spring project
The spring, summer and fall went fast. The beautiful spring turned into a hot summer. Then came a nice fall with all its colour’s, now this has disappeared.
I took pictures this spring of a quick little project I did. I planned to put it in on the web site then. I tend to spend little time at the computer when the weather is nice outside so I just never got around to it. Now it has turned colder outside, so it is more comfortable by my computer. I will now show them to you.
The mower deck on my old Yard Man lawnmower tractor failed a year ago this fall. The unit is 10 years old and I mow a large area. The repairs would have cost over half of what I paid for the unit new. So I replaced the unit with a new John Deere garden tractor-mower unit.
We started using it to pull the old trailer in the picture. We hauled yard scraps and leaves out to the compost pile in the back part of the farm grove. Soon we were using it to haul many things around the large farmyard. My Wife and I both found it handy as we left it hitched to the trailer. Without the mower it was easier to get off and on. The only problem was it was very difficult for two of us to ride on it.
As you can see I solved the problem with a few hours work and stuff I had around the farm.
It was simple as the original seat was held to a flat bracket with two bolts. This kept the original spring system in place for a nice ride.
The cost was nothing, as I used stuff I have saved. A couple of pieces of 3/4 plywood I have had for years. some left over foam rubber and vinyl upholstery material. Rummaging through my salvage iron found the pieces I needed to make brackets to hold the backrest.
As you can see I had to double the brackets around the bend for strength. I did maintain some spring in the backrest however.
Donna came to my aid with here skill and creativity. she did the upholstery work and I think it turned out looking very good.
I did run into a bit of a problem with the mower lift lever and the shift lever. They both stuck up too high and interfered with the seat.
I fired up my old acetylene welding torch that I purchased in the early 1960’s. Although not used much in this day and age, it cured the problem easily, as you can see by the next two Photos.
The mower lift handle could have been removed as it is unused but this was simpler. You never know I may figure a use for it down the road.
The next picture shows Donna and My Grandson Thorwald. He and his brother Gunnar both enjoyed driving around the farm. The seat allows them to learn to drive safely and to enjoy giving Me or Grandma a ride. Donna and I have both enjoyed using my customised garden tractor.
Summer 2012