Mower Project

Greg_Phillips · Dec 21, 2004

Need some opinions here, I am wanting to build a mower in the image of a combine or windrower. What I am think is using 2 or 3 old reel type mowers welded togeather for the header (using a belt to drive the reel off the front axle), a hydrostatic transaxle out of a lawn tractor, and wheels and tires from a lawn tractor.

Now I need opinions on a few things. If I make this like a combine, how do I make the auger in the head to pull the cut grass to the center, and how do I get it to feed into the feederhouse? How about an unloading auger for the grain tank? Lastly, how do I provide power steering to the rear wheels?

Sorry for the length of the post, thanks for the help.

cleatus · Dec 21, 2004

This is just my thoughts, but I would use rear discharge mowers that had cathers, these would be ducted to auger made from 1" shaft with screw parts cut from 1/6" sheet metal. The same could be done for unloading. You could use a feed auger like they load over head storage tanks.

Greg_Phillips · Oct 6, 2005

Just bringing this back up to the top. I have done some thinking and think I am going to use an older sickle mower for the cutter bar, and then building a pipe reel. I think I'm going to use a couple of leaf blower fans to move the cut grass to the bin and out of it.

I am still trying to figure out the cross auger in the header, any ideas? Please help me figure this out so I can start looking for the parts I need.

Thanks

Bigbear · Oct 6, 2005

/forums/images/graemlins/confused.gifWhy???? /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif

Greg_Phillips · Oct 6, 2005

You ask "why?", I ask "why not?" The reason I am wanting to do this is because I grew up on a farm, running the combine in the fall was my favorite part of the year. Saddly we no longer row crop, so I'm just looking for a way to have that feeling through out the summer. On top of that I just think it would be something pretty neat to build.

420hondeere · Oct 22, 2005

Why not start out with a "F" series front cut John Deere commercial mower. It's already a rear steer all you have to do then is figure out your header.

Greg_Phillips · Oct 22, 2005

That would be ideal but not many of them sell around here, the ones that do sell for the price of a new one, or are so worn out that you would have a small fourtune in one to get it repaired.

RonR · Oct 22, 2005

You might search for an old pull type Allis All Crop combine. There were a lot of them sitting around the hedge rows when I grew up. As I recall, it had about a six to eight foot header. That would give you the header parts (or frame at least) that you could start with. Hooking it to a power plant like a Excel Hustler would be pretty straighforward, then you could fab the "bin".

Not something I'd want to try, but it sounds do-able.

Ron

Taylortractornut · Oct 23, 2005

To make your infeed auger Ive made some for grain tanks out of old unloading augers of conbines you can usually find a right and a left side that are worn the same. I know of a nice matched set of augers is the top leveling augers on top of a deere cotton picker work well to. you could mount a sprocket in the middle of the screws and use a chain and paddle conveyor off a combine for the back feed funtion.