Hello All for a newbie boardie,
I used to do a lot of grounds maintenance in the UK but I have now moved to Ireland & a gentler lifestyle - about 6 hours mowing per week !.
I am considering replacing my Honda Pro Roller & can't decide whether to try the John Deere 21". As you will know the Honda has a great engine but a debatable roller drive/clutch also it never collects well in the rain - struggles to lift the grass over the rear roller. Is the JD any better ?
Yes.
GOGGA
NO I have a John Deere and a Honda. The Deere has been nothing but trouble. Height adjuster falling off both front and rear and now major gearbox and driveshaft problem. My opinion steer clear
Nothing like a unanimous view !. I have known plenty of problems with the Honda as well especially gearboxes. Grass collection is a real problem here as the high rainfall & warmth mean that one is often cutting long wet grass. Ideally I would use an Etesia but it won't stripe & is so heavy that it would sink !.
What about a Hayter Harrier 56?
9 Sep 2009 by sipho
We have two R47KB - the only major issue with them is that the front wheels fall off from time to time. they have been sent back to the dealer who says that there was a design fault. The axle bolts have been replaced a few times. We have resorted to welding them when the break.
Plus points - its really gives a good stripe and the bag fill right up. Easy mower to use.
sip
Gogga International Affairs Officer
9 Sep 2009 by juls
I now have the new style Harrier 56 but its not a patch on the old model, only up side is that it has variable speed. If you can pick up a second hand old style one thats not done to many hrs it should keep you going for a good few years.
If you dont want stripes try the Hayter 53 Ranger Pro, a real donkey. Apart from couple of belts every year they keep going
sipho - what make is the R47kb that you refer to?
ive just renewed my 2 year old hayter 56 for a new one and they are still fabulous mowers, cuts well, stripes well, new design grassbox is bigger, and both machines had variable speed....good all round machine IMO
Ticky supports British farmers...!!
9 Sep 2009 by sipho
Juls - its the John deere
Gogga International Affairs Officer
We've had 5 honda pro rollers. Loved them, wouldn't have had anything else - until this year. The last 2 we bought have been a problem. We've always adjusted the govenors as they never had enough power to fill the bag, but the 2 we've had this year just won't run properly, nuts keep coming loose. We looked at buying John Deere this year but decided to go for Honda. Next season we will be buying John Deere. There are half the price of Honda as well!
10 Sep 2009 by Galway Gardener
The long running argument against Hayter has been that you pay a lot for a basic Briggs engine. The roller camp has tended to divide between Honda, Hayter & the few brave enough to try Kubota or now Deere.
I have used Honda Pro Rollers for many years & the only downside has been gearboxes & roller assemblies. For example to rely on a tiny circlip to prevent the roller from cutting into the gearbox is insane. I use big washers !. The decision to not fit a hydro drive is a pain as is the wet grass collection where the roller acts as a barricade. If you can't de-govern new Honda's that is a real pain as mine is currently the fastest mower on earth.
It must be possible to design a mower, with a roller, that can cut & collect wet grass. It would be nice to have a machine that doesn't collect a ton of wet grass under the deck.
I met the MD of Etesia at a show once but could not get him to make a roller.
i agree with Galway....i know the guys at RTM very well who are Etesia thru an thru as Richard Taylors dad was one of the Etesia sales guys.....thet are fantastic mowers but BIG annoyance they dont do a roller-drive...
Ticky supports British farmers...!!
14 Sep 2009 by Stuart GLS Last edited 14 Sep 2009
I've not long bought a John Deere R43RVE to do my smaller jobs with.
I've also got a Hayter 48 pro and an Etesia PHTB.
The Deere so far has been very good, fast drive, nice lines produced and seems to collect better than the Hayter on wet grass but I have yet to really try it out.
However the Deere will not collect as well in wet conditions like the Etesia when I asked the sales guy.
There is no vibration levels given with the Deere either, possibly as it's aimed more for the domestic market. Deere's pro models have the AVS fitted to the handles but the rear roller models don't. There is more vibration on the DeereR43RVE than both the Hayter and Etesia.
Just a side note the Deere catologue I have does not mention vibration levels for its pro models.
The Briggs engine on the Deere is not a smooth as the unit fitted on my Hayter but it does the job well.
The Hayter feels better balanced in the hand and I can remember when I looked at the R47RKB it felt heavy in the hand. Saying that I kind of wished I had gone for the Deere 47.
Check your new blades for balance. A possible cause of vibration. Just because they are new doesn't mean they are balanced ...
GOGGA
Thanks for the tip, I'll check it out just in case.
15 Sep 2009 by Galway Gardener
Both the Deere & Etesia will be heavy as I believe that they use the same Kawasaki. No roller could collect as well as the Etesia as the grass has to be lifted over the roller. A physical system that throws the grass into the box would be preferable to relying on airflow. I prefer a roller mower to be as heavy as possible - like the Honda.
Has anyone produced an Etesia copy as the patent must of run out - I am rather out of the loop here in Ireland ?. There used to be a good little machine made by Dory called the All Weather Mower which even came with a second bigger grassbox for leaves.
The amazing thing is that no one has attempted to bring the mower into the 21st century. We still have to put up with levers instead of conductive presence controls & decks that get filled with wet grass.
Has anyone tried fitting an Etesia with a striping roller mounted below the collector ?
Galway have you seen the Viking MB 655 VR.
I looked at a little 17 inch version and thought they looked a little like an Etesia.
How they perform and the overall quality I can't say.
Viking are a part of Stihl so back up is very good...and by all accounts quite a reliable machine...
Ticky supports British farmers...!!
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