Swisher Tow Behind Mower Upgrade

[epanzella]

My tow behind mower that I pull with my ATV (house on hill) has some quirks that I'm looking to fix. It has only two wheels, one on each side and they prevent me from mowing within 12 inches of structures. They also do little to prevent scalping on uneven terrain as the hitch height on the ATV sets the angle of the deck. My goal is to take my two wheel mower and convert it to a four wheeled model like the second picture.

 

[epanzella]

I'll be posting this as it happens. Step one is to make the castors for the front of the mower. I'm using 10 inch pneumatic tires all around. I had a pair of old rusty 3500 tapered stub axles that would make perfect stock for this project. I turned the tapered part down to a 1 inch shaft and parted the the 2 inch stub part off. Then I bored the stub to accept the 1 inch spindle to form a bearing. A grease fitting and some home brewed castle nuts finished it off. I welded the spindle to a fabricated yoke and that was done. The rear wheel mount is just a 5/8" solid rod welded to some angle. More to follow.

 

[mmcmdl]

Man , I sold that identical mower early in the year . Long story short , I bought a 4 wheeler and had a friend put a carb on it . I gave him a Honda 80 and he gave me the Swisher . Even shorter story , I have none of them left at this point . I sold the Exmark zero turn , the Swisher , the big 4 wheeler , the Toro zero turn , and 2 Cubs all this year and still can't walk in the garage !

 

[epanzella]

Making progress. Welding in 90 degree weather sux.

 

[epanzella]

Frame painted, Mrs Swisher stripped awaiting new dress! Thank God for shop cranes. Bushing set for height adjustment.

 

[epanzella]

Old and new getting aquainted.

 

[epanzella]

Ready for prime time. Tongue can be set up to tow with a 13 inch offset to starboard or flipped 180 degrees to tow in alignment with ATV. There is also a latch to hold tongue in upright position to lessen storage space and make it easier to move mower around by hand.