| Neutral | colcord
(1 review) | On Jul 14, 2009, colcord Bethel, ME wrote: I've owned a DR field and brush mower for 9 years. I also purchased the 46" All-Terrain mower deck. I've used the All Terrain deck more than the single blade brush deck. I've had a few minor problems over the years but found their support good in the past. I had the same experience this month as noted in one of the other comments regarding the new cable set for the clutch and operator presence controls. I just wanted one cable but they only will sell the whole $50 setup. I spoke to tech support (after 2 "live chat" sessions, waiting a week for a response, emailing and finally calling and being on hold 10 minutes) and the tech was helpful, gave me a break on the price of the full package of controls and threw in another small part I needed. I hope the contact problems and wait time are anomalies; otherwise the service has been good.
The decks and drive unit are quite well- made, but a little under-engineered. Some features look like something your neighbor, who has a bunch of steel tubing and is handy with a welder and mechanical things, might have built onto his home-made mower. A bolt threaded into a welded-on nut to hold the end of a spring, exposed parts of the operator presence safety system (which is why they replaced the system), awkward change over from one deck to the other, and some of the other somewhat primitive features have been refined a bit in later models.
All the belts wear quickly (some are probably undersized), but especially the drive belt from the motor to the mower. I've replaced it almost every year. The all-terrain deck I have has been improved. Mine is made is of a plastic/nylon material that hasn't held up very well (the newer one is steel). When pushed up against trees, other obstacles, it takes bites of itself. It would be fine on a smooth lawn, but perhaps I've taken "all-terrain" too literally. The differential locks often when the lever touches the ground when lifting the deck up on rough terrain and needs to be re-engaged.
The engine (12.5 hp Tecumseh) has been excellent and had no problems at all.
The maneuverability of the mower is excellent. It is not for the small and meek though. I'm over 6 feet and I can handle it easily; not so my teenage daughters. I briefly owned a sears lawn tractor and found it harder to maneuver, and much harder to use in tight places around trees, the house, etc. And I like the exercise I get walking. The flaws so far have been relatively minor annoyances and I'd consider buying one again.
On July 25th, 2009, colcord added the following:
2 weeks later. One of the spindle assemblies in the mower deck crapped out, shredding the serpentine belt as it went. Not a part you would expect to go. Called tech support to find out how to take it apart. Tech couldn't really tell me, then said, "well, it actually doesn't matter, we only sell the whole unit." For about $100, including shipping. So, I'm on my own to take it apart and see if I can get bearings, which I assume are standard sized, if the spindle and housing are intact.
I'll leave my rating at neutral, but it's trending down. |
| Neutral | ramaeder
(1 review) | On May 11, 2009, ramaeder Bryant, AR wrote: I purchased a DR all-terrain mower eight years ago. It handles my needs OK. Recently I needed to replace the clutch cable. I called to order one and was told there had been an upgrade to my unit and I needed to purchase a retro kit because the old clutch cables were not available any more. The kit is five times the cost of a cable. I have a problem being forced to upgrade my unit when it was performing satisfactorily before the cable broke. |
