Husqvarna R120S (42") 19.5HP Articulated Riding Mower

Husqvarna R120S Articulating 42-Inch review.
My last riding mower was a ZT 42 inch Snapper with Joey stick control. I have just over 1 acre to mow and one big deep drainage ditch. My Snapper and I started making frequent trips to the repair shop. At end of the 10th season, I start shopping around for another ZT mower.

I spent many hrs over months of research. I knew what I liked and didn't like about the Snapper. Learning the pros and cons of ZT mowers, I ran across the Husqvarna RS120s Articulating 42-inch. It appeared to fit into my list of needs. I bought it online in the winter of 2015. Now it is season three, in 2017. I feel I can now give an informed review of the RS120s. I have found the online literature and reviews on this mower to be fairly accurate. The out front mowing deck works as advertised. It's great for cutting under shrubs, fence, lines, yard bench etc. It has good speed and cuts grass great. The peddles for switching from forward to reverse are easy to learn and use. The articulating drivetrain allows good maneuvering around trees, flower beds and other obstacles on flat terrain. I like the way it handled the steep ditch. There is, however, a learning curve on how to drive this articulating mower. The cable steering takes more manpower to make turns than lawn tractors and far more than a conventional ZT. There are other pros and cons, but when I used it I was very satisfied with the mower.

With all that being said the here is why I'm moving away from the Husqvarna Articulating mowers.
The Husqvarna R120S Articulating 42" RS120s mower is the very basic, most economical entry level articulating mower Husqvarna has on the market. As a matter of fact, this model has been discontinued (at least in the USA) in 2016. (My luck).

First April 2015 season: was a non-starter. With less than 20 hrs on the machine, the deck belt broke. Turned out the belt had been recalled. I could not get a belt until the first week in August. June 2016 of season 2: the two drive belts broke. It took the repair shop 6 weeks to find and replace the belts. 6 months later I had to replace 2 more drive belts. November of season 2, I had to have an anti scalping wheel on the front of the deck welded back on the deck. (I did not run it in to anything). And today season 3, March 2017, I took the mower back to replace 2 more drive belts with only 2 hrs of use.

So in actuality I only got 1 1/2 seasons use out of the mower. I need a more reliable and apparently a more robust mower. It's the old adage "you get what you pay for"--in my case the price was $1,995 when others were $1k more, so I did not practice what I preach. I wish I had the confidence in the Husqvarna articulating mowers, because I like the mower. I hope this review helps you. BTW, I just bought a Cub Cadet Z Force 48 " for $4k. I hope I can give a positive review about this mower next year.

nice mower but very hard to steer and difficult to lift maer

As a 1st time owner of a riding mower, I researched all brands. All models. Sizes. HP...etc.
This mower is very easy to use...gets around obstacles, trees, poles great. Inclines are not a problem. Like the way I can cut under bushes or low hanging brush without having to get off and move things.
Deck stays put and continues cutting going over bumps or in valleys. Overall...great mower.

I had just placed an order for the 254- 24 HP 54" cutting deck and was checking out the other products they had for sale when I saw the Articulated Mower. I told my wife I found her mower and placed the order.

This mower has cut weed eating time down to nothing allowing us to our jobs with higher quality and more efficentcy. I also just picked up some Mulching work and purchased a little trailer to pull behind it to move and dispose of the dirt we removed. It works great. I could not be happier.

Mower arrived in good shape, was easy to assemble,
had a dead battery but was easy to jump start, runs well, and does a nice even job mowing. It has enough power to pull my 230 pounds up a significant hill in my backyard.

I really like this mower because of its ability to navigate around objects without tearing up the grass the way my commercial 60" ZTR does.

The smaller deck conforms to uneven areas & gives a great cut. This is not as fast or easy to steer as a ZTR but is better suited for a more patient & methodical operator so it will work better on smaller yards with obstacles or in my case a companion to my ZTR.

Mows very well with nice even cut because of floating deck cutting before wheels of mower run over grass. Engine backfires if shut of on full throttle. Will try using higher octane to see if this helps. Very happy with it otherwise.

I had hopes it was going to be more heavy duty and it takes a lot of getting use to from a reg mower hard to start but it's not broke in yet......I have a farm yard not a city yard for a city yard it's great, for mine not so much got 3hrs on it. You want a deal, it's got to go!

For someone like myself who has had both shoulders replaced, it is difficult to steer and I suffer for a couple of days after mowing.

I recently purchased this mower. I haven't used it much yet. It's brand new and from the beginning there is an after fire type back fire when I shut off the engine. The manual has not helped at all. I'm giving it 3 stars until I resolve this problem.