«Previous    Next»
He Built His Own Mini Batwing Mower
"I built it because I wanted something that was big enough to cut a large area of grass, yet small enough to fit through my garden gate," says Jim Ellson of Hampshire, England, about his mini batwing mower.
The mower has a 56-in. cutting width. However, when folded it's only 35 in. wide. It's powered by a Briggs & Stratton 10 hp, single cylinder engine. It rides on a pair of large wheels off an old Toro riding mower and has a metal skid at the end of each wing. The wings fold and unfold by hand. A pin is used to hold the wings in the up or down position.
"I came up with the idea because I wanted to mow small fields with long grass and weeds. I couldn't use my riding mower because it was worn out," says Ellson. "Most of the time I use a Wheelhorse GT garden tractor to pull it, but I can also tow it behind any vehicle equipped with a tow ball hitch including an ATV, garden tractor, golf cart, etc. If I want I can cut grass with the two outside wings folded up, in which case it'll cut a 30-in. wide swath. I have to remove a belt in order to raise the wings.
"It didn't cost much to build. The pulleys and blade mandrels are off a Wheelhorse mower deck. The frame is made from 2-in. sq., heavy-walled tubing that I already had. If I did it again I'd use smaller tubing to save on weight. I used stainless steel sheeting off an old sink to form guards over the blades."
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Jim Ellson, Hampshire, England (ph 011 44 07908 947-250; mithral_j@hotmail.com).


  Click here to download page story appeared in.



  Click here to read entire issue




To read the rest of this story, download this issue below or click here to register with your account number.
Order the Issue Containing This Story
2007 - Volume #31, Issue #4