Since we first heard about them a year and a half ago, we've been very impressed with Hardcore Hammers, so when they dropped us a line letting us know they were getting into the hatchet business, we were pretty excited. Then, when they asked if they could send us one to review, we went out and told the woodpile that the day of reckoning was near.
Husqvarna has announced the release of something called the Fast Tractor. It's apparently the fastest riding mower in its class (mowers under $2500). And it's not just a little faster, it's quite a bit faster. Regular boring mowers top out in the turtle-like range of 5-6mph, but this cheetah can chase prey in the 7-8mph range.
This is from the folks at John Deere and it's about mower maintenance. If you're like us and have an "on-again-off-again" relationship with small engines, below are a few tips worth following to keep the frustrating machines in working order.
Our feelings on these engines is summed up by something we overheard FOTS (father of Tool Snob) say a few weekends ago regarding his string trimmer: "I don't care if it trims grass, I just want it to start."
5 Tips for Mower Maintenance this Fall
We are well into fall and the dog days of summer are behind us, but before you abandon your lawn care duties, remember that your mower can be used year round for Mother Nature cleanup duty. Most riding lawn mowers, like the John Deere X310, or zero-turn-radius mowers, like the Z665 Ztrak™, come with a variety of attachments that can change with the seasons. When using your mower to mulch leaves this fall, be sure to provide proper and frequent maintenance checks for optimum performance.
Look for leaves. Fall leaves, though beautiful, present a particular challenge for mowers. Double check your air filters for stoppage. If filters are blocked, they will suck unfiltered air from elsewhere and damage the motor.
Stay sharp. The added strain of leaf mulching may dull the mower blade more quickly. You can use 20 percent more fuel with a dull blade, so either sharpen up or have a spare blade on hand.
For those who prefer to let their mowers hibernate for the winter months, there are a few important things to check before putting your machine in storage. Don't wait till spring to clean up your machines. A little work now will save you time and money when it comes to rolling your mower back out of the garage next year.
Hit the deck. Clipping and debris buildup under the deck can cut airflow and reduce effectiveness. A dirty deck can also cause rust and corrosion during winter storage. Turn the mower on its side and clean the undercarriage with a hose.
Fuel Fix. Add a fuel stabilizer to the gas tank to prevent separation that can lead to corrosion. After adding the stabilizer, run the engine for five minutes.
Give it a once over. Tighten all nuts and bolts; check belts filters, safety shields and guards. Replace any damaged or missing parts, including spark plugs. Check tire tread and pressure. Make sure your mower will be ready to hit the ground running next spring.
Spending a little bit of time maintaining your mower throughout the fall and possibly prepping it for winter storage will save you a lot of hassle in the spring. As temperatures drop, don't drop the ball on important lawn care duties.
We're fully aware that BBQ grills don't fall under the typical umbrella that this site covers, but the Stok Quattro has a significant connection to the tool world: it's made by Ridgid.
Yeah, that Ridgid. Sorta funny, isn't it. They've chosen Stok as the name they're going to make their grills under and at first glance, we thought it was some Nordic company founded by vikings (the 'o' in Stok has an accent line over it, giving it the pronunciation 'Stoke').
Familial heritage aside, this looks like a pretty cool grill. The distinguishing feature of it is the removable inserts that are actually built into the grill surface. The way it works is that the grilling surface has two circular areas that can pulled up and swapped out with either a vegetable tray, a pizza stone, or a griddle. All of the parts fit in nicely and add quite a bit of functionality to the grill. It's sort of like the JobMax of the grilling world.
If we're not making any sense, here's a video:
The Quattro works on propane and goes for $250 and is available only at Home Depot. There are also charcoal versions available
Black & Decker has revamped their selection of outdoor tools and they've based them around their 20 volt platform (it's 20 volt max...18 volts to the rest of us). They recently send us one of their string trimmers and a sweeper to check out. We gave them a good go round and here's what we thought...
Late last year, True Temper sent us their new Total Control Wheelbarrow to check out. Winter hit, so we didn't get to dig into it too much, but now that spring is here, the wheelbarrow with the funky handles is getting a workout.
With gardening season just getting underway here in the Northeast, Ames sent us a sample of their Planter's Pal, a sort of an all-in-one gardening tool. When we got it, we immediately handed it over to the head gardener, Mrs. Tool Snob, since it seems like we're only allowed in the garden when heavy things need to be moved. Other than that, it's off limits to us.
John Deere is introducing a bunch of new lawn mowers this season; 8 new ones in the 100 series and a couple of zero-turn models. The new 100s are marked by better fuel efficiency and lower emissions, as well as a redesign of the operator area. The zero-turn mowers, according to John Deere, come equipped with more horsepower and faster speeds than any other residential zero-turn units. There is plenty more information about these new releases in the press releases, which we've put after the jump.
John Deere has also put together a list of items to think about if you're considering a riding mower purchase this summer. We usually don't publish articles that come directly from a manufacturer, but this one doesn't specifically promote John Deere and it's filled with good points. A riding mower is a big investment and if you're thinking of getting one, these items are a good place to start. Here goes...
Choosing the right mower:
There's a number of elements and factors that should be taken into consideration when choosing a new mower this spring. Here's a few tips from John Deere:
Know your lawn - How big is your yard? Is it flat and smooth, or sloping? Do you need to mow around trees, sweep off your patio or plow yourdriveway? All of these are questions you want to ask yourself when considering buying a new mower. They'll help narrow down your options and ensure you pick the right mower for the job.
All grass isn't alike - Grass comes in a variety of types and it's important to know what makes up your lawn. If you want your mower to stick around for a while, you'll need to make sure you have enough power to handle the grass in your yard
Think about after-sale service - The goal is to save money AND headaches in the long run, so make sure your equipment provider offers reliable after-sale support and can guarantee quick repair if you run into any problems.
Keep it safe - It might not be the most interesting book on the shelf, but the operator's manual is essential to understanding the specific safety features on your equipment. General safety reminders and standards are also available through the Outdoor Power Equipment Institute at www.opei.org.
Riding mower or tractors versus zero-turn radius mowers:
Both machine types offer benefits and features that cater to different types of properties, understand the difference by reviewing below.
Choose a riding mower or tractor if:
You have plenty of jobs to do around your property and need a variety of attachments. In other words, you want to do more than just mow.
You have uneven terrain that you have to navigate.
You like using controls that are familiar and auto-like.
Your property has plenty of obstacles you need to trim around.
Choose a zero-turn radius mower if:
You want to improve your productivity, mowing your property in as little time as possible.
Your property is fairly flat.
You enjoy a mower that has more speed and can turn quickly.
You just want to mow, pure and simple.
More information at John Deere. And as promised, the press releases follow...
An inevitable byproduct of tinkering around on your house is something known in English as 'trash.' Scraps of sheet rock, cut-offs, demo'd materials, etc. For the big jobs, you go and get a dumpster, for the small ones, you cut everything up into small pieces and use contractor bags. But what about those mid-sized projects like a big set of built-ins or relocating a wall? The answer used to be: "find a friend with a pickup truck who lives in a town with a lax dump policy," but now, the answer may very well be, 'get a Bagster." Waste Management, who runs the Bagster program, was nice enough to let us fill one up for a review and here's what we found...
For the past six weeks, I've done little other than stack firewood. I woke up early and stacked wood. I stacked wood at lunch. I stacked wood in the dark. I dreamed about stacking wood. There were times when I would be stacking for hours and it would feel like the pile got larger, not smaller. There were also times when I wanted to build a massive and unsteady pile of wood, lay on the ground and let it topple on top of me.
But I finally prevailed. Man beats trees like rock beats scissors. In addition to a many-beer celebration accomplishing the task, I also wrote about the stacking process for Popular Mechanics. In the article, I compared three different methods of wood stacking, judging each for stability, speed, ease of stack, that sort of thing.
We're not kidding. This thing will set you back a grand. Well actually $909.95, but once you breach the $800 mark, who really cares? This is the Husqvarna 576 AutoTune Chainsaw. Is the engine block made of solid gold? Does it use liquefied silver for the chain lube? What gives? Why the sky-high sticker price?
When we first found out that Husqvarna was going to send us one of these saws to review, we danced around the shop in a very un-logger like fashion. We (obviously) like using tools, and we love using good tools, but when we get the chance to use an elite tool, it's a particular thrill. And at $1000, this one reeked of wonderful, pure, sugary elitism.
So what's the mystery of the Midas saw? We found out. Read on....
Are you really wearing your Hall & Oates pants in the press image of the Flowtron Leaf-Eater?
"Whoa-o here she comes...she's a Leaf-Eater."
The Leaf-Eater is (obviously) a portable leaf shredder. Set it up over a bag or a barrel and start stuffing leaves in. Simple. Elegant. Beautiful.
According to Flowtron, you can condense 11 bags on leaves into a single bag. Pretty good ratio. You can also capitalize on the cauldron look of the thing and stand in your yard pretending you're all three witches from Macbeth.
There is a smaller model available (LE 800) which works at a ratio of 8 bags to 1.
The Flowtron costs about $150 (smaller version is $130) and is available at Amazon.com
If you read the site, you know that we've recently had some big problems with a variety of string trimmers. The end result is that we're now cutting a good part of the tall grass out in the field by hand (for the rest, we got our pal with a field mower to stop by). So that's all fine and dandy, but what about the little stuff that grows around the well head and the flower beds? Since it's assumed that Mrs. Tool Snob would not be thrilled to see a scythe slashing away at the grass around her heirloom roses, we need another option. Thankfully, Worx recently sent us one of their new 24-volt trimmers to try out. We were hoping that it would solve our problem. So for the past few months we've been spending some QT with the tool and we've come to our conclusions.
We're well into the mowing season now and it's likely that you've heard the wonderful, 'mower blade meets rock' noise a few times. You might have also heard, 'mower blade meets tree root,' or even our favorite, 'mower blade meets random piece of metal that we think our son brought out to the lawn.'
Regardless of the specifics, our guess is that your blades need sharpening. Your options are (in increasing order of ruggedness) to 1) buy a new blade 2) bring your beat up blade to the hardware store and have them sharpen it or 3) sharpen it yourself.
If you've never sharpened a mower blade before, it's not too difficult and when it's all said and done it gives you that nice glow of self-sufficiency.
If you're interested, here are a couple videos that seem like a good place to start...
This guy just uses a bench grinder:
And this one is slightly more involved:
If this is all very discouraging, there is a nice selection of mower blades over at Amazon.com.
Ralph A: This would have come in handy the last time I read more Richard K: Trying to replace the old interior door between my garage read more Kevin: me too. I'm my own worst enemy, as much as read more jeff_williams: I'm totally with you. Loathe painting, especially ceilings. Good to read more Jack Elliott: I have had my master bathrolm apart for the better read more
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