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Murray Select


Nick

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Neighbor yesterday bought a Murray Select Rider with a 42" deck. I took it for a spin. I didn't care for the way it shifted, or the way it cut. His wife asked me what I thought of it. (I think she was looking for a one sided answer to her question.) I told her it was junk, and he was better off spending the 900.00 on a used Simplicity with a hydrostatic drive. She said, "oh no, That's a good tractor it's brand new and it will last a long time." I guess she think's two years is a long time. I'll "Select" it from the junkyard for parts for some project in a few years. :D
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Nick, I think my dads older Agway may be a Murray, and it is ok for a lawn mower, and in it's price range at the time. But the cut was no where near as good as my Allis. And may god help you if a tire was a few pounds of pressure low!
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I have a Murray Ultra 19.5 hp with a 54" deck.Its great for cutting grass.5 speed manual and cuts 3 acres every week for almost 8 years.I replaced belts ,1 jackshaft assembly and 1 ignition magnetron.The oil is changed every 20 hours and greased throughly at the same time.I must confess when I bought it originally I practically dismantled it and if it moved it got a grease fitting.Like any box store tractor I only have a snowplow and a bagger for it.No it is not made as well as my A/C and can't do the same work with all the attachments I have.I bought it at a Home Depot in NYC where it sat for 2 years.Why such a big tractor was sent to an urban store was a mystery .Anyway it was originally $2200.00 but i was friendly with the store manager and got it for $1300.00.For me it turned out to be a great deal and a decent machine.The 54" inch deck is super heavy duty and different gauge steel from other Murray decks.Its 19.5 is a 2 cylinder Briggs cast iron sleeve and a peerless trans.I guess the motor and the trans are the heart of any tractor.
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Before finding my B-12 for $175, I looked at that very machine at Walmart. It was a heavy built unit. I would judge it one of Murray's better tractors. It was called a garden tractor. That size tractor with a 54in deck is not make anymore.
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Murray built some rather heavy mowers over the years and this sounds like it may be of the same mold. The biggest problem with all of the equipment from Murray, MTD,AYP,etc. is the mentality behind the customer base they have. Their customers expect to use those things for 5 years or so and then buy another when it dies. Hence no grease fittings,lightweight pulleys,plastic bushings instead of bearings. The manufacturers know the machine will not get any PM so why bother with the good stuff. Just my opinion.
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Wow, NickStanchak you really tell it like it is with your neighbor. I agree with you. You can't compare a Murray with a Simplicity. How many 30 and even 40 plus year old Simplicitys are still out there running. How many old Murrays do you see. I don't think I ever saw a Murray that was twenty years old. And most of all, your neighbor won't get the dedicated service from the place the Murray was purchased from, like buying from a Simplicity dealer.:)
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Believe it or not, I have a neighbor that collects Murrays. He has some that are fairly old, mid-70's vintage, still chugging away. There's another guy up the road too that has a bunch of 70's era Murrays (that run and mow too). Now as far as how the new ones last......I know a guy in the next town over that does commercial mowing and all he uses is Murray riders, and he's lucky to get 2 years out of them. But that explains why he cuts so cheap, he can pay for a new Murray rider in 2 weeks.
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I don't know that I would tell someone that just made a purchase,that their purchase is junk.I'd probably be a little more discreet,and say,"looks fine from here"or,"I'm sure you got a good deal on it." Saves a lot of hurt feelings that way.
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Well, Thanks for the replies after doing some research I see more complaints about MTD then I do Murray. He was figuring even if he got 5 years out of it, He still got a good deal. He had got some quotes to cut the grass one year from 35.00, all the way to 75.00 a cut. He has about almost 3 acres to cut and that add's up real fast. I think he would have bought a Simplicity, but know's I would borrow it all the time.
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I once went to a dealer to look at new tractors. They had an Ingersol tractor,I have heard nothing but good about them. I truly believe they are made to last you a life-time.
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He still wont get the dedicated service from a dealer, simplicity has a dealer near me so I can get parts easily. :D
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