Recommendations on a good walk behind mower

I'm not sure you're going to find anything "good" for $300. Echo now sells some walk behinds, worth looking.

Get a Craftsman. I just replaced mine after my previous one lasted 24 years. It’s a solid, no frills mower with a powerful engine. Got my self-propelled model from AceHardware for just over $300.

I’m definitely getting it repaired but all the repair shops are telling me it’s going to take a few weeks. Last time it took like 60 days. I can’t wait that long and not have a working mower,

I’ll order parts and fix my Honda when I have some free time. I just
Needed something cheap and reliable in the meantime to get through the end of summer.

2nd option - get your bullet-proof Honda repaired, and rent a lawn mower when you need to cut grass.

AAA Rentall - $60/day if you're in Baton Rouge.

3rd option - pay someone to cut your grass one/twice.

Both options are sunk costs, but a $300 mower will be as well after a couple of years.

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My Honda has been a beast but yesterday it died on me. Repairs at the mechanic are around $200 so I figure I’d just buy a new one and then order and repair the Honda in my spare time.

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Died how exactly? I've rebuilt a GCV160 on my workshop bench and the cost of new parts was under $100, I'm sure a small engine shop would have charged me way more than $200 for that level of repair so whatever you have going on is probably a simple fix. A walk behind mower in the $300 range today will be a basic MTD/YardMachines piece of crap with a Zongshen engine and probably not even self-propelled. My Honda HRN I bought on a Labor Day sale for under $400 in 2016, nothing on the market now is close to that now that's even equal. You can buy a new "big block" GCV190 that's almost a direct replacement for $400 and still have a good mower for years to come.

It needs the yearly cleaning, Oil change, spark plugs and my pull start just broke. I tried to fix that yesterday but the blots are seized. I can’t get them loose. I had to take the entire cover off but even clamping the bolts below in a vice while trying to loosen the bolts didn’t work.

I’m going to order a new assembly and do the maintenance myself. I paid a guy about $150 last time. Took him about 2 weeks. Might call him again And just rent one in the meantime.having an extra mower was never a bad idea, and I could always sell it or repair the Honda and sell it.

I’ve had two mowers in my life, both were Craftsman with B&S engines. The first one was a push that lasted 23 years until the deck broke at the bottom of the discharge shoot. I’ve had the second one (self-propelled) now for 13 years. They’ve been incredibly reliable, and the few times they’ve needed service, I was always able to fix it myself with a little help from YouTube.

I agree with you. I retired 6 years ago and bought a cheap HD, B&S push mower. I used it weekly to mow multiple lots in a Lake Erling community. I abuse the mower and like it's predecessor, it keeps on ticking.

Here ya go! Jump on it while price lasts

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Damn steel decks are just too light to hold up. These are Troy Bilt decks with Briggs & Stratton engines on them.

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Yeah, TroyBilt, MTD, etc stamped the mower decks with thinner and thinner steel. I have a cheap Craftsman labeled MTD push mower and a Honda HRN and the steel deck of the Honda makes the other feel like a veneer. Not only thinner but poorer quality steel with no rust prevention outside of a thin layer of paint. I have cans of mil-spec corrosion inhibitor spray I use under both mowers, the Honda looks nearly new after 10 years while the Craftsman definitely looks like it will be rusted through in a few more seasons.