Hello all.

I think the secret has been leaked to the masses.

A lightly used LawnBoy 10323, just tuned up by a professional mechanic and a few minor deck scratches can bring on the bidders and cash in your pocket.

It's all in the game.

Good day.

Wow, a 10552 for $400. I can get one of these tommorrow for forty bucks. These lawnboys are plentiful in a nearby town. They must be harder to find in the east for some reason or people out there have a hellava lot more money to blow than I.

I personally prefer the 10515 for certain reasons and I'm not jumping all over the 10552. Alot of folks really like those Duraforce engines so I guess to each their own.

Neal

Hello again.

I have never owned a Toro Commercial walk behind mower with a Suzuki 2-cycle
engine.
I have seen some Toro/ Suzuki 2-cycle walk behind mowers that look like they have been rode very hard and end up getting a lot of bids on Ebay.

Good day.

Don't get one! They are just as addicting as Lawnboys but harder to find!
I have two, a 22040 and a 22043. They mow like nothing I've ever used, and I've used about all there is to offer. Maybe its my personal preference but they are nice. I just love their fuel economy and mechanical purr.

As for the e-bay prices, I ignore that jazz. I think that mowers going for those prices are asenine.

Neal

I see now most all new 10550's left are selling for $1000!!! This is why I've decided to restore the ones I have and save big over those prices! I really wanted a new Duraforce, but not for that kind of money!

Echoman, Just keep on the lookout for a Duraforce powered mower.
They are getting old enough now they will be popping up at garage sales and auctions now. Most of them have loads of grease on the deck because Toro failed to address the leaky needle and seat issue with no shutoff and the weak carb. But after a good cleaning and a new CD pack in most cases they are good to roll if they haven't been straight gassed.

Toro designed a engine that COULD have been great had they dealt with the carb a little better.

There is no reason to pay big bucks for these units when Toro made millions of them.

Neal

'Toro designed a engine that COULD have been great had they dealt with the carb a little better'

Carb problems or not, the Duraforce IS the greatest Lawn-Boy 2-cycle engine ever made.

'There is no reason to pay big bucks for these units when Toro made millions of them'

Probably less than half a million - the 2-cycle mower was already a dinosaur when the Duraforce was rolled out. Still, I agree that paying more than MSRP for any new lawn mower is ridiculous. $1000 for a 10550 makes it a museum piece, too expensive to use. If it were perfect, that would be one thing, but the 10550 is far from perfect. A very good premium mower it is, but it has its faults.

i have a mint toro comm that i bought cheap 250$ many yrs ago and never needed it in my lawn biz. i bet i could get a small fortune for it on ebay

There's a small business not too far from me, that deals in used equipment of all ages and brands including a shelf full of used Toro/Suzuki's incase anyone needs anything. Let me know, and I'll post his name and phone #.

"Carb problems or not, the Duraforce IS the greatest Lawn-Boy 2-cycle engine ever made."

What makes you say that?

Would this be a good one for a noob to play with?
http://denver.craigslist.org/grd/319002993.html

'What makes you say that?'

Highest power, removable head, the largest crank, ball-bearing mains, above-deck muffler, improved crank seals, more cooling fins...pretty much the boss.

"Carb problems or not, the Duraforce IS the greatest Lawn-Boy 2-cycle engine ever made."

For years the D-400 was said to be the best lawnboy engine ever made. I happen to really like the two I own but Its all in that persons personal taste.
I like my "F" engines better than the finicky Duraforce engines. I'm not wanting to battle or anything I'm just saying I prefer to start my engine and go. I've owned Two seperate lawnboys W/duraforce engines and man what a hassle they were. One ran up and down and the other just ran so-so. I have a bad taste in my mouth for them thats all.

Yeah I could have re-jetted and all that but I just ended up trading them off for other mowers as they sat in my shed for a couple of seasons.

I agree with ya Sax, The ball bearing mains and removable head are nice features but the above deck muffler was "different" for the lawnboy line. Something I never really liked much. When you go to start the thing a bunch of black wet fuel stuff would spit all over the deck and make you wonder why this four hundred dollar machine you just bought blows crap out all over the new deck. I later added fuel shut offs and that took care of the problem but the carb was a bear to install after working on the good ole cork float that could be used in a forty year old lawnboy. I realize these are minor issues for some but could be major issues for others.
So with that said I'll move along and now everyone knows why I think these mowers were not worth the big bucks that people pay for them on e-bay.

Neal

I vote for the Dura-Force as the best engine Lawn-Boy made. If it were not for the poor carb and lean running it would have been outstanding. I have re-jetted all my Duraforce mowers (5) and they are not hard to start at all, one pull will do it every time. I will say that I would like the muffler to be quieter but I wear radio earmuffs anyway.

Hello all.

I have been checking out Ebay, but those current LawnBoy bids are way to steep for me.

No problem, I purchased my Lawnboy Duraforce mowers well in advance. Whew!

I also vote for the Duraforce as the best engine Lawn-Boy made. I have re-jetted my Lawnboy 10323. The Lawnboy 10323 runs smoother, easy to start and the exhaust note reminds me of a well tuned vintage Maico 400. :-)

Good day.

Sure wish someone wanting Lawn Boys lived close to me as I have "Brick Top" D400 series, and a couple of DuroForce Lawn Boys I need to get rid of, a 10323 and a straight push one, plus a D600 series with a good aluminum base, no room.

Walt Conner
East/Central Illinois

What town you in Walt? I used to work a lot in Robinson at the Marathon Oil refinery. I'm not that far from you. May have to take a ride to see you.

That's where.

Walt Conner

Seriously? I used to stay at a house we rented on Plum St, North side of town. Still the same? Haven't been there in about 11 years now.

Some dude just paid $440 + $80 shipping for a 10323 from Chambersburg, PA. Looking at his bid history - he also paid $330 + $79 shipping for ANOTHER 10323 earlier today from Kansas. Wonder if he is trying to corner the market or just putting in fake bids on Ebay?!? I paid $110 for a 10324 with bagger last week... if anybody wants it I'll sell it for $400! :-)

Only $110? For a 10324? Can I "buy it now" for $4,000? You must through in a new can of oil!

"I used to stay at a house we rented on Plum St, "

I helped do really serious remodeling of a story and half house on Plum.

If interested in mowers,

Walt Conner
wconner5 at verizon dot net

Hello all.

I'm waiting to see the rock the lawn and garden show winning bid on the next still in the box and never been fueled up Lawn-Boy 22261 to be listed on Ebay.

Yeah, I belive there is an Old Ma and Pop's hardware store out there in the Midwest that has a NIB Lawn-Boy 22261 in inventory.

Old Ma ordered it for someone that "never came back to pick it up." :)

Good day.

Being an engineer, I tend to look at only the mechanical and engineering aspects of an engine like the Duraforce. How it has been carbureted to meet some regulation or other has nothing to do with it. The fact remains that it is technically the most advanced 2-cycle to appear on a Lawn-Boy mower. Notice that I'm hedging here and limiting it to Lawn-Boy, because the Suzuki 2-cycle they put on Toros could very well be the best overall.

Was the M series engine designed and built by LB or was it Suzuki?

my vote for best 2 cycle of all time is the wisconsen-robin . even better than the famous suzuki . less carb problems and even longer lasting. for better or worse-lawnboy made the m series engine

Other than being a bit over weight,and not as easy to threw around as other LB's, who here or have heard of major issues with the M engine? The carb can be a bit finicky at times. Haven't used mine much in the few years I've owned it, but it seems to be as well built and powerful as any LB made to date pre 04' of course. I never had the chance to run a Duraforce to compare the power to.

i havnt had any engines problms yet with either of my 2 m series except as you say the finicky minuki carb. they do produce more power than than the f but not as much as the dura force. i use mine spareingly as i am afraid some thing will break that i cant replace. many of the parts are out of production