Mr. M.R. that is a good idea, but my mechanic inventor friend Francis had another one today, while i was out earning a living. your idea would have worked fine. the exmark walkbehinds hydros don't have a real neutral. you would have to open a valve on the two wheelmotors to freewheel like you do when you move a dead mower around the garage.
but today Francis had the surprise of the day for me, back behind his old cowstable where we keep the small and not so small tractor junkyard he pointed at a 17 hps motor and said, that will finish two of your winter projects.
one: the multiflora distroyer and two: to give the pt 60" finish mower another chance. i have to come to hate this mower, the belts go way too fast, two in 300 hours of mowing and three central spindle roller bearings; plus the degradation of output (blade tipspeed) going up hills.
one, the multiflora destroyer is an old machine to cut off small trees and multiflora bushes. it looks very much like an old walk behind rototiller. except it has a shaft pointing out to the front with a sawblade mounting (ripping blade) propelled by two belts.
Francis is going to cannibalize the pt 60" mowers hydraulic motor. we then will combine the saw blade mount of "one" onto a tubular frame which will be welded to another trailer receiver and fit into the before described pt quick attach plate we made last fall, which fits the leaf rake, the 11+8hp little wonder blower buggy, the trailer hitch to move the various trailers around the yard and the "cheap snow plow".
the power source will be the cannibalized hydraulic motor from the pt mower.
two, will receive a face lift. we will install front lawn tractor wheels in front and back with the ability to swivel, rather than plow the turf. we will also install anti scalp rollers. one in the front center and two to three in the rear of the deck. this next mod. is just a dream i would like to fulfill (to reduce the chaffing problem we will try to install a horse stable mat strip all a long the rear of the mower and cut open the right side of the mower, to foster some side discharge). we then will install the 17 hps engine and slightly redesign the pt quick attach situation to accommodate the engine and still warrant proper mowing/pushing and swiveling ability of the redesigned attachment/mower.
