I will add, that my mower isn't without some issues, other than the deck. The plastic hood cracked where the hinges are on the front, so I run it without the hood (engine cover), which does help keep it cooler while running. The front clip's mounting tabs are broken where it bolts to the front of the frame, and I have zip ties holding it in place. Where the choke cable attaches to the choke plate is broken, so to use any choke on starting you have to just push the plate with your finger while starting. Also, not a big deal.
The biggest thing is that it actually caught fire two years ago. Was cutting grass on a 90°+ day, and the grass was quite dry. The discharged grass was blowing around and got too close to the muffler. I had stopped cutting and was cleaning things up when I saw smoke billowing out from under the hood. I was able to quickly put it out, but it almost burned through the ignition grounding wire, and it took out the wiring for the headlights. Once it cooled off I soaked the whole engine compartment with degreaser, rinsed it off, then hit everything with brake clean, and again rinsed. The engine compartment hadn't been that clean in YEARS. Owner mistake.
It's on its second spark plug, second air filter, multiple oil changes, and I had to replace the fuel line, filter, and gas tank. Other than that, it's all original. With the plug and air filter it's not that I'm lazy, I just pull them frequently and make sure they're in good shape and clean. The air filter, which has the foam debris cover, gets blown out every 2-3 mowings.
Oh, now that I'm thinking about it, I did have to replace the spindles. The bearings were going bad and I didn't have a bearing press. It was easier to just order new spindles and baskets. That was the original reason for having to drop the deck. Good thing with that was I am now able to easily get the bolt that holds each blade (2 blades, staggered) in place out with ease. Before they would seize up. Now I hit a few of threads with anti-seize before the blades go back on.
But still, for the initial cost of like $1200 back in 1993 I can't complain. Pretty sure I'm on borrowed time with it at this point, but will continue to run it. The one thing I won't do anymore is pull the dethatching accessory with it. It is too much of a load on the engine, and it gets too hot. To the point where it starts to smoke a little, hence the "borrowed time". Rings are probably on their last leg.