sweeper

[bob9137]

I am wanting to buy a pull behind lawn sweeper, can anyone tell me a good brand to buy ?

Thank you
Bob

 

[Chadtoolio]

I got a used brinly from a coworker. It is a 42" and seems to work ok. I was really impressed at it's ability to gather pine straw, which is why I got it. I am curious to see how it does this summer picking up grass clippings so i can use them for compost. I guess my opinion thus far would be: it makes a difference, but not squeeky clean.

HTH,

Chad

 

[RSKY]

I am also looking for a sweeper since mine burned in a fire. I have looked at the Brinley and Agri Fab and they appear to be cheaply made but usable. The one that burned was a step above those brands. It had grease fittings on the wheels and small swiveling rollers under the back of the basket. They are made by a company named Parker and are sold at Toro Dealers. The one I am looking at cost $469 which is double the price of an Agri Fab. It has more brooms, grease fittings on the wheels, and looks to be heavier made. Good luck on your search.

 

[jayhawkRoy]

I bought a Craftsman 42" sweeper in 1998 and have never regretted it. Works great, no problems with it. It seemed to be built heavier than the Huskee one I saw at TSC.

 

[frank_f15]

how does that sweeper work on uneven ground? and is it good, for othern than grass clippings?

 

[jayhawkRoy]

Not really. It does grass extremely well. Don't have any leaves to speak of, because we have very few large trees, so don't know how well it picks up leaves. Leaves we do have blow somewhere else (Kansas winds). I use it at our house near Kansas City, not at our acreage in southeast Kansas. Our grass is pretty thick, and I can only mow once a week or so, even when the growth might require mowing more often. I chose the sweeper over a mulching deck because of dealer recommendations that if I consistently took off more than one-third of the grass height, mulching would not work out as well. Mowing once a week I usually take down one third to one half of the grass height, and then use the sweeper to pick up the clippings. We mulch our fence line with the clippings, to keep out weeds.

 

[jwstewar]

I got a heck of a deal fall of 2002. Lowes was doing a close-out on their seasonal merchandise. I saw a 38" Agri-Fab there for $75 because it had been opened but they told me it was all there. I told them to hold it until the next day when I went back with the truck. I wasn't able to make it back until about 8:30 PM the next day. They assumed I wasn't coming back. They marked it down to $50 about 8:15. It was still there when I got there. When I went to assemble it, the rods to hold the bag up were missing and the bag had a couple of little rips in it. When I called Agri-Fab and told them the story and the parts that were missing/damaged they shipped them out to me immediately at no charge. Got a heck of deal for $50. /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif

Now how does it work? Don't laugh but I actually pull it behind my New Holland TC24. Doesn't do too bad. I usually don't pull it while I'm mowing but I might go back and "dress" an area up i.e. the front or back yard (as opposed to the 2 sides) if we are having guests. Have to be careful as the NH can go a little too fast for it and it'll start bouncing and bounce the bag off of its hooks. Other then that 2 little problems: 1.) The first time I used it it was kinda windy. All of the stuff ended up on me instead of in the bag /forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif. I'm still working on a screen/cover that would keep the stuff in the bag. 2.) The last time I used it was early in the morning (I had mowed the day before) and I wanted to pick up the clippings. Wow did that bag get heavy. Was really tough to get it dumped - but at least the bag wasn't bouncing off the hooks. Don't really have too many leaves - at least yet but it did pick up corn husks that blew in the yard from the corn field across the road /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

 

[professor]

I purchased a model 136 Estate Turf Sweeper from Wicko Industries two years ago.The sweeper is heavy duty and has the following features:
Driven by 16 inch pneumatic on 8 inch rims
36 inches wide
Clutch to disengage brush while transporting
14 cu. ft basket
Brush speed approx. 1500rpm
Weighs 155 lbs.
I have pulled it behind a Yanmar 1401 tractor and a 13 hp John Deere lawn tractor and get good results with either tractor. I sweep up to four acres. I like the workmanship and the gear system. I pick up grass and leaves.
I replaced a JD sweeper with this unit. The JD was a good machine but they quit handling that model.
The 136 is a bit pricy at $795 delivered but will last a life time.
You can visit them at www.wikco.com or call 866-464-8893. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[bontai_Joe]

I bought my Parker back in 1979 and used it commercially for a part time lawn maintenance business I had for 6 years. I still have it today, although it only gets used 4-6 times a year now. Mine is all original, the basket has 2 smallish rips in it, no major rust, original broom and definitely worth the $$. I think that they are a better quality than Brinly or Agrifab and of course are more expensive, but if you look at the Agrifab or Brinly and decide you want something better, Parker is a good unit to check out.

 

[Molerj]

I also agree on the Parker, but I thought that they were no longer in business. I may be wrong, but I needed parts a few yrs. ago & I thought the reason I had a tough time getting what I needed was because they were no longer made.