does anyone have a basic price difference in scrapping an entire lawn mower and breaking one down? is it worth the time? thanks.
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does anyone have a basic price difference in scrapping an entire lawn mower and breaking one down? is it worth the time? thanks.
To me mowers are worth breaking down. Pull the motor and sell as irony aluminum = 30 cents a pound compared to 9 cents as shred.
thanks. i have been breaking them down all the way. i just wanted to know if i was wasting my time.
Most mowers are simple fixes, most time its a gummed up carb. Pull it off clean it up and see if it will start. May be able to resell at better than scrap value.
At the bottom of this page there are related topics to your question. Some good info in a few of them.
The mowers with a Ali body.. Its a special Ali, we get a extra, near 50% for them. Ie $2-Kg rather than $1.40Kg for normal Ali.
If it runs, but badly, loosen the big nut on the flywheel and move it abit on the shaft, set it in the middle of the 'wiggle' and retighten the flywheel nut.
Often if someones hit something with the mower, the flywheel moves a bit on its woodruff key, putting the timing out.
The other problem I find is the valves leak, needs a valve grind.
The wheels are worth money too..
Watch out thought. If you pull the motor and break the MOTOR all the way down their is a steel sleeve in the cylinder that has to be cut out. They also have them in the valve seats also. I've made this mistake multiple times. 16 and already loosing my memory.
I have been a customer at my yard for almost 24 years... They really like me there and I get regular cast alum price for broken down lawn more engines. I just mix it in with the rest of my cast... and it is in plain sight when I bring it in and they look at the load.
I own a landscape company and run only Toro's commercial types for the last 15 years. My large mowers 32" to 72" decks are both walk behind and riders. should operate for 10 to 15 years. This like anything depends on how they were utilized, run time per day, properly serviced and maintained. A good used one should sell (3 to 8 years old) $500 to $800, with everything working. That's engine should start if all ready warmed up with 1 to 3 pulls (on pull starts). Safety devices should all be working, especially the blade clutch. The engine should only be able to start with transmission in park or neutral, this is a "biggie"! Look the deck over good where engine mounts, wheel axles are and transmission mounts. We well weld cracked decks (less than 1" crack) one time in these areas, on low time mowers. A crack anywhere on the deck is a good indication on how the machine was used and maintained. We scrap a machine with any crack on the deck in blade(s) zone period. Engines and transmissions are components, meaning they get pulled for repair and move from deck to deck. On a engine if you don't know anything about it, (like when was last time it ran). Pull the spark plug, if you can smell fresh gas, you may need to clean the carburetor (I would). You should never run old gas, that's been sitting in the tank for more than four months. The best indication of a good engine is the spark plug (2 or 4 stroke). While you have the spark plug out, do a compression test. You need a compression gauge for this and they make one just for small engines. You can use a standard auto compression gauge for this (takes a little gauge interpretation), some auto part stores lend and rent these for little money. Almost 99% of mower engines are four stroke, but there are some commercial 2 stroke. A 2 stroke (cycle) needs a oil/gas premix and on a 4 stroke you will have separate gas and oil reservoir (if you have a oil dip stick it's 4 stroke). Transmission problems can be tricky and expensive on commercial equipment. I would not attempt this unless you know what your doing and you have access to a shop press.
Commercial mowers start with the small 21" decks, the same as most of you are familiar with. We call these "trim" mowers. As we use them in the small areas and for doing the outer edge of the lawn (The Picture Frame). Next size up is a 30" still a small trim mower and these are available at the "Big Box" stores for home use now. Next is the mid rage decks, these are walk behind or stand on type mowers. Deck range for mid size mowers 32", 36", and 48". The big boys toys are the ridding, zero turn with hydro drive transmissions. These have three deck sizes 48", 52" and 72".
I can't help you with homeowner brands much, but if you come across any mower type, think twice before you scrap it. As others have said some home owners have little patience and even less mechanical experience. Most mowers that have set around without running, need very little to get them cutting grass again. If you have a commercial mower think longer before you scrap it. There's more need and a larger market for 21", 30" and 32" mowers as these will get into almost anyone's backyard (a lot of gates are only 32" opening). If you do decide to scrap it take your time doing it. Try to sell the parts, there's a real good used parts market for OEM parts (E bay). If you need help with commercial landscape equipment, send me a PM and I'll do what I can for you.
A scraped 21" cast aluminum deck mower, with all the steel removed will easy get you $20 to $30.
Sorry for another Big Burt Book!
my yard buys them as Irony if the shaft is in it and clean if its pulled.Quote:
Originally Posted by Ohio Scrapper
I always break them down to clean cast and steel. if you are lucky you find one with a cast AL deck!!
I figure the average price if sold as steel (if you are tossing it on the pile) is between $3.00 and 6.00 depending on weight .
If they're fixable, I fix and resale, if not check if any of the parts are sellable, or cannibalize some for the next mower...scrap the rest.
Old Lawnboys have a sort of cult following around here...vintage Toro's with the cast Al decks...old Snappers, Honda's. Best to check resale before you scrap it on the older stuff...parts aren't cheap or easy to find for some of those, and they're still out there.
Find a few mowers every spring...still cutting grass with my 21+ yr old self-propelled Honda that climbs hills better than I do some days, haven't found one good enough to replace it yet.
Its late in season now . But during the spring and summer i have a guy who buys my lawnmowers for $20 - $30 a piece . Even if they are seized
I buy them for 15 usually. By them from the kids at school who are "Mechanics"Quote:
Originally Posted by redcrossnj
If you have wiggle room in the flywheel the best thing to do is replace the aluminum woodruff key. They are cheap. Setting the flywheel in the center of the wiggle most likely will not stay in the correct position and the timing will be off.
What is 7075 aircraft aluminum worth? Does it sell for more per pound than
regular scrap aluminum? I thought it must because it is a high tensile aluminum?