Homemade Mower?

[PROFarms]

Hi, Happy New Year Folks

I had a wacky idea in my head for a while which has moved one step closer to reality in the last week. I been thinking about trying to build myself a small-ish self propelled disc mower. It does sound pretty wacky but i got my reasons.

Anyway Id spoke to a few guys around me and one guy was getting rid of a NH 1495 haybine header but he was keeping the machine. The header is in full working order an so i wondered how easy(/crazy) it'd be to try to make some sort of "thing" (technical i know :/) to drive it. Wouldn't be used to do much hay a year - probably only around 25 acres but we don't have any other mower than a sickle mower and thats just broken this summer.

I got access to a load of old, but working, engines and could maybe even scavenge a chassis off of some other bit of machinery.

What are your thoughts and has anyone ever done anything like this before?

 

[Tor Arne]

Have toyed with the idea myself, engine and a hydrostatic drivetrain of a comine and a front-mounted disc mower. Or better yet, a butterfly mower with the middle mower right in front of the front wheels and the others just behind the front wheels

 

[PROFarms]

i got a couple of old dumper engines that i am considering using as that has a drive to the front which works and there is also fully working hydraulics. Maybe this could work? thoughts guys?

 

[Tor Arne]

It is something similar to the pel-job dumper? Then it should not be impossible to create something that works. If one has an angle grinder, welder and a little imagination then everything is possible

 

[PROFarms]

i have a pep job dumper but i was thinking more to use a slightly bigger and more powerful one

 

[Kenneth S]

Take a old tractor make it run backwards, then mount it on the back, or parts of a old all terrain fork lift.

 

[PROFarms]

had thought of doing that. only problem being that we only have one tractor big enough to run it - which we have only just taken delivery of today - and that is going to be our working tractor. otherwise we only have an old 16hp yanmar or a david brown which is about 20hp