Are those V61s on the front???
John Deere Tractor opinions
- Thread starter Reggaemon
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I have a X738 4wd that I only use for winter snow blowing. Has a 25hp Kawasaki V2. Never any problems with the tractor in 7+ yrs.
Yes! The V61's are really good for my purposes of mowing, towing, spreading and spraying. Because of the ribs they make steering much easier.
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I’ve been trying to get a pair for a while now. Saw a pair come on eBay in my size (16x6.5-8),but got busy and went to go back 2 hours later to buy and they were gone!
My 1998 JD LX188 liquid cooled Kawasaki 501v 17 hp 3 blade 48 inch deck TT K61 with over 2,000 hours still runs like a top after 27 years. It’s an LT but still pulls a heavy 30 gallon Cyclone Rake and a steel 30 cart. IMO, the Best LT ever built.
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While I agree that issues at 200 hours should be considered "infant mortality" in equipment lifespan failure analysis, I also realize that 200 hours is 6 to 8 years for many homeowners.
I would skip the JD in the low end models. If you just have a small area to cut and need to drag a small garden cart around, the lower end Troy Bilt with the CVT transmissions are tougher than the really cheap HST's in the low end units and if you abuse them a bit and they fail its just a belt replacement not a new transmission. The B&S engine is the same one JD uses and the decks are stamped just like JD and the blade bearings are the same unserviceable sealed units that JD uses on the entry level models. The difference is about $1000 less cost. I have a large lot and a Kuboto Compact tractor but I dont like using it around the house and over the septic system so I bought an entry level Troy CVT about 12 years ago to just do the 1/2 acre around the house and with 250 hrs and 1 drive belt change it is still running just fine and I use it to pull a small cart when I go out to pick up branches after a storm and haul them to my brush pile. You cant push snow with it, you cant drag anything ground engauging and you cant haul 500 lb carts but if thats what you need you have to move up a long way in the JD line. The new ones are not the old ones.
It's not that you can't get a good one from HD, it's that the vast majority of likelyhood is that you won't get a good one. Those are not true JD tractors and certainly not sold in dealerships. If you mow a flat, small lawn, it will probably work...add hills and you are in for a bad day down the road. I would never buy a tractor from the big box stores. Buy a used 300 or 400 series in good shape and you have a friend for life. I had a 214 for maybe 5 years, then bought a 318 for the next 15 or so, and then sold it to my sil and bought a used 425. That 425 is now 24 or 25 years old and has 955 hrs on it and runs like a champ. It is the tractor I wish I'd bought in the first place...oh wait, they didn't make it then, as I tried out a 400 or 420 can't remember which. Those 3 and 400 series tractors are the high mark of JD production in garden tractors, and built like a tank.
Hi, I have 0.6ac of land, not including the 1300sf house, and I have a S130. I have health issues, so walking behind a mower not something I should do. The S130 is OK I guess. I dont like the noises it makes, when applying the forward pedal. But that noise is nothing compared to the sound that applying the PTO/mower blade engage, makes. I took it to the local JD dealer, who said its fine and to use the choke idle up lever, set to just below choke-on, during mowing.
I'm not that satisfied with my mower. Its not bad maybe - this is TBD.
I'm not that satisfied with my mower. Its not bad maybe - this is TBD.
My neighbor bought an S100 a few months ago. At 6 hrs, I dumped the factory fill and put in some Motorcraft 15W40 and a Briggs filter and told him Ill do it every 50 hrs. I also told him not to cut when wet, to always run it full throttle and to blow off the deck after every use. So far so good.
For an extra $400 you can get an S-120 with a twin cylinder 22 HP motor. I have no experience with the 500 cc single cylinder but I would assume it has a bit more vibration than the twin.
The 100 series lawn mowers are built by John Deere. They are not manufactured by some other company with the JD name slapped on them. They are manufactured to a price point, thus they use less expensive components. They are sold at most John Deere dealerships along with the more expensive X-Series garden tractors. If you have a relatively flat smooth lawn and all you want to do is mow the grass they may work fine for your needs. If you have a hilly rough lawn, use it to blow snow or want to pull a cart loaded with heavy objects than you need to move up to the more expensive X-Series. The good part about buying JD is the dealer support that is readily available. Need parts or service? You can get everything at the local dealer and that includes those 100 series mowers that you can buy at the big box stores.
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Correct, and it aggravates me when folks claim otherwise. Every green John Deere mower that you can buy today is made by John Deere. Some are just a lot more durable than others. And overpriced or not, if I ever actually start mowing my own lawn again, I'm buying a new John Deere. I decided to let my FIL keep my old L-series machine. He likes tinkering with it.
That good, I guess its been 15 years since I've been to a JD dealer and they had green versions of almost every piece of yard equipment, saws, weedwackers, all at a bit inflated prices, and not made by JD, but not junk either.
I always wondered how they would keep track of parts with all the different manufacturers, but I doubt many guys are going back to the dealer with a broken piece of yard equipment out of warranty? With some research you can figure out who made what and get parts directly from the manufacturer, or any small engines guy can.
I'll echo what others have said. I have my grandfather's old L110 in my shed. I really only use it once a year to help with leaves, but its a great old rig. Its a mower only. One thing to note is that replacement wear parts for older units are plentiful on Slamazon.
For the majority of the mowing I do and pushing snow, I use my Kubota tractor.
For the majority of the mowing I do and pushing snow, I use my Kubota tractor.
My GT235 with Kawasaki V-Twin and 42 inch deck (the small mulching deck) is now pushing 25 years old, and has been amazingly trouble free. I think the sticker came off of the engine last year, and the belts have been replaced multiple times. I abuse this beastie regularly on my semi-rural swampland in FL. I think I've been through 10 sets of blades, I run them until they are completely worn away.
The heavy duty deck finally eroded through in the back, due to all the sand here. I will weld on a small patch.
By comparison, my neighbor's 10 year old Cub Cadet from Homeless Depot is dead, dead, dead. And now his grass has not been mowed in months.
Not mine, but nearly identical except I have the smaller mulching deck:
I was told by the dealership that I need to engage the blades at full throttle, before mowing...
This also sounds (the noise it makes), not ideal. This seems a little abusive to the mower...
This also sounds (the noise it makes), not ideal. This seems a little abusive to the mower...
My service advisor recommended 3/4 or higher throttle. That's what we follow on our two X-series. The sound doesn't seem that bad.
My two zeros get engaged at approx 1/3-1/2 throttle, but they both have ample power to engage the deck without taxing the engines. I do this to lower the stress put on the clutch. I also reduce the speed before disengaging the deck so the blade brake in the clutch doesn't have to try and stop the blades from full tilt speeds.
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