New Again
Earlier this month I had trouble with my lawn tractor. It is a hefty little John Deere and I use it to haul choked logs down from the hill. I also have a sturdy dumping trailer that hooks up to it that can haul over 10 cubic feet of anything I put in it. My tractor is 21 years old now and I wonder how much longer it will last. It is a vital tool for the things I have to do around here.
Before building Super Max I took down all the chicken wire fencing and dug out one years accumulation of straw and chicken manure. I dug out and hauled away close to a cubic yard when the tractor would no longer start. I am no mechanic, but I was able to determine the battery had a full charge, so I load the tractor into the horse trailer for a trip to John Deere. I figured it was time for them to fix, service and weld some stuff that I was holding together with bolts.
Not knowing how much it would cost for the laundry list of items that needed attention, I wondered if I should just bite the bullet and buy a new machine. Fortunately the bill was under $300, but the biggest surprise was how well it worked when I got it back. The steering felt better than it had in years. The power was restored to where I could cut through things that used to choke the machine.
This machine runs as well as it did when I first got it. I mention this if you are thinking of trading in some equipment. Have it serviced first and maybe you will see you don’t need something new after all.
posted by The Guy Who Writes This at 4:00 AM
12 Comments:
Sounds kinda like me. :)
I have no equipment. Just my new
box. My new car, that is.
I can't wait to take you for a ride in it sometime.
Congrats on the box, Auntie!! 1st Gen or 2nd Gen...which one did you get?
First! If you were my facebook friend, you could see a picture of it!
Auntie, you are shameless in acquiring FB friends.
Tango, it's a shinny red toaster.
At one time I had an inherited machine that I described as the worlds oldest riding lawn mower. It had a bicycle handle steering wheel with about 12" of play in the steering and a rear motor that I suspect was converted from coal to gasoline. I mowed with it for several years until it finally gave up the ghost. I called around trying to find someone to fix it and everybody declined for some odd reason. So it sat in my side yard for a year with the weeds growing up around it. One day this old guy who lives behind said "You gonna get rid of that mower?" I told him if he wanted it, he could have it. The next weekend he was happily tooling around his yard on my mower with the motor purring like a cat. Don't that just figure?
And you will note that I carefully sidestepped the issue of taking a test ride in Aunties new box.
must have taken an herculean amount of restraint, Revvie.
ps, the only way Guy would ever voluntarily consent to riding in a car I was driving would be if he didnt have a car, and I was literally the last person on earth who could give him a ride to the music store to go buy some new Marilyn Manson CD.
Guy doesn't think Auntie is a good driver.... :(
Guy...thanks for the photo. She's beautiful!!! :)
Auntie...you didn't invite me.
I like this!
On one hand, sounds like a local shop got to keep busy doing what they do and the equipment got a new life, recycled in a way.
On the other hand it must feel great to use the machine that you are familiar with and and can take a bit of pride in, I imagine.
A new machine would not have felt as good to use in my opinion. I would be nagged with the thought of the cost and believing that in a few years this shiny new machine will end up like the last one. Disposable Tractors and the emptiness of that.
I liked reading this today.
I enjoy supporting local businesses. The local John Deere dealer has often gone above and beyond for me. I bought that tractor from them 21 years ago and I'm glad they are still in business. Now if one buys a lawn tractor from Home Depot, guess where you are going to have to take it if it breaks down... That is if the business is still around when people flock to Home Depot to save a few dollars.
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