Buying A Used Lawn Mower

[DockHoliday]

Been surfing CL for a used mower. Here is what I am finding:

1) [censored] old mowers for way too much money ($100-$200).
2) Folks that rebuild quality mowers (Toro, Honda, etc.) and sell for around $200. No idea where they get them from.
3) There is a guy selling nice looking mowers at very low prices (i.e. too good to be true). He has about 5 adds going on at any one time - and most disappear after a day. I assume he is selling stolen mowers so I don't call.

Is this consistent with what you would expect?

 

[Quest]

umm..more or less so (coincides with our local CL in terms of used mower pricing).

If I'm to let go a serviced B&S675 or 625 based craftsman, I would expect to price it at 180clams or similar. A Poulan 4.5hp B&S classic should be around 120clams.

Hondas are typically too pricey even out in used market. Afterall: same with ricer cars: they fetch a premium here locally.

Q.

(**yeah, in a month's time I should have a restored 675 to be put on CL or locally, mainly carb troubles(to be rebuild)**)

 

[JayhawkRoy]

Don't know what your budget its, but I found buying new made nearly as much sense as buying used, with the unknown history/maintenance that goes with used.

CR lists at least one mower under $200 as a best buy. Think it has two year warranty. If you can wait until later in the summer, you may be able to get a clearance one, or if you look around diligently, a lightly used return. The local Sears clearance center usually has several in stock. Other big box stores seems to be hit or miss, though, on good deals at this time of year.

My mowers, when I had a smaller yard and used them a lot, lasted six or more years, and they were $100 mowers at the time.

 

[crw]

Buy new. There is a Craftsman that my dad owned, then I owned, then gave to my brother in law. It was put into service around 1977, and is still running.

My current Craftsman, nothing special, is still running after about 20 years.

For that matter, buy a really GOOD new one, because if you take care of it you should have it a LONG time. (i.e., you'll have to live with it for a long time!)

 

[DockHoliday]

I am looking to spend $100 - $200 on a self propelled mower. Not looking for anything special, just somethign reliable.

 

[John_K]

Originally Posted By: DockHoliday
I am looking to spend $100 - $200 on a self propelled mower. Not looking for anything special, just somethign reliable.


Any used mower I have ever bought turned out to be [censored] no matter how it looked or was supposedly maintained. Buy a new one on sale or at end of season.

John

 

[01rangerxl]

While I have had relative success with other power equipment transactions on CL, small mowers are a bad deal on there.

A lot of people are just trying to get rid of some piece of junk they got tired of. Of course, it's a piece of junk because they've never done any maintenance, let it sit outside, hit things with it, etc. People will put a mower on CL with a hole in the block for $40 because "mayb sum 1 cn fix it i dont kno abt theses things."

Other people have no concept of the idea that any device has a limited life span. They paid $120 for the mower at K-Mart in 2008 so now it must be worth $140 with wobbly chewed up wheels and a dirt cake air filter. I see people asking retail or close to it a lot of the time.

And they are getting these prices because people are buying. I think some people think CL must automatically have the best price, so rather than research a purchase, they just get the cheapest mower on CL that works. For big box store type mowers, just go to the source.

 

[BigCahuna]

I have people give me mowers all the time. I check them to see if the shaft is bent, or any other physical damage. If not, I change the oil,clean the carb, clean the plug, sharpen the blade , then mow my lawn with it. If alls wells, I'll list it on cl.You can't get a new mower for $35 or even a tune up from a shop for that much. So if you get 5 years out of it, your way ahead over buying a new mower. And I do give my famous 5 year 5 minute guarrenty. Which ever comes first.,,

 

[DockHoliday]

I had pretty much given up on the used market, when I called one more add. The posting stated a price of $75, said he had 4 mowers, and showed a pic of a late model Toro (I am a Toro fan). I called and asked about the Toro. The elderly gentleman replied: I don't have any Toros, just a couple of Craftsmen, and a Murry. I was about to hang up when he said "I also have a John Deere, but that one is $100". Huh? Did he just say John Deere? I replied: please consider it sold, I am on my way!

I am now the proud owner of a JS63 self propelled mower. It is in decent shape, starts easily and runs great. Can't find much on this mower on the internet, but it looks to be very well made.

This will pair nicely with the JD GT275 tractor I purchased last weekend. Whoohoo!

 

[Spazdog]

Originally Posted By: DockHoliday
Been surfing CL for a used mower. Here is what I am finding:

1) [censored] old mowers for way too much money ($100-$200).
2) Folks that rebuild quality mowers (Toro, Honda, etc.) and sell for around $200. No idea where they get them from.
3) There is a guy selling nice looking mowers at very low prices (i.e. too good to be true). He has about 5 adds going on at any one time - and most disappear after a day. I assume he is selling stolen mowers so I don't call.

Is this consistent with what you would expect?


That's pretty much it except for pawn shops which have dregs of MTD mowers for 75-80% of the price of a new one and a few commercial mowers that saw their best days 10 years ago.

I keep reading of people that find discarded LawnBoy 2 strokes.
To date, I have found one McCulloch curved shaft string trimmer, (needed new fuel lines and needs a new carburetor but you can eventually get it to run. was in the shed when I moved in) Weed-eater gas hedgetrimmer, (same as the McCulloch - gas line and carb...neighbor left in on top of a huge pile of trash when they moved out) and a Black and Decker EdgeHog (needed a $7.99 blade someone dumped it in the dumpster at work)

 

[yeehaw1960]

I sell push mowers (non self propelled) for $40 for a side discharge or mulcher and $50 bucks for any bagger. I attach a video of the machine running to my C/L ad. They generally stay on C/L for an hour or so before someone is helping me load them in their trunk, truck or trailer. I don't charge more because they cost me almost nothing to acquire and tune up. I always say "see it running at www. youtube.blah blah blah.com. See other mowers for sale on C/L running at www. fat chance/not happening.com" Out of 30 or so sold each summer, I have two or three come back to be tweeked and sent back off. Don't send Western union payments to anyone, but you may be surprised what's out there and available to buy. It is amusing that some folks think their mower is gold plated under the paint and reflect it in their price.

 

[JayhawkRoy]

Congratulations! Hopefully your choice will pay off.

 

[DockHoliday]

Just completed the first cut. The mower started and ran great. I really like the OHV B&S Intek motor - smooth and powerful. In 3rd gear, this mower really boogies, and the motor never bogs down, even when cruising fast over tall and thick grass.

The only downside is that this thing is heavy and not as nimble as the Toro I am used to. I would say this mower is best suited for larger yards with few obstacles.

 

[fdcg27]

I checked CL locally, and there were a number of mowers in the $25.00-$50.00 range.
One guy had five of them for $25.00 each.
Pretty sure that if you showed up with $100.00 cash, you would have been the proud owner of these five machines, and you probably could have kept the best couple for personal use and then gotten your money back selling the other three.
It's all a matter of how much you're willing to tinker with these things.
Based on my experience over the past thirty years, you can't kill an old flathead lawnmower engine.

 

[calvin1]

I guess I've been lucky. I've gotten a couple of mowers off of CL. My most recent was one of the last 2-stroke LawnBoys ($60) that needed a new coil ($40). It's self-propel and came with the parts for both side discharge and rear bagging. This was three seasons ago and it still runs well.

When I'm in the market for a replacement I'll save a CL keyword search in google reader and wait for the ads that look good. It's not much different than looking for a specific kind of used car on CL. You'll have to wade through the nuts and crooks no matter what you're looking for.

 

[andyd]

I like to tinker with stuff. This will be the 10th season for my 35 yr old sit down. It will be the 6 th season for the 35 yr old Lawnboy push mower. The Toro 3 spd with a Suzuki 4 stroke is on its 4th season. A 4 stroke LB waits in the wings. They were all free with minimal new parts. The last 2 were projects that just needed a few bolts that I had in my shop. They were therapy for when I got antsy from being house bound whilst doing chemo. Project-wise they an hour each. The Toro is used to keep the woods at bay. The sitdown and the 2 stroke keep my so called lawn trimmed

In short go for a free top of the line mower. Expect minor issues. I havent bought a new or used mower in 20 yrs

 

[dwcopple]

bought a Toro that the bearing in the self propel pinion had grenaded for $15. I rebuilt the trans housing with a new USA bearing for about $9. It mows excellent and I could sell it for over $90 here in a heartbeat.

I also trash picked a newer craftsman from a neighbor earlier this winter and put a new air filter in it, new fuel line, a fuel filter, changed the oil, sharpened the blade, washed it, now its good as new. It is a large wheel push bagger/mulcher. Score.