Craftsman 917.376400 Lawn Mower - 22" Self-propelled

by Wayne Garcia
(Columbia, Ms)

I live in Columbia, Ms., and purchased a Craftsman 22" model 917.376400 lawn mower approximately two years ago, at a local Sears store. It has a powerful motor, and both the cutting blade and self-propelled front wheels are powerful enough to cut through grass up to approximately six inches high at a height setting of four, and four inches high at height settings of two and three without encountering any problems.

It is usually difficult, however, to use the mower on a height setting of one, unless the grass is two inches high or shorter. On grass 3 inches high or taller, when on a height setting of one, the mower frame tends to drag on the grass, making it necessary to push the mower, rendering the self-propelled front wheels of little use.

Higher height settings are usually necessary for grass taller than five inches. The mower's powerful engine makes it suitable for large lawns, and is more powerful than necessary for a lawn smaller than 5000 sq. ft.

It has a detachable bagger, and a detachable side chute, making the mower adaptable to three forms of grass disposal: mulching, bagging, and spraying the cut grass onto the lawn beside the mower.

Mulching tends to cause some grass to clog up under the mower frame, and occasionally necessitates manual removal if the grass is five inches high or taller. Other features include automatic gas injection, making pulling the rope the only action necessary to start the mower, an ergonomic plastic rope handle, and a hatch that automatically locks open for easy removal of the bagger.

Overall, I am very pleased with this mower. During the two years in which I have owned and used it, it has worked very well for mowing my 30,000 sq. ft. lawn, and has not needed any repairs, other than a few blade replacements. Its performance has not degraded in any way, and other than a peeling sticker and a few scratches, it looks as new as when I bought it.