The Mower Slayer.....

[Evoken]

My darling wife, I love her and bless her heart, but boy is she hard on the equipment. Over the past 20 years I have been through more mowers than you can shake a stick at. You are saying to yourself well that's simple quite buying junk mowers. Well it's certainly not that simple, haha. She can turn a new mower into a smoldering pile of rubble in a matter of minutes. How does this happen you ask, I think only the lord knows. It is mostly bent blades, broken spindles, and snapped belts, but eventually they all succumb and there is no more fix left and not enough good metal to weld back together.

The cause of this of course is that she is not paying attention and treats every little riding mower like it is a brunch hog. I have tried time and time again to explain this to her and she just gets angry with me, you know the fella that has to fix it.

I of course love her to pieces and will keep patching up the poor things, but goodness gracious. The solution is to keep her off of the darned things, but against better judgement she always suckers me into letting her back on them.

Today's victim is a john deere f525 greens mower I bought from the neighbor boy. He is in the 4h small engine club and fixes them up and flips them. So I bought this thing a few months ago with all new belts and everything was great. She says let's tag team the grass and I want to try the new mower. Begrudgingly, I jump on the little rider and set her up with the new one. Me and the little man are cutting the front when I look over and see her using the push mower. I knew right away what happened, catastrophic failure..... all the nice new deck belt, one is snapped, one is stretched beyond serviceable use.

Oh well, I will fix it and it will be good until she tries to help again. She needs to keep to her push mower, she doesn't break them as they are cheap and easy to fix.

That's my rant for today, I love her and she IS trying to help, I think.

[pworley1]

I feel your pain.

[Thundarstick]

And that my friend is why no one but me ever gets to mow with my mower!

[Finster101]

I feel your pain.



I think a good many of us do. I can try and teach my wife to do something and I am criticizing her, especially with guns. We can be at the range with one of my buddies and I can quietly get him to mention something to her it's "okay, thanks I didn't realize I was doing that". Go figure.

[Evoken]

Agreed with the teaching. According to her I cannot do it. Even if I have taught a hundred or so apprentices to be good carpenters, apparently it's me. Haha, what can you do but laugh and keep fixing things.

[starnbar]

Hey 4-5 goats will solve all your problems and you get cheese and milk too.

[Evoken]

I've already got cows and pigs that keep most of the property trimmed up. The nice thing about mowers is they don't need to eat until you need them to work.

[Finster101]

I've already got cows and pigs that keep most of the property trimmed up. The nice thing about mowers is they don't need to eat until you need them to work.

You also don't have to watch where you walk so much.

[pmer]

Didn't happen without pictures LOL

[bedbugbilly]

That's why I like our lawn in Arizona . . . . all stones!

[RogerDat]

I count myself lucky she mows rather than just bugging me to, said bugging usually commences just as all materials and tools are set up to do some other project. So gentle about it too. Not hey the lawn looks bad go mow it. Not her style, she simply asks when am I going to mow it. That is a conversation that only ends when a satisfactory "when" is provided. Which must be specific to be acceptable. "this afternoon" means 1 minute past noon I better have a gas can in my hand or ear plugs.

Still for what it is worth she will mow the front. Except for the ditches and the steeper parts of the one hillside. Which means I better hustle as soon as she is done to finish lest the when am I going to finish goes on endless loop. Well I suppose shorter grass discourages mosquitoes.

The one thing I never understood is how is it that she can't see the grass she isn't cutting by taking corners in a high gear? Ridges and strips abound. I don't care, anyone driving past is going fast enough they won't notice a day after mowing if at all. Stopping here you're a friend so you won't say anything and me I'm not that fussy about the front, I drive through it to get to garage is about it. I use the back yard, not the front.

I will say I always check the oil after I'm done to insure it is not low if she takes it in her mind to use it. I also clear the engine of grass or debris. Doesn't use much oil but it's about 18 years old so uses a little and has a head noted for warping or blowing head gasket if it gets too hot. Which I know from experience she won't really notice until the RPM's are 2x normal from heat and the smoke starts to really bother her when it blows back. Busting belts is a new one, I was going to enquire how she does that then realized I don't want to know. Not knowing just seems like the smarter path.

Still it is swell she wants to help. :-D

[DocSavage]

My wife is the same with electronics not the phone but chargers and cables. Bought some "indestructible " charging cables 6 months she's killed one already. Told her I was going to get her a job as a product tester.

[pmer]

Oops duplicate

[jimlj]

My wife won’t mow the grass unless I’m completely down. I’d consider myself lucky if I didn’t have to mow the lawn. A mower every once in a while is cheaper than hiring a lawn service.

[Three44s]

My wife got on top of a huge rock once. She bought a new spindle and new set of blades on the then nearly new mower and I changed out the damaged parts, she helped me and all is good as she bought her own large 70 hp Kubota field tractor and a used bush hog for it. The rougher ground gets the bush hog now and for the really rough stuff, we have a rear mount sickle mower.

Life is good!

Three44s

[granville_it]

"I feel your pain"

Mark

[granville_it]

"Hey 4-5 goats will solve all your problems"

There all good as "escape hatchers".

Mark

[buckwheatpaul]

Gentlemen....we are in dangerous waters.....be very careful!

[Evoken]

You are correct sir, which is why I posted this here instead of reading my darling the riot act.

Somehow they all just hate her, it's not really her fault. Which is why she is not to touch the big farm tractors and she knows it. They cost much more to repair than the belts and spindles (and blades).

[Sasquatch-1]

My question is, does your wife have any hobbies other then breaking your lawn equipment?

My wife loves to sew and has a couple of the high end sewing machines. Now if she was constantly breaking my equipment I would tell her I had some mending to do and was going to use one of her machines. That would end that.

[memtb]

I guess that I’m pretty fortunate! Our yard is 2 1/2 + acres, and she’s still driving our 2004 Dixon Ram 44”. We did replace the Briggs 18 HP to a Briggs 21. I replaced all of the spindle bearings about 2 weeks ago, still on the original 2 sets of blades. Other than a few idler pulleys and numerous belts.....it’s still going strong!

Firearm related.....she’s pretty knowledgeable, a pretty good hunter (though a bad knee is really slowing her down) and darn good with a rifle. 2 moose, 2 Black Bear, a Bighorn Sheep, numerous deer, antelope (2 of which are real nice) and elk!

While she’s an almost unbearable “taskmaster”....I think that she’s a keeper! memtb

[Thumbcocker]

I am lucky. Mrs. Thumbcocker will not touch a push mower but when she mounts the zero turn she becomes one with the machine. It is a joy to watch. And she checks the oil before each use.

[shooterg]

Don't complain. My bride of 37 years has NEVER mowed the yard, cut a branch, or touched a weedeater. But she does make mowing an obstacle course by having pa-in-law plant shrubs in the way . Many get cut "accidentally" which will cost me a dinner out - minimum.
Like Gramps said "What a life when ya got a wife" !

[RogerDat]

Don't complain. My bride of 37 years has NEVER mowed the yard, cut a branch, or touched a weedeater. But she does make mowing an obstacle course by having pa-in-law plant shrubs in the way . Many get cut "accidentally" which will cost me a dinner out - minimum.
Like Gramps said "What a life when ya got a wife" !My obstacle course is weeds in the lawn. I am working hard to convince her if you pull a weed out of the garden toss the now dying weed back into the garden. As opposed to living a pile of plants and dirt for me to pick up and toss in the garden when I'm mowing. By the third pile I'm not thrilled with it. Also the lawn dies from being buried in the pulled weeds if they sit on the lawn too long.

I also have a plant it next to the fence or berm or walk decorator here. I'm still scratching my head over why the concept of if the mower won't fit then it has to be trimmed hasn't taken hold.

[Evoken]

Well gentleman I am enjoying your stories knowing I'm not the only one, haha. She tries so very hard to help out on the farm and is mostly a great help, I just need to keep her away from anything greater than 5hp. No one likes running the weedeater, i think you would have to have a loose screw to enjoy that, however begrudgingly she will grab it when i am on the rider. My neighbors certainly think i am a real jerk riding while she is pushing or weedeating. In reality I am just trying to save myself some headache.

[BJK]

My wife has suggested she mow, but I won't even show her where the key is. The thing is built like a tank, and can stave up stuff. :-) Obstacle courses made of plants... She would plant things and I would tell her to keep it weeded or I'll weed them with the mower. She hasn't planted anything in years. She won't follow through on the weeding, but for me to follow through on my promise is extremely easy.

[Finster101]

Don't complain. My bride of 37 years has NEVER mowed the yard, cut a branch, or touched a weedeater. But she does make mowing an obstacle course by having pa-in-law plant shrubs in the way . Many get cut "accidentally" which will cost me a dinner out - minimum.
Like Gramps said "What a life when ya got a wife" !


Easier to ask for forgiveness than ask for permission. I like to dine out too.

[slim1836]

Gentlemen....we are in dangerous waters.....be very careful!

My wife doesn't get on this site, I'm safe.

Slim

[tankgunner59]

I feel for you brother. My wife is my construction crew and she is very good at it. The only complaint I have is method. I am the type DIYer that I take a few moments and work the entire process out in my head before gejob.tting started so I have a plan to work from. She always wants to just jump in and do the job and adjust as needed. But as you do, I love her more than anything on earth so I just remind her every time we start a new

[farmbif]

might suggest she get involved with that 4h small engine club
I got my woman, because she's on the small side, a "barbie sized" yanmar 1500d. its almost indestructible. She hasn't painted it pink ---yet

[bakerjw]

I needed to sharpen the blade one time. After I sharpened it, I reinstalled it and slowly spun the engine. There was a noticeable difference in blade height. Aw man, she bent the blade. I checked it and the blade was straight. Hmmm.. Put on a dial indicator and sure enough. Bent crankshaft on a Honda engine.
Surprisingly a new crank for a Honda 50CC engine was only $26.00.
But still... Bent a crankshaft?

[Pressman]

Reading all this and I am wondering, I don't have a wife, do I need to get one?

[dverna]

Some of you are saints. A person that destroys equipment has no business operating it. We all know people like that.

But, they may screw up on purpose so they get pulled off the job. Ever think of that?

[BJK]

Don, That was what I did when I was working. I operated on the "If I do a good job they'll ask me to do it again.", principle. It allowed me to pretty much direct the flow of work that I got. That wasn't always possible though.

[Hickok]

Count me in,.....I have had to by new blades for my riding mower more than once.

A red brick, of the many she places around her flower beds, could not be digested by the riding mower.

Bent both blades....behind the mower the circles and donuts cut into the ground looked like a helicopter crash!!!:groner:

[Brassmonkey]

I've killed my share of mowers, I could repair the damage I inflicted but I'd rather get another curbside special.

[buckwheatpaul]

My wife doesn't get on this site, I'm safe.

Slim

Mine does not as well....however, she does know my password......

[imashooter2]

The little machine shop I started at many years ago always made us fix our own screw ups. We learned new skills of course, but more importantly, we learned to be careful and limit our screw ups. There was much wisdom in that policy.

[1I-Jack]

I have a zero turn mower and the wife won't even consider operating it. No steering wheel, not touching it. I had a knee replaced in August and the lawn stayed "un-mowed" until I could get back on the ZT and do it myself. She did insist on emptying the grass bags when they got full though.

[Sasquatch-1]

My wife was complaining about the weeds in the lawn and flower beds. I told her if she didn't like she could come outside and help. She flat out told me that the outside was my problem. That was last time a vacuumed the house.

[dverna]

Do not try to understand women....life is too short.

None of the women I have dated, met, or worked with were mechanically inclined. Their brains work differently. They are not good at mechanical stuff. And most will not listen to direction from boyfriends/husbands....which is a good thing when it comes to shooting...based on the "commandos" I see introducing their females to the sport.

[farmbif]

women not mechanically inclined? I beg to differ. some women and some men are not mechanically inclined.
yesterday neighbor took me to look at a truck. in our travels came across a couple tending to their farm. on a dirt track off the road was an old cat d4 with what looked like driving by was a woman making sandwiches on one of the tracks. I said to neighbor, can we turn around, id love to have one of those old d4's maybe those people would want to get rid of it. it turned out that the man was mowing the hay in the field while his wife was replacing a bearing and gasket in the old d4.

[jonp]

My wife pitches in and tries to do all kinds of things like fix trim on the house, put down flooring etc. I thank her and tell her how great it looks and then when she goes to work rip it all up and do it again the right way. She is trying so I'll just let it go. Rather that than a wife that sits on her keister eating chocolates and waits for me to do everything.

[Thumbcocker]

Our culture does not teach women mechanical things. Mrs. Thumbcocker is fascinated by how engines work and loves to watch car revival videos. She helps me with maintenance and repairs and picks up quick. The men in her family never did such things so she was never taught useful skills.

[Sasquatch-1]

I have two daughters, one 35 the other will be 40 next year. My oldest daughter does all the sheetrock repair around the house and some of the indoor mechanical work. The other has changed her own brakes, replaced a radiator along with other car maintenance. She also does most of the repairs in her house that do not require special training.

Women are only as helpless as they want to be.

[Gator 45/70]

The wife limits herself to the pushmower thank god for that, She's pretty rough on machines.

[MaryB]

I was rebuilding the 428CJ engine in the stock car when I was 14... solo... I learned mechanics very young, started at age 5 working on the stock car. Rebuilt dad's lawnmower at 10 years old... Same for electrical/electronics, started learning it very young...

My mowers tend to last until the cylinder wear gets so bad they turn into a mosquito fogger and use a quart of oil to mow my acre of lawn... current mower is 10 years old, uses zero oil... had to replace the deck bearing turrets and weld a crack where the metal is getting thin from normal use. On its second set of blades, original belts...