walker mowers are they really worth the money?

[poghead]

Hello to all.This is my first post.I`m new in this business.I have a full time job,80 hrs. a week.I currently have 3 mowing accounts. I do these on the weekends. I may get 2 more in the next month. One of those will be a commercial job. I need to save time. Is the Walker really that much more of a mower for the money? I want to leave a clean job and from what I've heard, the Walker is supposed to be the best for cleaning up debris.If anyone has any input for me on this subject, I'd really appreciate your opinion.

[Lawnworks]

I would get more accounts before I got a 10,000 dollar mower. Personally, I do not think they are worth it. I have a Dixie Chopper and I think it is a very efficient machine. Gets the job done.... quickly.:)

[Dan Stoms]

I ended up buying a Dixion 42"Estate model 16hp Kohler mower with a blower for grass collection and clean up,because like you I couldn't decide between what I wanted and what I needed. For no more work than I was going to be doing,this seemed to be somewhere in the middle between residential and an expensive commercial grade .Ground speed is good and cleans up very well. So my advice would be to get what the work can pay for ,and move up as the buisness increases. Working as much as you do, who knows you may be like some and get tired of cutting grass and end up with your wife cutting your grass on Saturdays for 15min. on a 10,000$ machine.

[Esby]

I personally would go with a commercail walk-behind. They are far less expensive compared to the Walker, with out sacrificing a great cut. Especially considering the amount of time you will be spending on it. Personaly I would get an Exmark with a 48" deck. You do need to decide between hydro and belt drive, thats up to you. Worried about a clean appearence?? Attach the mulch system made by Exmark and it will make your clippings disappear. Or just discharge for still an exceptional cut. Talk to your local commercail turf care equipment dealer and see what they think.

[MOW ED]

O.K. now that you have heard from some people that don't have Walkers I will give you my opinion.
I have owned a Walker for the last 3 years. I started my lawn service without the benefit of any help like this site so I bought a Toro lawn tractor. It is a nice unit but its nice for a homeowner that dosen't need speed in mowing.

I have a Walker 26efi 42"GHS that suits my mowing needs. I have customers that require bagging for various reasons (pools, gardens, just plain stubborn) and thats fine for me. The Walker is not as fast as a Dixie or a Lazer but then the Dixie or the Lazer cant vacuum and "REMOVE" debris like the Walker. I also own a Toro Proline 44" walk/slide behind 15hp hydro. This mower is used as a spare and for real wet days and early starts (discharge properties).

The Walker is invaluable for spring clean dethatchings and my work looks better and is done faster than anyone in my area pushing a walkbehind dethatcher and raking or blowing it to a pile. It is also very valuable in the fall for picking up leafs and grinding them to dust. I do not even have a rake on my trailer.

I use the Walker to also discharge clippings out of the back with the no-catch deflector. If you stay up with the lawn it works fine which is the same as any mower.

Yes 10K is alot of money to spend but my mower is paid for and I have no regrets about ever spending the money. The Walker company is tremendous to deal with. They are committed to excellence and customer satisfaction and they keep improving the mower as new methods and technology improves.

I work 56+ hours a week in my other profession and I have 2 days a week to do lawns. 25 lawns in a time of 12 to 16 hours depending on time of year, believe me - my Walker is worth it. My Toro lawn tractor would have taken twice as long to do the same work. My walk behind can do all of this in about the same time with less than desireable results along with me being drag out tired when the day is done.

I'd recommend you get in touch with a Walker dealer or distributor in your area and arrange a demo for the properties that you mow. Do the same with other mowers and see what you like. If you are in this for the long run, go commercial. If you have any specific questions, e-mail me i'd be glad to answer. Good Luck.

[Currier]

Walkers are awesome machines. New are super expensive...and again, you get what you pay for, kind of like what we tell our mowing customers...

I bought mine used 5 years ago. I keep the oil/filters changed, change hydro oil and keep an eye on the belts. In tha last five years 30-40 lawns per week I have had maybe $200.00 worth of parts/ adjustments done to the machine. It increased my business, gives an awesome cut, and saves me tons of time and work. Is it worth it? Yes.
16 hp Model C 42 inch GHS. None of the burn up problems i hear about. Bought it for 3500.00 to date it has brought in more than enough to make it worth it.

[Lawnworks]

Walkers are a mower that caters to those who bag their clippings. If you do not need to bag your clippings, you do not need a Walker. I tried a Walker and I did not like it. They have very sensative steering They are a very high maintenance machine. If your not bagging, a Lazer or Dixie Chopper is your best bet. They will out perform a Walker any day of the week. Walker are so SLOW. If I mowed at 5mph or 7mph with the speed up kit, I would literally go insane. I do not know how you Walker guys can stand it! I guess yall don't know better.:)

[landscaper3]

I agree with MOWED, we own 2 new ones owned Walkers for many years and there isnt a substatute. Our GHS are also equiped with extra decks for discharging instead of bagging less then 3-minutes to change. BUT-BUT you need accounts before buying a new mower! Either by a used one or a new walkbehind to start out and pocket you cash and save then when more accounts come in get the Walker!!!! They are one of the lowest maintenance mowers out there,there compact cut trimming time down due to other mowers have ADD ON VACUME systems that stick way out. The steering on Walker mowers is also one of the best in the market, by itself makes real straight lines for striping and they also have a tail lock kit for REALLLLYYY straight lines. We have put around 3500-4500 hrs on our Walkers combined and they are RELIBLE. Those front mounts are great!!

[Edited by landscaper3 on 12-16-2000 at 03:30 AM]

[Currier]

"They have very sensative steering They are a very high maintenance machine."

Sensitive steering is a good thing. With a Walker you use one hand to steer and probably just two fingers!I honestly have not experienced this "high maintenance" stuff. You have a machine that is designed to be simple in maintenance...no hydraulic lines or pumps. super easy repairs in the field...few tools required. If you plan on beating it to pieces ...you can. Personally I like to baby my machines as they provide my living.

I say look around. It is my experience that whatever the folks around you are using is probably very well suited for your needs, and if you are small and just starting to grow, you may be able to find a decent used machine (and the dealer support to run it).

[poghead]

Thank-you all for your opinions. Let me go into more detail.I live in the midlands of south carolina.I fell into cutting other folks lawns when an elderly lady accross the street asked me, as the lawn service she used just stopped showing up.Well I owened a honda 21"walk behind does a fair job with pine straw & leaves.I always bag my yard couse that pine straw is endless here.Well she told a frind and here I am with 3 yards to keep up not counting mine.I drive a truck for a living so I'm gone 5 days a week.I can afford the expense of the walker now and stay with my driving job another year. I will pick up a comm. acct. in march and another res. as well.I like being outdoors,I like cutting grass,I think I would like to get into this full time.What I don't like is raking straw & leaves.

[Likestomow]

Pog - the key to your dilemma is to try out some of these mowers that were mentioned. Find a friend who has one, or just call some of the lawn services and start talking to them.

I have a 60" Chopper, set up with double Gator blades, and I can tell you that that baby will mulch leaves to powder… and I mean that. It does take more time to accomplish this than running over the lawn with a Walker, but you don't have to empty anything either. A few of my accounts do have places where I could dump the leaves, but most don't.

Leaves are a problem for only a few months at best. The rest of the time you will want speed and efficiency to get through those accounts as fast as possible and then move on to the next one. A Chopper will travel about 9 MPH which is fast compared to a Walker. Chopper also uses ATV tires which provide a much smoother ride. The Velvet Touch Control hydraulics on a Chopper is the easiest system to use in the industry. Over an entire season, you will like all of that.

[nasandsons]

I own a 1999 Walker 48" GHS with the 25HP Kohler engine and have had absolutely no problems with it at all. It does give an exceptional cut and it is awesome when performing spring and fall cleanups.

The steering is real tight, but this also provides little effort to manuever the machine from the operator's point.

I will say the Walker is a little bit pricey, but as the old saying goes, YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR......

And my clients can vouch for that.......

Hope everyone has a safe and joyous Holiday Season!

Relax, Spring is just around the corner....

David

[nasandsons]

Hey Guys and Gals,

One more thing. My wife helps me out alot on these jobs, and YES, she will agree, it is as easy to use as driving a car.

Oh wait one second, she is sitting here with me and she does want to mention that she is a fully skilled Walker Mower operator who can cut with the best of us.

She also handles the F150 and 16' trailer unbelievably well.

She is one of my most valued employees and assets. She backs me 100 percent in this business.

[BUSHMASTER]

Walkers .....price .... if you can work on your equiptment... buy a used model with a water cooled engine.....If you wonder " do i really need a walker",,,,
do i have enough bizz....well when you get one you'll wonder how you got along with out it...i wish i had mine 3 years ago......it would have paid for its self.....thier was a used one in the local paper last week here with 850hrs asking $3500. not bad......oh ... teir not bad on maintence...and i own a dc,36 wb and the size property that i do you could not get the dc or lazer or exmark up to full speed and turn around at the other end without messing uo the turff.....my average length before turn around in 70ft
remeber the storie about the turtle and the rabbit since the additon of my walker my string trimmer gets used a whole lot less and that save time and 2cycle fuel and string= $$$$...to each his own.

[Edited by BUSHMASTER on 12-16-2000 at 04:04 PM]

[Mowman]

I bought a used Walker this year and am very happy with it. As far as the high maintenance I'd like to know what it is. I bought it in June 00, and did change all the fluids. Changed the engine oil,hydro fluid, and the gear box fluids, fuel filter, air filter, and spark plugs. Since then all I have done is blow out the engine compartment with compressed air. What is so high maintenance about that. It is the Sidedischarge deck, maybe the GHS system is high maintenance. I love my Walker and would not trade it for another. Yes, Exmark,Dixie's are faster, if speed is what you want than buy one of them. Just my 2 cents.
Mowman

[Evan528]

mowman, Im just wandering why you would spend so much money on a walker considering your not even using it for bagging? How can there side discharge productividy even compare to a lazer or dixie chopper? Yes they are very fast and they cut very nice too. What are the advantages of the walker if not used for bagging?

[jcoat]

Pog,
From my experiences with this site and the many opinions there are, you need to find a Yellow Pages, see who carries what, and go check the mowers. There are so many to choose now and so many variations (Standers, Walk-behinds, Sitters...). Get some literature, check specs (size; engine manufacturer; build: welded, stamped, metal thickness...); figure exactly how you will be using the mower; will you be using it solely or will you be adding employees (will this be a training issue and can the mower take their abuse?); narrow it down to 3-5 and check the archives of the forum or ask.
I have been on this forum for nearly a year now and will be starting my lmo this spring. There is A LOT of information to research and take in. I still haven't purchased a commercial mower, but I've narrowed it down to three (One is a Walker). My decision will be based solely on who my customers end up being and how I'll be using my equipment. Hope this helped...

[SLSNursery]

We have all types of machines, including a Walker that has a couple of thousand hours on it. I know exactly how we got by without it. We put more hours on our other machines, and did more manual raking, etc. The machine does NOT take the day to day hammering that our Scags do, period. The other day I went to jack up the Walker in order to fix a tire that had popped of on a slight incline (this was not a big deal, fortunately the truck with air brakes has an air line). In an effort not to lose time, the guys were bagging a big commercial account with our oldest (second engine) walk behind 52" Scag. It was sort of funny to see the broken down Walker versus the perfectly fine Scag. This was the quintessential example of how we used to do it!

The deck doesn't hold up as well to the banging around on the trailer, or curbs. I know that this is not the fault of the machine, but since we don't abuse stuff in general, its kind of tough to tell the guys to 'baby' one machine. It is almost like the metal is soft around the edges of the Deck to the point that the slightest tap will bend the steel, and the blades will not rotate. This is very annoying, and might even occur on the trailer as the deck rides next to the side rail of the trailer deck. It is a difficult situation to avoid.

Operational ease - although not everyone uses the machine, the couple of guys that do didn't have any problems adapting, and customers always compliment us when the machine finishes. I can run a keyboard better than a mower now, but even in a pinch I can run the Walker without breaking anything or crashing.

Cleanups - the machine vacuums very well, and with a vacuum truck set up for our fall clean ups it was invaluable. Definitely should work for regular lawn vacuum jobs like the pine needles as long as you don't hog into a huge pile of them all at once.

Speed - we run a turf tiger, and have tried others. The Walker is no speed demon. However, it was down for a couple of weeks (see next paragraph). Overall the crews were not short a machine, because we filled in with backups other than walkers (Turf Tiger and 3 wheeled rider). Their time loss for the week was noticeable. About a crew hour per day. For our accounts it is clearly a time saver at any pace.

Maintenance and problems - we have a liquid cooled diesel that runs fine. The engineering on the machine seems sound, and I have had a pleasant conversation with Bob Walker about some of the shortcomings I've noticed. We had consistent problems with the cooling system - electrically. Finally one week, after changing the relays, and fixing the wiring harness, the machine went in to the dealer, and ended up with another set of relays and a new fan. It has also had strange problems with temperature and Oil pressure sensors.

With more, and new technology, it seems likely that things will break, and unfortunately we have experienced our share of it. Our dealer doesn't seem to know too much about the actual use of the machines, and this is problematic. Its tough to explain problems to guys who are only running machines on asphalt or in a shop. They are constantly looking to change out parts like safety switches, etc, instead of checking into other problems, like recalls, or slight adjustments to remove vibrations, etc. There are other slightly annoying problems, like some of the gadgets or poor designs that I don't see any longer on the new models (air cleaner cover, Air intake cover, coolant overflow container).

Bottom line - 1 operator who will be careful with the machine and wants awesome results with few problems. Spend the 10k now, and you'll probably be happy with the unit for a decade, or be able to sell it for a good chunk of change if you don't end up liking it. If you want to keep it for a while buy the diesel.

[landscaper3]

We got rid of our Scag Turf runners (POOR IMITATION OF A WALKER) nothing but spidle, chassis and gearbox problem. We live in Maine which the land here is hilly and rough and ill tell you they are one of the STRONGEST and most RELIABLE machines out there. We use our in winter for plowing and snowblowing that alone shows how durable these are. The question is what sutes your business are you going to be bagging 70% of the time buy the Walker if your discharging only buy a Dixie or a ZTR type mower. We have used a ZTR mower through some of the season and its a good machine and fast, but up here you cant mow at 8plus mph but if you live in a state that the grass alows you to great more $$$$ per hour you may make. As far as the decks being weak they are not they might not be the thickest in the industry but they are tough and easy to maintain. And for the one hand stearing its the best quick response and finger only stearing its great and so simple to operate. This is a mower that is designed for bagging and discharging all fit into a nice compact design without the need of those big bulky bagging sytems that need an extra motor to run. Plain and simple weather your a 1 man show or a big company Walker is up there with the best of them in reliability, performance and cut.

[cantoo]

For any of you guys who have said the Walkers are no good, give me a call I'll take your junk off your hands. It'll save you a trip to the dump, I'll even give you scrap steel price for it. Oh yeah, even in U.S. dollars too.

[Lawnworks]

I think the deck height is a pain to adjust on a Walker. You have to take 4 pins out every time you want to change the height. That would drive me crazy. If you are set on getting a Walker, I would definately get one used. After you use it for a year or two you will probably want a Chopper.:) Seriously, I would not even consider one of those machines if you did not bag all the time. I mulch pine needles w/ my chopper. I throw them to the middle and turn them into saw dust or either disperse them into the ground. My chopper will destroy leaves. I really surprise alot of customers. Today, one of my customers almost refused to believe I mulched all her leaves in an hour. I told her I had the fastest lawn mower on earth, but she had to take a look.:)

[MOW ED]

Pine needles are full of acid. My Walker vacuums pine needles up and they can be disposed of.

Deck height adjustment takes 20 seconds to do unless you have no fingers.

Choppers are nice for certain type of cutting- Choppers can bag if you want to buy additional motors and chutes and counterbalance weights. Walker does it with ease.

I would like a Chopper too but you won't find one mower that does it all so you have to work with the one that does "most" of what you need.

BTW,I'm with Cantoo on this one.

[Mowman]

EVAN,
I BOUGHT THE WALKER AFTER TRYING OUT MY FRIENDS. I KEPT LOOKING FOR A USED EXMARK LAZER HP AND COULD NOT FIND ONE. WOULD I BUY A BRAND NEW WALKER? NOT SURE. I WOULD CONTACT THE BROKER I GOT THIS ONE FROM AND TELL HIM I WOULD LIKE ONE WITH ONLY A FEW HOURS ON AND WAIT TILL HE FOUND ONE. JUST LIKE BUYING A NEW TRUCK, LET SOMEONE ELSE EAT THE DEPRECIATION. THE WALKER CAN BLOW SNOW,GRADE LAWNS WITH THE BLADE. CAN THE DIXIE AND LAZER'S DO THAT? WHY DO PEOPLE PAY $8000.00+ FOR A DIXIE IF ALL THEY CAN DO IS CUT THE GRASS?
Mowman

[John DiMartino]

I bough the Dixie to mow as quickly as possible,I have a tractor if i want to grade or blow snow,neither of which the walker is very quick at doing,yeah it beats a shovel,but I can run circles around the walker with the compact 4x4 tractor,doing anything but mowing.Im not brand loyal to Dixie by no means,but they are fast and if i had a walker,it would take me another 1/2 day each week to finish my work,i am very busy and that 1/2 day is important to me.I have a trac-vac bagger for it,and while the walker is a better bagger,i only use it for a month in the spring and a month in the fall.All summer i discharge,so the walker would get smoked by my DC 90% of the time.I literally mow my lawn at 10mph-there is only about 2 acres out of the 7 at my house that are rough,the rest i di wide open.I mow big open areas,this is where the Dixie thrives,that why i bought it.

[Tony]

Pog
Look at the Exmark HP machines with their quick attach bagger, you can take it off when you don't need it or use it when you need it. The prices on the Exmark will be less than the Walker and you'll get a faster more reliable machine that uses Hydraulic drive instead of the hydrostatic drive on the Walker. If you need any literature just email me. Another features the Exmark has an advantage on is the size of the drive tires which are larger than the Walker hereby giving you more traction in the South Carolina terrain. They also have larger fuel tanks. Happy Shopping!!

[cantoo]

The more the merrier, I have a diesel Walker as a spare. I have a 10' front mount spray boom on it. I also have a 72" Ransomes for the big areas. My offer to take the Walkers off your hands still stands.
I would think that to have the perfect mower for every property and every weather and terrain condition you would have to have more than one mower.... Oh wait I do have more than one.
Bottom line is, try all the mowers out on the properties that you are going to use it on and buy the one than works the best. Keep in mind which one does the next best job then buy it the next year....