Gathered up all the metal scrap I had been saving for the last three years or so and brought it down to Austin Metal and Iron yesterday to make big money.  I received $ 19.00 for about 100 lbs.  At least it helped me buy a 20' section of steel C-channel, cut into two eight-foot and one four-foot sections.  I am going to use the 8-footers as ramps to load the Woodings CBI and rail-mower onto my 16 foot trailer.  Last time I tried to get the CBI onto it, the steel fence posts I was using bent badly and several colleagues had to help push it onto the trailer at the excursion site.  So that won't happen again, God willing and the creek don't rise.  I used my angle grinder to clean off the ends where they had made two cuts with a cutting torch.  Then I cut off two six-inch pieces of angle iron to bolt to the ends of the C-channel pieces to hook them into the trailer supports (I don't have a welder so can't just weld them).  Tomorrow I will drill the holes and mount the angle iron using bolts.  Will also finish up a bunch of small chores relating to the rail-mower.  Would have liked to be outside working on it today but I had to finish up preparing a liability insurance application for RPI, as well as the YTD financial reports for the Annual Meeting. 

I will be taking the rail-mower over to Frank Glatzl's place on Saturday morning to do finishing work on it.  I found and ordered an L123S1 carb by Walbro the other day and it looks like it may be delivered to me by Friday.  So we will modify, mount and test it as well as make some other last-minute changes.  Then we will carpool up to the RPI Annual Meeting in Temple, where the rail-mower will be available for inspection by RPI members, assuming Leland Stewart, RPI President, approves of the display.

Another Fun Day

Saga of the rail-mower continues.  The lawn tractor repair shop guy called me up to let me know he found a WHG carb he could loan me to see if it would at least get the rail-mower working for the Dec. 10 work session at Kingsland.  He also provided the name of a shop in Dubuque, Iowa, that sells Wisconsin parts that might have a Walbro LMH-18.  I went over and picked up the carb and expressed my thanks.  He is real interested in the rail-mower and I promised he could take a look at it after he gets back from a week-long hunting trip.  I did check to see if the WHG fit on the Bolens 1250 engine, but it looks as though the mounting holes on the carb do not line up with the holes on the engine.

About that time I decided I had better change the oil in the CBI's Tecumseh engine before the real cold weather rolls in.  The Woodings CBI motorcar will be towing the rail-mower so it is an essential element.  I started the engine up without problem.  But I smelled gas and got out of the cab to check the engine compartment in front.  I found a leak in the hose from the fuel pump to the engine, shut down the engine and investigated.  Turns out the fuel hose had enough slack in it so it could get into the path of the alternator belt, which cut a slot in it.  When the slot reached the fuel, the hose started leaking.  I cut the bad part of the hose off and re-mounted it.  The hose now sits an inch above and in from the alternator belt and can't reach the belt.  After solving that problem I finally changed the oil with SAE HD30.

In the evening I continued looking for a replacement carb for the Walbro LMH-18.  I finally hit upon the L123S1.  From the picture in the website, it appears identical with the LMH-18.  And the M&D mower website identifies the L123S2 as a replacement for the LMH-18.  Time is running short so I bought the unit, hoping against hope it will work and it will get here before Dec. 10.  Those are two big ifs.  If it doesn't happen, then I will just bring my BCS 725 two-wheeled tractor with sickle bar cutter and mow some big weeds along the ROW in various spots.  One way or another we will get some work done during that work session.

Safety Skirts Installed but Carb Problem Surfaces

Got the safety skirts installed yesterday and here's three views:

But now another problem has come up.  I ordered a carburetor from a second company Monday after the first one told me it didn't have any WHG-31-1 carburetors after all.  Called up the second company Wednesday to be sure they were shipping it and they said it would take three weeks.  Cancelled that order and began looking for a company that has one in stock but haven't found one yet.  Have looked on the internet for both the WHG-31-1 and the L106AS1 (the Wisconsin part no. for the original Walbro LMH-18 carb) and I have a few leads.  Time is growing short, however, since the Dec. 10 work session is rapidly approaching.  Wed. afternoon I took the carb off and took it to my small engine guy.  He identified three problems with it.  He suggested I go to his former employer, a lawn tractor repair shop whose owner has several hundred lawn tractors scattered around his premises.  I caught up with the owner there and left the carb with him to see if he could do anything with it or find a substitute that might work.  Pretty slim odds since it is an old carb but I'm trying a lot of alternatives at this point.  Will try to contact some companies tomorrow, hoping they aren't closed throughout the entire Thanksgiving weekend.

Safety Skirting Completed

Today I finished drilling the holes to mount pieces of conveyor belting on the sides of the rail-mower as safety skirting in case the mower deck kicks up any debris (not likely but better safe than sorry).  Then I drilled holes in the belting itself and finally I began mounting it to the rail-mower sides.

I wanted to use some clevis pins to hold them on, so the safety skirts could be removed quickly when necessary but I had to cut them down to size.  While I was doing so the angle grinder simply stopped.  Couldn't figure out why so I took it over to my small engine guy.  He diagnosed the problem as worn brushes.  I had a pair that came with the grinder so I installed them and sure enough it started working again.  By then it was getting dark, the dogs needed to be walked, so I decided to finish installing the skirts tomorrow.  At least this part of the job is almost finished.

I ordered a Walbro WHG-31 carburetor for the rail-mower, but got a notice Monday that the vendor's supplier stated they are out.  So that order was cancelled and refunded.  Found another vendor with one at almost the same price but a shorter period to return it if necessary, and I ordered it but now I doubt it will make it here by the weekend.  We will just have to see.

Am going to turn my attention next to the Woodings CBI, which will be pushing or towing the rail-mower.  I need to empty the stale gas from the fuel bowl and pour in some fresh.  Then I'm going to try running it.  If it runs, I will warm up the engine for five minutes and then change the oil.  I haven't run the CBI much but the oil is 2-3 years old so it's about time to change it out.  I probably also will push the rail-mower to the end of the track and run the CBI up and down a few times to confirm it is operational.  Don't want to load it up on Dec. 9, take it to Kingsland the next day for our work session and have it not run.

Started Drilling Holes for Mower Deck Shields

It was threatening to rain this morning so I pulled out my air drill and ran 100 feet of line from the compressor in the garage over to the carport.  Then I began drilling 5/16" holes in the rail-mower frame on which to mount the mower deck shields, made out of used conveyor belting that is 3/8" thick.  Got about seven done before it began really raining, out of about 27 I ultimately will have to drill.  May do some more this afternoon since it seems the rain has stopped.

I also ordered a Walbro WHG-31 carburetor from lawnmowerpros.com.  They had a reasonable price and a very good return policy so, if it turns out not to fit, I will be able to send it back.  I was amazed while shopping for this carburetor to find a number of sites trying to sell it for a thousand dollars or more.  Nice work if you can get it, I suppose.

Fabricating Shields for Rail-Mower

Spent the day fabricating shields out of used conveyor belting, 3/8" thick, to be pinned onto the front, rear and sides of the rail-mower with clevis pins.  These shields will deflect any debris that might be tossed by the mower deck.  As a realistic matter, there shouldn't be any obstructions in the middle of the rails for an operating deck to hit.  And certainly if we saw any obstructions while operating the mower, we would stop and remove them.  But the shields are to make real sure that debris won't go anywhere.  I also fabricated mats for the sides of the rail-mower on the inside, so we can carry tools, equipment and parts.  Here's a photo of the rail-mower with the side mats installed.

The belting to be used as shields is in the front.  The mats on the sides curve upward to the tractor body, preventing tools or parts from falling into the center opening for the mower deck linkages.  The mats will be bolted to the body when we are finished working on the engine and will come down about three or four inches from the position they are in right now.  I installed the hood even though it has a lot of work left to be done on it so as to provide a better idea of how the finished rail-mower will look.  Next up on this project is drilling the bolts.  I plan to use clevis pins to hold the front, rear and side shields, so we can take them off readily if necessary to inspect underneath the car.  The shield for the front has "Price Rubber Co., Montgomery, AL" and "Made in USA" embossed on it, which is rather interesting.

This was an all-day project.  Had to select the best piece of conveyer belting, measure and mark with a pencil the desired cut, put on my face mask, eye and ear protection, make the cut with a jigsaw, take the protective gear off, use my drill to wirewheel rust, grease and dirt off, give the piece a last cleaning with window cleaner, and paint it with low gloss black spray paint.  Had to make at least ten cuts, maybe more.  That doesn't sound like much but this material is truly tough to cut (that's why it will make a good shield).  I tried cutting with shears-didn't do it.  Also tried the angle grinder but it made a lot of nasty smoke, not good for the lungs.  The jigsaw was the only tool that could handle it, but at least I did have a tool to do the job.

And here is a photo of the rail-mower put to bed under the carport to close this entry:

Rail-Mower Deck is Mounted, Passes First Operational Test

A major step forward today, with the rail-mower deck successfully mounted onto the railmower itself.  Here's a photo of it (front facing to left), with more to come:

Frank Glatzl arrived a little after 8:00 am, the weather was perfect for working:  cloudy and cool, about 65 degrees, so we didn't have to put up the EZ-Up tent.  Frank brought the original carburetor with him, which he had been soaking in Lime-Away to try to clean up the interior idle circuit passage.  When he put it on and fired up the engine, however, the engine could not be adjusted, indicating the passage is still obstructed.  That means we will have to get another carburetor.  I've been doing some research on the internet, and talked to folks at V.E. Petersen Co., where a parts guy said that the Walbro WHG-31 carburetor is a replacement for the original Walbro LMH18.  An internet contact from the BolensTractorClub yahoo group confirmed that is the right carburetor and provided some further info on adjustments necessary to make it fit to the Bolens 1250 on the rail-mower.  So I am going to buy that carb (making sure the vendor has a favorable return policy) so we can finish up this project and get the rail-mower working well.

After we hooked up the deck, we powered it up and threw the PTO switch and, wonder of wonders, the deck operated perfectly.  Of course it wasn't going at full speed because the carburetor wasn't working well, but at least it passed its first operational test.  Before we take the rail-mower out to actually cut some grass on Saturday, Dec. 10, at Kingsland, I will install the two belt covers to keep the debris from caught up in the belts.

Here's two photos of the link that Frank fabricated for the rail-mower.  It replaces the hydraulic cylinder, which we will no longer need since all we will be doing is raising and lowering the rail-mower from the position for cutting (mower deck down) to the position for transport and loading (mower deck up about two or three inches).

The first photo shows the link with room on the clevis pin to add a lever about 9 or 10 inches long, which will be used to raise or lower the deck.  Once it is in position, the operator will slip a smaller pin (at bottom of the link in the first photo) into the link to hold it in position.  The link is actually a square tube inside another square tube, with a series of holes in the side for the smaller pin to slip into.  But, as we found out, Frank needs to drill one more hole to make the concept work.  He took the link back with him to do that.  We winched the rail-mower up onto my tilt trailer to move it to the rail and the deck had no problem clearing anything.  That was another test it passed.  However, I will normally be carrying the rail-mower on my 16-foot trailer with the Woodings CBI that is going to pull it.  And since that tandem-axle trailer won't tilt, I will have to haul the rail-mower up a set of ramps.  The deck will have to clear the edge of the trailer as it passes over.  That will be the real test.  Am going to work on getting long ramps to make the angle as shallow as possible.  Here's a photo of the rail-mower on my 12-foot trailer:

Next up is a photo of the mower deck just prior to installation.  This was a very anxious moment because I had taken the measurements some 10-11 months before and had no way of knowing whether the deck would fit underneath or not.  We pushed and pulled the deck into position after raising the motorcar trailer front and back with some boards.  We found almost immediately that the plywood floor needed to be cut wider to allow the various linkages enough room to work properly.  So I cut it with a jigsaw and then, as we progressed, I had to widen it further, eventually ending up with a cut-out about the width of the tractor frame.

 To determine how the linkages were hooked up, we went inside to take a look at some photos I took of the Bolens 1455 mower deck assembly as mounted the other day.  Then we hooked up the linkages on the rail-mower the same way and they worked, once they had enough room.  Here's Frank hooking up the linkages, a view of the right side with the discharge chute sticking out, and a closeup of the left side:

The closeup gives you a good idea of how the mower is mounted, but it is far from how it will appear when it is field-tested Dec. 10 at Kingsland.  The belts will be completely covered by two covers that fit over the top of the deck, to keep debris away.  Next, we will have a long piece of conveyer belting curving from the side of the trailer up against the tractor frame to carry tools and parts without them falling down into the cut-out area.  Finally, I will attach additional conveyor belting to the side of the motorcar trailer to ensure that any debris that might be kicked out will drop harmlessly inside the rails.  I will install belting on the front and back as well.

Here's some more photos of the rail-mower after it has passed its first operational test and been transferred to the rail that runs under my carport.  Will be moving out the tables and rolling the rail-mower under the carport for protection from rain, dew, hail and sun, possibly tomorrow.  In the meantime, the engine assembly has been covered with a heavy canvas tarpaulin for protection.

Frank also noticed that the front axle could cause a problem because it is swinging freely, given that there are no longer any spindles connected to main frame.  So he is going to fabricate two pieces of flat stock that will bolt together over the sides of the axle to prevent it from swinging up or down.  That should take care of that.

After Frank left, I had some additional chores to do.  First I slipped in a pin to hold a pin being used for the linkage.  Then I removed a temporary shear bolt from the drive shaft, where it connects to the mower gearbox, and installed a longer one with a lock nut.  Finally, we had had to remove a cross brace bar from forward of the rear axle since the deck assembly needed space.  So I mounted it on the other side of the axle, closer to the back of the trailer.  We are going to try to provide additional bracing under the plywood floor somewhere in the middle of the rail-mower since we want to carry tools.  But that will have to wait until we finalize everything else, then we will figure out where to put it and how to mount it.

Last but not least, photos of Frank and Ed with big smiles after a good day's work and every prospect for a successful field test at Kingsland on Dec. 10:

That actually doesn't end the day's story.  After Frank left, I also bolted the BCS 725 two-wheel tractor's teeth to the mounting platform.  Once I get in a pre-filter I have ordered, I will install the air filter cover and it will be good to go.  Here's two photos showing the new teeth in the sickle bar and a freshly painted muffler, and a side view, with the wheel rims cleaned up and painted the same silver color as the muffler.

The BCS is now almost ready to tackle tough mowing jobs along a railroad ROW involving tall, weedy plants.  I think it is wide enough (45 inches) to cut a wide swath and the teeth are spaced far enough apart (two inches) so it can handle some pretty thick brush as well.  But the proof will be when it is put to the test, probably not until a work session early in 2012.  End of a long story about a long, eventful day in the evolution of our specialized RPI tools.

Mower Gearbox Repairs: One Down, Two to Go

My small-engine guy came over this evening and we installed a new gasket, oil seal and three new shims on the mower gearbox off the Bolens 1455.  Then we took that gearbox and installed it on the Bolens 1250 rail-mower.  We switched gearboxes because we took the 1250 gearbox off the deck, removed the pulley, and found it needs not one, but two oil seals, and I didn't have any extra ones on hand.  While we have the pulley off we will install a new gasket and new shims as well.  Then we will install that gearbox on the Bolens 1455 mower deck.  I have a third gearbox to serve as a backup to these two so we will go into that as well and replace whatever needs replacing.  I sure don't want to have to manhandle those decks around any more than necessary, so it's good we are fixing problems before they develop into major trouble.  Frank Glatzl is coming over Saturday to get the rail-mower engine going and mount the mower deck onto the rail-mower, so I wanted this issue out of the way before then and am glad it is.  The only other thing I have to do before Saturday is get the rail-mower moved onto my 40-foot track so we can work with the mower deck in what will be its normal environment.  That's a challenge since my Explorer is in the shop for repairs and may not be out until Friday afternoon, but maybe it will happen. 

On the BCS two-wheeled tractor, yesterday I removed the muffler, which had quite a bit of surface rust, and wirewheeled it clean.  Then I painted it with two coats of Rustoleum Rusty Metal Primer and one of Rustoleum Silver.  I also painted the mower teeth platform with both primer and Gloss Black spray paint.  I spent about an hour cleaning congealed grease and dirt off as much of the tractor as possible.  Today I  removed the wheels, cleaned up the rims with a wirewheel, and then gave the them rusty metal primer and silver spray paint treatment.  The tractor is starting to look more like it did on the showroom floor.  I took off the air filter, which looked pretty well shot, and bought an identical replacement at A-Line Auto Parts.  Also ordered a new pre-filter so I can keep the one that was on it as a spare.

Working on BCS 725 Sickle-Bar Mower

Picked up the new teeth for the BCS 725 two-wheel tractor's sickle bar mower attachment this morning and immediately got to work.  I took off the bolts on the clamp-downs that hold the teeth in place and some other bolts and removed the old teeth.  Here's a comparison photo of the old (10 out of 15 teeth broken off and all of the remaining with the cutting edges broken off) with the new:

The new teeth look mighty good.  I expect they will be more than a match for even the tallest weeds we run across on the Capital Metro ROW.

Next I decided to wirewheel the clamp-downs.  Then I took off the height adjusters and wirewheeled them.  After that I began priming and painting (gloss black) those parts.  While waiting for the sides to dry, I cleaned up some 18 bolts with a wirewheel, after soaking them in degreaser to get the grease off.  Finally, I wirewheeled the sickle bar platform that the teeth are mounted on.  Tomorrow I will tape the items I don't want to spray paint and then prime and paint that part as well.  Then I will reinstall all of the various items I had taken off.

Here's some photos of the BCS 725 before beginning this process:

This afternoon I received in the mail the shims and gaskets for the mower deck gearboxes that I have to either repair or check to be sure they don't blow a leak like the 1455 deck gearbox did.  Will call up my small-engine guy tomorrow to see if he can come over before Saturday so we can at least look at the rail-mower gearbox before Frank Glatzl arrives to work on it with me then.

Progress on Various Fronts

Last Wednesday I drilled some holes in the battery tray for the Bolens 1250 rail-mower engine and installed a GT-PREM battery with tiedown.  One more item off my to-do list.  Today I fixed 4 different lighting wires that had been pulled off by birds building a nest on the battery of my Woodings CBI motorcar.  I also installed a new headlight to replace one the &%$ birds ruined.  Am going to roll up a rag to place on top of the battery so they won't try that again.  I was real proud that I was able to diagnose and fix the electrical problems myself, using a digital voltmeter.  I plan to use the CBI to push or pull the rail-mower during its trial run on the Capital Metro track at Kingsland on Saturday, Dec. 10, so fixing the rear lighting was not optional.


A postal notice arrived indicating I have a parcel, so will pick it up on Monday.  Probably is the new set of teeth for my BCS two-wheel tractor.  Once it is installed, will try the BCS out on my overgrown acre of weeds in the front yard.  Then it will be ready to be used on tall weeds along the Capital Metro ROW, such as at Campa Pajama Lane in Kingsland and along the old stockyard up near the Llano depot.

Meanwhile, my spare parts for the Bolens 1455 mower deck gearbox are enroute.  They were "accepted for delivery" in Crown Point, IN, from Sam's Bolens today so they should be here by Tuesday.  Once they arrive, I will ask my small-engine guy to help me get into the rail-mower gearbox to change out an oil seal, a gasket and several shim gaskets.  Then we can rest a little more easy that it won't start leaking right away once we power the rail-mower mower deck up for the first time.  That could happen this coming Saturday, Nov. 19, if Frank Glatzl and I are able to get the deck mounted and the engine running.

Mower Gearbox Issue

Brought my leaking mower gearbox from the Bolens 1455 tractor over to my small engine guy yesterday and he showed me how to take it apart.  When we got into it, we found an oil seal on the bottom shaft (where the leak was coming from) had evidently been hammered into place, leaving it bowed in areas and helping to cause the oil leak.  We also found two shims on the bottom shaft.  However, the parts diagram shows a gasket and up to 10 shims can be placed on that shaft.  So it appears someone took out the old gasket but did not replace it.  The two shims by themselves may not be enough to prevent oil from leaking, especially under high pressure.  I called up Sam's Bolens, a reliable supplier in Indiana, and they had both shims and gaskets in stock.  I ordered nine shims and three gaskets, which I hope will be enough to deal with this gearbox as well as the gearbox on the rail-mower deck, and the spare gearbox.  Will have to schedule a session with the small-engine guy to put the 1455 gearbox back together and check the other two and fix them as well if required.  I wouldn't want a leak on the rail-mower deck gearbox to causing the gears to seize up and ruin the gearbox.  Prevention is better than cure, etc.  Hope to have all that done by 11/19, when Frank Glatzl is scheduled to come over for our next rail-mower work session.