It may sound like a funny question but actually it’s one of the most common questions I get: ‘Why is that I see ride on mowers at my local hardware shop for $5,000 but also see ride-on mowers at dealerships for ten times that amount. What is the actual difference, they both cut grass don’t they?’
It’s a perfectly reasonable question that deserves a good explanation, so let’s dive into some of the details.
Build Quality
You can park 2 cars next to each other that look the same to the untrained eye, and have 2 price tags at opposite ends of the spectrum. The same is true with ride on mowers: The difference is in the detail.
Sometimes you can literally ‘feel’ the difference because a cheap mower can feel very ‘plasticky’. Cheaper mowers often involve much more plastic or are made from thinner steel and even to the untrained eye this difference can be quite easy to spot when you park 2 mowers next to each other. Thinner steel breaks easier than thicker steel, but thicker steel is more expensive to build something from. If you consider the harsh environments that mowers have to operate in it is usually well worth paying a bit more to own something that is harder to break and generally has a longer life expectancy.
Seat
Often over-looked but in my opinion one of the crucial elements of a superior ride on mower. A cheaper ride-on will generally have a very basic seat, really just a place to park your butt while you mow. If you have nothing to compare this against it may feel fine for a short while, but compare this to a high-quality ‘comfort’ seat offered on more high-end mowers and you will feel a stark difference. Often these seats come with a level of adjustability which will absolutely enhance your mowing experience and is especially helpful if there is more than one operator. Just like when you are shopping for a new couch, comfort should be a big consideration and all seats are not created equal. Also, don’t underestimate the power of arm-rests!
Engine
The truth is if you are buying a late model mower of a trusted brand name you are probably getting a good engine in terms of its build quality. However there are many aspects that will make a difference such as horsepower: there is nothing worse than an underpowered engine when the grass conditions get a bit more challenging.
Electronic fuel injection is another wonderful invention that will directly save you money through lower fuel consumption, but you will pay more for it up front.
Petrol engines are generally cheaper than diesel engines but generally you can expect a much greater life-span from a diesel engine. You guessed it: you will usually pay more for the diesel engine option too.
Transmissions
This is one of the big ones. You will most definitely pay more for a more commercial-spec set of transmissions, but you will never regret it. Responsible for the actual forward and back movement of your mower the transmissions are one of the biggest and most expensive components of your ride-on. Cheaper transmissions will be slower, less precise and not last as long. The feeling through the control levers can feel sloppy and not very positive, requiring more physical arm movement to achieve the same control. When you pay more you get in to the realm of transmissions that are used in earthmoving machinery, often times they are serviceable (versus a cheaper sealed unit) and you can expect a far greater lifespan from them. It should be noted that with enough hours on the clock you can wear out any transmission to the point of needing replacement, but the difference in lifespan is vast.
Cutting Deck
Obviously a crucial part of your mower and probably the part with the most variance. It’s also the part that cops the biggest hammering and puts up with the most abuse, so quality here will make a big difference.
You will commonly see 2 main ways of building a deck and most often these are advertised with the mower: pressed steel, or fabricated.
Pressed steel means the deck is ‘stamped’ out of a sheet of metal in a hydraulic press to achieve the desired shape. This is a cheap way to mass-produce a lot of decks at once, but due to the thinner gauge of steel used produces a lower quality product
A fabricated deck is welded together (sometimes by hand, sometimes by robots) out of multiple pieces of steel. This allows the manufacturer to use a thicker grade of steel and produce a more complex shape, which makes a big difference when you understand the science of airflow under a mower deck. A fabricated deck will always be more expensive, but will require much more force to damage or mis-shape.
Even the cutting blades can vary greatly in size, shape, weight and complexity. This all effects cost but it also effects the cut quality and how long you can go between replacing blades.
Luxuries
Just like a car you can option a mower with some luxuries that will enhance your mowing experience but also enhance the price tag.
One of the most common examples of this is electric dumping on catching mowers. With the press of a button you can reverse up to your dumping pile and discharge all of your grass without even leaving the seat, but you’ll pay for the privilege.
Another great example of this is suspension. Suspension on a mower (and/or a suspension seat) cannot be understated, it will make a massive difference to not only the operator comfort but also the lifespan of the other componentry as it reduces the harshness of the bumps in the terrain. Naturally this costs more to produce, but is almost always worth it.
Productivity & Efficiency
There are too many variables here to describe in one paragraph but suffice to say different mowers will produce different results. Generally you will pay more for details that will enhance the productivity of a mower and reduce your mowing time, so be sure to speak to a mower specialist to make sure you’re getting all the things you need, but not paying for things that you don’t.
Higher-Grade Componentry
When it comes to mowers you really do get what you pay for. There is a massive variance in quality between different consumable components such as belts, blades, pulleys, housings and much more. Paying a bit more generally means getting a mower that is more capable of doing harder or more varied work, and having less chance of it letting you down during the process.
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As you can see everything here is a balance. In some cases there is absolutely no need to pay for a top-of-the-line mower to tackle a tiny residential job. In other cases it can be particularly unwise to expect a cheaper residential grade mower to tackle a large, challenging job. But one thing that tends to remain true is that you never regret buying quality!