She's gone ...

[mark123]

RIP 1999-2010 (approximately) I was mowing today and my dear little buddy decided she had enough and threw her connecting rod through the oil pan. I tried to revive her but it was no use. No resistance in the starter line means she wasn't breathing any longer. I couldn't get a pulse. She's dead.

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Boughter's Lawn Care Services Mowing and Fertilizing in New Castle, PA

[akessinger84]

Lawn care business tips

You could always do a heart transplant

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Albert Kessinger

http://www.myspace.com/kcspropertyservices
www.kessingercommercialservices.net

[Steve]

I am sorry about that!

Can you do an engine swap and get your mower back up and running again or whats the plan?

[mark123]

Well, it's 11 years old. The baffle is cracked in two places and it was leaving stringers and the cut quality went way down. I probably will rebuild it but I couldn't afford to go a day without a mower so I went to the local yokel and picked up a new 40" Toro with the Turbo Force deck. I'm working on the set up as I get used to it. Right now it just doesn't stripe like the good ol' 36" did. Today I pitched the deck down in the front a bit and it is striping a bit nicer but not how I'd like. I'm going to drop the front down a bit more and see how it goes.

[Steve]

Do you have a welder? I bet you could fix the baffles with one and then maybe work to bring your mower back to life

Keep us posted on the new one.

[XtreemGreen]

Ship her down to me, Ill fix er up...

[mark123]

Originally Posted by Steve

... Keep us posted on the new one.

Well, after 13 whole days, I've returned my new mower to the dealer. I would have taken it back last week but Toro called me and offered me some low-lift blades that they said will fix the issues. It didn't fix it. The Toro turboforce 40 does nothing but make a total mess. The deck gets packed with grass and it dumps clumps all over. Even in perfectly dry conditions it leaves a mass of long clippings, like a gray blanket, over the entire lawn. In dry conditions it requires double cutting, in wet conditions 4 or 5 total cuttings is not unusual on every lawn.

The dealer gave me a 1990 Toro 44" to use while we figure out what to do. I tried it on the lawn by his shop and he tried the 40" that I returned. The 44" made 3 perfect stripes and then he made two passes with the 40" and it just pooped clippings all over my nice stripes. At least he understood what I was talking about.

I cannot recommend the Toro Turboforce 40.

[mark123]

Sorry, I realized a mistake. The loaner isn't a 1990, it is a 1999. I did the same mistake elsewhere.

[Steve]

What's your view as to why you experienced such a difference between the two mowers?

[justin_time]

Originally Posted by mark123

The Toro turboforce 40 does nothing but make a total mess. The deck gets packed with grass and it dumps clumps all over.

Sounds like my zero turn mower, i can't beleive how much gets stuck on the deck. I have to clean it 2x a day sometimes depends how wet it is