I just received Landscapers Supply spring catalog and was checking out their line of walk behinds. Does anybody know if these machines are any good? They seem to be much cheaper than some of the name brands.
units are made by a company called black rock manufacturing, i believe there is a ownership connection between landscapers supply and black rock.<br>anyways these machines are pure garbage.<br>i would not buy one if it was the last machine out there.
Looks like garbage to me, too. Their ZTR looks more bulky and less engineered than other inferior commercial brands. <p>Although it is built of heavy gauge steel, there0 is more to consider. Arlington Power Equipment in Arlington Heights IL has Ferris, Scag and Bobcat all available in the same price range.<p>Contrary to popular belief, you can get the machines serviced by any dealer, not just the one you bought from. I have yet to have a dealer tell me they wouldn't service my equipment because it was bought elsewhere. If you tell them beforehand that you are buying a mower from someone else and ask if they will service it for you, of course they are going to make it sound as if you will suffer consequences because you didn't buy from them. However, if you keep quiet and just take the mower there for service, watch what happens. <p><p>John
You really cant go wrong for the price, especially if you are going to give the mower to a crew of DPs to beat the crap out of them. Myself, I wouldnt use one, but if I was going to start another crew for second-rate lawns these would be my choice.<p>They are very similar to the bottom line exmark, bunton and ransomes. Theres a Landscaper Supply store a few miles from home so Ive had a chance to check em out a few times.<p>Bill
because my ztr is my main mower used, i woulgd get one of them if i wanted a new walkbehind.... you can get a 48 with a 14 hp kawi for only 2,000..... how bad can a belt driven walkbehind with a pearless transmission and a kawasaki engine be? belt driven walk behinds are pretty basic machines so there isnt too much to go wrong...the only disadvantage i can think of is the quality of cut and maybe poor quality bearings?.....for me since i hardly use a walkbehind exept for steep hills and gated yards id consider one...but then again if i use it that rarly maybe a name brand used mower would be more ideal!
New fixed deck toro/eXmarks with 14hp kaw<br>are available for only $2250. <p> I prefer t-bar steering so I would not<br>even consider any pistol grip machine.<br>
I recently looked at a lot of beltdrive mowers. The Landscaper was one of them. One of the problems with the The Landscaper mower was getting warranty work done. They do offer local warranty service but it is an option that you pay for. Someone else here compared the quality of The Landscaper to Exmark beltdrives. Some of the features that the Exmark has that are probably absent from The Landscaper are: 9 spline drive coupler (The Landscaper uses the standard 30 spline), "no tools" brake adjustments, included factory warranty service, adjustable handlebars, adjustable axle, no-grease spindles, more grease fittings on the remainder of the machine, sealent filled caster tires, thicker steel frame, parts overnight or they're free (assuming you would need to buy a part)and extensive deck baffling (sp). I would be more inclined to compare The Landscaper to a Gravely or MTD Pro mower. You get what you pay for. Oh yeah, I bought the Exmark.
i own two gravely mowers. i have a gravely out front 60inch rider...its crap! cuts horrible all the time even in dry grass and there is always something breaking...ive had it for 4 years and ive had enough its for sale and i now use a toro z master. my other gravly is a 36ich walkbehind. there mchine cuts great all thre time even in wet grass and never clumps. ive had it for almost 5 years and it has never had one thing wrong with it. i dont understand gravely...how can they make one mower so crapppy and another so great?
The Landscaper,mopeds and fat girls all have one thing in common, fun to play with, but don"t let your friends see you with them.<br>P.S. I own two of them, I had them for backups, but now they go out everyday as front runners, never break down either(14 kawis and pearless transmissions make this possible). <p>----------<br>grasskutter@cs.com<br>
That brings up an interesting point. Since most downtime on our units are engine related, if you get a good engine you'll have a decent shot at having a reliable machine.<p>I'm not going to buy a Landscaper and frankly don't think their walkbehinds are that low of a price, but:<p>If you bought a 1997 Landscaper w/ Kawasaki and a 1997 Exmark/Scag/Bobcat/Toro, etc. with a V-Twin Kohler, the Landscaper would have less downtime.
