I've gotten 2 of these from the scrapyard so far, the first one looked brand new but had a bad camshaft, luckily I got one used on ebay for $11, the second one just needed a carb clean. Both of them had broken handle bolts, and I've seen other youtube videos, that is a very common issue
My mom bought one of these new in 2020. It ran fairly loud right from new. It had rwd self propel, but her boyfriend and I didnt like using it, so it sat for two years. I finally got it running again this season and during the first cut with it the thing chucked the self propel belt and wrapped it around the blade. I had a very difficult time finding a new belt for it so I could sell it. I finally found a craftsman belt that fit and used that. We listed it and sold it after a few weeks, which early in the season is forever. My mom paid around $170 for it new in 2020, I guess that kind of explains a lot. There was nothing positive about the experience.
170$ makes more sense for what it is, but I was surprised the latest similar model was 399$ (non sale price) when I looked it up. I guess they decided to go up in price along with the rest of the mower brands
Well, I can’t really offer any positive comments but these were definitely built to a very low price point and not meant to last. BTW, they actually made one with the same basic deck only with a horizontal engine and a gearbox to change direction to vertical rotary action. I see them for free or for a few bucks on FBM fairly often, they blow apart pretty quickly.
I've seen a few youtube reviews on the horizontal shaft version and it doesn't seem much different quality wise. Does have the "interesting" factor though
I already see how this happened. The mower is too recent to be in this condition. Someone purchased it, put in the 400 mll of non-synthetic crap oil it came in with and used it for its landscaping business up until the wheels erased and the engine got f-up badly. You supposed to change that oil after the first 5 hrs of operation , there is a chart how to get the brand new engine into operation.
I bought a self- propelled version of this same model last week from Amazon. The first time that I used it it the belt guard (under the engine) broke off. The guard is made of light plastic rather than metal. I've been going back and worth with powersmart about returning it but no answer yet. Can I say anything positive about the mower? Yes. I like the candy red color.
I hate dealing with Chinese engines. I fix and flip small engine stuff much like you do. So far, I have only owned two machines with Chinese engines. So far, I have only come across two machines with inner engine issues. Guess which two they were.
Thanks for commenting. It could be a variety of things but based on the condition of the oil on this machine, my opinion is the rings or the cylinder were worn out or the cylinder was scored enough to allow oil to creep past while it sat
I flip mowers as a hobby. Its amazing how people don't take care if their equipment. It should be illegal for some people to own power equipment. What a shame at the cost of mowers today...😠
I hear ya.. I've seen too many simple fixes on curb finds in my area to realize people are more willing to spend another 300$ on a mower every 5 years than take the time to replace a 5$ air filter or change the oil. Caveat is there are also people that just don't know how (or are able) to do maintenance so it's always a surprise on what you find out there.
The fact that this mower is made in China, indicate that the mower could go bad in their time. You have to also be careful what you buy nowadays because eventually, if it says made in China, then chances right it’s not going to last anywhere close to 5 or 10 years at a maximum, meaning that it could permanently quit working in no time. Plus, there’s a lot of things to even go wrong with any China pride mower. So that’s the concept of you get what you pay for. Since 2015, I even avoided dime-store lawn equipment for that matter. And Toro and Honda are the last quality brands to buy though they can be pricey.
It looks like this brand has headquarters in the US, but is just an online fulfillment type that ships to contiguous US only. Out of curiosity, what brand has the cheapest mower in your area?
@@BackyardRepairs Hiya, I think Lidl have the cheapest mowers around. They are usually branded Florabest, Parkside or Powerfix.. They are sold with a 3yr warranty so they make sense for some people.. Thanks for your reply btw..
PowerMore, PowerSmart, and Pulsar = 3 mower types I avoid like the plague. They are throw away mowers and have no support/parts. I have never seen one that the handle isn't wonky due to the way they are made. Not So CHEAP Garbage
This was the first PowerSmart for me and I've never seen a Pulsar. I've seen only one PowerMore engine on a 20" MTD but assumed with it being MTD, they'd require a certain level of parts support.. maybe that's not the case lol.
Back to the curb for sure 😁
Put it back on the curb
Couldnt agree more
@@RexenPrime I see them on the side of the road and keep driving.
I laughed when I saw this comment because it's exactly what I was thinking when I sighed after pulling the magnet out of the crankcase lol.
Wow! I’ve never seen oil that bad before! 😮
I've gotten 2 of these from the scrapyard so far, the first one looked brand new but had a bad camshaft, luckily I got one used on ebay for $11, the second one just needed a carb clean. Both of them had broken handle bolts, and I've seen other youtube videos, that is a very common issue
Maybe we'll see enough of these blown up and parted out on eBay to create the parts support the company needs
My mom bought one of these new in 2020. It ran fairly loud right from new. It had rwd self propel, but her boyfriend and I didnt like using it, so it sat for two years. I finally got it running again this season and during the first cut with it the thing chucked the self propel belt and wrapped it around the blade. I had a very difficult time finding a new belt for it so I could sell it. I finally found a craftsman belt that fit and used that. We listed it and sold it after a few weeks, which early in the season is forever. My mom paid around $170 for it new in 2020, I guess that kind of explains a lot. There was nothing positive about the experience.
170$ makes more sense for what it is, but I was surprised the latest similar model was 399$ (non sale price) when I looked it up. I guess they decided to go up in price along with the rest of the mower brands
I watch these mower shows change oil without running mower first to get the wear debris mixed into oil to drain out
Well, I can’t really offer any positive comments but these were definitely built to a very low price point and not meant to last. BTW, they actually made one with the same basic deck only with a horizontal engine and a gearbox to change direction to vertical rotary action. I see them for free or for a few bucks on FBM fairly often, they blow apart pretty quickly.
I've seen a few youtube reviews on the horizontal shaft version and it doesn't seem much different quality wise. Does have the "interesting" factor though
I already see how this happened. The mower is too recent to be in this condition. Someone purchased it, put in the 400 mll of non-synthetic crap oil it came in with and used it for its landscaping business up until the wheels erased and the engine got f-up badly.
You supposed to change that oil after the first 5 hrs of operation , there is a chart how to get the brand new engine into operation.
I bought a self- propelled version of this same model last week from Amazon. The first time that I used it it the belt guard (under the engine) broke off. The guard is made of light plastic rather than metal. I've been going back and worth with powersmart about returning it but no answer yet. Can I say anything positive about the mower? Yes. I like the candy red color.
Wow broke during the first use. Hopefully you’re able to work it out with the company, and thanks for sharing!
I hate dealing with Chinese engines. I fix and flip small engine stuff much like you do. So far, I have only owned two machines with Chinese engines. So far, I have only come across two machines with inner engine issues. Guess which two they were.
What causes the oil to get in the top end like that?
Thanks for commenting. It could be a variety of things but based on the condition of the oil on this machine, my opinion is the rings or the cylinder were worn out or the cylinder was scored enough to allow oil to creep past while it sat
I flip mowers as a hobby. Its amazing how people don't take care if their equipment. It should be illegal for some people to own power equipment. What a shame at the cost of mowers today...😠
I hear ya.. I've seen too many simple fixes on curb finds in my area to realize people are more willing to spend another 300$ on a mower every 5 years than take the time to replace a 5$ air filter or change the oil. Caveat is there are also people that just don't know how (or are able) to do maintenance so it's always a surprise on what you find out there.
The fact that this mower is made in China, indicate that the mower could go bad in their time. You have to also be careful what you buy nowadays because eventually, if it says made in China, then chances right it’s not going to last anywhere close to 5 or 10 years at a maximum, meaning that it could permanently quit working in no time. Plus, there’s a lot of things to even go wrong with any China pride mower. So that’s the concept of you get what you pay for. Since 2015, I even avoided dime-store lawn equipment for that matter. And Toro and Honda are the last quality brands to buy though they can be pricey.
Oh no, there isn't much you can do with that machine.. I've never seen that brand here in the UK..
It looks like this brand has headquarters in the US, but is just an online fulfillment type that ships to contiguous US only. Out of curiosity, what brand has the cheapest mower in your area?
@@BackyardRepairs Hiya, I think Lidl have the cheapest mowers around. They are usually branded Florabest, Parkside or Powerfix.. They are sold with a 3yr warranty so they make sense for some people.. Thanks for your reply btw..
I would just sell it for $20
that's a good "for parts" price, but I'd bet it sits in my yard for a year before someone would want it with the engine damage
That mower visually looks cheap. I would rather buy an old used than pay a new mower price for something that cheap looking.
PowerMore, PowerSmart, and Pulsar = 3 mower types I avoid like the plague. They are throw away mowers and have no support/parts. I have never seen one that the handle isn't wonky due to the way they are made. Not So CHEAP Garbage
I avoid those brands also. I dont enjoy working on them and I dont think most of them are worth my time to save.
This was the first PowerSmart for me and I've never seen a Pulsar. I've seen only one PowerMore engine on a 20" MTD but assumed with it being MTD, they'd require a certain level of parts support.. maybe that's not the case lol.
"Made in China"