The First Mow - ![[Linked Image from i.postimg.cc]](https://i.postimg.cc/6QgSn1C3/IMG-1162.jpg)
Apart from a quick run over my front lawns, this was the first mow. In this case, I didn't catch, hence the grass sitting on the deck.
Walking speed was about what I expected. The drive bale could probably use a redesign, it's angled just a touch too low. Having said that, at the time it was more of a case of being used to the right-hand bale on the Rover, so it was a matter of getting used to the Victa. I also prefer the plastic tread wheels on the Victa, the rubber tyres on the Bushranger were prone to wear and would occasionally come off the rim. The Bushranger's fabric catcher is superior in design, being easier to remove and install. WIth that said, I much prefer the solid plastic Rover catcher.
The engine turns over much easier than either the Honda GXV 160, and especially the Krohler. That's one of the things that has always annoyed me about the Krohler, its unusually hard to pull over, like there's no compression release. The Briggs 850 proved superbly torquey out of the box, but it felt stilted. I hadn't put the tacho on it at that stage, but it was sounding like around 2800 rpm, which is just too low. Upping that to around 3600 - 3800 rpm is completely safe, makes for superior cutting and speeds up the self-propel too.
Tweaking the governor is not as easy as the earlier versions of this engine with the metal carb. Briggs have hidden the adjustment tab behind the air filter housing, but its easy when you know where to look.
