Archive through March 02, 2009

[jcartwright]

David C:
I checked out the Peco Vac website, looks alot like what I want to do. I have a small storage shed, so I could always make room to store it in there during the off season.

Luther:
That E-Z Vac is another great option for me to look into. I tried to look it up online, but had some trouble finding a dealer. Do they still make them?? Where did you get yours??

Thanks again for the help guys!!

 

[sstanton]

I thought I would drop a note here. I will get back with all of you who responded to my "wanted add". It's been a hectic couple of days. I have had NO cub time since last week. I have a bathroom project to finish up before my wife hangs me, a 60th birthday thing going on for dad, and finally the intake manifold gasket on my Blazer's 4.3 decided to crapout and I spent most of my only day off of work to get that fixed. Stupid thing! I believe Chevy thought that everything in the engine bay should be connected to everything else!! So have no fear I will contact you all this week at some point. Scott

 

[kide]

Dennis:
When you were comparing Vac to Sweeper, were you grinding the leaves when sweeping? I've got the clamshell collection system for my (OT) Scag Tiger Cub and actually went back to using a 48" Agri-Fab sweeper most of the time (behind the Scag ZTR), grinding the leaves. The Vac system works almost too good, takes longer to put on and creates so much !@#$%%^$#@ dust that you must wear a mask and goggles if it's been dry. It also plugs on tall wet grass or leaves, so ya gotta slow down...

The reason I ask about your comparison, is that when I bought the ZTR, I sold a 36" Agri-Fab that I'd used behind the 129 for about 15 years to a co-worker. The next week, he was complaining about how fast it would fill up - I asked him if his mower was grinding the leaves OK - he gave me a blank look and asked "Uhhh, you mean I should mow the leaves????"....

 

[dfrisk]

KENDELL - Yes, I'd make block-off plates for the discharge chutes on the mower decks and mow in "Lands" so I could really chew the leaves up good and under the big Maple trees I could still fill My 30" Parker sweeper up in 40-50 feet. The leaves would sit in a six inch deep carpet under those trees. If I didn't mulch them I couldn't go ten feet! before the sweeper would fill. To get My sweeper so it would work in those conditions I put a 3" channel iron across the top of the brush part of the sweeper and put a 90# piece of steel in the channel, Really gave the tires a good grip, but probably had something to do with the light gauge tubular frame for the basket fatiguing & breaking, and the wheel hubs and drive gears wearing out after 15 yrs. Ya suppose?
The one fall Son & I mowed, mulched, & swept leaves for SIX weekends in a row at least one full day and sometimes two days every weekend. I'll admit the last two years I haven't been able to get My "Fall Fieldwork" done because of early snow cover and waiting too long for the last few leaves to fall from the trees. One night about 6-8 yrs ago I remember I was out aerating the back yard on the 982 after dark during a snow storm. I'd gotten done vacuuming that afternnon with the 72 & the vac and just put the areator on the 982 so I could save time and get done with the job. One fall back in the '90's I aerated with the 72 running thru snow drifts 3-4 inches deep with the 72....and that was before I had the Firestone's on it. I spun-out a couple times.

For My application with all the trees on My lot I've seen a tow-behind Sweepster powered by a small 4-5 HP B&S with a huge canvas hopper behind the sweeper that I think would work REALLY well. Robb K. @ WFM.COM bought one several yrs ago, but I'm not about to pay what He did for that one. My vac works O-K for My application, pulling the cart behind Me settles the clippings/leaves so I can get more in the cart. And I still get 20+ loads most days, and normally takes Me two days to do the whole yard, so I get 40-50 loads off the whole yard. What I need to do is make a "bio-mass furnace" so I can burn the stuff and heat the house or shop, kinda like these big round bale furnaces or shell corn furnaces people make. Neighbor has a remote wood burning furnace between His house & detached garage He burns old wooden pallets in all winter. Something like that! I know We've talked before on here about making a quarter-scale "Forage wagon" like is pulled behind silage choppers, something that unloads itself so I don't have to DIG all the stuff out of the cart every load. One fall I used a length of that orance plastic snow fence to line the cart with ropes tied to the fence so I could "PULL" the stuff out of the cart in one big "lump". It kinda worked...but after 5-6 loads I ran out of room around the burn pile unless I got the loader tractor out to pile the stuff up higher. Since I got the big tandem axle dump cart last summer I did think about making top & sides for it to pull behind the vac, It's 50 in. wide X 70" long instead of 32 in W x 48" L, hold over twice as much "Stuff" but then I'd need more HP in the 72 to pull it. OH DARN!

 

[dtanner]

Kraiq knows where to find new Ser tag and engine spec tag for the 129. I don`t want to destroy the old decals . If my memery is corect someone on here makes new ones i think i saw a posting some time ago??/well i hope i did lol. Thanks to all. later Don T

 

[kmcconaughey]

Don, CC Specialties sells them....

 

[dtanner]

Thanks Kraiq well now i had a look and only see the spec tag but not the ser tag. unless i missed it. I `am behind in my 129 and see this rebuild and paint is longer than i planned lol. Thanks again Later Don T

 

[kmcconaughey]

Don, your style of tag (decal style) as shown on the tin in your photo, AFAIK, is not available. The S/N *is* on the style that CC Specialties has. Note that there are two places for number, the top one is the S/N, the lower one is the Spec. No.

 

[dtanner]

Thanks Kraiq, Was just thinking if the 2 decails are original or not? I will order that and have to mount it on the right side of the blower shell. thans again Don T

 

[lhinds]

Jim; I got it on a trade. The 127 with vac. and other stuff was 300. I don't know anything about it except it works very good and it was made in I think Plymouth Indiana.

 

[jcartwright]

Luther: Here's what my searching has turned up so far...

The one above is from a company named Protero out of Minneapolis. The back actually opens up so the clippings just fall out. I would think it I could get it to fit the 169 without too much trouble.

This other one is a Trac-Vac out of Indiana that uses a Rubbermade garbage can as it's collection bin. It also looks pretty small behind that newer cub. I like the fact that it's just a hitch and go sort of thing.

Now comes the fun part...contacting them for price quotes.

 

[dfrisk]

JIM - I was just snooping around on Trac-Vac's website too. They make a BUNCH more stuff now than they did 10-11 yrs ago when I built Mine.
The only thing I had against the single pin attachment like the Trac-vac unit You posted the pic of is when You trim around trees, fences, etc. the cart will track inside the tractor/mower when turning. But I think that 44 gal. trash can would hold more material than the fully mounted unit from Protero. Depending on the size of Your yard and where You unload it adds considerable time driving to Your unloading site. The fully mounted unit would make trimming a breeze.
I know the bigger Trac-Vac's with the enclosed cart and a 5-6 hp blower were around $1400 10-11 yrs ago. The dealer I was talking with wasn't real interested in just selling Me the vacuum unit to use with My trailer either.

KRAIG, MARLIN - I got a couple pic's of My sleeve hitch this afternoon. But I'm having "Computer Problems". The DUMMY at the keyboard doesn't know how to get the pic's off His desktop into an e-mail. When My IT Consultant gets home I'll send them along tonight.

 

[bnolte]

Luther,

My neighbor has an EZ Vac system on their 125. I got a chance to use it last summer to collect clippings to mulch the garden. A couple of things I noticed:

1. The weight of the assembly, especially when the bag is full really lightens the front axle to the point it decreases traction to the front wheels considerably. Think twice and slow down before making any quick turns, or put some additional ballast up front.

2. It does not handle really heavy grass very well. I spent a lot of time clearing clogs when I got into some grass that hadn't been cut in 2 or 3 weeks of robust spring growth.

3. I was easily able to accumulate enough clippings to do the garden, but for regular mowing I'd rather just let them lie.

 

[bnolte]

My Dad has been staying with me the last couple of weeks while I have been readjusting to living back home again. Before he left yesterday, we got about 6 inches of blowing and drifting snow, which usually piles in front of the garage, so we decided to put the snow blower on the 129. I think the "Old Man" had more fun than me with it

This shot isn't very well framed, but the 129/QA42A made short work of the drifts

 

[mmorrison]

Hay Jim I have one of those baggers on my zero turn CC and I can say. Save your money. If conditions are not prefect the tub plugs up and you need to tack it of and shake it out. You can do that all day. But you mite have more time than me. The blades dot have the necessary pawer to blow the clippings thru the tub.

 

[dclinansmith]

Jim C. Unless you have some oddball deck on your 169 I don't think the type catcher on the new CC will work. Its been my experience that a one or two blade deck will pick up on its own but three blades will not. I may find out differently from other forum members but I have never been able to pull that off. My 149 w/peco vac & a 42" deck will only fill up the end of the pipe without the blower running. I got my peco vac second hand from a friend, you might get lucky and find a used one. Parts are available and new ones are PRICEY.

 

[dmull]

My aunt has a cyclone rake on her Cub 1200...and it does amazing. She has about 10 acres, and the yard has a lot of oak and maple trees.

 

[lbuttke]

Need a little help here.

A well aged gentleman from my area called me today looking for assistance with his 129.
Seems the PTO clutch is worn out and he is looking to replace it.

Now the one currently on the 129 has the mechanical break on the PTO and this gentleman is looking to switch over to the non mechanical break type PTO.

is this doable?

If som besides changing the PTO what lever is needed up front to replace the one with the worn out break on it.

 

[digger]

Lonny,
All you have to do is change out the center button on the PTO and dump the disc on the engaging lever and put the old style or bronze PTO button in it's place.
Course a re-build kit would be another thing to do while your at it, since you say the old one is toast.

 

[theaton]

Bruce N., Its nice when the "Old Man" gets to run a cub. I have tried to get my "Old Man" to plow my garden. He has plowed with Bigger IH's, but never a cub.
I think the smile on his face would almost be as big as mine.