Buying a lawn tractor- John Deere or Husqvarna

[Monty22 833]

I'm in the market for a new lawn tractor. I've got it narrowed down to 2- a John Deere 19.5 Horse 42" deck, or a Husqvarana 20HP 46" deck. They are basically the same price, and both seem to suit my needs. Any insight you guys can add is appreciated.

Edit to add link to Lowes. First page, second row, last 2

Lowes

[kovalchuk71 212]

Just curious, did you check out the new cub cadet?

[Monty22 833]

I noticed in Consumer Reports that they are made by the same folks that make Yard Machine and MTD- Which both have spotty quality at best.

[Thockey17 1]

Nothing runs like a deer

[Chadd 916]

I used to work for the company that did a lot of their co-op ad work. Good people at Deere, at least the ones that I met.

[Drewhunz 3]

When I spent a year working on a farm, they tended to be fans of the Huskies for everything from chainsaws to dirtbikes. Quality is good, and prices are cheap. JD is good, but parts if needed are costly.

[Stampeder 2]

Get a John Deere from a dealership not Lowes.

[Monty22 833]

Get a John Deere from a dealership not Lowes.

Why so- service in the future?

[Chadd 916]

Get a John Deere from a dealership not Lowes.

Why so- service in the future?

Big chains are driving the mom and pop shops out of business, much like hockey.

[Stampeder 2]

Yeah, and they will know the ins and outs of every John Deere product they sell and will most likely have every part. Helps support your local farmers too by buying from the dealership.

[sc37 0]

Nothing runs like a deer

In a not so great way...IIRC I was reading a Consumer Reports and didn't have JD rated that highly...were kinda far down the list actually.

[Monty22 833]

Exactly- I have heard from diffrent people that the smaller, more retail models have seen the famous John Deere quality take a bit of a nose dive to be more profitable. Blind brand loyalty is not a good idea.

[top-shelf 1]

Husqvarna to be sure, I love the durability of their self-propelled mowers and riders.

[Chadd 916]

Exactly- I have heard from diffrent people that the smaller, more retail models have seen the famous John Deere quality take a bit of a nose dive to be more profitable. Blind brand loyalty is not a good idea.

Generally you have to pay more to get a quality piece of equipment. IF you're going for the cheapest thing on the market, you are going to be sacrificing something. JD used to pride themselves on making good stuff. Now, especially with their entry into a big box, they're competing on price and cutting the same corners as other manufacturers to be competitive to the people who only shop on price.

[J_MART 0]

i can not speak for the john deere's that are sold out of the big box stores, but i have recently purchesed a John Deere X320 from my local JD dealership and am in love with this piece of machine. i live on just over 2 acres with dips and uneven ground and such, my previous lawn tractor was a craftsman my dad bought at sears and this was not even the bottom of the line model, but it could not hold up to our yard. but the new john deere is great. at the very least, before you buy you should go talk to a sales person at a local tractor/farm equiptment dealer near you, as this is there only job to know these machines and they will help you in deciding what is best for your specific needs.

[hockeydoc 0]

I've owned both, and just replaced the JD with this Cub.

http://www.homedepot.com/webapp/wcs/stores...ocStoreNum=8125

Always make sure to buy what ever has a Kohler engine!!!

JD is over priced for name recognition!!

The JD's at lowe's and Home Depot are not quite the same as the ones at JD dealerships. The Cub is much better built on par w/ the 5k to 6k JD's at dealerships, and has the v-twin engine. I had to rebuild every single part of the JD except for the v-twin engine which is the same engine now in the Cub. But for some strange reason JD no longer has this engine available. I now own 3 riding lawn mowers and the Cub is by far the best for a lot of reasons. The v-twin Kohler engine is worth what ever you have to pay to get the mower with that on it. I have yet to wear this engine out. Starts first turn of the key w/ low battery even after 2 mower bodies and decks have been completely demolished and swapped.