The advantage of the design is there are no wheels so it can be moved in any direction. Also the cutting blades cause a downdraught which provides a hovercraft effect making it easy to manoevre and it mulched dry grass extremely well so raking up afterwards is not required
I still own this Flymo but after years of use the front of the plastic deck broke off and it lost the hover effect. By reversing the handle it could still be used but not pushed or swung sideways as easily. A few years ago the handle was removed to use on another mower and the remains were kept in case the motor was needed for some other purpose
The replacement was an electric Flymo Turbo Lite 350 which is suitable for small areas with the limitation of needing an extension cord. The Turbo Lite had trouble when the grass grew tall or was damp
By chance I saw a mower being added to a roadside pile of unwanted junk on a local Council Hard Waste day (also known as a verge or kerbside collection in USA). I asked if it worked and was told it did long ago before it was replaced. I parked my car and lifted the mower into the back seat and the owner went back into his house and came out with the catcher. It was obvious the mower and catcher had not been used in a long time nor stored under cover
After some simple maintenance the mower started and ran quite well. The Briggs and Stratton four stroke motor was powerful enough to cut long grass much better than the Flymo
In 2007 I acquired an interest in a remote rural property and became the property manager. One of my jobs was to keep the many paths clear so the owner could feel safe from snakes whilst walking her dogs. This job had previously been done a couple of times a year by a tractor and slasher and because the equipment had to be transported in each time it was rather costly and the results were quite rough
A cheap old Toro mower was bought from a second hand dealer in a nearby town. It was given a hard time as the ground was not smooth or level and there were plenty of rocks, tree roots, sticks, branches and ant nests hiding in the grass. The deck soon developed cracks and the throttle mechanism failed so some modifications became necessary
The throttle was crudely made to be set and adjusted manually instead of by the usual cable and handlebar lever
Once the paths and areas around the house had been tackled it was time to attend to larger areas
This photo can be enlarged (as can all the other photos) to show the terrain. The edges of the mown area are obvious as are the sticks and ant nests
The tough conditions took their toll and eventually the old Toro expired with a loud bang - it was kept for spare parts
For several years I spent time travelling regularly between the rural property and Melbourne. Other mowers were collected from the roadside in various Melbourne suburbs, brought up to the rural property and used as slashers until they either fell apart, were sold or given away. No photographs exist of most of those departed mowers or of their repairs
While visiting a nearby property the owner wanted to show us his Indian Runner ducks behind the house. In the carport was a new looking ride-on John Deere mower which led to a chat, and of course I asked what it had replaced - sure enough his two old derelict mowers were tucked away in a garden shed. They were soon in my car and once home in my workshop they were cleaned and serviced and both started and ran perfectly
One was an early Masport, the other a 22 inch Yard Machines with Briggs and Stratton motor. The throttle cable was dodgy on the 22 inch so it was removed and the carburettor modified to convert it to a manual system. The engine speed is set and if a change of pace is needed the lever on the carburettor is moved by hand. The deadman's handle was kept intact to stop the machine when necessary
By then I had learned the hard way that the normal Briggs and Stratton air filter was no match for the tough dusty conditions the mowers copped on our property, in particular when encountering ant nests. Snorkel type filters were a much needed modification for mowers used as slashers
Masport Sprint 38. The axle mounting wire clips soon fell apart and were replaced with cable ties.The pull start handle also failed and was replaced rather simply with a piece of a branch. This mower has done a lot of work and is light and easy to move around in tight areas
This MTD with B & S 3.75 HP motor was most likely abandoned because the height adjustment mechanism was worn and would not stay in place. A spring from a trampoline and a piece of string soon fixed that problem and it has been a reliable mower after it had some care
Craftsman with Honda motor. Found abandoned without handle and throttle cable, obviously not used for some time, small rust holes in the deck which had been repainted. Had a similar motor to a water pump I have and thought it might be a source of spare motor parts or wheels
Started OK and ran for a few seconds with fuel squirted into the plug hole and after a top up with oil and a splash of fuel in the tank it ran quite well
Did a major service and carb cleanout and the motor is quite sound. The handle from my old 2 stroke Flymo was roughly connected to the deck with a piece of wood and some stays, and a redneck throttle lever and cable system was constructed
The replacement Honda throttle lever and cable. This simple fix utilises an air conditioner cover lever and is a push-pull system
The Craftsman is powerful and quiet, mower cuts well. One day it may get a better handle and throttle cable system
Masport 635. This belonged to a toolmaker and was inherited by a nearby rural couple who had other mowers including two ride-ons so they had no need for it and gave it to me. It was in excellent condition and after giving it a service it was like new. It has since only been used a few times
I also ended up with the toolmaker's arc welding machine, a heavy old transformer job - a very handy addition to my workshop
This area is done a couple of times a year, mainly with the 22 inch Yard Machines mower
A friend was coming to visit and I sent him this photo showing what would be his choice of mowers if the weather was OK and he wanted to help out doing work- no free lunches around here. The grey Masport Utility at the far end in the photo was a lovely machine but has since been given away
Rover i4000 Found with no air filter or spark plug. Steel deck was rusted out around motor mounting area. Couldn't tell if it had any compression but motor turned OK. Decided to take it for the wheels, handle, throttle lever and cable. The motor is a Chinese copy of an OHV Honda known in mowing circles as a Chonda. A spark plug with the right reach was inserted and petrol squirted into the carburettor. The motor started and ran OK but because the deck was badly rusted the motor bounced up and down so much that the blades dug into the ground
A piece of 3 X 30 mm bar was drilled and bent then using one of the screws of the tappet cover it was bolted to a fairly sound part of the deck.
An air filter from my spares pile was fitted and the mower performed very well with plenty of power except grass, dust and stones came flying out of the holes in the deck
The rust was quite bad
A piece of old rubber matting bolted on kept the flung debris from being ejected. The champagne cork stops the height adjusting bar from vibrating.What was surprising was how well the throttle governing system worked when ploughing through tall tough grass, saplings and tussocks.Looking on the internet to find the proper spark plug was a bit of a disappointment because this model was more than 10 years old and had a very poor reputation for reliabilty
No big deal, it was free and so far the repairs had been easy and cheap so it was just to be flogged until it broke however it has become one of my favourite mowers for the real rough stuff. It now has four blades, home made from 3 x 30 mm angle iron and an inline petrol tap and fuel filter have been added. Whatever spark plug I fitted is still workng years later
A roadside find, needed minimal attention to get it running properly but there's some problem with the old carb, it will simply not start from cold unless the spark plug is removed and a teaspoon of petrol is squirted into the cylinder. Once warm it starts perfectly. A few years later I found a catcher which fitted
Toro Recycler. Found abandoned, no fuel tank cap. Has had oil change, blades sharpened, air filter cleaned, carb cleaned, now runs perfectly. Rust hole in deck covered with rubber mat
Victa. Given to me by owner who had pulled it apart because it became difficult to start. Said it was running well before. It sits awaiting my attention
Another Victa found abandoned, starts and runs perfectly, kept as a spare
Victa Lawnkeeper. Found outside an apartment block complete with catcher. Appeared to have been used only once or twice and the reason I thought it was abandoned there was a perfect vacuum cleaner, a nice lampshade and several other household items in good condition and some nasty rubbish piled together with it. Perhaps someone had to move out in a hurry. I grabbed everything but the rubbish
Once home it started instantly but the idle speed was far too high. Mower otherwise needed no attention, works perfectly. The only negatives are a narrow cut so not suitable for large areas and the short wheelbase causes the front or rear of the deck to dig into any dips in the ground. Those two negatives are cancelled out by being light and easy to push and pull in tight areas
Victa Quantum 60 XTS. Was talking with friend's son-in-law about firewood and got on to chainsaws (I also have several which were either donations or from dealers scrap bins but that's another story). He wanted to get rid of an old chainsaw he had bought but couldn't start. When he brought it over he noticed two of my mowers in the carport and said he had a mower which ran poorly blowing smoke. A new mower had been bought. He dropped off the old mower a week later. The air filter was full of oil. After a good servicing and filter washout the mower runs perfectly, as does the 1984 Husky chainsaw
Baumr 750 SX. Found in scrap bin behind a mower/chainsaw dealers workshop. Looked to be not very old or used often. Missing air filter, spark plug and petrol tank cap. Was said to be not worth fixing and traded in on a new mower. Couldn't tell if it had compression but the motor turned easily and I thought it was worth having for the wheels and handle. Loading it into the car it leaked petrol so drove home with windows open. Once home found cracked petrol tank and the carburettor full of water. Cleaned carb and tank, minor rust inside the float bowl, fixed cracks with 2 pack tank sealant. When the sealant was cured added fresh fuel and it started. To my surprise what I thought was a dead man's handle (ignition cut off lever) was the self propelling lever as the mower lurched forward when it was let go
An air filter was made without too much trouble or expense. The filter material is a vacuum cleaner bag cut up and tied on
Mower runs perfectly, lots of power and the throttle governor system is excellent. Without a catcher the cut grass built up in clumps and for mulching it was supposed to have a mulching plug. I just propped up the mulch discharge cover but got sprayed with mulch and stones so cobbled up a little guard
Put 2 extra blades on and gave it lots of work until the SP stopped functioning. The belt had come adrift. Not unhappy as didn't like the self propelling feature at all, made turning around obstacles a lot harder and dragging it backwards was a chore, besides I like getting some exercise pushing mowers around. Removed the SP gearbox and disconnected the drive shaft. It still was hard to push so removed the gears connected to the rear wheels. It is now a highly useful mower
Amusing addition on the handle - drink holders. Supposedly a gimmick to show how the self propelling system enabled mowing to be a fun job
My doorbell in Melbourne rang and a fellow from down the street was standing on the doorstep with a mower. He had seen me pushing old mowers past his house and thought I might want this mower which had been his departed father's. It was much loved by the family but he had bought a good modern mower and kept Dad's for sentimental reasons and now needed the space. I accepted the gift with grace and pleasure. It needed a general service, a new air filter and the blades sharpened, now works perfectly, has minor surface rust. It was taken to the property and gets a gentle run now and then
Sunbeam Tiger 160. Found abandoned. Had poor compression but started and ran OK with plenty of exhaust smoke. Research showed it to be basically a rebadged Victa. Deeper inspection revealed a cast iron barrel with scoring and probably a worn out piston
A year or two later a new second oversize Victa piston and rings were found in a dusty box on the shelves of a long established mower shop which had been taken over by a new owner. I bought them hoping they just might fit the Sunbeam
A vintage motorcycle restoring company employed the services of an old retired machinist for cylinder and head/valve work and I asked if they could arrange for the barrel to be rebored to fit the piston. This was a week before Christmas and I was in no hurry so didn't expect to hear further until the end of January
The next day a phone call advised that the machinist had dropped in by chance and he showed great interest in my job as he had done many Victa cast iron barrel rebores back in the old days and was keen to do this one right away. I picked up the barrel and piston the next day and had the motor assembled and running by that evening. It now has excellent compression and runs perfectly, ready for many years of work in future
A good thing about our rural property is no shortage of storage room. The most often used mowers are kept in a shed close to the house
Apart from the mechanical mowers there are quite a few biological mowers who help keeping the grass down
Yet another roadside find, a Rover QuickStart, old but in excellent condition. Minimal maintenance and a thorough carb cleanout was all that was needed
One of the main problems with these old mowers is the throttle mechanism can become tired. Here's one example of a simple fix. The throttle can be set manually and the automatic motor speed maintenance system, cable and handle lever can be disconnected
The original wire clips holding the front axle on several brands of mowers often break. The cable ties last for a year or two, easily replaced
Handles often break, another easy and cheap replacement. This is a piece from a callistemon bush
Auto governor disconnected, the throttle mechanism works with original cable system. Note return spring and bracket. Wire in carb inlet holds choke in place, otherwise choke tilts and interferes when replacing air filter after cleaning
Another modification to bypass the auto governor and have the motor speed varied by lever on handlebar. Closing the throttle fully engages the kill switch as usual
Victa Lawnkeeper was idling far too fast and couldn't be adjusted easily with original governor and springs. Now completely controlled by handlebar lever without governor. Shown here in idling position. The motor ticks over very slowly, handy when emptying the catcher without having to stop the motor and saves getting sprayed with grass
Throttle fully open. Seldom needs full revs
I soon found mowers with bar type cutting blades were no match for large branches, rocks or tree roots hidden in long grass. The bar could get twisted or even worse the crankshaft bent which usually meant the mower became useless. Mowers with swing-away blades were slightly more resilient but normal blades didn't last long against rocks and were costly to replace. My gardening friend who had suggested the 2 stroke Flymo had experience with tough conditions on his property in the hills near Melbourne and gave me an excellent tip - replace swing blades with a few links of chain. This did work very well. Three links of 1 inch chain held on by shackles, great idea. The outer links disintegrated rapidly but saved the mower from damage in rocky areas and were cheap to replace
Home made blades on a bar. Just a piece of 3 x 30 x 30 mm angle iron. Provide excellent updraught when used with either a catcher or mulching system. Also used on disc type blade holders. Yes, perhaps not fully Occupational and Health Safety compliant but most of my mowers use such blades. They get checked and usually are removed and sharpened after every long mowing session
Two blades on a disc
The areas around the house are certainly not lawns but they are kept tidy. Mowers for these areas do not need the snorkel filters but there are ant mounds which produce fine dust which blocks up the foam type filters quite rapidly
Pre-filters are made from vacuum cleaner bags cut to fit into the filter body
Another throttle mechanism modification
That's all folks. Hope you found some useful or interesting information here.
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