New Gravely owner on site with mowing deck question

[blivy]

Hey everyone. Introduced myself on the "new members" board, but thought I'd do it here as well.

Attaching pics of my 1977 Gravely 564 here. Currently have the rotary plow and the 30" bushhog.



I've currently got the single blade on the bushhog as I've been helping buddies clear out their deer plots. However, want to put the dual blades on to help refine my grass cutting around my home. Have been trying my darndest to find a larger mower deck. Does anybody possibly have the 40" or (better yet) the 50" decks that they'd want to sell?
I've been scouring craigslist and ebay for a while now with no luck.

Also--does anyone know if a deck from another maker might fit on the gravely 564? (without to many modifications?)

I appreciate any advice anyone has on this.
Thanks,
Ben

 

[Topzide]

Great units! The dual blade setup does do a lot better cutting than the single brush blade. I've had several of the older 7.6 hp units years back. Attachments were square chute snowthrower, 30" mower, 48" dozer blade, rotary plow, tiller and sulky. I used to work at a Gravely dealer and those unit were very popular 20 years ago. Not so much now. Ill keep my eyes open for anything that he might have laying around. Anything could be made to work with some fab work!

 

[blivy]

Thanks Topzide!
Yeah—my wish list would be:
50” mower deck Or 42” if that was all I could find
Cultivator
Sulky
Front bucket
And perhaps the cart wagon That was rear mounted and could tip

It’s a long list I know, but that’d pretty much handle all I need here on my 4 acres.
The previous owner had a kiota tractor that was bigger than my truck. I know it could do everything he needed but I think the gravely size is better suited to my needs.

Again—if you ever hear of a seller I’d love to hear about it.
Thanks
Ben

 

[Sonny580]

I just bought 2 super convertables,---need to get them home yet, but both have the mower on them---no other attachments. I still want a rotary plow for one .Dont think anything else is gonna fit Gravely ----they kinda an orphan in every way.

 

[blivy]

Sonny
That’s a great find!
What size were those decks? I’d be curious to hear how well the gravely runs the 40” vs the 50”.
I’m sure it’s capable of both but I imagine there are idiosyncrasies to each.
One other question—is the super convertible similar to the 564?
I’ve got to admit I’m a little fuzzy on all the differences between the “L”s the 5000 series and the Super Convertibles.
Thanks!

 

[mark02tj]

Congrats on the Gravely? Is this your first one? They're pretty addicting - I've had at least one since the mid-80's.

I tried using dual blades on a 30" deck many years ago. Wasn't too impressed with the results, but you may have better luck. I use the 30" deck for rough stuff. I have a 42" and a 50" deck, but - 1) I don't want to part with either of them and 2) they're both set up with a quick-hitch "horn mount" which your tractor doesn't have.

Have you contacted "Richard's Gravely" in WV? They will most likely have what you need for the dual blade setup. They may or may not have any finish decks that will fit your tractor. If they do, I don't know what they do for shipping. Shipping from WV to Athens GA is probably going to be on the costly side.

As much as I hate it, consider joining the Gravely groups on FaceBook. There are several active buyers/sellers on those groups, although I don't know how close any of them might be to to your area. I did have decent luck selling a Pro-16 on FB a year or so ago. Was also able to get rid of an old Gravely flail mower on there.

Good luck! And enjoy that tractor!

 

[blivy]

Thanks Mark.
Yep this is my first Gravely. And it is kinda addictive.
How does the 42 compare to the 50?
I actually do have the horn mount adapter attachment though haven’t had any opportunity to use it yet since I only have the bush hog and plow.
I did contact Jamie and Richard up in WV. Jamie told me he’d keep An eye out for me.
I hear ya on FB. I got off of that platform a few years ago and am really reluctant to go back. We’ll see if the gravely can get me moving back in that direction though!
I am
Wondering if the gravely was as popular here down south as it was up north.
Almost all parts I’ve seen have been in Illinois, Indiana, and Pennsylvania.

 

[mark02tj]

I actually like the cut on the 50" better. You can see from the pic that it's been used a lot. I bought the tractor (a 5665) about 5 years ago or so. It's for sale (including the deck) if anyone's interested. I'd like to get $650.

I used the 42" on my older 5465 for a long time as my primary mowing machine - both when I lived on a 5/8 acre suburban lot and when I moved to our current place (5 acres, mow a little over an acre). It cut OK, but it seemed like I had to go over the yard twice to get a really nice looking cut. Once I bought the 5665 / 50" deck I never used the 42" any more. The 5465 has the 30" brush hog on it. You can also see that the 5665 also has steering brakes on it. That makes it a great handling machine when mowing.

The machine you see in the background is a Pro-16. It had a twin cylinder B&S VanGuard engine on it and a 50" deck. I hated that machine and sold it about a year after I bought it. Doing any work on the engine was a pain due to the lack of space where it was mounted. I was going to rebuild the carb, but couldn't get to it. A quick call to Richard's confirmed that I wasn't overlooking something simple to gain access. My main hatred for that machine was due to the height of the handle bars. They were 3 or 4 inches higher than my older Gravelys which made it awkward (for me) to control. I'm 5'11", so I'm not exactly short, but I think that machine was made for much taller people.

Gravelys are popular in this part of the country. They were originally made in West Virginia and even after the company was sold, production remained in the midwest. My grandfather (from WV) had one, my uncle (from WV) had one. I bought my first one (an old '61 or so model) in '83 when I was in college. Mowed some with it, but also plowed gardens to make money. I bought the 5465 in '97 or so and still have it. TOUGH machine! My brother has had dozens of them and still has a few even though he has no yard any more. He even has a business where he rebuilds/repairs magneto's for the old Gravelys.

As far as FB is concerned, you don't have "friend" anyone - set your privacy settings on super high and join the Gravely groups. My FB account has NO friends! I belong to the Gravely groups and also a couple of grilling groups. Very rarely do I post anything. A few very knowledgeable people on there, but it is FB so you get the occasional know-it-all who starts trouble.

Enjoy the tractor!

 

[blivy]

mark,
i'd definitely be interested...just wish Ohio wasn't so far away!
I think i may bite the bullet and get on FB. I may be able to find more local buys, but if no one snags the 5665 soon I may have to find a way....!
Does the 5665 have the same specs as the 564? mine's from 1977 and has the 12HP Kohler 301. Loud as ****, but a really really tough engine.

Thanks for the info on the 50" vs the 40". That definitely lets me know which one I need to hold out for. sounds like my property is similar to yours (5 acres overall, but only around 2.5 that I actually mow However, i bush hog the other other 2.5 about once a year to keep the brush down in the woods. I used to do that with a cheap Lowe's $100 Bolen push mower that i called my stump grinder, and it used to be a several day affair. I'm betting with the Gravely it will be only one day from here on out).

I love the idea of the steering brake. I've seen folks use those while walking behind...do they work well with the riding sulky too?

Thanks,
Ben

 

[mark02tj]

The 5665 is 12 hp. I'm pretty sure it's a Kohler 301, but won't swear to it. I really like the old single cylinder Kohlers. When I was in high school and college I worked in a couple of different mower shops as a mechanic and sometimes sales guy. I always liked working on the Kohlers.

I've never used the steering brake with my sulky. When we first moved here (late 2010) I used the sulky a couple of times with my non-steering brake 5465. We've got a LOT of trees and stuff to navigate around so the sulky was more problems than it was worth. In the fall of 2013 I bought my Deere 3520 which had a 60" deck on it. I used that for a while to mow with, but taking the deck on and off was a pain. Then I bought the 5665 and used it for a while. Then came the Pro-16 which I kept for less than 1 mowing season and I ended up buying a zero-turn which I love mowing with. So now the 5465 is strictly for bush hogging, the Deere is for real tractor stuff and the 5665 sits in the shed.

Yeah, Athens GA to southwest OH is too long of a drive for a Gravely! It's right at 8 hours from here to Gwinnett County (Duluth/Lawrenceville area) and I think Athens is about an hour from there. Would make for a long day. Hopefully something turns up in your area. Although I rarely see much older Gravely stuff on CraigsList around here any more.