Snapper for a mower on our second in 25 years old one still works its just a pain to push up the hill we have because its cast iron think upwards of 400 lbs. new one here has worked great for the least two years and it is self propelled ( http://www.snapper.com/products/walk...d=Endeca.19936 ) and for a string trimmer and blower you can not go wrong with a sthil good trimer (http://www.stihlusa.com/trimmers/FS250R.html) and blower (http://www.stihlusa.com/blowers/BR500.html)

 

lol look at the snapper site and go to model number p21875bve it has cup holders hahaha thats awesome to bad it doesnt have a beer dispenser to go with it lol thats kool!

 

Ive been chasing a tecumsa powered mower for the last 6 years. put a new plug, filter, and oil in it every spring. its getting harder to start these days if it hasn't been used for a couple weeks.

 

maybe you should sand down the magnitto a little bit im not sure if yours has one but did that on my old briggs and straton and ran fine until i brought it into my auto class when i was in highschool and we decided to run nitrous on it! haha oh the memories.

 

Thanks guys, it looks like stihl is pretty highly reguarded here. I will put them on top of my list.

I am not dead set on a honda mower, I just know from my experience that they are very nice. My grandpa had one that was so old that the deck actually rusted out and he had duct tape over the holes, but the thing still started on the first pull... Through out my family (25 years, since hondas where available) I think there have been 4 honda mowers that has gotten abused and still run like new... the only one that has been retired was the rusted out one because there wasn't much deck left (not because of engine or selfpropelled issues)...

Forty Owner, thanks for the response, but I will never buy a tecumsa engine again. I have been burned 3 times by thier engines, with either dropped valve seats, unrebuildable carbs, or obsolete parts. I had an old bolens tractor I used for snow plowing the driveway and pulling the boat around the yard and every time that thing stopped running it was a $125 bill in parts ... but thanks...

Keep the responses coming guys, I am suprised to hear about the lack of low end on the 4-strokes that should be where they shine... and yes alot of my weedeating is mostly idle speed so maybe a clutch unit isn't the best option (my current one is a straight shaft direct drive)...

 

I dont blame you on the tecumsa.... I bought it because it was $80 NIB and I needed a lawn mower. I figured if I got thru that summer, I got my moneys worth.
Since day one, if you leave fuel in the tank, it will drain in the crank case so I will just put a little in at a time.

 

I have a Snapper push mower that I bought new 24 years ago. It was all I used when I lived in town. Now for the last 10 years that I mow more it is used for trim work. I have never done anything to it but add gas and sharpen the blade. Maybe 1 spark plug and changed the oil a couple of times.
For a rider, I love my Kubota, but that is over your price range.
Blower, Trimmer and Chain Saw I have Echo and I love them. My big saw is pushing 25 years old and I finally had to spend about $100 on it last year to completely go through it. If I didn't get Home Depot cards with my AmEx Rewards points then I would probably have more Stihl stuff, but I am really happy with Echo.
I have a Stihl pole Saw and like it as well.

 

Buy the Honda with the "plastic" deck. Its actually called Xenoy and is just about indestructable.

The Honda shop down the street said they don't use Xenoy on the commercial units because the guys typically just jerk the mower out of the truck or trailer. Eventually the Xenoy will break when treated like that.

He said in residential use the Xenoy deck will last longer than aluminum or steel.

It doesn't rust,or dent.

I've had mine for about 4 years now. Its just the 3 spd,but still moves along at a pretty good clip.On its fastest setting it actually moves so fast that I don't think it cuts real well.

It starts so easy, even my 7 year old can pull start it. It takes him a couple pulls,but I can start it with a single pull even after sitting for a month.

I like Echo for line trimmers and blowers. Husky for Chainsaws.Lightweight with a ton of power. My Echo linetrimmer is only 23cc but will still breeze through blackberries and small alders.

The fourstrokes are just too **** heavy.

 

I have one of the honda's with the xenoy(plastic) deck. Weve owned it about 12 years and used weekly cutting the yard. The deck has held up excellent. Also use stihl and echo power equipment.

 

Another vote for Sthil weedeaters. Honda lawnmowers are good, but a B&S engine can last a long time too. It's the mower deck that goes on all of them. Keep the grass wasked off it, and paint it once in a while.