Husqvarna is probably best known for their motocross motorcycles which have been tearing up off-road circuits since 1903. But they’re no newcomers to the lawn mower circuit either, having acquired Swedish mower brand Norrahammars Bruk in 1918. Over the years the company has expanded its lawn mower offerings through a combination of acquisitions and internal development, and today they’re one of the largest mower retailers in the world.
Husqvarna mowers are almost all hybrid machines in that they don’t develop or manufacture many of their own parts. For instance, the engines and motors in their mowers are purchased from a variety of outside manufacturers including Briggs & Stratton, Kawasaki and Kohler. While the transmissions on their riding mowers come from companies such as Tuff Torq. None of that diminishes the quality of Husqvarna mowers as you’ll see in our Husqvarna lawn mower reviews.
Our Husqvarna Lawn Mower Reviews
History of Husqvarna Lawn Mowers
Husqvarna is one of Sweden’s oldest companies having begun operations in 1689 in response to the Swedish government’s need for military armaments. The site of the company’s first factory in the town of Husqvarna (today spelled Huskvarna) was selected due to its proximity to the local waterfalls which provided a ready source of hydro power.
Over time, the need for weapons declined and the company, rather than folding, decided to apply its now formidable engineering expertise to the production of other products. During the 19th century hunting rifles, wood stoves, sewing machines, bicycles and a number of other products all hit the market for the first time bearing the Husqvarna name. Many of those products are still part of the company’s repertoire.
In 1918, Husqvarna entered the lawn mower space when they acquired Swedish lawn mower manufacturer Norrahammars Bruk. For about 30 years they offered only reel-style, human-powered mowers based on Bruk designs. In 1947 that changed when they introduced their first internally developed, gas powered push mowers.
Over the years Husqvarna has acquired numerous brands and continued to offer those items (such as McCollough chain saws) under the original brand name. Not so with their mowers, however. Any lawn mower-related acquisitions (such as Norrahammars Bruk) were more technology acquisitions that fed the company’s ability to produce its own high-quality mowers under its own name.
Today, as you’ll see in our Husqvarna lawn mower reviews, they offer an impressive array of reel-style, electric and gas-powered walk behind mowers, lawn tractors, zero turn mowers and, most recently, robotic mowers. They are a major player in the lawn mower space worldwide, particularly in the US, where their mowers are available at Lowe’s Home Centers nationwide.
Where are Husqvarna Lawn Mowers Made?
Husqvarna is a globally recognized brand with a presence on every inhabited continent. It would be natural to assume that, like many of their competitors, they took the path of greatest profit and shifted all their manufacturing operations to countries like China during the 1980s and 1990s. But that would be an incorrect assumption.
While many North American brands struggled to find a way to keep their lawn mower production on-shore, Husqvarna followed the lead of another foreign industrial giant, Honda, by moving production of their lawn mowers to the US. As a result, all Husqvarna lawn mowers offered for sale in the US today are produced in the company’s sprawling Consumer Outdoor Products manufacturing facility in Orangeburg, South Carolina. Kudos Husqvarna.