elusive_blonde's Full Review: John Deere Js63c Walk-Behind Mower
Over the years, my lawn area has diminished in size due to a large addition I built on my house, a fence around the yard, and I've also put in a lot of landscaping. As my lawn got smaller, my need for my big John Deere riding mower became less and less. As a matter of fact, my lawn was becoming more and more of an obstacle course for my riding mower!
I finally worked my way around the last fence post and decided that I was ready to step down to a walk-behind mower. Now, time to be honest...I work for John Deere, so when I went to research lawn mowers I had a definite bias toward our lawn mowers. I checked out Consumer Reports to find out what the top-rated lawn mowers were. Guess who was right up there at the top? Yes, John Deere! I've always been happy in the past going with the Consumer Guide top "picks" and I know the John Deere brand is well-built. I had also noticed that most professional lawn mowing services around here used John Deere mowers as well.
So I went to my local John Deere Consumer Products dealer to check out a new mower. He offered me $500 to trade-in my 8-year-old JD riding mower! Wow, that old mower had really retained its value. That was going to make buying a new mower that much easier.
I selected the JE75 Walk-Behind Mower. It has the following features:
- An overhead valve, 6-hp, 4-cycle engine with full-pressure lubrication for long life
- Convenient electric start, no pulling rope to start
- Self-propelled, 5-speed, gear driven transaxle
- BBC safety system (keeps engine running after operator-presence control is released)
- High-quality cast aluminum deck
- Mulch, bag, and blow capability
- 2.5-bushel-capacity rear bagger included
I was so excited to try this mower out when I got home. I turned the key and it started right up. This mower purred like a kitten. When I went to mow with it, I was totally impressed by the solid feel and the ease with which the self-propelled mower moved. This was not a lawn mower! No, this is a lawn mowing machine. It would not be fair to compare a lawn mower side-by-side with this machine! It would be like comparing apples with oranges. I had owned a little Snapper previously and my father had always owned Lawn Boys (he now owns a John Deere too). None of them had the quiet engine and solid feel of this lawn mower! Mowing my lawn with this machine was going to be a pleasure.
I've owned this lawnmower for over two years now and I must confess that I don't take good care of my lawn equipment. I do change the oil once a year. John Deere has made changing the oil so handy, that even I am willing to do it. That's because all I have to do is slip a little hose over the oil drain fitting and use the hose to loosen it. The oil drains out of the hose into a pan. Afterwards I use the hose to tighten the oil drain fitting again, and I'm all done without getting oil all over my hands! Of course, I also have to put fresh oil into the dipstick tube too! I never drain the gas in the winter (bad girl). However, every spring my JD mower starts right up with ease. Being self-propelled, basically all I have to do is guide the lawn mower around the yard.
I rarely bag my grass, even when it's fairly long. The mulcher on the JD mower chops the grass up so finely, that thatch is rarely a problem. I also have a "swampy" spot in my yard during the Spring time, but my JD mower has always mowed right through without hesitation, even in standing water. It also has a safety feature that disengages the mower blade when you release the handle, but it doesn't shut off the engine. That way you don't have to start the mower back up every time you go to move an object in the lawn.
The John Deere JE75 lawn mower is expensive, but when you want a lawn mower that will stand the test of time, you get what you pay for. My JD lawn mower may very well be the last lawn mower I ever need. My father got tired of replacing Lawn Boys that weren't very durable and finally bought a John Deere lawn mower too. He's been happy with his for over five years now! I ended up getting my lawn mower for under $300. I bought my mower during JD's Spring John Deere Days sale. I also get a 15% employee discount and that $500 trade-in on my old riding mower.
If you have a small yard or a tight budget, you may not want to buy this mower. You probably won't get your money's worth. If you have a larger yard that you dread having to mow, or if you really appreciate finely-crafted, durable equipment, consider buying a self-propelled John Deere lawn mower. It will make mowing the lawn a much more pleasurable task and it will never let you down!
I've recommended John Deere lawn mowers to my friends and every one of them has been extremely happy that they spent the money to buy the BEST! Remember: "Nothing runs like a Deere!"
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