[Closed] Stihl, Husqvarna or Al-ko lawnmower?

I thought Honda was the default petrol mower manufacturer of STW (for good reason).

Is there a Viking equivalent of the Stihl? Their domestic brand?

I have had an Al-Ko for about 7 years. Faultless and effective.

We've just bought a Viking. According to the sales guy they are changing from green to classic Stihl orange so there are deals to be had on the old stock.

Honda

And way over budget.

Is there a Viking equivalent of the Stihl?

The very same. Viking are no longer sold, it's all branded Stihl now.

Having used Viking mowers commercially I wouldn't recommend them.
They're rebranding them Stihl to move away from the Viking brand (and previous issues with them)
Buy a mower from a local dealer and build a relationship with them would be my advice.
Honda for the homeowner appears again and again. Izy's are good but the decks rot out eventually.
I'd avoid Hayter unless you've got a bowling green and cut it weekly.
My 2p.
Tim

Or look on FRJones for cheap prices and take a pint on servicing locally.

I have two Hayters. Excellent bits of gear.

Buy a mower from a local dealer and build a relationship with them would be my advice.

All three are from my local dealer.
Al-ko is just independent garden centre at end of my road.
Stihl from Stirling machinery shop who I bought strimmer from. They're ok, but grumpy gits when they messed up service on the strimmer and I had to go back twice.
Husqvarna from another local arboriculture and farm suppliers that I've not used before

I’d avoid Hayter

Next door have one, bowling green lawn it's ok, but he isn't that happy with it, and despite it being a posh £500+ one it looks quite cheap in some of the details and workings.

i have a viking (the MB545), and it's been very good for the 4 odd years I've had it. Never missed a beat. I think though the 5 year warranty only applies if you get it serviced...otherwise it's just two. Could be wrong.

Our garden is big, steep and rough. 160cc Honda engine petrol Flymo. Makes a fantastic job.

Our lawn is pretty rough in places and steep. Had a Husky for 22 years changed the oil 3 times and pull cord twice and that was it. Replaced with a wider cut Husky last year which also seems well built.

Vote for Hayter here. Harrier is 20 years old, never been serviced, starts first time in the spring, solid build and still going strong. Probably see me out at this rate.

Use many professionally.. Hayters, Stiga, Viking, lawnflite, mountfield

The only 2 I’d recommend are lawnflite (but that’s way over budget) and this mountfield I have at my Nans

https://www.screwfix.com/p/mountfield-sp53h-51cm-167cc-self-propelled-rotary-petrol-lawn-mower/976fy

It’s light, easy to empty the collector, powerful for its size and a Honda engine

I’d avoid Hayter and Viking like the plague, bloody hate them

To summarise: they're all crap, they're all good, spend more.

I might pick the one with the colour I prefer...

I’d say from the replies - husky. But from the three you’ve selected - which one has the best availability of spares/ is easily serviced?

Like Houns I use a lot of mowers,for close to your budget the Mountfield with the Honda engine is a good buy.
Been using one weekly for 3 years with no problems.

Having had hayter , etasia, honda , Allan and Suffolk punch and a mountfield

The hayter gave the best finish on the greens but the rear roller lift mechanism was for ever failing. Not even close to robust.

The etasia with the big Kawasaki engine and 4 wheels was our preferred option for the big areas you basically jogged behind it.

The Honda was good but we would rot out a deck including the repairs to being ubusuable every 3 years

The Suffolk punch was a great machine for compact lawns with big over hangs

At home I have the 200 quid Briggs Stratton mountfield Screwfix sells It's a bit slow with no way to speed up the drive but it was 100 quid second hand and does the job. It's certainly not pro. Quality but it cuts well and seems robust enough for home use.

Still have the Allen but it's a flymo so just gets used for the road side to save me strimming. Nothing seems to be able to kill it. It's 20 years old and just keeps going. Fibre reinforced Abs plastic deck. I ran the Suzuki mx120 without oil by accident and it partially siezed. I kept it turning will the pull start while it cooled and fired in some oil and started it back up and it's been fine since.

I've bought a Husqvarna - a smaller one.
When I went to the shops I realised I had a 16" machine and that smaller and lighter was better, even if I've got to walk up the lawn once more.

Interesting and timely.

Mil's battery Bosch has given up. Could be the battery but I can get a husqvarna petrol mower for the price of a battery.

Quite like the idea of being able to cut grass that's more than 2 inches long.

What maintenance do they normally need in a year and what should I do when laying it up for winter?

I usually just run mine out of fuel before winter.
Spring I just pour out the oil into a pan, refill with fresh oil then fresh fuel.
I've never done anything else...

I have had an Al-Ko for about 7 years. Faultless and effective.

Ditto (five years and counting). Our garden is pretty lumpy and I chuck it around without any issues. Great build quality, of the no-nonsense kind.