New Lawnmower! 1972 Snapper

[BigRed390]

After using one for a year, I've gotten attached to aluminum decked snapper mowers. They just cut better than most other stuff. Found this on Craigslist for a more than reasonable price. Aluminum deck, original briggs engine, and not a speck of dirt on it. I don't know whether to mow with it or just keep it around to look at! Probably mow with it. It starts on the first pull, probably because it was owned by a retired mechanic. The last pic shows my old beater in addition to my new acquisitioin. The shiny one is actually older than the dirty one.

Apologies in advance for the poor photography and the dirty shop.

 

[Toolhorder]

The shiny one looks like it was repainted at one time. I used to help my uncle rebuild mowers as a side business and those are excellent machines. Last forever. You for sure get more money for a Snapper.

 

[BigRed390]

Yeah, the shiny one has been repainted. He did a decent job on it though. Same guy's had it since it was new. Not really sure why he wanted to get rid of it, but he insisted I take a bag full of tomatoes and bell peppers with me when I left. Nicest guy I've run across in a while. Gotta love the south. Complete strangers treat you like family.

 

[BigRed390]

Bump for the morning crowd. I'm stupid excited about this mower.

 

[Scooterfish]

I have a 1973 toro aluminum deck 3.5 Briggs on it. Bought new by my dad in 73. Great little mower.

 

[pp702nw]

Awesome mower. I couldn't own aluminum deck mower. Id feel the need to strip the paint and polish it. Just cause.

 

[Call me the Breeze]

I think I would be pinstriping that bad boy up!

 

[pfbz]

Do we need a vintage mower thread?

 

[BigRed390]

Awesome mower. I couldn't own aluminum deck mower. Id feel the need to strip the paint and polish it. Just cause.

You know, the thought did cross my mind.... Reminds me of the guy in The Gold Plated Porsche who polished his aluminum fan shroud only to have it return to dull gray the next time he looked at it.

 

[IndyGarage]

In about 1988 when I first got married, I bought a Jacobsen push mower - it was beautiful, and a pain in the rear.

I had the briggs engine rebuilt once after 18 months. I had to redo the pulleys for the drive, and the thing never started worth a darn.

The first time I mowed my lawn after moving into my new house the thing threw the rod right through the side of the engine. It was 3 years old.

I shopped around and everybody told me the same thing - even the Honda dealer. "If your not going to buy mine, buy a Toro 2 stroke". But those Toro's were expensive. I ended up paying $550 for one back in 1991. It was self propelled and had a blade brake on it. It was "guaranteed to start in two pulls". And it did - 2 pulls, no more, no less, until I got rid of it.

It didn't take any repairs - literally any adjustments until about 2005. That's when the drive belt needed to be replaced, and I tightened the wheel bolts. A couple years later I had to replace the magneto on it, and finally in 1999 - after 18 years it crapped out on me when the governor inside the engine broke. I replaced it with a Honda - because Toro doesn't make a two stroke anymore, but I seriously considered finding an old one of those in good shape. Best lawnmower ever made as far as I'm concerned.

 

[mrholeshot]

That is one sweet mower. I won't anything but a Snapper. I say mow the grass with it.

 

[Displaced Hokie]

Nice! Excellent mowers as folks have said. Looks like that fan shroud has a provision for the electric start option!

 

[Need4racin]

Nice, but I'm too cheap to run 2 stroke oil in a mower. Rather just have a 4 stroke.

 

[TruckTech915]

That is nice. I say cut with it.

 

[rayzor32]

Wow thats pretty amazing find, I would have thought they all hit the scrap heap by now.

 

[BigRed390]

So I named her Lucy, and she's not intended to be a showpiece. Pretty as that new paint happens to be, I put her to work last night. She smokes a little, but I don't think she'll drink or run around on me, so we should get along just fine.

As were most things in the 70's, it's a little underpowered, but my reference points are a couple of 5+ hp briggs industrial/commercial engines, so I could be biased. That being said, it cuts with the same exceptional finish that my other aluminum decked one does. To put it bluntly, it cuts better than anything lowes sells. Maybe not faster, but it leaves a prettier yard behind. I'm floored. Couldn't be happier. Thanks for all the replies, and if you've got a vintage mower, somebody start a thread! It'd be cool to see what's out there.

 

[csp]

I have the '72 Lawn Boy that my dad bought brand new. Unfortunately it locked up on my in 2002 and I haven't had the time to tear into it. I'm not sure it's worth it as it was underpowered and smoked pretty bad.

My dad bought another Lawn Boy in '95, which was identical to the '72, and uses it to this day.

 

[930dreamer]

That's a nice Snapper you have.

 

[Stuart in MN]

I have an aluminum deck Jacobsen, probably a little older than that Snapper but with the exact same B&S engine (same shroud, start pull, air cleaner, etc.) It smokes a bit these days but still starts every time and runs well.

I like the fact it's not much more than an engine with a blade on it...nice and simple, no interlocks or power accessories. It doesn't even have a throttle cable, I just set the speed right at the carburetor.

 

[737mechanic]

Good looking mower.

The best cutting mower I have ever used was a snapper. My next mower is going to be a snapper even if I have to get an old one.

 

[page2171]

BigRed390, your 1972 Snapper looks like the Snapper my grandfather had, I mowed with that one quite a bit. So now, after 14 years of living places where I didn't need a lawn mower I moved to a place where I need to mow the lawn. I have been looking for weeks for used mowers, hoping to pick up something cheap since I probably won't need a mower when I move again in a few years. Nothing...not on Craigslist, not in the classifieds. So, I went to Lowe's and Home Depot...not impressed with what was in my price range. Driving by a pawn shop today I saw a mower sitting out front, so I stopped. It was a self-propelled Snapper...$150. I bought it, turns out it is a 1990, but even at 20 years old is still better than new mowers in the same price range.

 

[BigRed390]

Page,

My dad ran a lawn care business from the mid 80's to the mid 90's. I literally grew up around the stuff. I'd have a hard time going to lowes to buy something to mow my yard with, and I only have about 3/4 of an acre. Nothing huge or fancy, but it's mine and I know what a yard looks like when it's been cut by a ****** mower. Glad to know I'm not the only one who'd prefer an old mower to a "new" one. There's a huge difference in quality between the "good stuff" and the "consumer model sold in big box retailers." Gotta love old snappers though. I grew up mowing our yard with pair of steel decks that were older than i was. They had 5 hp Briggs IC engines on them, which was a lot back then. My dad still uses them. No rebuilds, just a few welds on the handles and the occasional oil change.

BTW, throw us a bone here. You can't tell us about a pawnshop score like that and not toss up a pic of the one you got. I'm sure I'm not the only mower fanatic here who'd like to see it!

 

[tpolley]

we used to have one of those with a tecumseh. i don't think the deck was aluminum tho... i think it was taken to the junk yard 15 years ago. this was before i knew what it was. as ignorant as i was about mowers i always knew it was one of the nicer mowers. when it ran it would cut circles around any of the newer mowers we had. i make sure to kick myself in the **** for it about every 3 or 4 years. i'll never let that happen again.

 

[DetroitDIESEL444]

I have 2 of the toro suzuki powered 2 stroke professional grade 21 inch mowers, one homeowner 2 stroke and 2 four stroke suzuki powered homeowner models, as well as a lawn boy 2 stroke from the 70s, those are the ones i like

 

[Skin]

Page,

My dad ran a lawn care business from the mid 80's to the mid 90's. I literally grew up around the stuff. I'd have a hard time going to lowes to buy something to mow my yard with, and I only have about 3/4 of an acre. Nothing huge or fancy, but it's mine and I know what a yard looks like when it's been cut by a ****** mower. Glad to know I'm not the only one who'd prefer an old mower to a "new" one. There's a huge difference in quality between the "good stuff" and the "consumer model sold in big box retailers." Gotta love old snappers though. I grew up mowing our yard with pair of steel decks that were older than i was. They had 5 hp Briggs IC engines on them, which was a lot back then. My dad still uses them. No rebuilds, just a few welds on the handles and the occasional oil change.

BTW, throw us a bone here. You can't tell us about a pawnshop score like that and not toss up a pic of the one you got. I'm sure I'm not the only mower fanatic here who'd like to see it!

The blade does the cutting so i fail to see how you can call every modern push mower poor. Quite a few companies make good stuff but you have to be willing to invest a few hundred. Its the cheapo big box store brands you have to stay away from.

On an aside those old briggs engines are a piece of ****. They get dirty incredibly easy, the heat sensitive springs that control the auto-choke are finicky [on the ones that had them anyway], the fuel tank will rust unless its kept full all the time and god help you if you get some water in there while its in storage, and the air filters clog like crazy due to being exposed and so low to the ground. Also as it ages the bearing/starter "cup" on the top of the flywheel can squeel like an enraged banshee. An even crappier variation can still be found today on those big box brands i mentioned that have simply swaped cast parts for plastic and dumped the auto-choke/manual choke in favor of a primer. The only old Briggs i like are the commercial vert shaft, now those were built like tanks.

The Briggs on the more expensive brands and Hondas are far superior. Honda in particular makes an absolutely incredible small engine, course you're paying for it too.

 

[page2171]

BTW, throw us a bone here. You can't tell us about a pawnshop score like that and not toss up a pic of the one you got. I'm sure I'm not the only mower fanatic here who'd like to see it!

Here are the pics of my new-to-me Snapper. I haven't gotten it cleaned up yet (hopefully that will happen this weekend). Purchase price was $150, then spent another $40 to do a tune up, sharpen the blade, and replace the drive wheel. Total cost is about $200...not bad IMO for a Snapper. Sorry for the cell phone pics...haven't been able to find digital camera since we moved into the house a couple weeks ago.

 

[Bolster]

I like your mower... I have a question...

How could a particular brand of mower leave a better cut? Aren't we just talking about a spinning blade? Wouldn't the quality of cut be a function of how the blade is sharpened, or lack thereof?

 

[jeepnut24]

Im partial to the aluminum deck Lawn Boys myself... But still a nice one.

 

[Stuart in MN]

On an aside those old briggs engines are a piece of ****.

Maybe mine is an exceptional example, but it's been extremely reliable, particularly considering the minimal care I give it. It smokes some, but considering it's 40 years old that's not too surprising. It still starts every time, including when I pull it out first time in the spring. I have to put a new spark plug in it once.