Which stiga Tornado vs Park models

[yama]

Sort of a second post.

 

I current have a countax k series mower with sweeper has given up, with trying to maintain the garden which is about 1.5acres plenty of trees / open spaces and large hedges to navigate with a slight incline, I also have some ferns to mow a few times a year. The Countax is not economical to repair with their spare part prices....

 

I am thinking about looking at a mulching mower  this time around (for the garden area, ferns just get left as discharge) now as I have run out of space for grass clippings this year.

The machine would also be used for pulling a 4ft countax trailer full of logs and fence posts and wire etc.., Raking and weeding & sweeping of leaves.

 

I am torn between the following two Stiga mowers:

 

• Park 416 pvm with 100 el combi 3 deck £3300inc
• Tornado 6108hw £2799inc

 

I like the sound of the tornado 6108hw being of a heavy duty spec or is it just marketing ploy?

 

but the Park 416 is definitely appealing with all the accessories available and most likely not needing to have to finish mow with a push mower as much.

 

which would you choose?

is the Tornado actually more heavy duty then the park series?

[Jwoodgardenmaintenance]

@jimupson give upson mowers a call and have a chat with Jim he stocks all stiga mowers annd uses them himself so will be able to have a crack with you and tell you what you need 

 

Jack 

[GardenKit]

21 hours ago, yama said:

Sort of a second post.

 

I current have a countax k series mower with sweeper has given up, with trying to maintain the garden which is about 1.5acres plenty of trees / open spaces and large hedges to navigate with a slight incline, I also have some ferns to mow a few times a year. The Countax is not economical to repair with their spare part prices....

 

I am thinking about looking at a mulching mower  this time around (for the garden area, ferns just get left as discharge) now as I have run out of space for grass clippings this year.

The machine would also be used for pulling a 4ft countax trailer full of logs and fence posts and wire etc.., Raking and weeding & sweeping of leaves.

 

I am torn between the following two Stiga mowers:

 

• Park 416 pvm with 100 el combi 3 deck £3300inc
• Tornado 6108hw £2799inc

 

I like the sound of the tornado 6108hw being of a heavy duty spec or is it just marketing ploy?

 

but the Park 416 is definitely appealing with all the accessories available and most likely not needing to have to finish mow with a push mower as much.

 

which would you choose?

is the Tornado actually more heavy duty then the park series?

Hi Yama

Interesting post, and valid questions that I may be able to provide the answers for.

 

Firstly though, your pricing is a little out, unless someone is offering clearance prices on old spec machines. These are the current prices.

• Park 416 VPM with Combi 3 EL QF (new Quick Flip) deck, Stiga ST 500  single cylinder engine, 452cc 9.3kw. 3yr warranty.   retail price £4098 but sells for £3699 after discount
• Tornado 6108HW with 108cm deck,Stiga ST 650 2 cylinder engine , 635cc, 12.1kw. 5yr warranty.  retail price of £3399, but selling for £2999 after discount.

 

There has never been a claim of one being more heavy duty than the other. They are completely different machines suited to different purposes.

You could feel that as the Tornado 6108 has a 5year warranty, as opposed to the the 3 yr on the Park, but in reality the Park has the heavier duty build quality, although a lesser duty engine.

 

The most important thing is to match the machine to the task.

If the task is regular cutting of well kept grassland then the Park models will certainly give the best finish, with the best conversion of grass to small clippings. They love irregular areas due to the front deck. But to be honest, although the throat at the  back of the deck can be enlarged by removing a baffle, they are not best suited to long grass maintenance. They will work very hard trying to process long grass and result in blockage and belt wear. 

By long grass I mean areas that are not cut often, with grass to be removed in excess of 100mm or so.

 

For longer grass, cut infrequently, a side discharge deck is best as the grass is cut and forcibly discharged from the side of the deck, where it is spread in an unmulched state, but with little load on the machine allowing faster progress.

Sure, the standard mulch plug can be fitted which keeps the material within the deck to be mulched , but once again, just like the Park, this will slow down progress in long grass and overload the drive belts.

 

So in summary, for fast coverage of large areas containing longer grass, the side discharge option is best.

For areas of shorter, regularly cut grass, a much plug in the side discharge, or a front mounted mulching deck will both work fine.

The very best finish will obtained from the purpose built , front mounted, mulching deck.

I hope this helps.

 

Edited December 10, 2019 by GardenKit

[yama]

thank you for the reply.

 

yes the prices were sale price for shop display models.

 

i like the look of the tornado but i have opted for the park 416 p vm in the end due to the comfort of the seating position as my grass cut normally takes 2-3hours when emptying the collector. plus the options available for accessories are numerous with the park series. Already pricing up an edger, rake and manual lift

 

i think the first cut is going to be a tough one as it will be about 3 months of winter growth spetmber onwards.... it needs doing. but apart from that i normally cut weekly.

the idea of the front mower makes sense especially if i can cut down on the finishing with a push mower after the main cut due to being able to reach under hedges and conifer trees.

 

[GardenKit]

Good choice Yams. You should easily knock about 30% off the time it takes with the Countax, and the quality of the grass will improve.

This first cut will be tricky though. Choose a dry day if possible, Remove the mulching baffle and keep the deck high. The deck  will very likely still clag  up, so be careful where you switch it off as it will deposit a ton of concentrated mulch!

Go as slowly as possible and be led by your senses. If you smell rubber, slow down. Their are 3 belts in the Pro train, but the one to watch is the the clutching belt from the engine pulley to the central pulley on the machine pivot. It will be the first to fail when overloaded.

Enjoy.