Hi AHR readers and posters. I just bought a new John Deere riding
mower, nothing fancy, but it's a new way to mow for me.

I know that the maintenance schedule is posted on it right under the
engine hood, and will follow it to a tee. But, and given differences in
prices in different areas, what is an average cost of servicing these?

So far today I have only driven it in non-mowing speed to get it down my
backyard hill and into the shed until my brother can come over and help
me figure out the best approach to mowing the hill. It was a little
scary and it felt like the tires were slipping a little on the hill, but
the grass is very long at this point. I guess long grass is slippery.
My brother said I was imagining the slippage.

Anyway, any answers to these questions are appreciated. I'm just
getting too old to mow the hills without hurting my back, and not yet
ready to hire someone to do it for me full time yet.

Thanks!

On 5/27/2011 6:40 PM, Cheryl wrote:
Hi AHR readers and posters. I just bought a new John Deere riding mower,
nothing fancy, but it's a new way to mow for me.

I know that the maintenance schedule is posted on it right under the
engine hood, and will follow it to a tee. But, and given differences in
prices in different areas, what is an average cost of servicing these?

So far today I have only driven it in non-mowing speed to get it down my
backyard hill and into the shed until my brother can come over and help
me figure out the best approach to mowing the hill. It was a little
scary and it felt like the tires were slipping a little on the hill, but
the grass is very long at this point. I guess long grass is slippery. My
brother said I was imagining the slippage.

Anyway, any answers to these questions are appreciated. I'm just getting
too old to mow the hills without hurting my back, and not yet ready to
hire someone to do it for me full time yet.

Thanks!

Is it hydrostatic drive, or manual? If hydro, did the delivery guy do
the voodoo routine to make sure the fluid got in all the right places?
If transmission was slipping, that could feel like wheel slippage. And
did he check/set the tire pressures? One hard tire and one soft one can
confuse a lot of things.

Basic rule on hills- anything over the degree tilt listed in owner's
manual, go up and down rather than side to side. Tipping even a tiny
tractor over sideways can lead to a Very Bad Day.

I'm jealous. My yard is only about 2/3 acre, minus the house footprint,
but even a small tractor would cut my mowing time in half.

--
aem sends...

On 5/27/2011 6:59 PM, aemeijers wrote:

Is it hydrostatic drive, or manual?

Manual. I learned that you don't shift on the fly like you do in a car.
Need to slow to a stop? That's what the guy said. I haven't read the
manual or looked at the DVD yet. Will do that tonight.

If hydro, did the delivery guy do
the voodoo routine to make sure the fluid got in all the right places?
If transmission was slipping, that could feel like wheel slippage. And
did he check/set the tire pressures? One hard tire and one soft one can
confuse a lot of things.

The dealer said they did all the checks and runs prior to delivery. It
was on a trailer, not even in a crate, and had oil and gas in it.

Basic rule on hills- anything over the degree tilt listed in owner's
manual, go up and down rather than side to side. Tipping even a tiny
tractor over sideways can lead to a Very Bad Day.

Up and down hills sounds opposite of what I'd do, but that's why I'm
asking. This cuts in reverse, I wonder if I can go forward up the hill,
and in reverse down the hill?

I'm jealous. My yard is only about 2/3 acre, minus the house footprint,
but even a small tractor would cut my mowing time in half.

I got it out of necessity. My back is getting in bad shape and the 2 - 3
hours it takes me to mow with a walk behind has been taking its toll on
it. I'm not ready yet to hire someone.

Thank you for the reply!

On 5/27/2011 5:40 PM, Cheryl wrote:
Hi AHR readers and posters. I just bought a new John Deere riding mower,
nothing fancy, but it's a new way to mow for me.

I know that the maintenance schedule is posted on it right under the
engine hood, and will follow it to a tee. But, and given differences in
prices in different areas, what is an average cost of servicing these?

So far today I have only driven it in non-mowing speed to get it down my
backyard hill and into the shed until my brother can come over and help
me figure out the best approach to mowing the hill. It was a little
scary and it felt like the tires were slipping a little on the hill, but
the grass is very long at this point. I guess long grass is slippery. My
brother said I was imagining the slippage.

Anyway, any answers to these questions are appreciated. I'm just getting
too old to mow the hills without hurting my back, and not yet ready to
hire someone to do it for me full time yet.

Thanks!

Something you might consider. My ditch is almost always wet in places.
I put a knarly set of ATV tires (dirt devils) on the rear of mine.
You just have to be a little careful on the lawn to prevent gouging, but
you get used to them.

--
Steve Barker
remove the "not" from my address to email

"Cheryl" wrote in message
...
On 5/27/2011 6:59 PM, aemeijers wrote:

Up and down hills sounds opposite of what I'd do, but that's why I'm
asking. This cuts in reverse, I wonder if I can go forward up the hill,
and in reverse down the hill?


Up and down depends on the equipment and the power it has to climb a grade.

For absolute sure if you do side to side shift your body weight and maybe
even lean to the uphill side. Of course the term "hill" is a relative one.
What seems like a mountain with a push mower can be completely normal for a
rider.

I do own one house where I would not mow the HILL either way. If I had
to mow it all the time there would be a retaining wall built.

Colbyt

On 5/27/2011 6:23 PM, Cheryl wrote:
On 5/27/2011 6:59 PM, aemeijers wrote:

Is it hydrostatic drive, or manual?

Manual. I learned that you don't shift on the fly like you do in a car.
Need to slow to a stop? That's what the guy said. I haven't read the
manual or looked at the DVD yet. Will do that tonight.

If hydro, did the delivery guy do
the voodoo routine to make sure the fluid got in all the right places?
If transmission was slipping, that could feel like wheel slippage. And
did he check/set the tire pressures? One hard tire and one soft one can
confuse a lot of things.

The dealer said they did all the checks and runs prior to delivery. It
was on a trailer, not even in a crate, and had oil and gas in it.

Basic rule on hills- anything over the degree tilt listed in owner's
manual, go up and down rather than side to side. Tipping even a tiny
tractor over sideways can lead to a Very Bad Day.

Up and down hills sounds opposite of what I'd do, but that's why I'm
asking. This cuts in reverse, I wonder if I can go forward up the hill,
and in reverse down the hill?
....

Hydrostatic and hills don't mix--they'll speed up going down and slow
down going up (altho you can combat the latter, the former isn't so
easy). Bought a JD in TN and had to swap it for the previous year's
model that had manual tranny for that reason.

It would help to know the actual model and spec's to judge what might be
going on other than just your getting familiar w/ a new machine.

On the up/down vs side slope, in general avoid the side slope on any
hill of any consequence; the manual will tell you what/how to operate
the particular machine and its limits. The hill in TN was moderate and
one could go both ways, but one did have to shift weight and
counterbalance when going sideways. W/ a rear bagger it was pretty
light on the front end when it got a load while going uphill as well. I
added some front weights for that reason; roughly 50 lb overall I'd
think altho I don't recall precisely any longer.

There was much to like in VA and TN, but having level lawn/garden back
here in KS is a blessing from that standpoint... (now if it would
only rain).

--

On 5/27/2011 7:26 PM, Steve Barker wrote:
Something you might consider. My ditch is almost always wet in places.
I put a knarly set of ATV tires (dirt devils) on the rear of mine. You
just have to be a little careful on the lawn to prevent gouging, but you
get used to them.

Thanks. I don't often get soaked areas, but unfortunately my neighbor
behind me gets all my run-off. He's dealing with sink holes.

On 5/27/2011 8:07 PM, Colbyt wrote:

Up and down depends on the equipment and the power it has to climb a grade.

It's rated for slopes/hills but I get your point.

For absolute sure if you do side to side shift your body weight and maybe
even lean to the uphill side. Of course the term "hill" is a relative one.
What seems like a mountain with a push mower can be completely normal for a
rider.

Luckily the hill is only about maybe 20' down the side of my house.
I've thought about just putting in steps to get down to the backyard and
to the steps up to the deck. I still might do that.

I do own one house where I would not mow the HILL either way. If I had
to mow it all the time there would be a retaining wall built.

I get you!

On 5/27/2011 8:19 PM, dpb wrote:

It would help to know the actual model and spec's to judge what might be
going on other than just your getting familiar w/ a new machine.

It's official model number is 100 series OMGX24147 A1.

Try this URL
http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1v/R-202585916/h_d2/ProductDisplay?storeId=10051&keyword=BG20540&jspSt oreDir=hdus&Nu=P_PARENT_ID&navFlow=3&catalogId=100 53&langId=-1&ddkey=Search

Or tiny
http://tinyurl.com/4xmu9lx

On the up/down vs side slope, in general avoid the side slope on any
hill of any consequence; the manual will tell you what/how to operate
the particular machine and its limits.

I'll read the manual before mowing. I appreciate your advice.


There was much to like in VA and TN, but having level lawn/garden back
here in KS is a blessing from that standpoint... (now if it would
only rain).

I thought you were getting all of the southern and mid west storms? If
not, at least you're missing the severe ones. I wish for you needed rain.

On 5/27/2011 9:40 PM, Cheryl wrote:
....

I thought you were getting all of the southern and mid west storms? If
not, at least you're missing the severe ones. I wish for you needed rain.

All east of us...we're part of the severe/extreme drought area of the
High Plains...

From an earlier posting in the recent thread on hail I posted the
following for another ahr'er regular...

http://www.drought.unl.edu/dm/DM_highplains.htm
http://www.drought.unl.edu/dm/DM_west.htm

We're in that narrow band of "extreme" on the edge of "exceptional" in
the SW corner of KS. While it shows extreme conditions on farther east
in KS, one must remember that their averages are 2x or more those of the
farther west and the indices are relative to averages for the areas. So,
if we had had what they have had we could well be near normal while
they're showing a world of hurt, comparatively.

We've had only about 1.5" of precipitation since last August and our
spring season when we expect to get most of our annual from t-storms is
rapidly coming to a close w/o any signs of relief...

--

On May 27, 6:40*pm, Cheryl wrote:
Hi AHR readers and posters. *I just bought a new John Deere riding
mower, nothing fancy, but it's a new way to mow for me.

I know that the maintenance schedule is posted on it right under the
engine hood, and will follow it to a tee. *But, and given differences in
prices in different areas, what is an average cost of servicing these?

So far today I have only driven it in non-mowing speed to get it down my
backyard hill and into the shed until my brother can come over and help
me figure out the best approach to mowing the hill. *It was a little
scary and it felt like the tires were slipping a little on the hill, but
the grass is very long at this point. *I guess long grass is slippery.
My brother said I was imagining the slippage.

Anyway, any answers to these questions are appreciated. *I'm just
getting too old to mow the hills without hurting my back, and not yet
ready to hire someone to do it for me full time yet.

Thanks!

YOU DONT USE RIDER MOWERS ON ANY HILL WHERE THE MACHINE COULD HAVE A
ACCIDENT!!!

Far too many people have died that way

"Cheryl" wrote in message
...
Hi AHR readers and posters. I just bought a new John Deere riding mower,
nothing fancy, but it's a new way to mow for me.

I know that the maintenance schedule is posted on it right under the
engine hood, and will follow it to a tee. But, and given differences in
prices in different areas, what is an average cost of servicing these?

Servicing yourself or professionally?

Every offseason (March), I

- drain the oil
- replace the oil, air, and fuel filters
- refill new oil
- replace the spark plugs
- remove the mower deck, remove the blades, take them to a shop for
sharpening, then reinstall the blades and mower deck
- spray cleaner into the carburetor

During mowing season, you need to clean the air filter about once per month,
and check/fill oil as needed.

This year the oil, filters, plugs, and sharpening cost about $75

I think I'll have to replace my 3-year old battery soon too. It's charge
gets too low too quickly. My trickle charger brings it back, but I have to
do this after almost every mowing now.

On 5/28/2011 10:34 AM, dadiOH wrote:

When mowing on hills - even those no steeper than those the manual
recommends - you can mitigate tipping in the same manner as one does when
riding a horse...lean forward going up hill, lean back when going down hill.
Both shift the center of gravity. You can also lean to the high side if
mowing horizontally.

Well, I cut the grass today. Most of it. I'll still have to use my
regular mower for the parts the tractor get to. But it sure cut out so
much time. My brother was figuring out for me the best route to take to
get the hill done. He did about half if the lawn, then stopped it and
said it was my turn. I was petrified at first, but soon it felt
comfortable and I found that mowing down the hill was the best. With
foot off the clutch, the gear controls the speed (I know everyone knows
that but me; I'm caught up now! lol) and it turned out to be easy to
drive. So I take a route across the far edge of the backyard on the flat
part, up a less steep part, drive along the fence and then down the hill
to the same spot at the far edge, then back up the same less steep part,
then down hill to do the next pass.

I want to thank you all for the advice and replies.

On 5/28/2011 11:42 AM, Dimitrios Paskoudniakis wrote:

Servicing yourself or professionally?

Professionally.


Every offseason (March), I

- drain the oil
- replace the oil, air, and fuel filters
- refill new oil
- replace the spark plugs
- remove the mower deck, remove the blades, take them to a shop for
sharpening, then reinstall the blades and mower deck
- spray cleaner into the carburetor

During mowing season, you need to clean the air filter about once per
month, and check/fill oil as needed.

This is the part I always forget during the season.

This year the oil, filters, plugs, and sharpening cost about $75

Thanks. I think I can figure out the labor in this area and I might end
up paying $100 or maybe $125 each year. Maybe a bit more, I guess I'll
have to wait and see.

I think I'll have to replace my 3-year old battery soon too. It's
charge gets too low too quickly. My trickle charger brings it back, but
I have to do this after almost every mowing now.

Do all of these with a key start have a battery? I hadn't thought of
that, so thanks.

On 2011-05-28, Cheryl wrote:

Do all of these with a key start have a battery? I hadn't thought of
that, so thanks.

Yes

On 5/28/2011 5:33 PM, Oren wrote:
Driving like that you can be famous. Maybe qualify for the Daytona
500.

Yeah, it was a few laps. LOL

I want to thank you all for the advice and replies.
I looked at your link earlier. Only a few but positive.

Seems a mulching plate or bager are optional.

I just ordered the mulching cover. Not expensive but after seeing the
cuttings, I do need it.

On Sat, 28 May 2011 16:32:32 -0700, Oren wrote:

On Sat, 28 May 2011 19:11:15 -0400, Cheryl
wrote:

On 5/28/2011 5:33 PM, Oren wrote:
Driving like that you can be famous. Maybe qualify for the Daytona
500.

Yeah, it was a few laps. LOL

I want to thank you all for the advice and replies.
I looked at your link earlier. Only a few but positive.

Seems a mulching plate or bager are optional.

I just ordered the mulching cover. Not expensive but after seeing the
cuttings, I do need it.

The mulching will feed the lawn turf. No need to buy fertilizer.

*LESS* need to buy fertilizer. It doesn't eliminate the need.