Ariens® Behind-the-Scenes: The Making of the IKON ONYX™

Behind-the-Scenes: Assembling the IKON ONYX™
We couldn't manufacture the ONYX without those who've helped assemble each of our zero-turn mowers on the production line. Thank you to everyone who helped build these machines in Brillion, Wisconsin.

[Steve-liru]

My only gripe so far on this mower is the plastic bolted on belt protectors on the deck. Grass gets in there, and its tough to blow it all out.

[ammoalamo]

The Ariens factory parts assemblers, painters, and decal-appliers in this video seem to be doing a good job. I only wish the Ariens engineers did a better job. Like, to install an hour meter that only accumulates hours when the mower is running instead of whenever the key is left in the On position. At purchase, my Ariens Ikon X 42" ZTR had 52 hours - because Home Depot crew left the key on for two days. In two trips to the local Ariens dealer, the mower accumulated another 400 hours of "use" which really was just the key left on, first for 17 days awaiting a backordered drive belt from Ariens, then for another week or so despite my warning to please do not leave the key “ON” when not running. Can you imagine the resale value (and potential customer trust) lost when a prospective buyer sees 700+ hours on the meter, and I claim it should read a bit over 200? I know the actual hours because I track Hours before and after every use.

Also, the Briggs 22HP engine requires keeping the choke slightly open in order to run smoothly, and the engine has a tendency to backfire unless engine speed is slow-w-w-ly reduced to slow idle before turning off.

The oil change feature on the Briggs 22 hp would be great except for one thing - the engine once installed into the frame does not have clearance for the oil drain spout to point downwards, meaning I had to buy a manual pump and use the thinnest hose to pump used oil up and out of the dipstick tube. It hardly has much dirty oil since I changed the filter and oil to full synthetic early on, but I will never be able to fully drain the oil unless I turn the entire 800+ lb mower upside down.

The engineers were not looking ahead when they placed a heavy spring attached to and in contact with a rough moving cast iron idler, allowing the rough cast iron to grind its way through the spring steel and send it flying into the yard in two pieces. A simple roller bushing or even brass flange would have saved me a lot of trouble, downtime, and expense. Then, the idler flange itself broke in two for some unknown reason other than perhaps metal fatigue. And that is a piece of about 1/4" cast iron, a part that is neither cheap nor easy to replace.

I wonder what other design flaws will crop up under my mild mowing?

[eclecticgentleman]

I wish yhere was a 10 gauge deck on the Onyx

[huejasselgaming]

SAD OWNER OF AN IKON XD 52" DONT BUY AN ARIENS THEY ARE JUNK buy a used toro or exmark for less and have less problems. new doesnt always mean better. the deign and junk self contained hydro-gear transaxle you cant get to... to refiill because they start leaking after 30 hours... causes you to have to take whole mower apart to add oil.. other then that ive had to replace springs, many upon many belts... frame has cracked and this UNIT barely Used - little over 300 hours... I had a toro with over 2500 hours and had less issues