Outdoor Power Equipment (Lawn Mowers, Snow Blowers, Chain Saws and more) Discussions

My Mother has a Toro Recycler lawnmower with the blade override system that's about 20 years old.  It's been giving her a lot of trouble the past couple of summers so she's thinking of buying a new one.  She has a huge yard and she likes to bag it so she really likes the blade override so she can keep the engine running while she empties the bag.  I was looking at the Honda HRR216VXA and for the Toro either the Recycler 20068 or Super Recycler 20093.

I have a regular Toro recycler that doesn't have blade override or electric start and I do really like it but it's definitely not built like the one my Mother has.  Hers is a tank but we all know they don't build them like they used to. 

But anyway I'm wondering if anyone has any suggestions for either the Honda or Toro.  Are they relatively the same in how they cut and overall quality?  Is one maybe clearly better than the other?  I plan on checking them both out in person hopefully this weekend.

I am looking at the exact same model Toro and Honda.  What might tip the scales in your situation is that the Honda has a thumb control for the speed and many people on the websites I've looked at (especially older and women) have complained that it's too hard on their thumbs over the course of the mowing.  I'm younger, so it's not definitive for me, so I'm still going back and forth.  I really like the cleanout system the Toro has, as I mulch, and it can really get caked up in the deck.  However, it does seem as though the Honda is more solid.  I think the handle on the Toro might be more comfy, but it also feels cheaper, and maybe won't last as long.  The Toro is also $100 more... But, I sometimes like to shift my hands around on the handle, and you can't do that on the Honda, because of the thumb controls....

I'd love to hear other pros and cons, and it would be great if someone could come up with the ultimate reason for choosing one over the other!

Attygreen - I think you're onto something with the Honda thumb controls, I've seen some reviews on-line where people really hated them like this one.

My Mother is 60 and even though she doesn't look a day over 50 I don't want to get anything that's going to make it more difficult for her.  So with that in mind I'm definitely getting her the Toro because of the bad reviews on the Honda's self propelled feature.  So now my question is what's the main difference between the Recycler 20068 and Super Recycler 20093?  Is she really gong to need the Super Recycler?  Will there be a huge difference in how they cut?

I bought the Toro 20093 to replace a 15 year old Toro with BOS. You are really correct in saying, they don't build them like they used to. The old mower was a tank and really well built, but after about 12 years just started niclke diming me for yearly repairs. I went out and bought the new Toro 20093 to replace the mower simply because I trusted the Toro brand for reliability, and the ease of service that is available when needed. The new mower is great, its easy to manouver and the drive system is great!! My only complaint with the mower is that I have noticed , after cutting the grass for about 11/2 hours ,I notice my hands would tingle a bit. This never happened with my old Toro, but would occur when ever I used an old low end Craftsman mower. Toro would do well to put a little bit more vibration isolation engineering into the handle. I am somewhat surprised to have the handle vibration issue in this mower. The other thing I am upset with Toro about is their pricing policy. I bought the mower in the USA, and saved over $300 on the best price I could get in Manitoba. Come on Toro.. the Canadian dollar is almost par with the US $ so why a 50% price difference?

I bought a new toro 20093 in july of 08 mainly because of the personal pace feature and the blade stop feature. I paid 629.00 plus tax. The lawnmower runs well and starts on the 1st pull every time. I was almost going to  go with the honda. hrx217 hxa but it was 170.00 more. I just bought the above mentioned honda on craigslist for 450.00. The main problem I have with the toro is that it doesn't bag very well. I bag exclusively and you have to stop and empty every 5 minutes or else the grass will be stuck in the chute at the rear of the deck. It also leaves a blade or 2 of grass uncut when the grass gets stuck in the chute. It mulches really well. It's also a bit hard at times to pull backwards. I'm going with the honda because it has double blades that cut and recut the grass to make it into very fine clippings which helps to fill the bag easier. I don't really like the thumb drive on the honda but I guess I can't have it all. They both have a 190cc engine, blade stop, and variable speed self propel. If somebody could come up with a personal pace with a bagging system like the honda has I'm sure they would sell like hotcakes. Bottom line, if you are going to bag, go with the honda, if you are going to mulch or just have the grass blow out the side go with the toro. NOTE the toro does reasonably well in bagging if the grass is not very tall.

Hey Donfunny,

If all you are doing is bagging,  Be sure you use a Toro high lift blade... (not the mulching 3-in one blade)....  IT should work much better for you ..

Friiy