Rear Wheel Drive Lawn Mowers
Rear wheel drive lawn mowers provide superior traction. Their powered rear wheels remain engaged at all times, making them better suited to hilly or uneven terrains and providing better grass collection capabilities with their use of bags to collect clippings.
Front wheel drive mowers are less expensive and easier to maneuver than their rear-wheel counterparts, making them an excellent choice for lawns with flat terrains; however, they may not perform as effectively on uneven or bumpy terrains.
Maneuverability
Rear wheel drive lawn mowers make maneuvering much simpler due to being able to simply lift the front wheels while still having the back drive the machine forward – perfect for maneuvering around obstacles such as trees, shrubs, sprinklers and yard ornaments without disengaging it or altering speed settings.
Rear wheel drive lawn mowers provide another advantage by operating efficiently over hills, inclines and rough terrains. Since their back wheels are heavier, they will continue to provide traction as you work on uneven surfaces – this feature is especially helpful if your goal is achieving an even cut on your lawn.
Rear wheel drive lawn mowers are also great for those who like a challenge when mowing their grass, such as using lawn striping techniques where grass is bent in different directions using lawn rollers to achieve desired looks. A rear wheel drive lawn mower makes this task simpler as you can steer it easily around curves and corners for greater results.
Front wheel drive lawn mowers work well on flat surfaces but may be less effective when working with uneven or crooked grass, since their front wheels tend to bounce during operation and lose propulsion more easily than their rear-wheel counterparts. Furthermore, front-wheel drive models tend to cost more.
Front wheel drive lawn mowers may be more cost-effective, but they may not be best-suited to uneven or hilly surfaces and bagging grass effectively. A rear-wheel drive lawn mower may prove both cost-efficient and more effective when working with uneven and hilly lawns due to its extra power, and can even perform better on sloped and inclined areas than other models.
Traction
Rear wheel drive mowers use engine power to propel themselves forward, enabling it to power through nearly all terrain – including hills and slopes – with ease, making this option the most popular among homeowners.
Rear-wheel drive mowers require more complex components for manufacturing, making this type of mower more expensive than its front-wheel counterparts. But homeowners with larger gardens that need lots of care may find that investing more may be worthwhile.
Front-wheel drive mowers should provide sufficient traction for those with small to medium-sized lawns, enabling them to traverse most terrain and landscape features with ease. Simply apply pressure on the handlebars to lift the front wheels slightly off of the ground and change direction of travel – far quicker and simpler than shifting a tractor uphill or around obstacles like trees or fenceposts.
If you want to move your mower backwards, this can also be accomplished with just the press of a button. Depending on your model, this control may be an integral part of the handlebars or an independent lever or bail attached directly to its transmission.
Like with a car, maintaining good drive belt condition for your mower is of great importance. Operating it with an improperly inflated or damaged belt could result in it slipping and stopping its progress altogether. Regularly check for signs of wear such as brittleness or cracking and it may be necessary to replace it altogether.
Problematic transmissions can arise for several reasons, such as an overheated engine or worn-out gears. To isolate this issue, press down on the drive lever to see if engaging or disengaging self-propulsion engages or disengages as you expected; additionally, use the cable adjuster to tighten or loosen pulleys in order to make engaging or disengaging more easy.
Ease of Use
If your yard contains flowerbeds, trees and other obstacles that need to be navigated around easily, a rear wheel drive mower might be your ideal solution. Rear wheel drives provide faster turning action than front wheel models while their weight distribution helps ensure smooth mowing on uneven or hilly terrains for effortless professional-looking lawn mowing results.
However, if your lawn is flat and needs no significant upkeep or caretaking efforts, front-wheel drive mowers may save some money by offering optimal traction on flat terrain while only needing manually driven forward movement when going up an incline or making turns.
Consideration must also be given to the type of grass on your property. If your yard contains many weeds and twigs, select a mower with a mulching blade which can cut grass into small pieces that can then be returned back into the soil as nutrients. However, for thick and dense grass areas it will require an engine with increased horsepower so as not to overload or burn out its motor prematurely.
Rear-wheel drive mowers tend to be more durable and provide superior traction on slopes, inclines and hills than their front-wheel drive counterparts. Furthermore, rear-wheel drive lawn mowers typically require less maintenance or repair compared to their FWD counterparts, making them an excellent option for homeowners with more time available to dedicate towards maintaining their yard.
Rear-wheel drive mowers may make it more challenging to gain access to the underside for repairs and maintenance purposes, requiring you to remove the blade, any belt cover and possibly the panel at the back of the mower in order to access its drive cable and transmission pulleys.
If your mower’s self-propulsion is becoming ineffective, this could be caused by a damaged drive cable. A broken cable that no longer holds the drive bail in place could be to blame; replacing this broken cable should do the trick if its position no longer holds the bail securely in place. You can buy replacement cables directly from manufacturers or independent hardware stores. To replace it yourself, unhook both ends of the drive bail on its handle before cutting off fasteners that hold cable ties and removing them to install a replacement one – first unhook wire connectors from both ends before cutting fasteners holding cable ties on each end and removing cable ties before replacing this broken one to make way for its replacement to take effect!
Cost
Rear-wheel drive lawn mowers tend to be more expensive than front-wheel drives due to the additional parts and labor involved in production, plus any added features like variable speed self-propulsion that add extra costs – although in many cases their benefits outweigh these additional expenses.
Industry experts advise homeowners considering purchasing a rear-wheel drive lawn mower to first take into account their yard and terrain before making their final decision. Furthermore, experts suggest taking note of which type of engine powers it; this could affect its performance and efficiency.
In particular, for yards that contain steep hills or rough terrain, rear wheel drive mowers tend to work best as they’re more capable of managing difficult terrain with ease. Furthermore, larger back wheels tend to perform better because they’re less likely to become unstable while operating on challenging grounds.
Make sure your mower comes equipped with an easy maintenance regimen; ease of maintenance is often one of the top features for many homeowners. A single pull cord that makes disengaging its self-propulsion feature an easy process is ideal; plus many mowers feature push buttons which match its speed to your walking pace can also come in handy.
Some manufacturers provide an easily accessible panel on the side of their mower for quick access to its drive belt and blade. Usually this requires taking some steps such as unbolting the blade cover as well as opening another cover in order to gain access to it. Once a new belt has been attached to its pulleys on transmission and tensioned using drive cable adjuster a proper tension can be maintained on its length.
