HD and Deere

[patrician12]

Last night I went to HDepot to pick up a battery and started looking at the tractors.In particular they had 21 horsepower Murray and a 25 hp Deere.Murray was Briggs and Deere Kohler,I prefer Briggs but that's my problem.I crawl underneath of both.Other than the cast front axle on the Deere construction was almost identical.Same vertical engine set up,same gauge of steel,belt drives and the same transaxle setup.The Deere was prettier and had an electric mower deck clutch.The Murray had bigger tires and was wider and the Deere taller.Self tapping bolts were used on both and some nuts and bolts on the Deere.What surprised me was there was no provision for any rear implements on the Deere.On the Murray this is expected.Both could be gotten with baggers,plows or snowblowers.Here is the point.The Murray was $1899 and I think a great value and Deere was $4699 and greatly overpriced.I can see why Simplicity wants to stay away.Once you cheapen your product its hard to come back.If Cadillac in the 80's wasn't part of GM they would have been out of business for crap they sold.What do you guys think

[jkmustang1]

The tractors you wrote about are being built for the throw away generation8D They are being built with enginered life of maybe 10 years if well cared for. But most will not be most will be run till they quit tossed out and replaced:( Hd and other stores do not stock repair items because the move slow and they want you to buy another tractor not fix the one you have[:0] As far as ground engagement attachments most buyers are looking for mowers that they might want to move snow with:p What's a garden? our food comes from a store too|)

[Nick]

It's a scary thought but Jon's right. we are a throw away generation, My uncle who makes $65,000 a year He was told by a co-worker why dosen't he get rid of his 1993 Ford Aerostar, He told them theres nothing wrong with it. The guy was confused.

[MoAC610]

Stay away from the HD John Deere SABRE we have worked on 2 in the last month the frames were snapped right in front of the transmission. THe owners tell us Deere says it is not a trend so no recall. All we basically did was weld the break and added a piece of steel to the inside of frame. BTW one of them only had 4 Hrs run time on it.

[andy gartner]

Interesting points all, What is the expected "life" of various lawn maintenance equipment? My older Briggs engines-early 70's to mid-80's are still running. Remarkably, some for 30 years, w/only weekly summer mowing chores. I lost one deck, rusted out, as a result of stupidity, (I clean decks, after every use now). Even my Simplicity, 4200 series 'Plastic Tower' stuff, surprisingly to me, is holding up well. ONCE I GOT HELP FROM THIS SITE, FIXING THINGS. Think original owners, were at edge of preceived, serious maintenance money, and like an old car, dumped them. Lucky for me. My time is not as expensive as some attorneys, doctors I know, who can't afford, time wise, to fix things. Broken frames are serious. But equipment 'life expectancy' it seems, is more a perception issue. How long should it last, how much time and money, must I invest to keep equip. running. It would be interesting to hear from some engineers, factory marketing people, how this works, when they choose materials/make design decisions? Were old tractors designed to run 30-40 years and new ones, for 10 years?

[Guest]

I think were in for a boomer generation tractor coming down the line....step through frame, like an old honda 70 easy to get in and out of. Sun canopies, very soft rides, shock absorbers, large sight saver instrument cluster, geritol dispenser, it may even cut grass.....who knows? half wheelchair, half tractor. No implements, the hired generation xers will do the gardening and fetch the libations. Seriously My little yoeman is built better than most box store tractors..... Dougm

[MoAC610]

I am in the process of restoring a AC 610 But before i took it all apart i did manage to cut some property the that came to mind is a 3 acre lot cut once ever 2 weeks. The owner has a Murray 48", Currently Broke down for spindles. Anyways I cut it faster and cleaner then he ever did even commented on how good it looked compared to when he does it. Im not giving up my AC even though wife thinks i need to.

[patrician12]

In Murray's defense and offense there are grease fittings on the Murray spindles that NOBODY ever greases.Of course they are underneath and until you eat your first spindle like I did you wouldn't know they were there.It is pretty stupid though because you have to raise the whole tractor to get to them.But you are right nothing cuts grass more beautifully that A/C Simplicity.

[bigcountry]

Keep in mind that is the Home Depot Line of John Deere tractors. The ones they have there are not 345's or X-Series, they are "cheaper" so people who may not can afford $200 a month payments can have a John Deere. If you compare a JD G-100 to a GX325 (the dealership equivalent), you'll see that the 325 is for serious work, the G-100 is for someone who needs the size but is on a budget, even though I, too, think that the G-series is not worth $4700. There IS a difference between JD's made for Home Depot and for dealerships.

[jkmustang1]

quote:

---

Keep in mind that is the Home Depot Line of John Deere tractors. The ones they have there are not 345's or X-Series, they are "cheaper" so people who may not can afford $200 a month payments can have a John Deere.

---

I agree with you but it still goes back to what I said befor:(

quote:

---

The tractors you wrote about are being built for the throw away generation

---

I am glad that Simplicity does not sell on name alone but service and a quality product.

[bigcountry]

Not everybody is as mechanically inclined as we are here. Not everybody can rebuild an engine when their engine goes out, they just go and buy a new one, plus most people would rather have new stuff than old anyway. In my opinion, the new stuff is nice, but as long as I can't afford a new one, I'll just keep on fixin up older ones to use. I have never had a problem with any John Deere, store or dealer bought and I intend to keep on buying them, quality is not an issue with John Deere, the Home Depot mowers have a purpose in mind (John Deere quality combined with, and so do the dealer ones, and as long as they live up to their purpose, that's fine, the Home depot ones are light duty, the dealer ones are more substantial models. I keep saying this, and it may not be to everybody's liking on here, but the truth is, Simplicity has just about no presence in the South. Parts and tractors are EXTREMELY hard and expensive to find here. There's a John Deere dealer in just about every town. So, close dealers mean cheap parts, good service, and good products. Their reputation depends on these machines, and if they were crap, then they would not sell, and in turn, give the dealers a bad name. OK, I believe I have clarified the difference between a Home Depot G/L series JD and a dealer bought one.