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Thread: Retro lawn mowing

  1. #1
    Master
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    Retro lawn mowing

    Now I know you guys like a little retro
    Picked this up for my small lawn - off freecycle
    Remember my dad having one in the 70’s- it’s in great condition
    Untitled by biglewie, on Flickr

  2. #2
    Master j0hnbarker's Avatar
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    Nice!

    I have owned this bad boy for the past 4 years which, coincidentally, is now on eBay as I am moving in a couple of weeks.

    K&Ns improve any engine ;)


  3. #3
    Master smalleyboy1's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by j0hnbarker View Post
    Nice!

    I have owned this bad boy for the past 4 years which, coincidentally, is now on eBay as I am moving in a couple of weeks.

    K&Ns improve any engine ;)

    I nearly bought an old Suffolk Colt at the weekend for a winter restoration project but decided it would end up half finished and taking up garage space forever!

  4. #4
    Master j0hnbarker's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by smalleyboy1 View Post
    I nearly bought an old Suffolk Colt at the weekend for a winter restoration project but decided it would end up half finished and taking up garage space forever!
    They’re nice old things but you need a really flat lawn for good results!

  5. #5
    Craftsman TAG0001's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by lewie View Post
    Now I know you guys like a little retro
    Picked this up for my small lawn - off freecycle
    Remember my dad having one in the 70’s- it’s in great condition
    Untitled by biglewie, on Flickr
    I had two of those. Great until I ran out of puff and then I dented the cover over the rear roller.

    Sent from my LYA-L09 using Tapatalk

  6. #6
    Grand Master oldoakknives's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by j0hnbarker View Post
    They’re nice old things but you need a really flat lawn for good results!
    Yes and if you have any 'couch grass' on your lawn a cylinder mower won't cut it! It simply lays flat then stands back up after you have passed by. How do I know this.............
    Started out with nothing. Still have most of it left.

  7. #7
    Master johnbaz's Avatar
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    I'm not sure if it's still in one of the sheds but I had a Qualcast Panther that was 12 volts!, It had a car battery on from a Mini that was paggered, It would cut half to three quarters of the lawn and die, The following day after an overnight charge it would finish it!!

    I bought a new in the box Gel battery from the bootsale and then the following week, The proper battery charger for it! and I only charged it once a year!!

    It had it's own battery charger built in to the end of the motor, The socket for the lead had a door that slid aside and wouldn't let the motor run accidentally but I didn't have the two pin socket that plugged in to it!!, It may have gone to the dump, I have an Aussie 'Victa' and an Atco self driven rotary mower that need to go to the dump as they were both left out when one of my sheds collapsed so they were in all weather and I can't be bothered to empty the water from the tanks that somehow got in!!


    Found a pic of the Victa!!


    And the old Atco!


    I got this from the Freeads for £20, The chap said it wouild need a service, Had to give it a go though!, There was no oil in the sump and I siezed the engine!, I put some oil in and let it cool down, It took a massive pull but it turned over once cooled, It fired up with a puff of blue smoke and has done ever since!!, There was no blue smoke when I first started it!!




    John

  8. #8
    So many flashbacks from this thread, think I have pushed just about all of them at one time or another in my youth. I remember Hayter as well as the Atco, Suffolk punch etc.
    Never had a go with the big green ones with the wide roller though.
    The romance went out of lawn mowing once the horrid orange things came along.

  9. #9
    Master
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    A local crown green bowling club have one possibly two petrol Hayters. They turn grass cutting into a passion! The machines are immaculate and the greens are cut at least twice a week in season!

  10. #10
    Grand Master thieuster's Avatar
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    That's nice!

    We had a Qualcast 'kid-powered' machine in the 60s, when I was a lad. That, combined with a large patch of lawn and my parents' mantras: 'He's an only child and we make sure we don't spoil him' and 'chores first, fun later!' caused some angry moments when I wanted to go to the municipal swimming pool with my friends... On top of that: as soon as I left the house, they replaced the machine for a battery operated Qualcast

    Together with a dishwasher, a powered lawnmower were the first things I bought for myself when I bought my first house!

    This Spring I posted a thread about buying an Atco or similar. I love those striped lawns! Trouble is, I want to give it a try first before I buy one. Current mower is a Briggs and Stratton powered Sabo - and it works fine. But, no stripes...

    Have fun with this one!

    Menno

  11. #11
    Master Tifa's Avatar
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    Striped lawns, almost as pointless as ironing pajamas.....it's an ocd thing, right?

  12. #12
    Grand Master Foxy100's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by j0hnbarker View Post
    Nice!

    I have owned this bad boy for the past 4 years which, coincidentally, is now on eBay as I am moving in a couple of weeks.

    K&Ns improve any engine ;)

    That looks very much like the green thing I used when I was a kid. I'd already have one now if I had a lawn big enough.
    "A man of little significance"

  13. #13
    Grand Master thieuster's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Tifa View Post
    Striped lawns, almost as pointless as ironing pajamas.....it's an ocd thing, right?
    Absolutely! In my defence: I'm on a watch forum, so I suppose the I'm safe regarding my OCD when I compare this with the way many of here here read, think and act when it comes to watches!

    Search for Ryan Knorr's Lawn Care videos on YT for the ultimate striped lawn /OCD experience!

    Menno

  14. #14
    Craftsman
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    Qualcast Suffolk Punch

    Just picked this up on Gumtree

  15. #15
    Master pacifichrono's Avatar
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    For me, "retro" would be a reel mower I used to cut our lawn in the 1950s. It definitely paid to keep the blades sharpened!




  16. #16
    This is my Atco 12 blade mower with a 20 inch cut. About 50 years old (the Honda engine was fitted 10 years ago) it is built like a tank! It's a bit of overkill for our lawn now but I do like using it as the quality of the cut is superb.









    R
    Last edited by ralphy; 20th June 2020 at 07:38.
    Ignorance breeds Fear. Fear breeds Hatred. Hatred breeds Ignorance. Break the chain.

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