John Deere R72 Riding Mower

by Melvin Harper
(Chicago, US)

I own a 1985 R72 John Deere riding lawn mower. It has an eight horse power motor and a thirty inch mowing deck. This is a great lawn mower for the age. The engine is big enough to pull anything behind it that it has to. And a deck big enough to cut enough grass fast enough.

I use it on a half acre lot around my house. This is a little small for what it can really do but it’s what I have and what I use it for. I enjoy the ride. If someone had an acre or more it would be great for it. It doesn’t use hardly any gas and will turn over every time. It has a super easy oil change drain on the side of the engine that you are able to turn to pour the oil right into an old bottle if need to. It has a nice seat and it’s easy to drive.

It wouldn’t be good for super small areas like in Chicago where the houses are super close, but where I’m at it's perfect. I did not buy this lawn mower; I got it out of the garbage. Someone down the street threw it out because it had a flat tire. So I rolled it down the street and fixed it up and it’s been working like a champ ever since.

It’s easy to maintain and if needed all the parts are easy to change or open enough to clean. It has five different speeds which are nice to be able to control how fast you’re going and it has disk breaks in the back so you have good stopping power. For the size of the mower it’s quiet when it’s going. All in all it’s a great little machine and I won’t have to buy a new mower any time soon.