Craftsman Professional 12.5HP* Rear-Wheel Drive Wide-Cut Mower 49 States

Good, well designed, well built, sturdy mower. November 20, 2011

I have 3/4 acre of grass broken up with trees, shrubs, stone walls etc. This mower cut my work way down, and I can cut more often, presenting a better looking lawn.

It does what is is supposed to so no need to repeat the obvious.

Some unexpected pluses. The large wheels take it over soft (even wet muddy) areas easily and without leaving wheel marks. At the slow speed, I can even manuever it in and out of the irregular shape of my stone walls, dramatically cutting down on trimming.

The only problem I have had is the battery discharging (sometimes) to 10 volts between runs, and that is not quite enough to start the engine. I've discovered a small current draw when the mower isn't running, but have not yet determined the cause.

A small battery charger is used to recharge the battery to start the mower.

Craftsman Professional Wide-cut mower cuts great, poor battery November 03, 2011

I'll start with the pros: This mower is a beast!  It cuts very tall, and even wet, grass with the greatest of ease. The 33" cutting diameter makes mowing my 1/2 acre lawn very simple. It cut my mowing time in HALF!  Plus with the huge 2 gallon gas tank, I can get several mowings done before needing to refill.  The mulching attachment works great leaving no visible clumping, even in tall, wet grass.  The electric start is a nice change from pulling a cord all the time. Very easy to adjust deck height.  Also very easy to change speeds with the leg push-lever.  Controls on the handles are fairly easy to use.

Now the cons: although the levers are fairly easy to use, it is annoying that you have to keep both hands on at all times.  If you even want to scratch your nose, you'll have to either stop the blade or stop the drive.  Not a huge deal.  What is a bigger deal is the fact that I've had to jump the battery several times when I leave it sit for a little over a week. Sears customer service has been very helpful, but when you buy an expensive mower like this you expect to be able to just turn it on and go, right from the store. Overall, a nice piece of machinery.  I'd be even more impressed if Sears put a new battery in it BEFORE I took it home.

Great Lawn mower August 30, 2011

I purchased this lawn mower online 6/16/11. Received it  7/7/11. I downloaded the Craftmans owners manual online on 6/16/11. The owners manual indicated that I had cutting deck spindle grease fittings on my lawn mower.The Craftsman manual I received with the mower did not indicate that I had cutting deck grease fitting on my lawn mower. I use the smart hose to clean under my lawn mower. So I wont know until I do the end of season storage if I have cutting deck grease fittings? The Craftmans owners manuals have a different air filter cover and filter than my lawn mower has.The mower also came with a Briggs & Stratton manual. Some directions ( on all manuals) for changing the oil say after the first 2 hours of use and another says after 5 hours of use. Places in the manuals say change the oil every 25 hours and other sections say change the oil every 50 hours. My mower comes with a fuel filter.I do not have a feul pump. Some of these models come with a fuel filter and fuel pump. Depending on wether you have a fuel pump or not determinds what type of fuel filter you need to use. Some have a oil filter. Mine does not have an oil filter. When I first used this mower I used the bagger and then decided to use the mulcher and it does a great job mulching and also saves me from having to empty the bagger 7 times each time I mowe. Over all I think this is a great Lawn mower if you have a lot of grass to mowe. It takes me 2 hours to mowe my lawn. It would take over 3 hours with a regular mower and would be a lot harder physically. 

steve d August 19, 2011

this mower is the best cuts quick and easy 3 gear is fine starts right away good for the price with all the options 18 hrs on it goes all the time every 3 days i cut my grass to get nice cut and evryone loves it