Well, it *is* effective

[6MT_FTW]

It probably sounds like a swarm of bees and the maintenance might be a hassle, but if you need a cheap, wide-swath mower I think that this will get the job done.

The fact that all of the mowers seem to be identical leads me to believe that this is more of a proof-of-concept and less true redneck engineering; if it was the latter I'd expect to see a mix of two- and four-stroke mowers, plenty of missing wheels and rope and duck/duct tape holding it together.

[pip bip]

@6MT_FTW 13 small tanks to fill with fuel, 13 starter cables to pull, 13 sets of blades to worry about. better to get a big mower and be done with it. neat idea though.

[Cé hé sin]

@6mt_ftw also, at least two wouldn't start.

[Krusty Walnut]

@6mt_ftw Turning around looks like it will be a little difficult. I'm guessing he probably was able to get the mowers at an auction and decided to do this rather than sell them.

[CoolMinivan.......Nobody]

@6mt_ftw My great uncle actually had a setup quite similar.
He had 6 push mowers, staggered that he pulled offset behind his 54" rider.

He created it when he moved to a house with a huge yard. Instead of selling his beloved rider, he just bought 6 push mowers, linked them up, then made an offset tow bar for them.
Was actually a pretty legit setup, wish I had pics of it.

[EngineerWithTools]

This took some effort to assemble. Each tow bar and it’s yoke is unique. Also, did he rotate the decks or axles? I can’t quite tell but it looks like the discharges point backwards.

[RacinBob]

Oh it looks to be ok assuming that you have a barn to store the rig in . Each pair is the width of the rider deck, so 6 pairs means 6 times the number of passes for each pass of that contraption. Or else one 6th the time (not including hook up and startup and fueling) for the mowing.

It must be a wide radius for a turn around. Also I would think he doesn't get more than 45 minutes on a mower tank fill. And it probably takes 15 minutes to fill them unless he has also built a fuel cart with hose.

I would worry whether the tranmission on the lawn tractor is really suited for all that draw weight.

[Echo51]

@racinbob said in Well, it *is* effective:

I would worry whether the tranmission on the lawn tractor is really suited for all that draw weight.

We pull cars/trailers/lots of stuff with ours, and it's fine. the issue is always traction, even on asphalt roads

[Albino Kangaroo]

@engineerwithtools Good eye. Something is going on there. It really looks like the wheels were moved around but that seems like too much work and the paint seems uniform. The engine is most likely moved as I think it is odd for the hot exhaust end to be on the same side as chute.

[Future Next Gen S2000 Owner]

@engineerwithtools They definitely look like they discharge backwards. Must have rotated the wheels somehow. That or cut a hole in the back to affix the shoot to and put the mulching attachment on the side exit.

[EngineerWithTools]

@echo51 @RacinBob

Echoing, errrrr, Echo51, the tractor's drivetrain is plenty strong. That's an older Cub (i.e. not what you find at Home Depot today). They had "real" tractor gearboxes, just narrowed for use on a lawn tractor. It might even have a low range, which was an option on old Cubs.

Random image of an old Cub gearbox.