# New mower!



## graham1981 (Jan 1, 2016)

As some of you may be aware I am a gardener by trade and have my own business :yes: Up to now I have been using a Mountfield four wheel mower that generally I have been pleased with. However using it on a daily basis there were two things that bugged me - one was the way the grass box was constructed, the fabric bag clipped into the plastic top and this used to unclip fairly regularly and secondly the drive engage pin used to get stuck which necessitated removing the wheel, dropping the gear box removing the drive unit from the wheel and freeing the pin, all rather time consuming and annoying! So I decided to upgrade to a Honda as the Mountfield was two years old and I have found that this is about as long as you get with professional usage before maintenance becomes more of an issue. I have upgraded to a Honda Izzy 466 K, this is not one of their professional mowers and this was deliberate for two reasons - I have used their professional series both the HRX's and HRD's extensively when working for Eton College and again we found with both the drive units only lasted two years before needing replacing and secondly for some of the lawns I do the professional series would be to large/ wide. The one thing that never goes wrong with a Honda mower is the engine (fingers crossed!) So in the end I plumped for this one (with a good trade discount from a local dealer :thumbsup: ) :



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https://flic.kr/p/HPVfTe

Only time will tell how long it last (my guess 3- 5 years then I will replace it) :laugh:


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## hughlle (Aug 23, 2015)

You hate me so won't be reading this given i'm on your ignore list, but i doubt you'll go wrong. Honda just make some fantastic mowers. Not sure how things currently stand, but we have always had honda due to a very lucrative discount due to saving them untold millions in a legal case on a case regarding their motocross bikes, but we never had to send anything into service, after almost 20 years of use of a ride on and self propelled hand mower. Honda just do things right.

I know there is another member, I think it might have been Faze, who was looking for a new mower and I recomended a Hyundai on my dads recommendation, having used it myself though, I'll go honda every time, that hyundai is pathetic in comparison. Honda mowers are brilliant, cost be damned.


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## xellos99 (Dec 17, 2015)

It is worth getting a pro or semi-pro mower even for home use. We have a 1997 mountfield delta 46 and it has a Honda engine and steel frame. It still works like new and the body has very little rust. I don't know if the modern ones are still that good though, standards seem to fallen in general with build quality suffering


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## graham1981 (Jan 1, 2016)

xellos99 said:


> It is worth getting a pro or semi-pro mower even for home use. We have a 1997 mountfield delta 46 and it has a Honda engine and steel frame. It still works like new and the body has very little rust. I don't know if the modern ones are still that good though, standards seem to fallen in general with build quality suffering


 The Mountfields are still good, with the proviso you get one with a Honda engine. The main body of my Mountfield is still perfectly sound, it was just the few little niggles and the drive pin that made up my mind to change. The only thing you have to consider when looking at pro/ semi-pro for a homeowner to use in their private garden is size and weight really, they tend to be bigger and heavier which may make them unsuitable for some sized gardens or people. Also some pro models have extra features (which obviously put the price up) like blade brake clutches, meaning you can disengage the blade without having to stop the engine(you let the handles go the blades stop but the engine continues to run) that a homeowner doesn't really need.


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## scottswatches (Sep 22, 2009)

it was me who bought the Hyundai with key start, so let me add the following in case others are thinking about it

The key start is great, but the battery will go flat if it is needed 4/5 times during one lawn (emptying the grass bag, nosey neighbours butting in, kids etc)

However the key is a rubbish quality design, plastic and steel construction instead of just steel. One has snapped already.

The build is decent, the cut good and I like the extra mulching capacity for those quick cuts

If i was buying it again I might save £90 and go for the manual start version - the manual start is very easy to use, as I have to when the battery goes flat!

I think if I was a pro I would also got for a Honda, as the extra quality will pay off and you can write it off against tax anyway


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## hughlle (Aug 23, 2015)

scottswatches said:


> it was me who bought the Hyundai with key start, so let me add the following in case others are thinking about it
> 
> The key start is great, but the battery will go flat if it is needed 4/5 times during one lawn (emptying the grass bag, nosey neighbours butting in, kids etc)
> 
> ...


 I think it is a good mower, but it doesn't seem to have enough torque or something. Unlike the old Honda, it'll just look at some dandelions and stall. Have to go over the lawn multiple times gradually lowering the blades.


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## RTM Boy (Jun 1, 2011)

I've got a Honda Izy mower that I've had for 14 years (admittedly only for domestic use) and it has lasted well, although the deck is now getting to a state of rust that it will not last much longer... Not bad though.


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## Roger the Dodger (Oct 5, 2009)

Great choice, Graham...you can't beat a Honda, though a couple of tips. If your new one is anything like my 536 Proroller, keep the mesh bag clean. I find that just a few weeks mowing will leave the mesh clogged with dirt and grass juice, which impedes pick up as the air can't blow through the bag. I jet wash mine every few weeks. Secondly, they hate wet grass. When mowing wet grass (ie after a heavy dew...though I do dragmat the lawn to knock the worst of the water off and aid quick drying) I tend to have the back of the mower one notch higher than the front to let extra air in undeneath to help pickup.

My Honda is now 18 years old, and although it's had a new gearbox and a couple of new cables, it's still going strong. The cost of replacing the drive unit was considerably cheaper than a new mower at well over £1K.


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## tixntox (Jul 17, 2009)

Anything with a Honda badge on it seems to do what it says on the ........ superb piece of highly engineered steel! :yes:


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## WRENCH (Jun 20, 2016)

I used to sell Honda mowers, for two reasons. They gave the least hassle and most important of all they had the best spares back up by far. On the odd occasion you required anything other than service parts.


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## graham1981 (Jan 1, 2016)

Roger the Dodger said:


> I find that just a few weeks mowing will leave the mesh clogged with dirt and grass juice, which impedes pick up as the air can't blow through the bag. I jet wash mine every few weeks


 Great tip Rog, I was pondering how to keep the mesh clean :thumbsup: At the moment I am using my leaf blower at the end of the day to blow the mower clean + the bag, this works ok now as the grass is dry but as soon as the weather starts to get damper and so too the grass I will need to start washing the bag, I did think about sticking it in the washing machine but not sure that would go down to well :rofl: And just a note for interest, I had a look at the wheel bearings on my Mountfield and most of them are shot, you have two sets per wheel and they are £7 a pop so £14 per wheel or £56 just to replace all the wheel bearings :swoon: I may just remove the engine and chuck the rest of the mower, but then what good would the engine be to me? :laugh:


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## xellos99 (Dec 17, 2015)

graham1981 said:


> but then what good would the engine be to me?


 Frankenstein some junk wheels from scrap mowers if possible.

A new bag and frame for my mountfield was £56 and it was actually possible to modify a bag from a different mower I had lying around.


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## WRENCH (Jun 20, 2016)

How about one of these? :blind:


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## graham1981 (Jan 1, 2016)

WRENCH said:


> How about one of these? :blind:


 That's actually pretty cool, a Cadillac mower :laugh:


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## WRENCH (Jun 20, 2016)

I have this for larger areas. :laugh:


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## graham1981 (Jan 1, 2016)

I ended up giving my Mountfield to my dad to bugger about with, I'm that generous :laugh: He used to be a car mechanic so he likes buggering about with mechanical things. Although I'm still trying to figure out why he removed the engine from the Mountfield and then went and bought the wheel bearings for it??? :wacko:

Honda's going well :thumbsup:



WRENCH said:


> I have this for larger areas. :laugh:


 One of the places I used to work for (full time before I was self employed) asked me what I would need equipment wise, I said the usual strimmer, hedgecutter etc, I also said a ride on mower .... so they went to B&Q and bought a Murray ride on :swoon: To be fair it lasted a couple of years until I tried to pull a tree down that I had felled but had got snagged in another, I managed to rip the back end out of it :laugh:


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## WRENCH (Jun 20, 2016)

I used to buy and sell these, still got my own one. It's around 45 years old and bomb proof. It has a trailed sweeper for collecting the grass.


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## johnbaz (Jan 30, 2005)

I bought this from Gumtree for £20!!, It's fab and just plods along barely above tickover and seems to take everything in it's stride!!

I actually ran it out of oil, It started sounding strange so I let go of the dead mans handle and it stopped very abruptly!! It had siezed :angry: I let it it cool down then added some oil, Next day I pulled the cord and it fired up immediately and sounded sweet as ever!! :yes:

It's still doing it's job months after I thought it was going to be dead!!










John


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## Roger the Dodger (Oct 5, 2009)

WRENCH said:


> I have this for larger areas. :laugh:





WRENCH said:


> I used to buy and sell these, still got my own one. It's around 45 years old and bomb proof. It has a trailed sweeper for collecting the grass.


 Funny you should show that Westwood with the V8 short block mounted in it, as we have an original Westy. It still has its 12HP Briggs and Stratton engine, and even in 5th gear only acheives a fast walking pace. Like your Wheel Horse it's fitted with a grass collector that also incorporates a powered sweeper, so great for leaf sweeping in the Autumn....about all it's used for these days.


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## dobra (Aug 20, 2009)

Zero horse power ! Bought this beauty new in the late '60's, and it is sharp and working. Actually it is complete with manual, sharpening handle, grease gun, twin detachable long grass wooden rollers and original grass box with some paint removed and a slioght dent.



















I will put it on Wightbay here for a collector for, say £50....

mike


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## Roger the Dodger (Oct 5, 2009)

dobra said:


> Zero horse power ! Bought this beauty new in the late '60's, and it is sharp and working. Actually it is complete with manual, sharpening handle, grease gun, twin detachable long grass wooden rollers and original grass box with some paint removed and a slioght dent.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


 They were the 'Rolls Royce' of hand mowers, Mike. The old man had one many years ago, and I well remember mowing the lawns at home for a sixpence or a shilling. When I was at BroomWade the compressor makers, I got the pattern making shop to turn me a new set of front rollers for it out of mahogany. I think I'm right in saying that the cylinder is completely gear driven from the rear roller, rather than than the cheaper chain drive. I know the old man's was totally gear driven as I had it apart many a time.


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## dobra (Aug 20, 2009)

Thanks Rog - two other reasons were the split grooved rollers and the extra cutting blade which gave an even finer finish. The grooved rollers gave extra grip in wet or damp grass against mowers with smooth rollers. The RH side plate came off, and the supplied "handle" was screwed in, thus allowing you to turn the cutters when sharpening or adjusting. A gear box as you say Rog.

Sorry - not trying to hi-jack this thread, but I did buy the mower new. :thumbsup:

mike


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## graham1981 (Jan 1, 2016)

Roger the Dodger said:


> Funny you should show that Westwood with the V8 short block mounted in it, as we have an original Westy. It still has its 12HP Briggs and Stratton engine, and even in 5th gear only acheives a fast walking pace. Like your Wheel Horse it's fitted with a grass collector that also incorporates a powered sweeper, so great for leaf sweeping in the Autumn....about all it's used for these days.


 We had one of these at one of the places I used to work at, I never actually saw it running it was just sitting in a shed slowly rotting away


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## graham1981 (Jan 1, 2016)

dobra said:


> Zero horse power ! Bought this beauty new in the late '60's, and it is sharp and working. Actually it is complete with manual, sharpening handle, grease gun, twin detachable long grass wooden rollers and original grass box with some paint removed and a slioght dent.


 These can give a great finish, I've never used one to cut a whole lawn but have messed about with one and was impressed with the cut. The only thing is they can be a real pig to use if the blades aren't kept sharp or haven't been adjusted properly :yes:

On a side note it's interesting to see snippets of peoples gardens in these photos, what other people do with their gardens always interests me, probably because I'm nosey :rofl: That's one aspect I like about the kind of work I do now, I get to see many different styles of gardens as each of my customers obviously have different tastes. One of my customers actually apologised to me once for having fake flowers dotted about the garden, didn't bother me it's their garden and if they like fake flowers then why shouldn't they have them


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