Scott, I'm not sure about the 235, but my 225 did not come with an hour meter. I had to install it (even though the cutout was there in the frame). Just because it shows less than 100 hours doesn't mean it was installed since new. Also, even if it were, they're pretty easy to replace. While "rolling back" a car's odometer will get you in hot water, I don't think the sheriff cares much about guys selling lawn mowers with bogus hours. That being said, check other things for signs of wear. With less than 100 hours, they should both be in like new condition. The only wear you should see is some paint scraped off the sides of the deck. If you see excessive wear on the tires, pedals, seat, lots of play in the steering, noisy deck bearings, etc, those are some things that might make you question the low hours claim. If you decide that both tractors do in fact have less than 100 hours, and move on from comparing the condition of the tractors to the features of the tractors, it's a no-brainer, the GT is an upgrade. The tractors handle and operate identically, with twin-touch pedals and a manual lift deck. Does the LX have the foot pedal lift? You might prefer than over the hand lever. As far as cutting grass goes, you won't really notice a difference. But if you ever want to branch out from there, the GT235 is a real garden tractor, which is basically a miniature farm tractor. While the LX is one of the more rugged lawn tractors, capable of pushing a snow blade, it's still just a lawn tractor. You'll never use sleeve-hitch attachments (plow, disc harrow, cultivator, planter, blade, box blade, rake) or a tiller (which are cheap on eBay). And if you tow a cart full of firewood, soil, mulch, whatever, you'll need to take it easy on the transmission.

Huh, kinda lucky it ran at all, I'd say. Must've been weak fuel pressure, but still functioning somewhat? I'm curious, but did you ever remove the original fuel pump from the tank and check it out? Your 445 has an internal pump (inside the fuel tank) doesn't it? I wonder if the filter sock had plugged up or come off and allowed the pump to suck up junk from the bottom of the fuel tank? Somehow, people always seem to get "crap" in their fuel tanks, leading to future problems. Glad to hear you came up with a cheaper fix with the automotive style pump. It may fail sooner, but it's hard to say. External electric fuel pumps typically fail sooner than internal ones due to heat. What most people fail to realize is that fuel pumps run/stay cooler when immersed in fuel. (That's really the only reason why they put them inside the fuel tanks in the first place.) My JD 322 has a external in-line fuel pump. The original JD pump failed after 12 years of service, and it acted much like your 425 did. I too, went to the auto parts store and got an inline pump that was nearly identical to my original one, for about 1/3rd the cost of what my JD dealer wanted for the same pump. How aggravating that was, that JD's price was so unreasonable! Anyhow, the only thing I had to change was the plug connector, in which I cut the original one from the old pump and connected it to the new one so that it would fit exactly as the old pump did. It has now been on my tractor and working great for the past 6 years with no problems. Yee-haw! Oh, the only other thing I was going to mention was this... These days, many small engines have electric fuel shut-off solenoids on the carburators. When they fail, they either fail partially - leading to power loss issues, or they fail completely - leading to no-start conditions. The way to check them is to remove them from the carburator and put a very short (and same thread) cap screw in place of them (with a sealing washer at the head of the bolt of course). If the problem "disappears", then you know you need a new fuel shut-off solenoid. They usually fail from heat, and so sometimes they will work for a little while until the engine warms them up a bit. I know this, because I've had to deal with the failure on more than one occassion when I used to work on Lawn & Garden equipment for a profession. Additionally, you want to make sure you replace the bad fuel shut-off solenoid with a new one, as it's what helps to keep the engine from backfiring when shut down at various different engine RPM's. Peace out!

The first coat of any out door finish will not last all that long including twp. After a year in Seattle with one coat I bet it looks pretty rough. TWP is a build coat finish. Do not use a powerwasher on ipe unless you are as smart as the Ken. Probley an oxalic acid wash and a good scrubing will do it. Man do those target girls look good or what?? usually I hate all those adds. Folks I am pretty much geting out of outdoor finish over here. I have already said the same thing like 10000 times and its usually the same question resulting from the fact that most Folks dont want to put work into their project on a regular. Just wait until it turns to total Shi%%%% and then try to figure out how to fix it. So this is the ol John Mon signing OFF.

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