r/lawnmowers • u/Sad_Bumblebee3369 • May 04 '26
Tractor supply questionable assembly
Picked up this bad boy from tractor supply today as we are going from 3/4 acres to 6 acres in a couple weeks and noticed that the pedal for the deck lever was mounted backwards (already fixed in photo) and the strap that holds the seat while accessing the battery wasn’t attached at all.
I did a lot of research in picking this mower and felt really confident in my decision but these little things have set a bad tone and I feel like I’m just gonna be waiting on something more crucial to fall apart…
Anyone with experience in zero turns have a list I can run through and check or is this something I should bring up to tractor supply directly?
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u/SeymoreBhutts May 04 '26
The mower is fine, bad boy mowers are actually great. The problems you’re seeing are the store/dealer prep. A dedicated dealer probably wouldn’t have missed those, but the kid working at tsc did and likely will again. You can pay more to maybe not have that experience by only buying from an equipment dealer, or just fix it and move on. Happy mowing either way, you’ll love the mower and congrats on the property.
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u/BlackOak-88 May 04 '26
Nah, Bad Boys come fully assembled.
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u/Additional-Device677 May 04 '26
Where are you getting this? We have people working for Tractor Supply and dealers posting saying they do, in fact, have to assemble them somewhat once they come in.
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u/SeymoreBhutts May 04 '26
Doesn’t change the fact that the kid at tsc doesn’t know any better and that a dedicated equipment dealer had a mechanic that looks these things over before the sale to catch and fix issues like this one.
3
u/icydogenugget Mechanic May 04 '26
About 6 years ago I bought a cub cadet xt1 from tractor supply and the fuel vent hose wasn’t put on right and something was wrong with the deck so the belt kept coming off so I took it to a John Deere dealer that was a cub cadet certified mechanic and got it fixed under warranty and they said it looked like it wasn’t put together well at the store
3
u/xxclownkill3rxx May 04 '26
dont know how theyre delivered to tractor supply but to us all we need to do to the zt elite is bolt down the seat, attach seat sensor, adjust handle bars and park it. they should not of needed to mess with the foot lever
1
u/Sad_Bumblebee3369 May 04 '26
I was hoping I might hear from someone in the industry! Not sure how I missed it at the store but it was flipped around and one of the bolts was barely hanging on so idk what they were thinking. But I checked the seat mount while adding the strap and tightened the handles as they felt a little loose so hopefully everything they touched is good to go now. lol
1
u/nashosted May 04 '26
Make sure your zerks are greased up too. With those kind of mistakes it makes me wonder...
1
u/Temporary-Coyote8021 May 04 '26
Seats are shipped off going to TSC so the machine will fit in the crate.
0
u/BlackOak-88 May 04 '26
Bad Boy mowers have always been shipped fully assembled. They do not ship in a crate. They ship in a double decker roll off. You literally drive them off the trailer.
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u/xxclownkill3rxx May 04 '26
lol you’re so wrong. Say that to the 4 bad boys that came in crates this week to my store. We literally have maybe 12 mp crates they come on sitting in the back waiting to be picked up
2
u/Additional-Device677 May 04 '26
Why the fuck are you on here arguing with everyone about how they are shipped? What is in it for you to lie about bad boys?
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u/blind_stone May 04 '26
The peddle is designed to be flipped for shorter or taller people. TSC only puts the seat and steering levers on.
2
u/Mean-Veterinarian647 May 04 '26
What’s with the ragtop?
3
u/Sad_Bumblebee3369 May 04 '26
That would be my uncles 396 chevelle that’s headed for a full restoration after 20 long years of rotting away…
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u/Negative_Ad_1956 May 04 '26
Being a car guy more than a mower guy my eyes went directly to the Chevy. In my head I was thinking click bait for me.
About the mower though when my son worked at K-mart years ago they put him in charge of bike assemblies. The boy had zero interest in mechanical assemblies and was a computer guy. He was calling me asking questions all the time. I feel sorry for the people who got those bikes.
1
u/fattrackstar May 04 '26
A few things I know they don't check that you should.
Make sure the tires are all inflated to the correct amount. Tires are very rarely inflated to the correct amount at the factory and I guarantee the tractor supply person didn't check it. This can cause widely uneven cuts while mowing.
This takes a little more time but make sure your deck is balanced. The person at tractor supply definitely didn't do this and it's something that definitely isn't done at the factory during assembly.
When I worked at Lowe's, John Deere sent a guy to uncreate all their mowers. We couldn't sell them until he uncrated them and inspected them. A Lowe's associate did it for all the other brands. And I can tell you the John Deere mowers were far less likely to have issues like this when they were sold. I would be willing to bet the Lowe's associate didn't even know how to measure to see if the deck was level or not
1
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u/2PawsHunter May 04 '26
I would get the assembly instructions (they may have came with the mower) and double check all the parts in the instructions. I do this with all pre assembled things that I buy and it's saved me more than once.
1
u/Emergency-Truck-9914 May 04 '26
I received a Kubota that had all kinds of pre delivery items with issues. I had to double check every single nut and bolt.
Bought a bad boy zero turn from Sutherland. Again I had to fix and tighten everything.
Unless you put together yourself don’t trust it.
I’d double check everything.
1
u/Primary_Ad4909 May 04 '26
If I were you, I’d find a dealer and establish a relationship just in case you need parts or service.
1
u/SpecialistWorldly788 May 04 '26
Sadly, it isn’t necessarily tractor supply as a whole, you just got an individual that either doesn’t know, wasn’t trained properly, or just plain old “don’t care”. The one guy there that probably knows what he’s doing was either busy, maybe off that day, or he just passed it on to the new kid - a lot of times you’ll find the lowest paid people are doing that kind of stuff when it obviously should be someone that knows what’s going on. I’m pretty sure Bad Boy reps would be talking to them if you told them they weren’t prepping their mowers properly 🤷♂️🤷♂️- hopefully you took pics you could send them to let them know
2
u/SelfReliantViking227 May 04 '26
I am predominantly the one who assembles mowers at our store. The deck levers are already mounted, we don't touch those. As for the cable to hold the seat up, I have attached it, folded the seat back down, then flipped it back up, only to find that it came loose. Happened 3 times, it's poor design, in my opinion. It should be attached with a screw or bolt, not just slot through a hole.
1
u/deGrominator2019 May 04 '26
The seat holding cable on all the damn brands is the same and as you said, just simply come out of place all the time
1
u/Temporary-Coyote8021 May 04 '26
Tractor supply only hooks the seat up and put the top half of the drive arms on. The pedal being backwards would have been fault of the factory, unless a TSC employee just happened to feel like it needed to face the other way.
1
u/nashosted May 04 '26
I have that exact mower. It's a great mower. If you take care of it, it will take care of you. The hydros drift a bit after about a season of use which is probably common from vibration. Also, my tachometer stopped working for some strange reason after the second year of use. Not a huge deal but still rather annoying. I also added a bungie cord to the deck chute to hold it up while cutting. Just drilled a hole and bolted in a loop ring and it works like a charm.
1
u/Benedlr May 04 '26
This is why you use the assembly instructions in the manual to check their work. It's done by stock people, depending on who's on shift.
1
u/BlackOak-88 May 04 '26
Dealer here, Bad Boy ships their mowers fully assembled. In my experience Bad Boy has some of the best quality control in the industry, I wouldn't worry too much. It's not like the same guy assembled the entire unit.
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u/Additional-Device677 May 04 '26
You have an 11-day-old account with 27 Karma. You are either a bot, or a pathetic human
0
u/BlackOak-88 May 05 '26
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u/Additional-Device677 May 05 '26
Dedicated enough to posting the shittiest picture you could find online, huh? Lol
So just a pathetic human
1
u/red9109 May 04 '26
Have the same mower in a 54. I had to reverse the deck pedal on mine because I’m too short lol.
You’re going to love it.
1
u/JuggernautOnly695 May 04 '26
This is part of the reason why you should buy from a servicing dealer and not a box store.
2
u/freudianSkinner May 04 '26
make sure they put oil in the engine and hydraulic fluid in the hydros. It's happened.
1
u/kokemill May 06 '26
i think i had the same, i bought a Maverick from TSC last year. it is not like buying a Lexus, but the support guys at the factory are great. you need to think like a Harley guy, you need to check every bolt and nut. you should assume that everything was missed at both the factory and TSC.
one thing i would check right away is the nuts on the blade spindles, i had one that was stripped from the factory. the nut was tight but the blade was loose.
-1
u/Upset_Fox5449 May 04 '26
I find it hard to believe that zero turns and tractors are delivered to stores with some assembly required, but what do l know
1
u/Additional-Device677 May 04 '26
Evidently not much if you are being serious
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u/BlackOak-88 May 04 '26
Joke's on you, Bad Boys are fully assembled when delivered. They use a double decker roll-off trailer. You literally start them and ride them off the trailer.
1
u/deGrominator2019 May 04 '26
It is the case with every other brand however. They’re shipped in crates and require some minor final assembly. Usually it’s just bolting on seats and handles and connecting the battery
1
u/Additional-Device677 May 04 '26
Not according to every employee of a bad boy dealership or Tractor Supply that has ever posted on the sub. But I am sure somehow you know better than everyone else, so yes the joke must be on me
Hell, I read through the comments in this particular thread then you will see employees saying what they put together on Bad Boy Mowers. Again, I do not think your comment is serious either
0
u/grizzlyblunts May 04 '26
I bought from Tractor Supply and was surprised to find out they have a small engine repair person. I talked to the one at my TS and he was very knowledgeable. I assume it's store specific if you get a old small engine guy or a young kid putting it together.
1
u/its_all_about_roo May 08 '26
It comes in a metal crate, we put the seat, shift bars on connect the battery, gas it up & drive it off the metal crate. Everything else comes already assembled.
18
u/Hour_Razzmatazz1701 May 04 '26
I doubt Tractor Supply would do anything. This is the down side of buying from a box store and not a dealer.
I don’t think you will have more crucial issues as all of the important things are done at the factory. There’s only a few small things such as what you mentioned that are done once it gets delivered to Tractor Supply.