Prices these days.

[cpalmer]

Im not trying to start a thread to bash new Cub Cadets but, I thought this was interesting.Althogh most of you will probably know this already though. According to the Cub Cadet website, a new 1042 hydro w/ 42" deck costs $1599. You have to go back to good ole' 1972 to find anything close to that price. According to a price list I found on IHregistry.com the closest thing was 129 w/ 42" deck @ $1660.00!!! I plugged that price into a inflation calculator and came up with this!

What cost $1660 in 1972 would cost $7571.44 in 2005.

Im a lawnmower mechcanic from Ga. Im always having to listen to customers complaining about "the good ole days when companies made good stuff and gave good service", and "if I paid $1500 for it by-god it should last forever". Now I can say "well gee whiz if you woulda paid $7500.00 you woulda got somthing that would last forever. In fact a new GT-3200 Cub Cadet w/ 44" will run you about $6500 according to the Cub Cadet website. Hell, there saving $1000 and getting hyd. lift and P.S. to boot!!!

 

[bcook]

Yes, the 'List' prices are crazy...then and now!

BTW: You might not want to make it a habit on this site to say that you saw something on the 'other' one.

 

[bmcmeen]

Or at least that it was seen "across the street". That euphemism works there, too

 

[kmoe]

Guys, He's referring to MTD's Cub Cadet website.
http://www.cubcadet.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/category2_10051_14101_33810_16203_16203_-1

 

[bcook]

Kyle: He said "According to the Cub Cadet website, a new 1042 hydro w/ 42" deck costs $1599", so part of your reply is correct. However, he also said that he got the price of a 129 in 1972 from 'the other side of the street'.

 

[cpalmer]

Ill keep that in mind. Ive been wondering what that meant?

 

[kmoe]

Bill, You're100% correct. Man, I gotta get reading glasses.

 

[bnolte]

A lot of landscape guys got Cub Cadets, Gravelys and the like back in those days, before we had all of these commercial zero turn mowers (Grasshoppers, Skags, and the like), and they needed something that would hold up more than a season. Sears, MW, and the like sold plenty of $500 "Lawn Tractors" that wouldn't hold up a season in commercial use, and might last the average guy with an acre 5-7 years before they died. Same holds true today, a "real" Kubota, heavy duty Cub Cadet, Gravely, or John Deere (a 318 or better) will run you over 5 grand, as well as some of the heavy-duty commercial zero turn stuff, and may very well outlast the owner. The 1500 stuff today is about like the $500 stuff 30 years ago, only prettier but just as flimsy.

 

[hsimon]

It all boils down to "ya get what ya pay for"

 

[cpalmer]

Yesterday, I was talking to a customer that we had to some warranty work for, with a $999 special. And she was complaining about the quality and how the mfr. shouldnt be making junk for that price. I brought up this subject, and she said "there's no way Id would've paid that much then". She thought for a moment, then said, "well, my husband and I paid $2000 ea. for two Snappers in '74"! Now, I think she was either a bit off on those prices or the drugs they might have done in the 60's were still in effect in '74. In either case, she had came down with a bad case of the "gotwhatchapaidfors"!

 

[cpalmer]

Oh, by the way. Speaking of $500 riders, a certain large retailer next year is supposed to be selling a 42"ish 17hp.ish? rider for about $499. And if that doesnt get you all warm inside. The only part (yes I said PART), that will be available is an air filter. Supposedly, the spark plug cannot even be replaced. Adledgedly, its made into the head!

 

[bnolte]

For a non-mechanically inclined person who uses his tractor for light duty use, say less than a half acre of mowing, it might make sense just to buy a cheap lawn tractor, run it for 5 to 7 years with little or no maintenance, then junk it and buy another one when it breaks. I was showing a friend how to do maintenance on his 1987 vintage John Deere, which he praised for its durability, but bemoaned the $200 to $300 annual service bill for it, though it is in excellent shape. I pointed out that with an afternoon's work, he could save about 80% of the cost, mostly for oil, filters, grease, and the occasional belt or battery. I doubt he would have given similar care to a Yard-Man or similar piece of junk though.

When the old 102 became unusable for mowing back in '98, I looked at a variety of new Huskees and the like in the $1500 range, and also at a variety of used Deeres, Cubs, and Simplicitys as well at the local dealers, who wanted that much for 25 year old machines. I kept looking, and eventually found a lightly used Simplicity Sunrunner for $700. It has worked out okay, I haven't had to do any major work on the engine (a 12 horse Briggs I/C) or Hydro pump, but it hits me with about a hundred bucks worth of miscellaneous stuff every year. Still, it does not have the nice solid feel and smooth ride of the Cub it replaced, but it is more maneuverable. It still has some life left in it, but I will probably end up sharing its mowing duties with the 129 once I get most of the bugs worked out of it.

What bothers me most about the junk though is the waste of resources to build 3 or 4 Yard-Mans instead of 1 Cub Cadet or similar quality machine. Cubs, Gravelys, Deeres, and the like may sell for several times what a comparable Craftsman or Yard-Man would, but they don't take several times as much steel, aluminum, and plastic to build, just that the components they are built with are more robust and designed to last. Once the cheap stuff reaches its programmed expiration date, it becomes just more clutter in the local landfill.

 

[bnolte]

I am not sure how a spark plug cast into the head could be a money-saver, the electodes would burn up in no time. Even if it was doable, consider the special engineering involved instead of just threading a hole and putting a 79 cent spark plug in it. Now on the other hand, they may have installed the plug and made no provision for servicing it unless the engine was removed, and then riveted the thing together instead of using bolts.

 

[stownsen]

Hey guys, I was just looking through and came across this conversation. How people think a $1,000-1,500 lawnmower will last is beyond me. I bought a Kubota 6 years ago for around $4,500 and haven't really had to do anything with it other than routine service!! Amazing how people just want something cheap. Oh, and I do have 2 Orignal Cub Cadets too. Didn't want anyone to think I was all about orange!! One I am in the process of restoring, the other I haven't decided what I'm going to do yet. Might get it fixed up decently for my 8 year old to run around on!

 

[mtoney]

I agree, the newer stuff, even the bottom end deere stuff, just does not have the ruggedness of the older stuff from the late 60's and 70's era. I was mowing the large field in our trailer park one day this summer with my restored model 70. An older gentle man had pulled into the park with an old MTD and a CCO on his trailer and sat and watched as I finished mowing the field. He came over and complimented me on the nice model 70 I had. He asked if I knew anybody that would work on an older cub, me I said, he was tired of the MTD's issues and wanted me to get his CCO up and running again. He dropped off the cco and took the MTD to the scrap yard, the mower deck on it was shot amoung its other issues. The CCO just needed a good carb rebuild, air in the tires and blades sharpened. I gave it a fresh coat of paint. I gave him a call to pick it up, when he arrived I was mowing the field with it, I never saw such a large smile as he had at that moment. I put the snowblower on it for him last weekend and gave it a fall servicing. He also help me get the blower out of the shed and onto the 70. If I had a supply of vintage cub, deere, simplicty tractors to restore to working condition. I could sell them all day long up here and made money on each. When an older tractor shows up in the local paper, its sold in a day or less normaly. Out driving on a saturday afternoon, I see many Quiet Lines and WF cubs mowing, as well as a few NF cubs. For the money, even if you have to rebuild the motor, an old cub cannot be beat. How many folks still make a 7hp tractor that can pull a brinly 8" plow??? answer=nobody! I plow gardens in the spring and once done, the customer usualy gets me talking bout the old 70 I use, and they just cannot believe a 7hp tractor can do work like that! Mike and Michele T

 

[kmoe]

That reminds me of when I went to the scrapyard to get some material to make a snow blade. The owner was trying to talk me out of the project altogether once I told him that it would be for a garden tractor. He said " Most of those will barely move out of their own way." Then I told him that it was for a Cub Cadet and he hand picked the steel for me.

 

[bnolte]

I looked in at the local auction house on Thursday. They had a complete 125 up there with a sign on it that said Runs Good, PTO slips, just needs adjustment, owner went into nursing home. IOW, it outlasted its owner. Auction was the next day, but it was miserable and rainy, and I already had a 129 apart in the garage getting the mower deck freshened up and the rest of the tractor ready for paint. I decided to hang in the relative comfort of the garage at home and tinker with the Cub. OTOH if I had gone, I might have gotten it cheap and I would have 3 of them laying around now. I would be curious to know what it went for though.