Well the mower has some things right
Headlights....yup they sure come in handy when I mow at 2:00 PM
A rousing, EPA certified 24 HP vee twin no less! So far as I know, I have the biggest, baddest mower in my 'hood.
A robust cast iron axle! Yes! Just what all homeowners need, an axle made from the same stuff as your Lodge frypan! wOOt!
A "fast" hydrostat! By jove, no more pissing around at 2.5 MPH. I can outrun ANY mower in my 'hood. Never mind my yard is as rough as a cob's arse in places, by george I can go faaaaaaasst!
Sarcasm aside, the more I mow with it in very mild conditions, the more I realize it just ain't the Ariens from 1994. No amount of blade changing will ever correct that.
Like other makers, Husky put money and thought into the superfluous rather than the stuff that makes a good mower. Like an open chamber deck that can lift and throw the grass. Like durable albeit more expensive, cast iron spindles. Like heavier gauge steel blades. In fact when this thing idles, you can see the tips of the blades shake. I looked up on Stens website the thickness of Ariens and even JD blades and they are twice the thickness of these. What a shame.
It is maneuverable. It does turn very tightly. The hydrostat, fwiw, is convenient but not nearly as durable as an old fashioned 6 speed Peerless with bronze gears. The hood, a non structural component, is stamped sheet metal. The alternator puts out 16 amps and the headlights are indeed bright enough for old school 1156 bulbs.
The deck needs to be connected to the front axle like Ariens did and Simplicity does on their better models so the deck will more evenly follow the contours of the yard. I've mowed with Ariens for many years and have yet to find a mower that cuts as evenly as it did.
Husky needs more robust spindles and needs to increase the blade RPM by at least 30 percent over what they have now. It is shocking to hear the massive 24HP beast bog slightly in damp grass. Actually it is depressing when you come to think about it. Perhaps 3 blades are just too much for the choked down B&S engine. I don't know.
Like I stated before, I mowed with MTD mowers back in Indiana that can outcut this beast. And that is saying a mouthful because MTD was, and still is, pure junk.
Still, I bought it so I have to live with it I guess. Today I secured an gen-you-wine B&S oil and fuel filter at Lowes. I got some Sta-bil for the fuel in preparation for winter storage. I'm toying with buying a Rizik USA made batter charger..........just in case. I also got under the deck and scraped off gobs of dried, moldy grass that was so rank, so nasty, so utterly nauseating that a billy goat would puke at the very thought of eating it. Methinks that buildup affected the airflow along with the overly restrictive deflector which, btw, is 50 per cent less of an obtrusion thanks to a made in Taiwan hacksaw
Finally, I will only mow when it is bone dry unless work schedule or something prevents that. Simply put, this thing cannot handle even the slightest damp grass. Funny how an Ariens with a Junkumseh engine spotting 11 less horses did that and then some.
Funny or tragic? Depends on your perspective I suppose.