Hot deal, these chinese engines are probably ripoffs of Honda or Briggs and Stratton designs and can provide a long life with abit of TLC.

I have an entry level Qualcast with the briggs and stratton 148cc engine, got it new off ebay for about £70-£80 3 years ago, only use it maybe 4 times a year but it always starts after a few pulls (I find that it needs a good 10-15 pumps on the primer button, not the inadequate 3 or so that it recommends).

The whole thing about old petrol, carbs and spark plugs needing servicing etc is quite exaggerated. Trust me, local authorities and grounds maintenance companies generally do not properly service their mowers, if atall. They are often left in lockups over the winter and then given afew pulls til they start come summer.

If you want good easy service out of one of these I would say:

*make sure all the bolts are tight (esp the blade!) or change some bolts for better ones,

*fit a quality brand sparkplug that is the correct type for the engine

*Put decent oil to the correct level in as soon as you get it (I doubt the factory Chinese oil is upto much), briggs and stratton suggest SAE 30, and that is what I have used with no issue, but any 10W 40, 5w40 or 5w 30 would also be ok.

*Use a ZDDP oil and fuel additive such as Extra lube ZX1, this will create a 1 molecule thick coating of Zinc to the internals of the engine, this makes for smooth running and protects it if your oil gets old/low.

*Use a product like Redex in your petrol every now and then to help clean the carb.

*Clean the deck and air filter abit after use using you hands or maybe a brush. Not necessarily great for it to hose it down.

*Loosen the fuel cap a little sometimes when starting to allow oxygen through, don't over tighten the cap.

*When tipping the mower on it's side, be sure to only tip it so that the spark plug is facing skyward. Otherwise engine oil will run into the cylinder and make it hard to start and incredibly smokey when it does eventually start. Eventually the oil will burn off with little harm done, but it is annoying.

Naughty tricks of the trade, of course there are elements of risk but you can do these safely IF YOU ARE SENSIBLE:

*wedge open the grass shoot a little bit, not too much as stones and sticks will fly out, just enough to allow the grass to disperse easier, (I don't bother with the grass box, too much messing about).

*If possible use a stick, small shovel or other tool to remove stuck grass from the shoot when it is running,
BUT ONLY IF THE MODEL OF MOWER IN QUESTION IS CAPABLE OF HAVING THE BLADE REMAIN STILL AT IDLE, EVEN THEN USE EXTREME CAUTION. If in doubt, just turn it off and fully remove all grass by hand. Officially you should also remove the sparkplug every time you remove stuck grass when it is off, but in reality no one does that.

*use a toe strap to tie down the "dead mans handle" (the bar you have to press in order for the mower to run). This will allow the mower to run/idle hands free.

*Although the blades are made from hardened steel, you can still sharpen them, but the edge won't last as long as it did originally. I would imagine spares for these generic Chinese mowers are on ebay if you measure up your respective parts and look around abit, even if they are not exactly the same.

Definitely always wear some eye protection (proper EN166 specs are on ebay for a couple of quid), stout grippy foot wear and hearing protection. Don't mow near unprotected humans or animals. Stones and sticks, and possibly bits of metal flying through the air is always a risk using any mower, hedge cutter or strimmer, even electric ones. And the constant drone of motors is not good for the ears, regardless of how quiet you think your mower is.

Anyway, happy mowing :smile:

great price

Hot deal, these chinese engines are probably ripoffs of Honda or Briggs and Stratton designs and can provide a long life with abit of TLC.
I have an entry level Qualcast with the briggs and stratton 148cc engine, got it new off ebay for about £70-£80 3 years ago, only use it maybe 4 times a year but it always starts after a few pulls (I find that it needs a good 10-15 pumps on the primer button, not the inadequate 3 or so that it recommends).
The whole thing about old petrol, carbs and spark plugs needing servicing etc is quite exaggerated. Trust me, local authorities and grounds maintenance companies generally do not properly service their mowers, if atall. They are often left in lockups over the winter and then given afew pulls til they start come summer.
If you want good easy service out of one of these I would say:
*make sure all the bolts are tight (esp the blade!) or change some bolts for better ones,
*fit a quality brand sparkplug that is the correct type for the engine
*Put decent oil to the correct level in as soon as you get it (I doubt the factory Chinese oil is upto much), briggs and stratton suggest SAE 30, and that is what I have used with no issue, but any 10W 40, 5w40 or 5w 30 would also be ok.
*Use a ZDDP oil and fuel additive such as Extra lube ZX1, this will create a 1 molecule thick coating of Zinc to the internals of the engine, this makes for smooth running and protects it if your oil gets old/low.
*Use a product like Redex in your petrol every now and then to help clean the carb.
*Clean the deck and air filter abit after use using you hands or maybe a brush. Not necessarily great for it to hose it down.
*Loosen the fuel cap a little sometimes when starting to allow oxygen through, don't over tighten the cap.
*When tipping the mower on it's side, be sure to only tip it so that the spark plug is facing skyward. Otherwise engine oil will run into the cylinder and make it hard to start and incredibly smokey when it does eventually start. Eventually the oil will burn off with little harm done, but it is annoying.
Naughty tricks of the trade, of course there are elements of risk but you can do these safely IF YOU ARE SENSIBLE:
*wedge open the grass shoot a little bit, not too much as stones and sticks will fly out, just enough to allow the grass to disperse easier, (I don't bother with the grass box, too much messing about).
*If possible use a stick, small shovel or other tool to remove stuck grass from the shoot when it is running,
BUT ONLY IF THE MODEL OF MOWER IN QUESTION IS CAPABLE OF HAVING THE BLADE REMAIN STILL AT IDLE, EVEN THEN USE EXTREME CAUTION. If in doubt, just turn it off and fully remove all grass by hand. Officially you should also remove the sparkplug every time you remove stuck grass when it is off, but in reality no one does that.
*use a toe strap to tie down the "dead mans handle" (the bar you have to press in order for the mower to run). This will allow the mower to run/idle hands free.
*Although the blades are made from hardened steel, you can still sharpen them, but the edge won't last as long as it did originally. I would imagine spares for these generic Chinese mowers are on ebay if you measure up your respective parts and look around abit, even if they are not exactly the same.
Definitely always wear some eye protection (proper EN166 specs are on ebay for a couple of quid), stout grippy foot wear and hearing protection. Don't mow near unprotected humans or animals. Stones and sticks, and possibly bits of metal flying through the air is always a risk using any mower, hedge cutter or strimmer, even electric ones. And the constant drone of motors is not good for the ears, regardless of how quiet you think your mower is.
Anyway, happy mowing :smiley:[/quote

That's one of the longest comments I've ever seen on HUKD and I'd have read the lot except I nodded off half way through :laughing:

That's a great price, thank you

Look like the Tesco one I bought a few years ago. Excellent for the money but spares are likely to be hard to get. Great price. Hot

went to buy yesterday on the last deal but hot refused at this price

How heavy are these to mow around as compared to self propelled ones? The cheapest self propelled i see from mountfield at around £180.

How is this compared to mountfield self propelled:
http://www.screwfix.com/p/mountfield-sp164-39cm-100cc-self-propelled-rotary-petrol-lawn-mower/21442

Amazing price, but you'll probably regret not getting a self-propelled if you have an uneven or large lawn.

thankyou