DIY Lawn Striper vs Toro Lawn Striper vs Checkmate Striping Kit

[@GrassDaddy]

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[@gregfries6713]

Grass Daddy

[@GrassDaddy]

Greg Fries

[@31acruz]

Clearly the Toro made the darkest better defined stripe.

[@jamesnagle2226]

Thanks brother, great review. I have two striping kits made by Checkmate. One is on a John Deere 54 inch cut, and the other in on a Ferris 48 inch cut. I mow about 8 acres a month and have used them both for years and never had any issues They do a great job!!!

[@indigoridge]

I bought a Toro 30" striper after watching one of your videos last week. I noted that you fought getting the sand in the little hole. So when it was time for me to fill mine, I put the sand in a flat box, and sat it in the sun for a few hours to dry it out. Once I did that it was VERY easy to use a funnel and fill the striper. I have 30 pounds of sand in mine, so it lays down a nice stripe. I have a Toro mower, and the 30" striper is a kit made just for the 30" Toro Mower.

[@GrassDaddy]

+indigoridge glad I could help! Is yours the new one with a comb?

[@indigoridge]

Yes, mine has the comb. Mine is also Toro specific for the Toro TimeMaster 30" twin blade mower. It will not work with any other mowers - to my knowledge. The brackets that mounts the roller bolt in place by loosening an existing bolt, then sliding the bracket in place then putting a bolt in an existing hole in the mower deck.

[@BlakWiseCracker]

If you use the play sand for kids play box, which is dry, it will go in much smoother and faster. If you use paver sand or wet sand it will be hard as hell to get in the hole. A little common sense goes a long way.

[@fridge46052]

use quikrete mason sand next time its always dry and inside the store. i figured it out after two wet bags of sand.

[@platinumlawnservice]

The toro looks the best

[@SickMy_Duck]

double the price but you only get plastic. I would go to checkmate

[@jessegarcia6342]

It goes from worst to best in my opinion

[@ejw1234]

It does, but it could be a lusher area of the lawn.

[@ianmcgranaghan5901]

Toro was the best

[@DailyDoseOfAffirmationz]

Ian Mcgranaghan agreed

[@a_t-rexx5360]

Agreed

[@mbuck393]

Very helpful. I was going to wait until the Toro is back in stock because I have a Toro lawnmower but after watching this I’m going with the checkmate

[@WeekendWarriorBBQ]

Great comparison. I've had my Toro striper for about 5 yrs and its starting to give me problems.

[@scardera]

How to get the best stripes... have a leveled lawn.

[@demolitionfc]

I've got a Honda HRX and got the checkmate striper last year for Father's day. I found the original install to be a pain, but have had no problems since, and it stripes great.

[@GrassDaddy]

Eric Kersten yeah same here, akward putting the bolt through but solid ever since

[@badpixels_]

i have been using the toro for three years, i love it. i have one of the best lawns of the street.

[@GrassDaddy]

Nice! You really can't fail with either kit ;-)

[@kbalzbar9464]

I think I've seen some DIY with inset PVC End Caps - that would solve the difference in profile. You're right you can see it on your test run

[@richardsmith5256]

Great video. It helped me make my decision. Thanks Grass Daddy.

[@jasonhalljaxyt]

I bought the Checkmate when I saw it on your video a couple weeks ago. It installed on my HRX217 in maybe 30 minutes. My Floritam St Augustinegrass lawn won't dramatically stripe like other grass types, but I get much better stripes than just the using mower alone (mowed at 4" twice a week). Thanks for the reviews!

[@GrassDaddy]

+Jason Hall glad I could help!

[@DevotedtoTruth]

Try the Toro if you’re still striping 😉 I have the same species and that has historically striped best

[@ChrisJones-nf4hf]

Big league lawns has a striper like the checkmate that bolts on the inside of the back wheels. No drilling. It’s the best in my opinion. Thanks for the video.

[@Longenecker1776]

Chris Jones Big League Lawns makes the checkmate and I believe that what you're describing unless I'm missing something?

[@nealfeldpausch7019]

Man cant stop watchin your videos. Nice job. Thanks for posting !

[@GrassDaddy]

+Neal Feldpausch thanks!

[@ryang.1640]

Good, solid review for sure. I am looking to buy a striping kit for my honda hrn216 and it looks like I'll be ordering the CheckMate! Thanks for the good review.

[@markmaccione6757]

I have the Toro lawn striping kit. I did find the roller a little bit of a pain to put on the hook at first. I ended up bending the hook to open it up more. Helped a lot. I'm not really striping right now because the fine fescue in my lawn is stressing out and laying over quite a bit. Pretty annoying actually. Nice comparison video! 👍🏻

[@GrassDaddy]

+Mark Maccione thanks!

[@scottjosephbrandt6175]

I use a 25 pound bag’a beans. $12.99 Cheap stripes, great beans. Great video! Nice job.

[@GrassDaddy]

you drag a bag of beans around the yard??

[@scottjosephbrandt6175]

As funny as it may sound, the results leave no tire markings. All that you see in the lawn is STRIPPING. I wish I could submit pictures of my lawn here, but I haven’t figured out how to do that yet. I like your videos. You do a sensational job. Very informative. Very professional. Great job. If you ever decide to use my bean-bag theory in your videos, that would be awesome. Keep up the great work!

[@RaulSachsCarrillo]

Just picked up the checkmate for my HRC good video like always! Saw this video awhile back when posted and decided to make the purchase and had to watch the video one more time.

[@dr.crentist3155]

RaulSachsCarrillo Have same mower, might purchase this. How do you like it?

[@RaulSachsCarrillo]

@@dr.crentist3155 I like it alot I been using it ever since the install and still looks new. Very durable and always does the job I'd highly recommend it. I was thinking of other options but I'm glad I went with this one.

[@dr.crentist3155]

RaulSachsCarrillo Thanks for the reply, i know it's an older post. Are you using it commercially or for your own house?

[@RaulSachsCarrillo]

@@dr.crentist3155 my own house but I know someone thats using it commercially but only on a few houses.

[@carolinecummings111]

Do you have a video on how to make one thank you

[@dabsteelpimp]

I have a Toro for my Troy Bilt... it fits but it was a pain at first. There's a metal piece where the hook goes through to attach it to the mower that kept bending out of shape every time I'd take it off. Eventually i just kept the nut to the hook finger tight and just remove it that way. Pete over at GCI Turf Academy is pushing these Checkmate rollers and i have no reason to doubt him!

[@jeff99usa1]

I have the toro striper and I love it so far! I went double fat stripes this past weekend.

[@mrcrowley2737]

Nice!

[@garrimic3]

Don’t forget the cutting height makes a difference as well.

[@GrassDaddy]

yes, big time!

[@CPTFiXtion]

I made one myself for my cub cadet using a 4 inch baler belt bolted to the holes in the back of the deck of the ZT1. $30 MAX does very well on our lawn, which Is mostly not grass

[@Tedcz2e]

Mowing my lawn just like the lawn daddy but without any attachments I get a noticeable striping effect. Perhaps the grass helps to get the stripes.. The striping attachment does gives a better stripe in this video.

[@tomjones4318]

Good point about backing the Toro. Probably great for curvy stripes.

[@MOstix13]

Nice work! Very helpful comparison. Thanks for doing that so the rest of us lazy dudes don’t have to!

[@SuperTekBoy1]

I had the Toro one on a 19" Troy-Bilt mower and it lasted years. It fit just fine and NEVER jackknifed. For a 19" Troy-Bilt the Toro fits great. I then bought a Honda HRX mower and the Toro does not fit well at all. The clamps are too small for the Honda handlebars. I was able to get the metal bracket wide enough and low enough to let the Honda shield open and close but it still makes the roller sit too high. If you couple this with using a higher deck height then the Toro jackknives like crazy. Never had that issue when attached to the Troy-Bilt. It is so bad I am going to ditch the Toro for the Checkpoint. Thanks for the review!

[@charliejohnson6416]

I have the toro and I think that thing is as good as it gets, the reason is because it swivels

[@GrassDaddy]

I will say this, there is a toro kit now with a comb insert. I probably won't get to try it but it should help squeeze a bit more out of the kit!

[@fridge46052]

the kit with the comb is for the timemaster mowers.

[@supergirl2997]

The diy strip with that end cap sis what cause the edge to be lighter and no weight in the center

[@ronwhites4180]

mate , good vids but have some concern for your boy , i'm now 64 down in Oz , had a SCC cut out last week left a 4 " scar where the sun hits the neck V in a shirt, also numerous small skin cancers on face , be careful please of Melanoma . TC

[@shawndubay4050]

Toro brightest/darkest then checkmate. The diy would be better with internal ends the same diameter as the pvc pipe and heavy as possible. Hmmm I wonder if you were to use a steel pipe filled with sand and weld the end caps to the pipe and tips that roll in the frame? Having a heavy steel roller on the back is the idea I have on my mind. Would definitely be tougher against wear and tear and really burn in the stripes.

[@kirktitgen6395]

Great video, Grass Daddy!

[@uwuweewee]

One thing about the Toro design is how it is free to pivot in more directions than the other two. I may DIY one like the Toro but with a mounting bar like your DIY version. Nice video, thanks

[@tonymowery8143]

Good video. I use the checkmate and it looks great when im done. Been using 2 years and still in perfect shape.

[@brianwhitney9181]

I like that the Checkmate because it is over engineered and made with more sturdy materials.

[@dhix2388]

very honest independent review. something that is getting harder to find on youtube. thanks for your time.

[@GrassDaddy]

your welcome! that's why I did it, I enjoy trying out all this stuff and as long as people keep watching I'll keep sharing!

[@luckycast4972]

Honest and Independent are not great when you are putting out bad information.

[@dhix2388]

ok would you care to elaborate.

[@scrubsz]

This was very helpful. Thank you very much!

[@larryrichards3668]

Great review.

[@danvozza3799]

Will the toro kit work on my Ryobi electric mower?

[@darrinmc]

What kind of grass is in your lawn? Do some grass types stripe better?

[@JohnBailey-vn8wx]

Which one weight the most

[@davejohnson3860]

Purchahed the Chechmate back in '15 works really well, but the outer wheels are wearing down. How can i remove and install newer wheels? Nice video!

[@rashiden]

Would anybody please provide the link where to buy checkmate? That link you provided couldn’t find it there. Thank you

[@nichandjamie]

I have the checkmate on my toro, and no holes have to be drilled, just order the one for ur mower.. same with my neighbor down the street on his commercial mower. The toro one we tried and it parts will bend and toro won’t send replacement parts they make u replace the whole unit. So checkmate all day

[@tarrerdome]

Checkmate is the way to go!

[@quijada1545]

Great vid buddy! Would love to see u add a comb to the checkmate.

[@mrstanskaggs1]

Maybe a little resistance on the tubes turning would bend the grass more backward and make the stripes more pronounced... possibly??

[@elvinzapata9012]

Great video.

[@The1Karking]

Thanks 🤠

[@TH-qr9ml]

I have the toro. The downside to the toro kit is when you’re going perpendicular to a slope the pivoting striping kit will start to slide down the slope going over your last pass. I found that going slower reduces that problem. It’s also not super easy to back up since it pivots. It is also harder on the mowers transmission. Doesn’t fit Honda perfectly. If you’ve got a flat yard it’ll be great.

[@dcfella3]

Excellent video!

[@manhbeachscanner6171]

Grass Daddy I use a checkmate on my John Deere with a 42" deck. The roller is 39" and 39 pounds. Killer stripes.

[@GrassDaddy]

a pound per inch!

[@bananakerley9064]

Awesome vid, super helpful. You saved me time and money Thank you!

[@GrassDaddy]

Awesome!!

[@garrimic3]

Does it roll? How much does it weigh? How tall are you leaving your grass? That’s it. Check mat will do better as it gets bigger, because it will weigh slightly more.

[@Brianbraganza-q2l]

Good day with the DYO STRIPPING KIT, I noticed that the Mower Catcher is removed, it occurs to me to ask u is it possible to fit a Kit with the Catcher on? Thx Cheers BRIAN (Western Australia).

[@cpenrose64]

Very helpful. Thank you!

[@briangallant5973]

Good review! Checkmate all the way!

[@ko6128]

It may make it harder on you and the mower trans, but what if you used a heavy roller or flat stock that didn’t rotate? May be a b to navigate, but like you said it’s all about the weight. Maybe something that drags will eat up the lawn. Big cast iron drain pipe is pretty heavy.

[@michaellyons3643]

I've never seen lawn stripping kits honestly but they all look nice.

[@acceleratefn4314]

Try to narrow the outside of the caps on the DIY one, I feel like it would make the pipe lay down better on the grass

[@jamesludan557]

it's about time ,striping is about to have fun. i do 4 differenr patterns

[@GrassDaddy]

Which 4? I really like double/single

[@renemaciasful]

Do you have a video on your DIY striper?

[@GrassDaddy]

Yes: kzbin.info/www/bejne/moOulYGmpNShjqc

[@rdeh1678]

My toro stripper is almost 10 plus years old and weighs over 30 pounds I filled it with lead shot

[@tonydize3944]

Great video man i like the toro better

[@Ms77check]

I have the toro roller he's right where my hook goes the Plastic Finally wore through, so I took the roller to a sheet metal shop and they Design the sheet metal the same way the plastic was designed with a hole in the middle,with rivets holding it together I had no more problems since .fyi I got 20 lbs.of sand in my roller which does a better job then the rest of them.

[@amaradumbuya2099]

Just curious how does the sand come out? does it have holes on the sides of the tube

[@mikedinno8413]

Will any of these fit a Craftsman mower? If so which would you recommend?

[@edmartin2140]

El Toro laid down the nicest stripes 🐃

[@GrassDaddy]

El Toro broke on me :(

[@Longenecker1776]

Checkmate is the best overall

[@deweygravesjr.122]

Great video! Do I need a self propelled mower?

[@GrassDaddy]

Need is an interesting question. You don't need one but I personally would always use self propelled especially with the added weight of a striping kit.

[@quedogkualum]

Which striping kit are you using now

[@GrassDaddy]

Checkmate but I took it off in the fall and lost a bolt so nothing right now 😀 it's all standard parts so I just need to go to the hardware store. Thats one of the reasons I love the thing.

[@quedogkualum]

Want to sell your toro striper?

[@jcooper43]

Am I the only one here who is going to mention that mowing in sandals is a HORRIBLE idea??

[@GrassDaddy]

lol so far you're the only one ;-)

[@richardrasmussen7334]

Ask my neighbor Sixtoe

[@heinzkitzvelvet]

Richard Rasmussen 😂😂😂😂😂👍

[@stevecri123]

Yeah but stripping in sandals is awesome!!

[@athhud]

No putting your foot in a spinning blade is a bad idea, not matter which shoes you wear. Other than getting dirty feet, mowing in sandals is no biggie. Weedeating in sandals and shorts is an entirely different story though.

[@jasonfasthorse8939]

I mean the toro stripped because you were using it on a Honda with a wider width correct?, if you used it on a toro with correct width I Imagine the stripping would be a non issue

[@devinwarkenthien6555]

Ever heard of a funnel for filling the Toro?

[@GrassDaddy]

unfortunately the sand was wet so it didn't work too well

[@Enjoying-Life]

FYI. The Toro connection point plastic somehow broke even with the metal piece on it. Overall it's decent and was worth $75. Going to try the checkmate sometimes this summer.

[@Enjoying-Life]

@Sean M It works great! Unfortunately I sold the house and gave the mower and kit to a buddy.

[@ZACHPOINTOFCARE]

The Toro connection point WAS plastic on mine too. It also broke. Thanks for the feedback on the checkmate.

[@platodimitriadis7808]

Are there stripers that you don't require you to put on a lawn mower. My grass is near a walkway and close to the house so I couldn't make a turn, plus I have a slight hill as well.

[@GrassDaddy]

+Plato Dimitriadis you can use a lawn roller, I found it to be better than the striping kits!

[@joe1071]

Probably just angle, but in camera looks like Toro had most contrast and was cleanest

[@joeschlotthauer840]

Can you use the Toro striper when and with your bag...

[@neehooya]

Joe Schlotthauer , yes you can.

[@mikedauth4153]

thank you.. great job.. think I'm going with check mate

[@GrassDaddy]

+Mike Dauth you will love it!

[@56mountaindew]

I have a Toro can't tell you how long I had it because it's been a very long time, I get beautiful strips, as far as the wear on the roller I have, but the strips look the same as when I first got it, the only thing I had to replace if the hook that holds the roller, a bigger stronger one home depot, don't know why it took a hr. to put in the sand, did you use a funnel?

[@lkajsdfjasdf]

I just installed the checkmate on my super recycler. It seems to tear the grass when I turn around to do the next pass. The wheels roll free but the wheels end up dragging sideways on turns. Do you have that issue?

[@Longenecker1776]

lkajsdfjasdf it does at times, just turn on your neighbors lawn or your driveway 🦾🦾🦾🔥🔥🔥

[@andrewoswald6388]

Had the Toro for a year and a half. Made great stripes. But the plastic connection point hole where the hook from frame attaches to the roller broke. Tried epoxy but kept breaking. Definitely wouldn't recommend it to anybody based off longevity. Ordered the checkmate and am excited to get back to lawn domination of the neighbors! Great video!

[@heavyinkprinting1367]

Thanks for the detailed review

[@jz719]

What are the prices?

[@rhdtv2002]

Great video but the last 2 looked better..but then again I can see only thru 1 eye

[@woodnyardjunkie]

I have the checkmate and it does a good job. I just added a push broom head just behind the deflector flap. Stripes are even more defined with the broom head installed.

[@GrassDaddy]

+A C what type of broom? I tried that but man it was hard to push!

[@chrisfink1]

Post some pics. I'd love to see how you did the mod

[@woodnyardjunkie]

I have the same exact mower and setup but with the broom.

[@dlukac]

A C I love this idea! Gonna have to try it.

[@woodnyardjunkie]

Drew Lukac thanks! I had 1 test run and stripes seemed more defined.

[@onetuliptree]

Great comparison vid! I don't want to mess with add-ons, how would it look to stripe with different cut heights, like one notch difference?

[@GrassDaddy]

well in general the higher you go the better it stripes

[@Samuel-I]

tahoedewey ... it would look like a gapped up lawn. The stripes are from laying the blades down and the sun's reflection off of them. Separate heights leaves the blades upright.. yet at different levels of growth.

[@pimpdeez9]

Holy cow your son actually had pants on this time! Now let's move on to a shirt :)

[@GrassDaddy]

+pimpdeez9 hahaha

[@Chewwy1973]

Thanks much ordered Toro then canceled my order based on your great review. I made my own for $15 it works great

[@396chevelless]

Now if you had any of them behind a Exmark you would see even a bigger difference blade tip speed of 18,500fpm. There is a lot that plays a part in lawn stripping, type of grass, length of cut, blade tip speed or roller set up, suns reflection. Point is if you have a crappy weedy lawn don't expect any good results from anything, except a steam roller ha ha.

[@foxyrobthepirate5832]

How's your plastic deck holding up with the checkmate . Have one on another Honda but steel kinda of scared of putting it on my new one

[@GrassDaddy]

It's holding up just fine!

[@stevelandsaw3132]

The checkmate seemed to lay down the best stripe. The first one was no where close to the other two.

[@stevelandsaw3132]

I think the only issue with the DIY one is the edges of the roller. If it were smooth all the way across, it’d be very close to the other two.

[@Turtle574]

What is the price on each

[@aguyandhiscomputer]

drew0357 Google?

[@Turtle574]

aguyandhiscomputer yes because you can google the price of the diy roller

[@jeradleal2238]

To make it even,cut the tops off the caps and slide them all the way down it.

[@Imwright720]

Mow then roll the yard for stripes.

[@GrassDaddy]

What do you think? Have you used either? Both?

[@AlBeebe]

I did a DIY roller like you and i wasn't really impressed. What impressed me was using my leaf sweeper because it sweeped all the blades of grass in the same direction and laid them down.

[@GrassDaddy]

+Al Beebe yeah a lot of people add brooms before the rollers so im trying that now. Drastic difference but the broom I used is way too hard to push lol

[@AlBeebe]

Google Toro Lawn Striper 20602 and check out the difference between the one you have and that new one. Be sure to click on the features area at the bottom and you'll see how they added some tines to the design

[@GrassDaddy]

+Al Beebe interesting. I was thinking the broom just had too many tines

[@BlakWiseCracker]

I gave it a Thumbs up just because my little pal was in the video! But if I was forced to judge for the better stripe, it would be the Toro.."

[@tim66214]

Liked your diy striping kit, good idea on the bracket parts,but how what parts did you use to get your diy one to roll? Now as for the other 2 I have a toro time master and the striping kit was around $200.00 and the Check mate was more than what want spend so I am thinking of building one,keep up the good videos !

[@GrassDaddy]

+Tim McCuiston the DIY has a threaded rod through it. I use nylon hex nuts to hold it to the bracket but not tight so it rolls

[@tim66214]

ok Did you do a video on it?

[@GrassDaddy]

Tim McCuiston yeah it should be in the striping playlist on the channel page

[@AAtta-3286]

Great video! Was looking into lawn strippers and your videos nailed it! Much appreciated! Since then bought Lawn Stryper which is exactly same manufacturer as Toro but about $20 cheaper. Just wondering has ANYONE found an easy way to take this darn thing off an on. My mower is NOT self propelled so I use it for the front then go nuts trying to take it off for the rest of the yard lolo. Again many thanks for your videos !

[@GrassDaddy]

Hahaha yeah it's a pain, it looks like it should be easy but it's not!

[@AAtta-3286]

@@GrassDaddy I devised a new way to attach the stripper to the bracket for the Toro/Lawn Stryper which makes it sooo much easier to attach and remove. Is there a way to send you a picture?

[@friendlyhonda3187]

I have an HRX217 and a Toro Lawn Striping kit. I found that the kit was making the mower do a subtle wheelie, which degraded the cut. Did you find that?

[@GrassDaddy]

Interesting. Mine didn't do the wheelie but I did install it low so it wouldn't which caused one of the screws to strip.

[@idaho2085]

It looks to me like the Toro did a better job, but it may just be the light.

[@GrassDaddy]

Yeah I need to redo that video this year, hard to tell while shooting if you see what I see in person. Stripes are mostly about angles