New vs. older Toro Super Recyclers

Gen 1 recycler (not steel deck)/recycler 2, '90 to '94ish - same design as older 21" mowers. 5 height positions on rear height adjusters instead of 4. 4 kickers installed with a steep pitch. Flat style blade that interchanges with older decks and same as pro line. Black chute and mulch plug. Came with Suzuki 2/4 cycle, quantum, Europa and Tecumseh. Dual bolt pattern for engine. Low end ones were recyclers, premium were recycler 2.

Super Recycler, '95 to '04 - revised front, same design deck. 3 kickers (one by step pad removed), not as steep. Curved blade (not interchangeable) with fan. Black chute with handle bent away from the engine to clear gas tanks, same mulch plug. Single bolt pattern clocked 90 degrees clockwise from original deck. Came with mostly quantums, but also had intechs and a few Europas and 2 models had FC150V (my all time favorite). Personal pace phased in around 2000, which eliminated the quick lowering handles.

SR4, '04 to current. Total redesign on deck. Same blade and basic thought on kickers, mulch insert. Side discharge and open framed bag vs the old style with the door. Personal pace. Quick fold handles came in around '08. Plastic tranny is now in since around '13. Please correct me on this info. I haven't had as much experience with these.

All of them have a suburb cut and awesome mulching capabilities. Heck, the pre recycler decks with just a much plug and no kickers do great mulching. All are fairly good with bagging. Even the weak quantum will mulch very nicely.

The SR4 has had some minor changes over the years. They added a washout port in 2007. In 2008 they introduced the quick fold handle and it became a 1-piece design. They also changed to a taller bag design that can be interchanged with more recent steel-deck Recyclers. The plastic transmission seems to have been introduced around 2009, perhaps mid-model year. The changed the caps on the height adjusters in 2011 and the drag shield in 2013. Sadly, 2015 is the first year that these mowers are built in Mexico.

In my personal opinion, the SR4 leaves a better looking result than the earlier models which were already great. The SR4 engine choices leave something to be desired but they're still my favorite. Skip the "Toro" Chinese engine though.