mowing with an original 1961

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ad4517
Posts: 1
Joined: Mon May 14, 2018 7:07 pm
First and Last Name: Andrew
Location: north java, ny

mowing with an original 1961

Post by ad4517 »

so i have been mowing my lawn my my original. i also have in my garage a farmall cub with a C3 danco 60" but i literally have no time to mess with it, so the original has been taking on the mowing duty for a while. i have a really nice, solid 38" timed deck for it. i cleaned up the minor surface rust earlier this spring and sprayed it with bedliner spray, im hoping to get some durability out of it vs. the usual paint that never holds up. ever time i mow, i throughly clean the mower deck..... i just take a garden hose and get the grass out from underneath and hose the loose stuff off the top. it is surprising how easily grass cleans off IF you clean it right after mowing and not allow it to dry and stick.

the original is certainly not really fast by today's standards. there are some things about it though that i find to be really incredible. the fuel economy, i mow close to 2 acres, fill the tank mow the entire lawn with gas to spare. i think the fuel tank is maybe a gallon. that K161 really sips fuel, in fact i think you could easily put it up against a more modern machine in terms of fuel economy. 1 gallon modern mower vs. 1 gallon in a cub cadet original, i bet the original would mow more grass before running out of fuel. this thing is cheap to run, really cheap. the K161 despite only being rated at 7hp will mow just about anything.thick grass, tall grass it has no problem.

the things i dont like.... parts availability particularly those cogged pullies, the darn things are expensive. i know where i could get a pair but at a tune of $500. i wish someone would reproduce them. with all of the technology advances in machining in the last 60 years you would think reproduction parts shouldn't be out of question. some means of remaking some of these items should be figured out.... i wish there was a way to make new replacement mower decks for all of these old tractors.... make them relevant again.

the mower i have is in exceptional condition, the K161 runs very well, no reason this machine couldnt mow for another 40 years but finding component parts is sometimes ridiculous

bob95065
Posts: 45
Joined: Tue Jan 14, 2014 1:02 pm
First and Last Name: Bob Elliott
Location: Felton, CA

Re: mowing with an original 1961

Post by bob95065 »

I grew up in a rural neighborhood about 30 miles south of Chicago. Everyone had 2 - 5 acres that they mowed with various model Cub Cadets. One neighbor had a 122 and a 1000. When I was in high school I maintained their 2 acre yard with my brother.

Whenever we mowed she insisted that we clean the underside of the deck with a garden hose which we did. Over the years the deck rusted out. When I asked about it I found out the 122 got permanent sweeper and plow duty because it's deck rusted out in 1977 when they bought the 1000 to replace it. We never put a hose to the deck on my dad's 108 that he bought new in 1974 and it was still in great shape the last time I saw it.

I now have the 1000 and use it with the replacement deck I bought used when the neighbors gave me the tractor in the late 1990's. I will never clean it with a hose.

I would suggest you think about using a hose to clean the deck after mowing. If there is any compacted grass under there it will soak up the water and hold it against the steel deck which will cause rust over time. My $0.02.

Bob

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Tom Scott
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Posts: 1763
Joined: Mon Sep 06, 2010 9:11 pm
First and Last Name: Tom Scott
Location: Bentley Springs, Maryland

Re: mowing with an original 1961

Post by Tom Scott »

+1 on keeping the garden hose away from the decks! Even though you think it's clean, there will still be a thin layer of grass holding that moisture against the deck.

After mowing I first blow everything off with a leaf blower, including the engine area, top of tranny, top of deck, everything. Then I drive it up on some wood blocks and scrape any accumulated grass off the underside of the deck with a putty knife. Although I end up with a very thin layer of build up in some places, it doesn't have any heavy moisture to eat the deck. The garden hose is also hard on the deck spindle bearings. Water bad!!

Xtreme Motorworks has some repro parts available: http://www.xtrememotorworks.com/

For cogged pulleys, I wonder if McMaster-Carr has anything?: https://www.mcmaster.com/#pulleys/=1d71ovj
1872, 46", 50C decks, Haban dozer blade, 450 snow blower
2182-1, Kwik-Way Loader, 3-pt & rear pto, 442 tiller
2182-2, 54" deck, 551 snow blower
Past tractors:  1541, 2135
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