So I've been debating replacing my old 30" rear engine Craftsman rider for a couple years now, even moreso this year as it just takes a beating on the two yards I mow here. It's just plum getting worn out. Looked a month ago at some options, but just decided to hold off. That was until yesterday I "destroyed" the old Craftsman. I managed to hit a bad spot in the yard not once, but twice! I initially thought I just bent the blade, but the spindle and where it mounts to the deck are bent. I could fix it, but at this point there's no reason to. The 13.5HP Briggs is still strong, but the rest is gone. I needed a mower quick so there's a Tractor Supply literally behind my house so I went to see what they had. Came home with this:
I literally drove it home, small towns are great!
It's the LT46 with the 22HP Kohler twin cylinder engine. They had the smaller engine with fuel injection, but wasn't sold on the reliability of it yet. It also had a smaller deck, while it would have been adequate for my yards I do plan on moving so I figured get bigger than I need. That and it was only $200 more. Glad I went for the bigger engine as it went though the thick wet grass and never bogged down. The hyrostatic transmission is pretty nice and is needed for my irregular yard. I'm definitely going to have to get used to the two blade style deck as I definitely made a mess of the yard, but I've always had second hand single blade riders, so it's a learning curve. The thing turns on a dime which is a surprise to me. Also seems fuel efficient for what it is; used about the same amount as my old one to my surprise. So far I'm pretty happy with it, hopefully it'll last me a while. There is a slight clearance issue with the oil filter location so I'll have to be careful on oil filters, but that's the only issue I see now.
The old Craftsman will be given to a friend so it'll live on. Might repair the old deck, or just put the bigger engine on her current mower and scrap the rest.
I literally drove it home, small towns are great!
It's the LT46 with the 22HP Kohler twin cylinder engine. They had the smaller engine with fuel injection, but wasn't sold on the reliability of it yet. It also had a smaller deck, while it would have been adequate for my yards I do plan on moving so I figured get bigger than I need. That and it was only $200 more. Glad I went for the bigger engine as it went though the thick wet grass and never bogged down. The hyrostatic transmission is pretty nice and is needed for my irregular yard. I'm definitely going to have to get used to the two blade style deck as I definitely made a mess of the yard, but I've always had second hand single blade riders, so it's a learning curve. The thing turns on a dime which is a surprise to me. Also seems fuel efficient for what it is; used about the same amount as my old one to my surprise. So far I'm pretty happy with it, hopefully it'll last me a while. There is a slight clearance issue with the oil filter location so I'll have to be careful on oil filters, but that's the only issue I see now.
The old Craftsman will be given to a friend so it'll live on. Might repair the old deck, or just put the bigger engine on her current mower and scrap the rest.