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I'm SHALLOW and easily butthurt ~ here is proof

nitesite

nitesite

Average Guy
Moderator
"Philanthropist"
Hi. I'm Dave.

And I am pissed. And I know that I shouldn't be. BUT.....

See, I own three riding lawnmowers. Accumulated over the past ten years and never got the older ones out 'cuz they are worth keeping.

One is a CUB CADET LT1042, small deck, small engine, pretty inexpensive but still mows when the belts aren't killing me.

One is a Craftsman DYT4000 that cost me well north of $2300 several years ago. Good mower. Good deck and 24-HP. The engine took a dump at 213 hours and it's going to take some money to get in running so I can operate it again. But it's a good mower.

And then there is my John Deere X590 with a 25.5-HP twin cylinder engine and 54" deck, power steering, power deck lift, Electronic Fuel Injection (EFI starts like a car in any temp, with no choke even provided), electronic cruise control, and lots of other really nice stuff.

HERE IS WHY I AM SORTA PISSED. And it is over something trivial and why I am so shallow and butthurt:

The cheapie, the upgrade, and the (somewhere north of $8,000) mower...

THEY ALL USE AND ACCEPT THE SAME CHEAP STAMPED KEY.

Yep. Interchangeable. You can buy the key at any store for a dollar or two and it fits EVERYTHING.

WHY EVEN BOTHER if the different brands don't care about the elfin' KEY, the price you pay doesn't matter, and the quality of the mower matters not?

I'm sorry. When I bought the Deere I thought I would get something that resembled a somewhat "THEFT PROOF" key. If you can't, why don't the guys and gals at CUB and CRAFTSMAN and HUSQVARNA and John Deere just install a twist knob with a hole in the center so a screwdriver or a freaking paper clip starts my mowers so you can load it on a trailer when you are stealing it.

I'm Dave, and I am butthurt and incredibly shallow minded.
 
The key is so your 3 year old will not take the mower for a joy ride...or use it to cut off his toes. :) Take care. Tom Worthington
 
I wonder if they look like the one I have?
 
The key in my Simplicity Regent 14 has not been removed in the 14 years I have been using it. I know if I take it out I will misplace it and then get really PO'd the next time I have to mow.
 
#firstworldproblems ?

I don't know where my key is either if we take it out. Now that I'm thinking about it, I'm not aware of a key. I hope it's in there.
 
Wow, Shooter has "people".

I can't even get someone to come by and pick up the brush I already cut down and piled up. Can't burn it and garbage won't pick it up unless it is individual bundled in neat, 3' sections.
 
I guess I'm one of those weirdos that likes mowing the lawn. It's my zen time where I zone out and don't have to think or worry about all the stuff I deal with the rest of the time.
 
Lol. After a particularly good party several years ago. The key for my Husqvarna was missing. I called around to try an find out what happened to it, to no avail. So I went to my key ring of equipment keys. Found one to a readily available, somewhat universal ignition cylinder and stuck it in the slot. Twisted it. And whatta ya know. Works great
 
MikeD said:
I guess I'm one of those weirdos that likes mowing the lawn. It's my zen time where I zone out and don't have to think or worry about all the stuff I deal with the rest of the time.
Click to expand...

Son of a gun. I thought I was the only one. I do some of my best thinking on a mower. Take care. Tom Worthington
 
I'm not a huge fan of mowing, but I do get the kids (err, make the kids) do the weed-whacking around the house. My Dad told me that it built character. Or something like that. I actually think his exact words were "get out there and earn your keep".

I only have 1 riding mower. John Deere X300. It's a pretty good mower, but I have had to replace the starting solenoid each year I've had it. And there are 2 different parts for that model mower too. So, I've rigged up a system so I can use either solenoid they have in stock at any given time when I have to buy one. They're about $23 each.

I also had trouble with their key. But may have been some of my fault. The first winter I had it, a dirt dobber built a nest right on top of the key hole and must've laid eggs somehow inside there somehow. After I cleared the mud off of the key switch, I stuck my key in there and felt everything squish. Now, my key will only work one way because it's got a bend to it. And if I straighten it out, the key won't engage the locking mechanism since, so now before I store it each winter, I put a piece of electrical tape over top of the key hole just to keep anything out of it.

I also have to air up the tires before I mow every other week, because they deflate like clockwork. I have un-winded and carried my air compressor hose under there so many times now that I finally put a cigarette lighter plug straight to my battery because it's easier to just use a little car air compressor every other time I use it.

I have a tough yard to mow. Lots of steep inclines. So steep in fact, I have installed a set of chains on the back tires of it. Now I don't slip and slide like I'm training for bob-sled races in the Olympics when I mow my grass now.

I also mow our family graveyard most of the time, which requires me to load up the mower on my atv trailer and tram it up there every 3 or 4 weeks when I do cut it. Sometimes my Uncle mows it, but none of the other family ever does. That's alright though. My cousins graves may grow into briar thickets if I outlive them and the rest of the graveyard will be mowed and cared for monthly just like I have done for the last 3 years or so since we started it. Maybe that will get their attention and stop relying on everyone else to do it for them.

I do enjoy mowing it though. But I'm pretty sure I know how Forrest Gump feels.
 
Our mower is a Troybilt. It's several years old. Last year we finally hitting running regularly again, though not especially well. I've replaced every belt (some twice), every tire (some twice), and a handful of other parts including two batteries. Now a gasket is leaking oil on to the exhaust so it smokes badly for several minutes after starting.

I don't mind mowing but it's not my preference. My older daughter likes mowing. Or maybe she dislikes the crap job everyone else does more than she likes it. I don't know which is greater actually but she does like the yard to look nice. She likes it to look striped the way professionally maintained yards look. I'm happy to let her try to achieve that though last year her boyfriend did most of the mowing. He also helped with quite a bit of the labor it has taken to keep it running.
 
I know that I have demonstrated how thin-skinned I was when I found out that the stoopid key is nothing better than a broken popsicle stick. A six year old can grab mommy's keys from her purse and start any of my mowers, so you just know that thieves laugh at how easy it is to crank one. I keep my mowers locked indoors but if access is gained it doesn't matter one damn bit if I left keys in them or not. They can be started with a damn bamboo chopstick and a pocket knife.

The Cub is so small and light I could push it up trailer ramps all by myself if I were to steal it. The Craftsman would be a two man job to push it on to a trailer without it running. The JD weighs 985-pounds. Dare somebody to get that on board a trailer in order to steal it.... unless you had the STUPID UNIVERSAL KEY that would let somebody DRIVE that sumbitch onto your trailer with no problem.

But I really REALLY do LOVE to mow grass. It is like ZEN. Much of my work stress just melts away, and life is really really good. I drive slower to make it last longer. Really. I am not kidding.

If I come home and the wife or son has cut the grass (in the well intentioned idea of helping me) I feel the huge let-down that I did not get a chance to mow. I'm weird. And shallow. And kinda pathetic really.
 
Had a Sears Craftsman and if you opened the hood you could see the wires on the back of the key switch.

Any little bit of wire would jump the switch and run it.

It's been 20 years since I've mowed a lawn, but as a kid I mowed thousands. I mowed my mom's lawn up until I was the age of 40. She cried when I told her she was going to have to hire somebody.
 
nitesite said:
I know that I have demonstrated how thin-skinned I was when I found out that the stoopid key is nothing better than a broken popsicle stick. A six year old can grab mommy's keys from her purse and start any of my mowers, so you just know that thieves laugh at how easy it is to crank one. I keep my mowers locked indoors but if access is gained it doesn't matter one damn bit if I left keys in them or not. They can be started with a damn bamboo chopstick and a pocket knife.

The Cub is so small and light I could push it up trailer ramps all by myself if I were to steal it. The Craftsman would be a two man job to push it on to a trailer without it running. The JD weighs 985-pounds. Dare somebody to get that on board a trailer in order to steal it.... unless you had the STUPID UNIVERSAL KEY that would let somebody DRIVE that sumbitch onto your trailer with no problem.

But I really REALLY do LOVE to mow grass. It is like ZEN. Much of my work stress just melts away, and life is really really good. I drive slower to make it last longer. Really. I am not kidding.

If I come home and the wife or son has cut the grass (in the well intentioned idea of helping me) I feel the huge let-down that I did not get a chance to mow. I'm weird. And shallow. And kinda pathetic really.
Click to expand...

http://www.google.com/patents/US20120144886

Universal key switches and locks are a “one key fits all” type switch or lock used by manufacturers of heavy equipment, golf carts, ATV's, lawn mowers, etc. For example: All “John Deere” equipment utilizes the same key; therefore anyone possessing a “John Deere” key can operate any John Deere tractor and also unlock any locked panels or doors on the equipment to gain access to the engine compartment, cab of the tractor, etc. Each manufacturer has their “own” key, however, for example: A “John Deere” key will not work on a “Caterpillar” tractor, Caterpillar has its “own” key which operates Caterpillar equipment the same way as a “John Deere” key operates John Deere equipment. Every heavy equipment manufacturer has their “own” key. This is also the case with golf carts (Example: Club Car, and EZ Go), ATV's, lawn mowers and practically every type of construction equipment that utilizes a key.
Click to expand...
 
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