Old hayter harrier "2 lawnmower

bought one today from the tip/recycle centre for £10 .... always wanted an old Hayter that can do decent stripes

struggled to get it started .... spluttered but eventualy fired up .... will need a new plug/airfilter, blade etc and will send it in for a full service .... self drive works fine and nothing is missing

has the Briggs 4HP engine .... label says Hayter Harrier 2 ... and could not see the size, but measured the blade, and it's 19 inches, so is most prob equivalent to a hayter 48

very heavy and has a smooth back roller

anyone used one of these? .... if so, how good are they in the wet, and general comments? .... herewith a few pics:

 

Blimey dim, seeing one of those takes me back a bit, that mower must be at least 15 to 20 years old!

I spent many, many hours stomping along behind one of those back in the '80s when I worked as a gardener for the local council.

They were a fairly solid, reliable old workhorse as I recall, if you want a rotary mower which gives a good striped finish then it should suit your purpose.

Other good points were the reliable Briggs & Stratton engine which will run and run if maintained well, the easy to use single handle height adjuster and a good solid grass box which could tolerate a bit of rough treatment, the grass box would often outlive the rest of the machine in fact!

A few minus points; unfortunately they are quite poor in wet conditions, the wet grass will not reach the collecting box, it will simply clog up the chute or fall back down in wet lumps which then stick to the rear roller.

Also, the smooth rear roller quickly loses traction on wet grass, this made it difficult to use on even the slightest slope in wet conditions, where it had an alarming tendency to start sliding sideways down the slope!

While they were mostly very reliable, I do recall a couple of recurring problems; the roller drive mechanism was prone to frequent failure (make sure you have this checked if you're getting the machine serviced) and the clutch cable would often need replacing as it had a tendency to stretch and eventually break. We did find that this could be reduced by making sure you always released the clutch when the machine was parked and not in use.

Overall though, I'd say you've got yourself a bargain for a tenner.....and thanks for the trip down mower memory lane!

 

thanks for the info ...never used one of these, but will keep it for the fussy clients who demand stripes .... and will mow in the dry .... will have a proper sevice done (costs approx £100-£130) .... there is a small engineering company near where I live that does enammeling .... will see what they charge to get the deck enammeled ....

there are no dents, just a few scrapes etc and I think that the deck is made of aluminium .... the flap by the grassbox has a bit of rust on the side, and is just normal steel .... will get that sorted ...

been checking the web .... seen some in working condition for £45 .... but at the end of the day, a new Hayter Harrier 48 costs £1000 and they do the exact same job

so, if someone is looking at starting a small gardening business, and wants a cheap mower that can do decent stripes (in the dry) .... these may be a good buy?

weighs a ton though :(

 

a new spark plug fitted, new airfilter fitted, and it starts 1st time ... motor runs smooth and no smoke, so carb gasket is still fine ... all it needs is a good clean and a new blade

not sure why people dump good equipment

there's still space in my shed for an old large cylinder mower (a dennis or ransomes) .... will be checking the local tip from time to time

 

Nothing more to add that trunky hasn't said. Show it to the rain and it'll run away. Other than that an absolute beast of a machine.

I've got two Ransomes 24, I think they weigh about the same as a mini metro and you're not having one (unless I do ever sell one in which case you can have first refusal).

If you find one at the tip and get it for a tenner you will have the bargain of the century. They really are monsters. Starting procedure takes aprox 30 mins to complete so make sure you charge your clients for that time too :yess:

 

been checking on ebay ... some bargains there, ...

found this site which describes some of the better older models:#
Old Lawnmowers and other Vintage Machinery

I want something like this:

 

:ouch:

 

its a lot bigger than what it looks like in the photo

dennis premier mk1 36 in cylinder mower - YouTube

 

*Dim*, here's another link for you: The Old Lawnmower Club | Collection, Preservation and Display of Old Lawn Mowers

 

thanks for that! ... have bookmarked it and will have a close look! ....

would love an old classic mower ....

 

British Lawnmower Museum
This museum is in Southport just a few miles from where I live . Never been but I do like looking at old gardening machinery.
Now how did they manage to play golf before the invention of a lawnmower? I know they used sheep to keep the grass short . But how would you prepare even a half decent green with a scythe?

 

How did they do it with a Sycthe

Pure skill I expect

There is an OLD man around my way still does lawns with his scythe, he is about 80yrs old, wheels his tools around in a barrow,
He has set clients, but is what I would say a jobbing gardener,
ie he just cuts lawns, tidies up borders,and prunes,
Picks up extra work when people ask

His lawns are a lot tidier than my petrol cut ones ?

Jack McHammocklashing