection and very comfortable:
http://www.duluthtrading.com/store/p...cessor=content

In article >,
says...
>
> We have discussed here for a while that Becca and I were looking to buy
> a lawn tractor. Didn't find anything used that I thought would be a
> good value so we decided to look at new machines.
>
> Looked in 4 places today and the local Sears store had a deal that I
> couldn't refuse.
>
> http://www.husqvarna.com/us/products...3v48/#features
>
> They used this machine as a "loaner" for a good customer and it has 11
> hours on the meter so technically, it is used but they threw in the 5
> year new machine maintenance/warranty (even covers battery and belts)
> and sold it to us for $1349 plus tax.
>
> With a 23 HP twin cylinder engine and goodies like an automatic
> transmission with cruise control, adjustable seat and steering wheel,
> big turf tires, etc it is probably a little bit more tractor than we
> really need, but for the money, it is a pretty good value. I really
> like the 48" deck... big enough to cut back on mowing time but not so
> big that it can't get into tight spaces.
>
> Becca promised that if I bought it, I could take a picture of her
> driving it in her bikini. I'm betting that before I do, she makes me
> promise to not post it anywhere. <vbg>
>
> Sheldon suggested that I look at this brand a while back and while I
> don't have much personal experience with Husqvarna (other than their
> chain saws), it seems to be a very solid brand so I'm giving it a try.
>
> George L

Wow, lot of features on that tractor for only $1,800 new.

Me, I'm a city boy, have been all my live and have no interest in having
a tractor as much as admiring how far they've come. I recall the one my
grandfather had in the 1970's. It barely had a transmisssion and was a
rickety looking contraption.

On 2013-08-03, Dave Smith > wrote:

> That is great, except that broken tools can be knuckle busters, and who
> wants the proper size tool to break in the middle of a job.

Too true. I learned that fact 40 yrs ago when I was a motorcycle
wrench and lived 90 mi from the nearest Sears. Better to pay extra for
the kinkda quality that doesn't break in the first place.

nb

On 8/2/2013 10:49 PM, Brooklyn1 wrote:

> Craftsman hand tools used to be okay, some 40 years ago... today they
> are crap... only saving grace is that if they break they will replace
> them no questions asked, but they are very ordinary low grade tools.
> There are many brands of mechanic's tools that are leagues ahead.
> The best gardening tools are made by Fiskars, no one else comes close.

My second Craftsman cordless drill bit the dust. I swear off of them.
They lose power and are worthless. The batteries don't last long and the
charger stopped working for some reason. I even replaced one of the
batteries rather than buy a new drill, and they're kind of hard to find.
That replacement didn't last long, and I don't leave the battery on the
charger for longer than just enough to charge it as some batteries don't
like that.

I got tired of batteries for them so I replaced it with a Duwalt
electric drill. I use it just for around the house stuff like hanging
shelves, or occasionally to reattach a fence slat.

--
CAPSLOCK–Preventing Login Since 1980.

On 04/08/2013 12:39 AM, Cheryl wrote:

> My second Craftsman cordless drill bit the dust. I swear off of them.
> They lose power and are worthless. The batteries don't last long and the
> charger stopped working for some reason. I even replaced one of the
> batteries rather than buy a new drill, and they're kind of hard to find.
> That replacement didn't last long, and I don't leave the battery on the
> charger for longer than just enough to charge it as some batteries don't
> like that.
>
> I got tired of batteries for them so I replaced it with a Duwalt
> electric drill. I use it just for around the house stuff like hanging
> shelves, or occasionally to reattach a fence slat.
>


One of the advantages of buying the better tools is the durability. You
pay more but they last. I bought a cheap cordless drill. The batteries
don't hold much of a charge. It is handy to have a drill that I can use
for small jobs without having to mess with cords, and this one was great
when it was relatively new. I could grab it and use it any time. Now I
have to plan far enough ahead to charge up both batteries before I
tackle a job.

Right now I am waiting for another rechargeable item to charge up. My
Garmin wristband is handy for tracking speed and distance on my exercise
jaunts. I am headed out for a club kayaking event and the Garmin battery
was too low.

On Sun, 04 Aug 2013 00:39:13 -0400, Cheryl >
wrote:

>On 8/2/2013 10:49 PM, Brooklyn1 wrote:
>
>> Craftsman hand tools used to be okay, some 40 years ago... today they
>> are crap... only saving grace is that if they break they will replace
>> them no questions asked, but they are very ordinary low grade tools.
>> There are many brands of mechanic's tools that are leagues ahead.
>> The best gardening tools are made by Fiskars, no one else comes close.
>
>My second Craftsman cordless drill bit the dust. I swear off of them.
>They lose power and are worthless. The batteries don't last long and the
>charger stopped working for some reason. I even replaced one of the
>batteries rather than buy a new drill, and they're kind of hard to find.
>That replacement didn't last long, and I don't leave the battery on the
>charger for longer than just enough to charge it as some batteries don't
>like that.

I had the same experience with a Craftsman 3/8" cordless, teh warranty
doesn't cover Craftsman power tools and it woudl have cost more for
new batterys than th eentire drill set cost two years earlier. I used
that drill exactly twice, and just to try it out, I could have just as
easily used a plug-in drill.

>I got tired of batteries for them so I replaced it with a Duwalt
>electric drill. I use it just for around the house stuff like hanging
>shelves, or occasionally to reattach a fence slat.

Around the house no one needs a cordless drill... even outdoors I use
a corded drill, I have three hundred feet of heavy duty outdoor
extention cords, bought them for lighting my outdoor [live] Christmas
tree. Before I'd use a cordless for drilling a few holes outdoors I'd
use a brace and bit. I used my 1/2" corded drill with my bulb auger
to plant daffodils about 200' from my house, a cordless won't do well
with a bulb auger, hasn't the torque. And soon I'll be able to use
corded tools much further from my house, on the 21st an electrician is
going to bring power to my barn, gotta dig a 350' trench. I'll
finally have lighting out there (inside and out), even on a sunny day
barns are dark inside, and in winter my barn cats will have heated
bedding and a heated water bowl.

On 8/4/2013 11:53 AM, Brooklyn1 wrote:

> on the 21st an electrician is
> going to bring power to my barn, gotta dig a 350' trench. I'll
> finally have lighting out there (inside and out), even on a sunny day
> barns are dark inside, and in winter my barn cats will have heated
> bedding and a heated water bowl.
>



You are a mensch underneath the crusty exterior. I wonder if your barn
cat population will increase once other ferals discover the luxurious
lifestyle.

gloria p

gloria p wrote:
>Brooklyn1 wrote:
>
> > on the 21st an electrician is
>> going to bring power to my barn, gotta dig a 350' trench. I'll
>> finally have lighting out there (inside and out), even on a sunny day
>> barns are dark inside, and in winter my barn cats will have heated
>> bedding and a heated water bowl.
>
>You are a mensch underneath the crusty exterior. I wonder if your barn
>cat population will increase once other ferals discover the luxurious
>lifestyle.

I try to do the right thing by the critters. Any critters needs a
meal and a comfortable place to rest they are welcome to stay for as
long as they like. I give a lot to help critters (right now I have
more than 300 pounds of birdseed in my office) but I will never give
charity to humans, critters have no pockets but ALL humans steal. It's
a shame what's going on with food stamps, lazy useless thieving
*******s! I'd never give a speck of food to those fercocktah food
drives, anything I have to give from my pantry goes to critters. And
no matter how bad things get my cats will always eat before me. My
critter gocery bill is at least twice mine.

On Sunday, August 4, 2013 1:59:49 PM UTC-7, gloria p wrote:
> On 8/4/2013 11:53 AM, Brooklyn1 wrote:
>
>
>
> > on the 21st an electrician is
>
> > going to bring power to my barn, gotta dig a 350' trench. I'll
>
> > finally have lighting out there (inside and out), even on a sunny day
>
> > barns are dark inside, and in winter my barn cats will have heated
>
> > bedding and a heated water bowl.
>
> >
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> You are a mensch underneath the crusty exterior. I wonder if your barn
>
> cat population will increase once other ferals discover the luxurious
>
> lifestyle.
>
>
>
> gloria p

The Shelaton for cats!

On 8/4/2013 4:59 PM, gloria p wrote:
> On 8/4/2013 11:53 AM, Brooklyn1 wrote:
>
> > on the 21st an electrician is
>> going to bring power to my barn, gotta dig a 350' trench. I'll
>> finally have lighting out there (inside and out), even on a sunny day
>> barns are dark inside, and in winter my barn cats will have heated
>> bedding and a heated water bowl.
>>
>
> You are a mensch underneath the crusty exterior.

Shhhh! No one is supposed to know that!

> I wonder if your barn
> cat population will increase once other ferals discover the luxurious
> lifestyle.
>
> gloria p

He has them spayed/neutered when he can capture them. He's doing his
best to keep the feral population down while still making sure they're
fed and have vet care. It's a TNR (trap neueter release) sitation. I
think he is doing a wonderful thing.

Jill

In article m>,
says...
>
> On 8/2/2013 10:49 PM, Brooklyn1 wrote:
>
> > Craftsman hand tools used to be okay, some 40 years ago... today they
> > are crap... only saving grace is that if they break they will replace
> > them no questions asked, but they are very ordinary low grade tools.
> > There are many brands of mechanic's tools that are leagues ahead.
> > The best gardening tools are made by Fiskars, no one else comes close.
>
> My second Craftsman cordless drill bit the dust. I swear off of them.
> They lose power and are worthless. The batteries don't last long and the
> charger stopped working for some reason. I even replaced one of the
> batteries rather than buy a new drill, and they're kind of hard to find.
> That replacement didn't last long, and I don't leave the battery on the
> charger for longer than just enough to charge it as some batteries don't
> like that.
>
> I got tired of batteries for them so I replaced it with a Duwalt
> electric drill. I use it just for around the house stuff like hanging
> shelves, or occasionally to reattach a fence slat.

For that very reason when I had to buy a drill I selected one that you
have to plug into a wall outlet. I know the downfalls of rechargeable
batteries in resistive loads. Not good.