FRUGALITY

[cathead]

OK then, I will be first to post.

This lawnmower I bought from a friend about 40 years ago. He was a monoculture lawn type of guy who used 2,4-d and
kept his lawn mowed to an inch and it had to be perfect. The mower was about ten years old when I got it and he said it
was pretty worn out at that time. It requires a bit of repair work on occasion but continues to run fine. I like it because it
is a 19 inch cut, magnesium frame so very light to handle, and works fine for smaller areas and around trees and hillsides.

It's a lawn Boy.



Below are a few of the repairs done over the years.




The last photo has two repairs on the fiberglass hood. Also, the push handle has a repair and some welds on it.


You can't buy one of these any more so I look around the scrap yard periodically to see if there might be one there for parts
or maybe even in better shape than mine. I fully expect to keep it in running condition.

I just had it all apart and cleaned the mud daubers out of the cylinder fins, rebuilt the starter rope assembly, and
went through the carburetor. Most of the time it starts on the first pull.

 

[homebrewed]

OK then, I will be first to post.

This lawnmower I bought from a friend about 40 years ago. He was a monoculture lawn type of guy who used 2,4-d and
kept his lawn mowed to an inch and it had to be perfect. The mower was about ten years old when I got it and he said it
was pretty worn out at that time. It requires a bit of repair work on occasion but continues to run fine. I like it because it
is a 19 inch cut, magnesium frame so very light to handle, and works fine for smaller areas and around trees and hillsides.

View attachment 453716It's a lawn Boy.



Below are a few of the repairs done over the years.

View attachment 453718

View attachment 453719View attachment 453720
The last photo has two repairs on the fiberglass hood. Also, the push handle has a repair and some welds on it.


You can't buy one of these any more so I look around the scrap yard periodically to see if there might be one there for parts
or maybe even in better shape than mine. I fully expect to keep it in running condition.

I just had it all apart and cleaned the mud daubers out of the cylinder fins, rebuilt the starter rope assembly, and
went through the carburetor. Most of the time it starts on the first pull.

We have an old Troy-built lawnmower. The most recent repair was to replace the clutch cable, which had rusted out. Before that, it was the rubber skirt that drags on the ground on the back side of the mower deck. But you are WAY ahead in the "keeping it running" sweepstakes!

It usually starts on the first pull, thanks to our habit of using ethanol-free gasoline in it. These days we use it in all of our small engine appliances.

 

[great white]

Frugal? Ok.

started out with this:



turned it into this:



Including all the tooling and accessories, I have less into it than you would in one of the modern import jobbies for just the machine alone.

I do the same with vintage audio. Buy it broken and cheap, put in my own work and labor and bingo, expensive audio pieces for cheap.

 

[Winegrower]

I buy off brand toothpaste. I saved so much I outfitted my whole shop.