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Convert lawn mower to brush cutter?


sandspider
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Hi all

I was toying with the idea of getting a walk behind lawn mower to cut (fairly neatly) rough corners of my garden, between orchard trees etc. But looking into it, a decent one is a grand or more. For the amount of use it'll get, I can't justify that.

A friend suggested I convert a normal mower to a brush cutter. So I'm thinking, I get a fairly powerful self propelled petrol mower, ideally with mulching blade and high cut height, and cut out the front vertical section of the deck between the wheels, so taller grass and scrub will fit into it and reach the blade. Maybe cut a few vent holes out of the vertical sides of the deck too, to reduce it clogging up with grass.

Is this likely to work?! Guess it would be fairly hard on the mower, but if I can get a cheapy locally, that's not the end of the world. Can it be this simple?!

I know the wheels would need to be mounted on the deck sides, not on a through axle!

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How high is the brush? I used a brush cutter (£15 to hire) to clear 9-12ft high brambles from some land 10x10m. The roots were left 1ft stubble. Used my old mower tilted backwards on to the the rear wheels to clear them before I could weed killer. I knew if could kill the mower but she came through it fine and cheaper to fix or replace than the proper options. Hasn’t been used for 6 months since, stored outdoors and started first time this weekend when needed. 

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1 hour ago, vmaxphil said:

I think a belt between the blade and motor is needed to protect the motor if the blade hits something solid, most mowers don't like a sudden stop like that bent crankshaft usually 

 

Hmm, good thought. Ground isn't too bad, but there is the odd stone and thicker stem.

32 minutes ago, Wb123 said:

Screwfix do a own brand cheap petrol brush cutter that has surprised me very much, and may still be cheaper/easier than making something. 

Thanks. Would that be a wheeled one or strimmer type? I do have a strimmer, but it's hefty and doesn't leave a very neat finish. Looked on the screfix site but can't see anything that would obviously do...

25 minutes ago, WalkedUp said:

How high is the brush? I used a brush cutter (£15 to hire) to clear 9-12ft high brambles from some land 10x10m. The roots were left 1ft stubble. Used my old mower tilted backwards on to the the rear wheels to clear them before I could weed killer. I knew if could kill the mower but she came through it fine and cheaper to fix or replace than the proper options. Hasn’t been used for 6 months since, stored outdoors and started first time this weekend when needed. 

Variable! (Bracken, brambles, ash stems... Some quite short, brambles often quite long) Nowhere around me (Chepstow) seems to hire anything suitable, or not that I've found yet anyway.

4 minutes ago, Old farrier said:

Hire one 😊👍

or if you have a decent strimmer you can get a mulching blade for them that makes a decent job 

Doesn't seem to be any demand for them for hire round here, basic mowers at best.

I do have a strimmer with mulching blade, but it's hefty work and not a very neat finish. Might just have to persist with that!

Cheers all.

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5 minutes ago, sandspider said:

Hmm, good thought. Ground isn't too bad, but there is the odd stone and thicker stem.

Thanks. Would that be a wheeled one or strimmer type? I do have a strimmer, but it's hefty and doesn't leave a very neat finish. Looked on the screfix site but can't see anything that would obviously do...

Variable! (Bracken, brambles, ash stems... Some quite short, brambles often quite long) Nowhere around me (Chepstow) seems to hire anything suitable, or not that I've found yet anyway.

Doesn't seem to be any demand for them for hire round here, basic mowers at best.

I do have a strimmer with mulching blade, but it's hefty work and not a very neat finish. Might just have to persist with that!

Cheers all.

https://www.screwfix.com/p/titan-ttl530gbc-43cc-straight-shaft-petrol-brushcutter/61145

 

Once I got the harness and bars adjusted so the blade spins parallel to the ground throughout the sweep the finish got a lot better. 

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6 minutes ago, sandspider said:

Hmm, good thought. Ground isn't too bad, but there is the odd stone and thicker stem.

Thanks. Would that be a wheeled one or strimmer type? I do have a strimmer, but it's hefty and doesn't leave a very neat finish. Looked on the screfix site but can't see anything that would obviously do...

Variable! (Bracken, brambles, ash stems... Some quite short, brambles often quite long) Nowhere around me (Chepstow) seems to hire anything suitable, or not that I've found yet anyway.

Doesn't seem to be any demand for them for hire round here, basic mowers at best.

I do have a strimmer with mulching blade, but it's hefty work and not a very neat finish. Might just have to persist with that!

Cheers all.

Just hire a big mower and then you’re not trashing your own😂😂

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I used my cheap mower to clear the brush along my lane. Sharpened the blade after and it took a couple of passes. Neighbour has a petrol scythe that he sometimes gets out and to be fair it takes half the time but it did cost £000 more.

These days I weed kill the nettles and don't worry about it. 

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46 minutes ago, ditchman said:

Alan Syth

Ah yes, the old green machine with the big wheels and the silky-smooth clutch engagement (not).   All the professional groundsmen seemed to use them in the good old days.    Grandad owned one of those in the 1950s and loved it, but eventually had to part with it because it kept pulling him off his feet (mid you, he was in his 80s by then).

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41 minutes ago, McSpredder said:

Ah yes, the old green machine with the big wheels and the silky-smooth clutch engagement (not).   All the professional groundsmen seemed to use them in the good old days.    Grandad owned one of those in the 1950s and loved it, but eventually had to part with it because it kept pulling him off his feet (mid you, he was in his 80s by then).

there are new versions................the old one had a villiers engine with a wrap around start rope............used to be sent off with one topping pastures and stinging nettle beds..and bloody thistles

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21 minutes ago, ditchman said:

there are new versions................the old one had a villiers engine with a wrap around start rope............used to be sent off with one topping pastures and stinging nettle beds..and bloody thistles

Did you have to walk along with it like a peasant, or were you one of those superior types (like the head gardener at the stately home) who rode behind on a little trailed seat, grinning smugly at the lower classes?  

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Pity your so far away or my little Kubota and Fleming swipe would tidy that up for you in minutes.  You could convert an old rotary mower to a chain not a blade, that would solve the direct drive problems as the chain would 'give' if it hit anyhting really heavy.  If not a chain then a length of wire cable.  Cut an old blade back leaving just enough for a mounting bolt either side and attach the cable/chain to that with a U bolt.

Those old vintage Atcos are fetching reasonable money these days in the historic tractor/machinery groups and will still do the job.

Edited by Walker570
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9 hours ago, McSpredder said:

Did you have to walk along with it like a peasant, or were you one of those superior types (like the head gardener at the stately home) who rode behind on a little trailed seat, grinning smugly at the lower classes?  

hoh ...this one was defo the peasant version :lol::good:

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11 hours ago, Walker570 said:

Pity your so far away or my little Kubota and Fleming swipe would tidy that up for you in minutes.  You could convert an old rotary mower to a chain not a blade, that would solve the direct drive problems as the chain would 'give' if it hit anyhting really heavy.  If not a chain then a length of wire cable.  Cut an old blade back leaving just enough for a mounting bolt either side and attach the cable/chain to that with a U bolt.

Those old vintage Atcos are fetching reasonable money these days in the historic tractor/machinery groups and will still do the job.

Thanks, nice offer, but you are a bit of a way away!

Replacing a blade with some wire or chain is doable, good thought.

Will keep my eyes open for Allen scythes and any other big old mowers!

Cheers all.

 

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Take care if you are planning to modify a rotary mower, because it is not unknown for blades to break free.   Tip speeds are often in the region of 200mph, and a piece of metal flying can do a lot of damage.   Insurers won’t be happy if there is a claim involving a mower with unauthorised modifications.

I know of one case where a blade flew off an agricultural mower, sliced through a wire mesh fence and cut a hole in a sub-station transformer.   Transformer cooling oil leaked out and contaminated surrounding land, soil from an area about 20mx20m had to be dug out to a depth of 1m and taken away to a specialist de-contamination facility – very costly for the insurer.

You don’t have that risk with a reciprocating mower like the Allen Scythe.

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I thought of this thread today clearing some nettles and brambles with the mower. It’s a bog standard mount field, I just set the wheels to give it maximum height and took it slow. 

The brush cutter would have probably been quicker if the job was in isolation but I already had the mower out and running for the lawn. 

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