Recent content by davesisk

Hey folks: I've got a late model 17.5 HP Murray (rebranded as a Stanley) lawn tractor. It has a 42" mowing deck (two blades) and the bagger deal with two plastic bins. My biggest challenge is picking up leaves moreso than mowing. Even in the summer, tree-related stuff ends up in the yard, so...

Hey Folks: I'm in Raleigh, NC. Have difficulty getting grass to grow. I'm shooting for most of the 1/4 acre around my house. We have about 4 acres of trees behind us, and quite a few trees to the sides. Also have a 60 lb hound dog who does as much damage to the yard as he can. :-P As you...

Hey folks: I have a Stanley (ie. rebranded Murray) lawn tractor with 42" mowing deck and bagger. I'm after better leaf-shredding and bagging performance. It does OK with sparse leaves, but if leaves pile up and/or get wet, the chute tends to get clogged. Also, it doesn't shred them quite as...

I need to do some seeding with grass seed that really needs to be buried rather than just spread on top the ground. (Planning on sowing some Centipede grass in the spring...maybe that will actually grow in my yard!) So, I'm wondering how well something like this works: Agri-Fab Spiker/Seeder...

Hey guys: Another leaf cleanup question. Some of the walk-behind lawn vacs allow you to attach a hose to suck leaves out of areas like flower beds, etc. I know there's a few riding mowers with power-baggers (like the JD power-flo, the Simplicity power-flo, and the Toro power-flo). By "power...

Hey guys: I haven't posted here in a while, but figured this might be worth a question. I absolutely hate cleaning up wet leaves, don't mind mowing too bad if I can just get grass to actually grow consistently in my yard, and occasionally find a loader quite useful for moving material or light...

Check this out...just in case anyone was looking for steel plate in any complex shape. Apparently they use CNC plasma cutting...best guess anyway. Not sure if this is a good price or not...first impression is "yes!". Steel plate custom-cut on Ebay Enjoy, Dave

Hi Folks: I'm thinking of making some sort of bracket to hold barbell type weights on the rear wheels. I'm thinking a simple triangular shaped plate plate with a bar sticking out perpendicular to hang the weights on would be ideal. A couple or three 50-lb weights on each side ought to be...

Hi Folks: Another probably stupid question here...my 1220 has a mid-PTO. There's a lever right beside the 4wd engagement lever. I've tried just getting it engaged (even with the engine off) and the lever won't seem to move. It looks like the cover is on the mid-PTO (as it should be). I'd...

6\' scraper blade cheap...maybe a pulverizer too... Local landscaping supply company had it sitting near the mulch bin rusting. I asked about it, and the owner called me to see how much I'd give him. We agreed on $100. It's got some rust, the pins are bent and need to be replaced, and it...

Hey folks: Does anyone know of supplies and processes to just foam-fill your tires yourself? As I understand, two different liquid chemicals are injected under pressure, and when they mix they form the foam. I'd assume they are injected through the valve stem. I'm thinking two of the small...

Hi Folks: Is there any such thing as a non-toxic tire fill? I'll soon be doing some work in the woods (plenty of branches, small stumps, etc.) and I'm expecting to poke a hole in the turf tires on my MF 1220 at least once. I also have a dog (as you might guess from my avatar) so I really...

Last night, I just had reaffirmed in my mind why I need a tractor even though my property is small. Except for the topsoil I brought in, it's all rocks, roots, and clay. It takes 30 minutes with a pick axe to just dig a 6" round x 6" deep hole for a simple plant. With the tractor I can...

Hi folks: I was moving some natural mulch last night (shredded stump, leaves, and pine straw!) and tried engaging the differential lock a couple of times rather than shifting to 4wd. I couldn't get the diff lock engaged. The heel plate has a long slot, but I could only push it maybe 1/3 of...

Hi Folks: I posted this on the build-it forum, but then it occurred to me that the Yanmar forum might be a better place for it. Here's the URL to the original post. I'd be running this off a Massey-Ferguson 1220, which is cat 1 3pt and standard US 6-spline 540rpm PTO. Please let me know if...