You don't realize how much this channel means to you until you check in on a Sunday morning and there's not a Mustie1 video to watch! So glad you are feeling better-- kidney stones are no joke, and they can be a lot harder to fix than an old mower!
My dad bought one of these to do yards in town and it was about 1945. He kept it in our basement and one day I found a go kart frame, so I took off his childhood engine and made a go kart about 1969. He didn’t seem to mind but he did find me a 5 hp Clinton motor for it. He helped me fix it up to a nice kart. We took a part a Cushman bike to use the two speed transmission and the front and back wheels to use one the back. We spent a lot of time together from then on. Moving to mini bikes a couple more karts and eventually he got a 350 Honda bike after I go my 250 Yamaha. My dad passed this year. I cant express how much this means to me
after getting hit by a tractor trailer in 2007 disabiling me, i couldnt do much, thanks for making this part of my life more enjoyable, I hope your well
Sorry for your kidney stones. Hope you're fully recovered by now. I've had several. They stopped several years ago when I gave up the Diet Cokes and other soft drinks. Loved your video and the lawn mower fix. As a kid in the 1960's my Dad made me mow with one of these, but it had no engine. I was the power. As soon as I left home he bought a new self propelled mower.
Back in the late 50's and 60's my 2 brothers and I each had a section of yord to mow. We used a push style reel mower. I remember when dad bought one like this one with an engine. It was a modern marvel back then. Good video and I'm glad you're feeling better.
In the late 80s or early 90s my gran gave us one of the old push-style ones, no idea how old it was. The blades were pretty blunt and the handle was as floppy as this one, making the whole thing really difficult to push. The tiniest twig would jam the thing and you'd bump into the handle trying to push. I was pretty happy when I got a beaten old electric Flymo and eventually threw the reel mower away. It was old but it had enough plastic parts to be beyond sensible repair.
@@timdoyle66 These were used in Australia and New Zealand as well, most push mowers some with engines, we can still buy them new down here, if you can find a vintage one with a engine you can pay big money for them. Yes they did do a great job.
Rubber is made with oil, a 14" tire in 1985 was made with about 7 gallons of various kinds of oils and waxes. Belts, have the same properties. With that said, never park your car/tires on a oily patch, as the oil in the tire will eventually react with the oil on the ground, and turn it into chewing gum. Today's tires have more synthetic oils, so they are not as suspectable.
I'm 74, this episode brought back memories of my Uncle Ped. He was a WWII Vet earning a living as a traveling salesman, but also had a small business sharpening saws and small engine repair.. His Trophy was a huge six blade reel mower with more handless and levers than you could shake a stick at. It was big and heavy.... took two big men to pick it up. But, my gosh, that mower could cut grass!!!!That mower was the envy of the entire neighborhood! My first taste of a reel mower was blister powered. Straight manual... But, you want a nice looking lawn, get a reel mower...
My grandpa had one of these in about 1952 or 53. I was sooo impressed with it. He would let me walk with him with my hands on the handlebars. It was so mechanical and impressive to me! It was the beginning of my love for gas powered anything. It brings back memories…
I started on one of these at 6 years old (Grandpa wasn't in to ''Safety''!) and it was the only kind of Mower Gramps would allow on his ''Turf''. He swore it made the yard like a Putting Green thus filling the neighbors with envy...and that was the Goal!
One of my chores when I was a kid was to mow the lawn. This was the kind of mower we had. The yard was on a slope and I used to mow barefooted, early in the morning while the grass was still wet. Luckily nothing bad ever happened, but it was the machine where I first learned how to diagnose engine problems with my father.
Even though I am a bit younger than you (I think), I have driven several of those lawnmower’s here in Denmark. Those are my favorite machines. I absolutely love them. They cut the grass so much nicer and you were right.- They are meant for shorter grass. All you needed was to adjust the height on the rollers and the “back blade” (if that is the right phrase? 🤔) from time to time. And also there is/was a special tool for sharpening the rolling blades. There is a reason for why they are using them on golf courses. They cut the grass much cleaner instead of just smashing it! I absolutely love your work and workshop!
That mower was my introduction to yard work. It was ostensibly "self propelled" but as it was well used it only had one wheel drive. I mowed our yard and our elderly neighbors yard quite a few times and soon learned that it would ONLY turn in one direction. Fun! But I DID learn that you make the best of what you have to do the job.
When I was about 10, our neighbor, a retired engineer, opened up a lawnmower repair shop. He had a reel mower sharpening machine. It was a beast. I learned a lot from him. Now l’m 75 and learning from Mustie1 and Taryl. 😂
When that mower started taking off by itself with the reel spinning, I felt a huge disturbance in the force. It was as if hundreds of regulators at the Consumer Products Safety Commission simultaneously had apoplexy! 😂 I am constantly amazed by your ability to bring life back to what appear to be items of junk. That is a really cool, but mostly useless and dangerous, old mower. Thanks for sharing!
Been waiting for years to see you work on this. When I was 7 I started cutting my Dad's grass with this type of mower. Did not wear steel boots. That was in the mid to late 60's. I have the engine from this mower and it still runs
I would be so chuffed to have a mower like this one! Always loved how much nicer a reel mower cuts, and this one is so light weight yet still a reel style. What a little gem.
That Briggs and Stratton engine looks like a model 6S. I used to have one of those. They were made between 1949-1957, all cast iron. Better than the aluminum engines of today. Glad to have you back, Mustie. Hope you are feeling better.
OH! WOW!!! I wish I had that old mower. That is what I used to mow our lawn and my grandparents lawn when I was a kid. My grandfather owned a blacksmith shop and in his later years it was his job to sharpen those mowers. Recently I visited that old shop that is still there and due to antique structure laws in my town, it is still exactly the same as it was 70 years ago. I mentioned my grandfathers job to the present owner and he pointed over to one side and said, "It's still here, and it still works", referring to the sharpening machine. The old mower was a B&S with the same rope pull starter. As a teenager, I secretly took the motor apart one afternoon to see how it worked and carefully put it back together, and, thank God, it still ran when I reassembled it.
Good afternoon Darren, great to see you back hope you are feeling better. Unfortunately there aren't any good alternatives to getting old 😁 Cheers Paul from Lincolnshire, UK 🇬🇧.
Kidney stones are THE WORST!! I used to get migraines as a child, but not so much anymore. Glad you're feeling better, and I hope you continue to improve!
You take care of yourself, Darren. Your health is the most important thing in your life. I was diagnosed with pulmonary fibrosis just last year. I thought I heard you getting a bit short of breath once or twice in the video - I feared for a minute that that might have been your issue too, and given the types of stuff you've breathed in, swallowed and ingested for our entertainment, I wouldn't have been surprised. Look after yourself, and good health to you. Now, for whatever reason, my dad always referred to those sidewheel style lawnmowers as "Pennsylvanian style" - he loved them when he worked as groundsman for a major confectionery manufacturer and was delighted when he was called up for WW2, and found himself "on camp" with not much to do - he was sort of seconded to the groundskeeping detail, and was equipped with yet another Pennsylvania lawnmower. My guess would be that there must have been a mower manufacturer of the name "Pennsylvania" and the name stuck to all machines of that type, rather like Thermos, or Hoover.
Flashbacks from 60+ yrs ago trying to use my Uncles, Pennsylvania brand, reel mower. Same setup save for a lever which engaged the belt idler. No grass catcher. After mowing the 1/4 acre, I then got to rake up the clippings. The mower was liberated by my Uncle from the Newport Casino (now tennis Hall of Fame) where he was Superintendent. It was used on the grass courts. The management were afraid that the Jazz festival attendees would trash the place. Thanks for clearing up how to start it. Narragansett Bay
My dad had one like yours back in the early 50's. His was green. I think it was a Sears and Roebuck. The self propelled was on full time. You'd tip it back on the rollers to start the motor, also to keep it from moving. The wheels always turned. A little scary. But this was back in the day when things weren't dangerous. Yeah. Thanks for the nostalgia Bob
Excellent revival! I enjoyed visiting the original shop as there were so many fun moments associated with the projects completed in that, relatively speaking, lesser square footage space. Thanks for another great day of wrenching 👏🏻👏🏻❤️🔧✌🏻
Hammering the flywheel off works but it's rough as hell, especially on old engines with worn bearings and can easily lead to mangled parts.. If you have a flywheel puller it is always worth the extra 5 mins to get it out and use it. Reel mowers are excellent! ** ** If it fits your requirements! They excel at cutting well manicured lawns down to a much lower height than achievable with most rotary mowers, usually lower than an inch.. it is why they are still popular with golf course owners etc to get that lovely carpet like green. They don't deal with sticks and similar objects well if at all, sharpening and adjusting the blade isn't a regular thing but it is much more in depth than a rotary mower. If you like regularly cutting your lawn area and want a very low manicured finish then a reel mower could be an excellent choice. If its undulating, you don't want to clear it of small branches and things before mowing or don't want to mow regularly then it really isn't the mower for you. Also some species of grass are more suited to reel mowers where as a rotary doesn't care.
We had one of those but instead of a centrifugal clutch, it had a handle that engaged a belt tensioner. After the blade part died, I turned it into my first go kart. Fun times for all the neighborhood kids.
HOMKO was the power yard tool division of Western Tool and Stamping. They were a fairly popular mower brand in the 50’s and 60’s, especially after AMF bought them up. The AMF HOMKO MOW-TRACK series of riding mowers were especially popular (we had one when I was a kid), and their HOMKO push and self propelled mowers were up there with Cooper, Hahn-Eclipse and Jacobsen back in the day. I’m currently restoring a 1959 Briggs powered HOMKO rotary mower, nicely built little machine!
Brings back memories of my golf course maintenance days! Used to mow greens with reel mowers. Of course they were made with today's technology as opposed to then.
About 70 years ago when I was a boy and mowed our lawn for the first time, we had a reel mower. One thing I recall was that the mowers travel was at a slower pace than Darren's jackrabbit "Homko." That gave the blade more time to repeat the cut and gave a nice flat mow rather than a spital look over the grass surface. Hope you're feeling better Darren. Best, George, Danvers, MA
When I was growing up, the guy across the street had one of those and he was a fanatic about his yard. He cut his grass every couple of days, so it never got very tall and he would practice putting on his perfectly manicured lawn. That mower was awesome. He had a tool that would sharpen the blades and he kept it looking brand new for years. I always thought he had the coolest mower in the Neiborhood.
I have one just like it, believe it or not. It had been abandoned in a backyard shed and the new owners of the house just wanted it gone. I brought it home just for the laughs and found out it does a great job on the fenced-in section of the yard that I had been mowing with a push mower since I can't get the JD 748 through the gates. They are oddly fun to use!
My grandfather had a lawn mower of that type, fully manual though. Even well sharpened, adjusted, and oiled the damn thing was really a chore to push even through the small lawns he had. No wonder they made it motorized.
My dad had one of these when I growing up....was awesome watching him using it, the words that came out when he hit one of our toys hidden in the grass and then he got hit with all the shrapnel remnants of the toy. Never bothered the mower....
Had one very similar about 1960 over in NZ made by Masport, model was lawn prince. Bought for my parents. Brings back memories, good to see you back Mustie 1.
I kind of remember mowers like that. Sort of. Maybe. Stupid brain cells. Glad prognosis looks better. Hang in. I have watched for many years and hope to watch for many more, depending on the health of both of us! Thanks for all the work you do to entertain and inform the World Of Mustonians!
Hi Mustie one, I have been watching your channel for a long time now and have enjoyed evry one. I am a Kiwi, {New Zealander} we have to ! make do! with a lot of our machinery. it might be that some of us older boys choose to be this way. The one coment I have is that you show is real .
What a glorious machine! Elegant in its simplicity. I am surprised that, other than persuading the clutch to work, the business end worked so well. Thought it was going to require a disassembly, cleaning and lubing. Looks like she’s just one new belt away from being a regular user - for as long as the gas tank holds out. Great video! Get well, my friend.
As a kid, we used to have a Suffolk punch with a similar design but with a big roller, and the blades were more accessible to adjust. Also, the clutch to drive it was centrifugal, where the weights were the friction points on the outer bell. Gave an incredible cut on the grass. The cut grass with the roller looked better than the smashed grass lol
My grand dad had this same mower, but it had a seat attached to it where us kids could ride and mow his lawn, it worked great for us kids but not so good for the adults, lol, thanks muske1 love your stuff
My grandpa had that exact mower I mowed with it many times.He bought us a newer version. Both were self propelled. When my friends dad went out and bought a fancy craftsman mower with self propel they made such a big deal out of it. I responded I have been using one for years.
Those are literally the best carbs I've ever seen and that engine will win low idle contest for sure it. I have a mower almost just like it but no clutch it does just go. Same motor it was locked up with rust took the head off cleaned it out with a rag and got it free, got the stuck intake valve cleaned up got the check ball fixed and swapped the tank out for a mason jar and it absolutely runs mint. Wonderful little machine.
"what could possibly go wrong?" immediately winds up targeted by the toe chopper 6000 and has to do his best matador impression. ole! lol! gotta love ya buddy.
As always, a great Mustie video. It reminded me of my childhood, we had a big garden with a lot of lawns. IIRC we had seven lawnmowers including an Atco 12", an Atco 24" and a an Atco 36". Being the youngest child, I was only allowed to use the Atco 12" at first... my brothers showed me how to strip it down and put it back together using cornflakes boxes for gaskets. The Atcos had cylinders and grass collection boxes, but they weren't fundamentally different to the old mower that you brought back to life. The confidence that I learnt from fixing that little Atco let me tackle much bigger projects on Fords and Land Rovers, later in life... The question isn't "can I fix it?" It's "How long will it take me to fix it, and is that a sensible use of my time?".
Glad your back and up 'n' running again. When I set up cylinder mowers, including sit on ones when Maintenance Manager in a Hotel group, I adjusted the cylinder so they cut a sheet of paper against the adjustable cutter blade. Best for giving a 'stripe' lawn finish.. 🤔👍🙂🇬🇧
Sorry to hear about the "Kidney Stones". Hope you keep getting better. Always enjoy a Sunday watching those engines coming back to life. I have learned a lot over the years watching your channel. Keep well and looking forward to more engines. 🚗🚙😃👌👍👍
This was a well-maintained mower! Don't forget to cinch down on that 7/16" on the mixture screw or it can vibrate out of adjustment. I have fond memories of working on these engines during the mid-60's - Reel mowers were going out, and these old Briggs were great for mini bikes and go carts. My dad had a nice tool box, so I ended up as our gang's "mechanic". My buddy and I flipped the handle over on one of these, mickey-moused a center-pivot tiller steering axle in the front, slapped a plywood seat on it and "raced" around the neighborhood on it. All with the blade running. How we got through it with all our fingers and toes, I do not know. I do remember a couple of days later after his dad saw it, it somehow disappeared! I loved watching you bring this one back, and amazed me how kind the years have been to it. They do a bang-up job on grass cutting, too. One of my lawn-cutting clients made me use her power reel mower on her grass, and the lawn looked way better than my rotary mower would do it. Plus, they are mesmerizing to follow!
Congrats Mustie1 on repairing the 1970's type of mower. tells a kid, hey why don't u mow the yard with flipflops. 10th most dangerous tool, next to the hay sling.
@@Philc231 yeah My Father's was at least from the late 1940's, Briggs stopped making cast iron main engine blocks in the 1960's. This is a well preserved antique.
I grew up using that style mower in the early 70's I'm 61. Many golf courses use reel mowers on the greens to produce that manicured end product. They really do a fine job. Godspeed for your recovery. By the way, I still miss the old shop. It was nice stopping by again!
Mustie1, Very Glad to hear you’re feeling better!!! In my youth, I pushed a couple no motor “reel” mowers around until I could afford to buy a power New type mower to do yard work as a kid. It was great to see how you brought this one back to life. It cuts better than my old (no Motor) reel one cut…haha. That check valve was so tiny, but yougot it out. Yes, I was yelling at you to poke something through the hole on the clutch…haha! Great video, Thanks!
We had a similar unit in the late 50s up to around 1965...an Eaton's Eureka...had a cast aluminum deck and mechanical engaging lever to put the belt in tension ....used to be fun to let the unit go down the yard by itself ....it was a beast ....it was sent to a local machine shop to create Palls that engaged the wheels and they dropped something on the carb ...end of the machine ,,,,was formerly owned by Hap Emms coach of the Boston Bruins...good memories
Good to see you back Mustie, I hope you are feeling better. There is nothing better than watching all those clippings piling out the back of it, takes me right back to my childhood we used to have two mowers like that. Thanks for another fantastic video i live for Sundays with Mustie
1992 my mom bought one exactly like this from a 2nd hand store. We couldn’t afford a new push mower, but this thing lasted until 2010 when our neighbor bought it.😊
That's a model 5S, 5 cubic inches. Built about 1955. The earlier, 1940s model 5s had iron cylinder heads and a mechanical internal oil pump. The maximum operating speed is 2,800 rpm because they have a tiny weak connecting rod. The later nylon fuel pickups work. I never disassembled a fuel pickup like that, that was really interesting! I used newspaper to shove between the knife and blades, while turning by hand, to adjust the slicing action. It's a lost art. The wheels inside, axles and the reel all need grease and oil. There's not a lot of horsepower to drive all that in high grass, plus all the rusty parts- only 1.5 HP total. The stored torque energy in the zinc flywheel is driving it. That machine is in amazing condition, like you said, very low hours!
I used a mower fairly similar to that one, except the grass went out the front into a grass catcher. I was about 9 years old then and I had about one acre of land to mow. I am 70 years old now. I loved using that mower it was lots of fun. Thanks for sharing this video, it took me back to when things were much simpler than. And yes I still have all my fingers and toes.
I like it! I use a manual reel mower now, and would be glad to have this one. That thing was throwing some grass!!! Wow! Nice to see the snow blower again, my grandfather had one just like it when I was growing up. My dad used it after he died, and cleared our 300 foot drive with it. We live there in New England like you.
I love these old machines. Great tutorial, especially how the pickup tube worked. I'd like to know what was in the tube you blew out. I loved the sped up video near the end. Sounded like mowing the lawn with a chainsaw. That mower cuts better than any vertical shaft mower. It shears the grass instead of lopping with spinning blades. Thanks for posting.
I also had a side gig working security at a golf course that was opening. I used to watch a guy come in and sharpen all of the rotary mowers, it was pretty fascinating to watch him set it all up.
My graddad had a top of the line, self propelled, multipal roller briggs and straton , green when i was a kid back in New Zealand. Must have been like 1966 for me to remember itt ! As much as parents want their kids to mow the lawn, granddad wouldn't let us get anywhere near it !
This was the first power lawn mower my dad ever had. It was used when he got it, and replaced a push type reel mower. It ran until the carburetor/intake mount broke. No one in town at thst time could weld it, so it went to the dump. But I mowed the yard for a number of years without loosing any fingers or toes. Thanks for the memories.
Glad see you back, and feeling better Mustsie. Hopefully whatever meds was given is helping u. Thank you for a video this week. There never expected but greatful have you and them here.
My dad bought one like that from Monkey Wards back around 1960. It was a pain in the ass to mow with and he kept telling me it would make a man of me. After about 3 years, he mowed the lawn with it one day and went to the store and bought a regular mower and told me that thing was a piece of s---t and left it to rot in the back yard. Great restoration video. Thanks for the memories here in southern Idaho. Keep em coming.
I worked on a LOT of those things when I was about 12yrs old, they had less than 1 1/2 hp. GREAT little engine GREAT mower untile you hit somthing with the reel, THEN they cost more to sharpen than the mower was worth, during the late 1950s you could find a LOT of those at the dump, and I would drag the damn things home just to get the engine running. Those mowers were kind of expensive because of the reel system. That was why the rotary mower was invented, FAR cheaper and FAR more reliable!!
In the 1960s I had to mow our all lawns with a hand pushed version of a reel mower like this , NO engine, the wheels turned the rotary blades. My dad would set the blades so they would slice a sheet of paper, the full width of the cutter blade on each one. Mind you it was made of cast iron with a wooden handle. So when your a skinny 10 YO, it took some pushing !!! I still have it and it still cuts grass if you’re silly enough to push it. 😁. Great video Mustie
😂 About 52 years ago I grafted a 26 inch bicycle onto a Gravley reel mower similar to that . The neighbors thought I was nuts until it worked.😅 used that mower for a couple of years .
Mowed lawn for $ as a Kid in the 60's. Used mower like this. Tied my wagon to it, and used it to pull me around the neighborhood as I went door to door looking for the next job. My father couldn't understand the amount of wear that I put on the tires. lol
You don't realize how much this channel means to you until you check in on a Sunday morning and there's not a Mustie1 video to watch! So glad you are feeling better-- kidney stones are no joke, and they can be a lot harder to fix than an old mower!
...never had kidney stones- but I had hemorrhoids!!!
Trust me- there are SOME things that you wouldn't wish on your WORST ENEMY...(!)
I agree. I love this channel
@@GttC10 ...well, "if ya LOVE IT so much- then why don't ya MARRY IT?!"
@@daleburrell6273 What is wrong with you? Pls stay decent..
@@daleburrell6273 hahahaha I get the joke
My dad bought one of these to do yards in town and it was about 1945. He kept it in our basement and one day I found a go kart frame, so I took off his childhood engine and made a go kart about 1969. He didn’t seem to mind but he did find me a 5 hp Clinton motor for it. He helped me fix it up to a nice kart. We took a part a Cushman bike to use the two speed transmission and the front and back wheels to use one the back. We spent a lot of time together from then on. Moving to mini bikes a couple more karts and eventually he got a 350 Honda bike after I go my 250 Yamaha. My dad passed this year. I cant express how much this means to me
after getting hit by a tractor trailer in 2007 disabiling me, i couldnt do much, thanks for making this part of my life more enjoyable, I hope your well
Hey brother, been in some bad car accidents myself. I hope you can get up and around ok and get yourself a reel mower to enjoy.
@@thesmartestmanintheworld2653 ty for your kind words
Same here end stage copd he gives me entertainment on things I did for fun
Definitely hope you get better
Sorry for your kidney stones. Hope you're fully recovered by now. I've had several. They stopped several years ago when I gave up the Diet Cokes and other soft drinks. Loved your video and the lawn mower fix. As a kid in the 1960's my Dad made me mow with one of these, but it had no engine. I was the power. As soon as I left home he bought a new self propelled mower.
Back in the late 50's and 60's my 2 brothers and I each had a section of yord to mow. We used a push style reel mower. I remember when dad bought one like this one with an engine. It was a modern marvel back then. Good video and I'm glad you're feeling better.
In the late 80s or early 90s my gran gave us one of the old push-style ones, no idea how old it was. The blades were pretty blunt and the handle was as floppy as this one, making the whole thing really difficult to push. The tiniest twig would jam the thing and you'd bump into the handle trying to push. I was pretty happy when I got a beaten old electric Flymo and eventually threw the reel mower away. It was old but it had enough plastic parts to be beyond sensible repair.
We still have one, works well, takes a bit to push through longer grass.
This machine would be mostly used on an English lawn. Short and thick after witch you could play billiards on.
@@timdoyle66 These were used in Australia and New Zealand as well, most push mowers some with engines, we can still buy them new down here, if you can find a vintage one with a engine you can pay big money for them. Yes they did do a great job.
Rubber is made with oil, a 14" tire in 1985 was made with about 7 gallons of various kinds of oils and waxes. Belts, have the same properties. With that said, never park your car/tires on a oily patch, as the oil in the tire will eventually react with the oil on the ground, and turn it into chewing gum. Today's tires have more synthetic oils, so they are not as suspectable.
I'm 74, this episode brought back memories of my Uncle Ped. He was a WWII Vet earning a living as a traveling salesman, but also had a small business sharpening saws and small engine repair.. His Trophy was a huge six blade reel mower with more handless and levers than you could shake a stick at. It was big and heavy.... took two big men to pick it up. But, my gosh, that mower could cut grass!!!!That mower was the envy of the entire neighborhood! My first taste of a reel mower was blister powered. Straight manual... But, you want a nice looking lawn, get a reel mower...
The best mechanic on UA-cam is back!!
If ANYBODY can make it run, Mustie can.
James Condon begs to differ.
And terryl@@jimthesoundman8641
My grandpa had one of these in about 1952 or 53. I was sooo impressed with it. He would let me walk with him with my hands on the handlebars. It was so mechanical and impressive to me! It was the beginning of my love for gas powered anything. It brings back memories…
Good morning everyone ! Hope you’re feeling better Mustie . Kidney stones are no joke . Thanks for another awesome video !
Curious, how do you know he had kidney stones?
@@dougaranda6187 He mentioned it at the very end of the video.
He actually posted the previous week about why he didn’t have a video for the week .
I started on one of these at 6 years old (Grandpa wasn't in to ''Safety''!) and it was the only kind of Mower Gramps would allow on his ''Turf''. He swore it made the yard like a Putting Green thus filling the neighbors with envy...and that was the Goal!
One of my chores when I was a kid was to mow the lawn. This was the kind of mower we had. The yard was on a slope and I used to mow barefooted, early in the morning while the grass was still wet. Luckily nothing bad ever happened, but it was the machine where I first learned how to diagnose engine problems with my father.
Glad you’re back. Hope you’re feeling better. As a viewer in Southeast Asia your uploads are a routine for Sunday evening.
Same here, always after Sunday dinnertime with a nice coffee.
Even though I am a bit younger than you (I think), I have driven several of those lawnmower’s here in Denmark. Those are my favorite machines. I absolutely love them. They cut the grass so much nicer and you were right.- They are meant for shorter grass. All you needed was to adjust the height on the rollers and the “back blade” (if that is the right phrase? 🤔) from time to time. And also there is/was a special tool for sharpening the rolling blades. There is a reason for why they are using them on golf courses. They cut the grass much cleaner instead of just smashing it!
I absolutely love your work and workshop!
That mower was my introduction to yard work. It was ostensibly "self propelled" but as it was well used it only had one wheel drive. I mowed our yard and our elderly neighbors yard quite a few times and soon learned that it would ONLY turn in one direction. Fun! But I DID learn that you make the best of what you have to do the job.
When I was about 10, our neighbor, a retired engineer, opened up a lawnmower repair shop. He had a reel mower sharpening machine. It was a beast. I learned a lot from him. Now l’m 75 and learning from Mustie1 and Taryl. 😂
Thanks Mustie for the walk down memory
lane. I use one of theses when I was kid.
Me too!
Lovely machine, we call them cylinder mowers here. Company called Hayter made them for decades. Glad you gave it some love!
I like it when Mustie1 found the hole. Really got things moving back and forwards at that point.
When that mower started taking off by itself with the reel spinning, I felt a huge disturbance in the force. It was as if hundreds of regulators at the Consumer Products Safety Commission simultaneously had apoplexy! 😂 I am constantly amazed by your ability to bring life back to what appear to be items of junk. That is a really cool, but mostly useless and dangerous, old mower. Thanks for sharing!
Been waiting for years to see you work on this. When I was 7 I started cutting my Dad's grass with this type of mower. Did not wear steel boots. That was in the mid to late 60's. I have the engine from this mower and it still runs
I would be so chuffed to have a mower like this one! Always loved how much nicer a reel mower cuts, and this one is so light weight yet still a reel style. What a little gem.
That Briggs and Stratton engine looks like a model 6S. I used to have one of those. They were made between 1949-1957, all cast iron. Better than the aluminum engines of today. Glad to have you back, Mustie. Hope you are feeling better.
It's a 5s (5 fin block) 6s blocks have 7 😉
OH! WOW!!! I wish I had that old mower. That is what I used to mow our lawn and my grandparents lawn when I was a kid. My grandfather owned a blacksmith shop and in his later years it was his job to sharpen those mowers. Recently I visited that old shop that is still there and due to antique structure laws in my town, it is still exactly the same as it was 70 years ago. I mentioned my grandfathers job to the present owner and he pointed over to one side and said, "It's still here, and it still works", referring to the sharpening machine. The old mower was a B&S with the same rope pull starter. As a teenager, I secretly took the motor apart one afternoon to see how it worked and carefully put it back together, and, thank God, it still ran when I reassembled it.
Good afternoon Darren, great to see you back hope you are feeling better.
Unfortunately there aren't any good alternatives to getting old 😁
Cheers Paul from Lincolnshire, UK 🇬🇧.
We had the same one when I was a kid and I used it to mow our lawn regularly. Enjoyed this video.
Welcome back Mr. Mustie! Hope you are feeling better!
Kidney stones are THE WORST!! I used to get migraines as a child, but not so much anymore.
Glad you're feeling better, and I hope you continue to improve!
Woohoo! Nice one - hope you're on the road to recovery!
You take care of yourself, Darren. Your health is the most important thing in your life. I was diagnosed with pulmonary fibrosis just last year. I thought I heard you getting a bit short of breath once or twice in the video - I feared for a minute that that might have been your issue too, and given the types of stuff you've breathed in, swallowed and ingested for our entertainment, I wouldn't have been surprised.
Look after yourself, and good health to you.
Now, for whatever reason, my dad always referred to those sidewheel style lawnmowers as "Pennsylvanian style" - he loved them when he worked as groundsman for a major confectionery manufacturer and was delighted when he was called up for WW2, and found himself "on camp" with not much to do - he was sort of seconded to the groundskeeping detail, and was equipped with yet another Pennsylvania lawnmower.
My guess would be that there must have been a mower manufacturer of the name "Pennsylvania" and the name stuck to all machines of that type, rather like Thermos, or Hoover.
Flashbacks from 60+ yrs ago trying to use my Uncles, Pennsylvania brand, reel mower. Same setup save for a lever which engaged the belt idler. No grass catcher. After mowing the 1/4 acre, I then got to rake up the clippings. The mower was liberated by my Uncle from the Newport Casino (now tennis Hall of Fame) where he was Superintendent. It was used on the grass courts. The management were afraid that the Jazz festival attendees would trash the place. Thanks for clearing up how to start it. Narragansett Bay
My dad had the same mower in 1956, as a 12yr kid made spending money cutting neighbors yards. 😎
My dad had one like yours back in the early 50's. His was green. I think it was a Sears and Roebuck. The self propelled was on full time. You'd tip it back on the rollers to start the motor, also to keep it from moving. The wheels always turned. A little scary. But this was back in the day when things weren't dangerous. Yeah.
Thanks for the nostalgia
Bob
Excellent revival! I enjoyed visiting the original shop as there were so many fun moments associated with the projects completed in that, relatively speaking, lesser square footage space. Thanks for another great day of wrenching 👏🏻👏🏻❤️🔧✌🏻
Hammering the flywheel off works but it's rough as hell, especially on old engines with worn bearings and can easily lead to mangled parts.. If you have a flywheel puller it is always worth the extra 5 mins to get it out and use it.
Reel mowers are excellent! **
** If it fits your requirements!
They excel at cutting well manicured lawns down to a much lower height than achievable with most rotary mowers, usually lower than an inch.. it is why they are still popular with golf course owners etc to get that lovely carpet like green.
They don't deal with sticks and similar objects well if at all, sharpening and adjusting the blade isn't a regular thing but it is much more in depth than a rotary mower.
If you like regularly cutting your lawn area and want a very low manicured finish then a reel mower could be an excellent choice. If its undulating, you don't want to clear it of small branches and things before mowing or don't want to mow regularly then it really isn't the mower for you.
Also some species of grass are more suited to reel mowers where as a rotary doesn't care.
We had one of those but instead of a centrifugal clutch, it had a handle that engaged a belt tensioner. After the blade part died, I turned it into my first go kart. Fun times for all the neighborhood kids.
I learned how to repair the same one with the lever after it became part of my first go kart! Great memories.
HOMKO was the power yard tool division of Western Tool and Stamping. They were a fairly popular mower brand in the 50’s and 60’s, especially after AMF bought them up. The AMF HOMKO MOW-TRACK series of riding mowers were especially popular (we had one when I was a kid), and their HOMKO push and self propelled mowers were up there with Cooper, Hahn-Eclipse and Jacobsen back in the day. I’m currently restoring a 1959 Briggs powered HOMKO rotary mower, nicely built little machine!
Brings back memories of my golf course maintenance days! Used to mow greens with reel mowers. Of course they were made with today's technology as opposed to then.
About 70 years ago when I was a boy and mowed our lawn for the first time, we had a reel mower. One thing I recall was that the mowers travel was at a slower pace than Darren's jackrabbit "Homko." That gave the blade more time to repeat the cut and gave a nice flat mow rather than a spital look over the grass surface. Hope you're feeling better Darren. Best, George, Danvers, MA
The man the myth the legend is back! Hope you are doing ok mustie! ❤
When I was growing up, the guy across the street had one of those and he was a fanatic about his yard. He cut his grass every couple of days, so it never got very tall and he would practice putting on his perfectly manicured lawn. That mower was awesome. He had a tool that would sharpen the blades and he kept it looking brand new for years. I always thought he had the coolest mower in the Neiborhood.
Darren glad to see you are up and around. I hope it passed without troubles!
Those old rotary mowers made the grass look better when done. Definitely an art to setup/adjustment with them. Great video!
I have one just like it, believe it or not. It had been abandoned in a backyard shed and the new owners of the house just wanted it gone. I brought it home just for the laughs and found out it does a great job on the fenced-in section of the yard that I had been mowing with a push mower since I can't get the JD 748 through the gates. They are oddly fun to use!
Thanks for the great video! Its the best snapper there is! With a bucket after you catch up the grass! ❤😊
My grandfather had a lawn mower of that type, fully manual though. Even well sharpened, adjusted, and oiled the damn thing was really a chore to push even through the small lawns he had. No wonder they made it motorized.
Keep on doing the right things and hopefully you will be back to your old self soon.
@@ben5156 Thanks for wishing me to be a young lad again. The experience is from 40 years ago.
Reel type mowers no motor made ya strong lol then we put motors on them but damn the grass cut so nice
My dad had one of these when I growing up....was awesome watching him using it, the words that came out when he hit one of our toys hidden in the grass and then he got hit with all the shrapnel remnants of the toy. Never bothered the mower....
Welcome back!
Nice to see ya man! I built motor bike back in '66, had pulley clutch just like that.
Nice to hear the Mustie Chuckle!❤
Glad to see you back those stones can be a bear 7 times when i was a lot younger 35 to about 45 none since pushing 67 nock on wood
Had one very similar about 1960 over in NZ made by Masport, model was lawn prince. Bought for my parents. Brings back memories, good to see you back Mustie 1.
I kind of remember mowers like that.
Sort of.
Maybe.
Stupid brain cells.
Glad prognosis looks better.
Hang in. I have watched for many years and hope to watch for many more, depending on the health of both of us!
Thanks for all the work you do to entertain and inform the World Of Mustonians!
They still make them as they do the "best cut" for things like golf course putting greens, super manicured lawns etc.
Hi Mustie one, I have been watching your channel for a long time now and have enjoyed evry one. I am a Kiwi, {New Zealander} we have to ! make do! with a lot of our machinery. it might be that some of us older boys choose to be this way.
The one
coment I have is that you show is real .
Used one like that when I was an early teen. Brings back memories.
What a glorious machine! Elegant in its simplicity. I am surprised that, other than persuading the clutch to work, the business end worked so well. Thought it was going to require a disassembly, cleaning and lubing. Looks like she’s just one new belt away from being a regular user - for as long as the gas tank holds out. Great video! Get well, my friend.
As a kid, we used to have a Suffolk punch with a similar design but with a big roller, and the blades were more accessible to adjust. Also, the clutch to drive it was centrifugal, where the weights were the friction points on the outer bell. Gave an incredible cut on the grass. The cut grass with the roller looked better than the smashed grass lol
My grand dad had this same mower, but it had a seat attached to it where us kids could ride and mow his lawn, it worked great for us kids but not so good for the adults, lol, thanks muske1 love your stuff
That little machine is quite the little trooper.
Glad you're feeling better. Sick in the summer sucks.
My grandpa had that exact mower I mowed with it many times.He bought us a newer version. Both were self propelled. When my friends dad went out and bought a fancy craftsman mower with self propel they made such a big deal out of it. I responded I have been using one for years.
Good to see you darren hope your feeling a bit better .
Kidney stones I have felt your pain. Get some Flow Max. It helped my brother he passed a bout 15.
I'm very glad to have you back Darren! I've been worried about you.
Those are literally the best carbs I've ever seen and that engine will win low idle contest for sure it. I have a mower almost just like it but no clutch it does just go. Same motor it was locked up with rust took the head off cleaned it out with a rag and got it free, got the stuck intake valve cleaned up got the check ball fixed and swapped the tank out for a mason jar and it absolutely runs mint. Wonderful little machine.
"what could possibly go wrong?" immediately winds up targeted by the toe chopper 6000 and has to do his best matador impression. ole! lol! gotta love ya buddy.
As always, a great Mustie video. It reminded me of my childhood, we had a big garden with a lot of lawns. IIRC we had seven lawnmowers including an Atco 12", an Atco 24" and a an Atco 36". Being the youngest child, I was only allowed to use the Atco 12" at first... my brothers showed me how to strip it down and put it back together using cornflakes boxes for gaskets. The Atcos had cylinders and grass collection boxes, but they weren't fundamentally different to the old mower that you brought back to life. The confidence that I learnt from fixing that little Atco let me tackle much bigger projects on Fords and Land Rovers, later in life... The question isn't "can I fix it?" It's "How long will it take me to fix it, and is that a sensible use of my time?".
Musty, your back! Awesome! Can't watch at the moment but something to look forward to. Thanks!
Glad your back and up 'n' running again. When I set up cylinder mowers, including sit on ones when Maintenance Manager in a Hotel group, I adjusted the cylinder so they cut a sheet of paper against the adjustable cutter blade. Best for giving a 'stripe' lawn finish.. 🤔👍🙂🇬🇧
Sorry to hear about the "Kidney Stones". Hope you keep getting better.
Always enjoy a Sunday watching those engines coming back to life. I have learned a lot over the years watching your channel.
Keep well and looking forward to more engines. 🚗🚙😃👌👍👍
This was a well-maintained mower! Don't forget to cinch down on that 7/16" on the mixture screw or it can vibrate out of adjustment. I have fond memories of working on these engines during the mid-60's - Reel mowers were going out, and these old Briggs were great for mini bikes and go carts. My dad had a nice tool box, so I ended up as our gang's "mechanic". My buddy and I flipped the handle over on one of these, mickey-moused a center-pivot tiller steering axle in the front, slapped a plywood seat on it and "raced" around the neighborhood on it. All with the blade running. How we got through it with all our fingers and toes, I do not know. I do remember a couple of days later after his dad saw it, it somehow disappeared! I loved watching you bring this one back, and amazed me how kind the years have been to it. They do a bang-up job on grass cutting, too. One of my lawn-cutting clients made me use her power reel mower on her grass, and the lawn looked way better than my rotary mower would do it. Plus, they are mesmerizing to follow!
Congrats Mustie1 on repairing the 1970's type of mower. tells a kid, hey why don't u mow the yard with flipflops. 10th most dangerous tool, next to the hay sling.
70’s ?
@@Philc231 yeah My Father's was at least from the late 1940's, Briggs stopped making cast iron main engine blocks in the 1960's. This is a well preserved antique.
I grew up using that style mower in the early 70's I'm 61. Many golf courses use reel mowers on the greens to produce that manicured end product. They really do a fine job. Godspeed for your recovery. By the way, I still miss the old shop. It was nice stopping by again!
Good to see you again, Mustie!
Thank you, these mowers bring back lots of remembers
Mustie1, Very Glad to hear you’re feeling better!!! In my youth, I pushed a couple no motor “reel” mowers around until I could afford to buy a power New type mower to do yard work as a kid. It was great to see how you brought this one back to life. It cuts better than my old (no Motor) reel one cut…haha. That check valve was so tiny, but yougot it out. Yes, I was yelling at you to poke something through the hole on the clutch…haha! Great video, Thanks!
We had a similar unit in the late 50s up to around 1965...an Eaton's Eureka...had a cast aluminum deck and mechanical engaging lever to put the belt in tension ....used to be fun to let the unit go down the yard by itself ....it was a beast ....it was sent to a local machine shop to create Palls that engaged the wheels and they dropped something on the carb ...end of the machine ,,,,was formerly owned by Hap Emms coach of the Boston Bruins...good memories
Great to have you back!
An typical cylinder mower designed to give you stripes in your lawn Mustie 👍 nice job, hope you are feeling a bit better
Good to see you back Mustie, I hope you are feeling better. There is nothing better than watching all those clippings piling out the back of it, takes me right back to my childhood we used to have two mowers like that. Thanks for another fantastic video i live for Sundays with Mustie
1992 my mom bought one exactly like this from a 2nd hand store. We couldn’t afford a new push mower, but this thing lasted until 2010 when our neighbor bought it.😊
Good morning from Michigan. Glad your back.
Good morning from Traverse City
That's a model 5S, 5 cubic inches. Built about 1955. The earlier, 1940s model 5s had iron cylinder heads and a mechanical internal oil pump. The maximum operating speed is 2,800 rpm because they have a tiny weak connecting rod. The later nylon fuel pickups work. I never disassembled a fuel pickup like that, that was really interesting! I used newspaper to shove between the knife and blades, while turning by hand, to adjust the slicing action. It's a lost art. The wheels inside, axles and the reel all need grease and oil. There's not a lot of horsepower to drive all that in high grass, plus all the rusty parts- only 1.5 HP total. The stored torque energy in the zinc flywheel is driving it. That machine is in amazing condition, like you said, very low hours!
Thanks for a great video! I love to see these old machines brought back to life.
I used a mower fairly similar to that one, except the grass went out the front into a grass catcher. I was about 9 years old then and I had about one acre of land to mow. I am 70 years old now. I loved using that mower it was lots of fun. Thanks for sharing this video, it took me back to when things were much simpler than. And yes I still have all my fingers and toes.
Another great Mustie! video! So glad to see you back!
Much love and respect from Australia my Brother, been watching for quite some time, get healthy my friend, we need ya around 🫶🏻❤️🩹😊🤓😎
I like it! I use a manual reel mower now, and would be glad to have this one. That thing was throwing some grass!!! Wow! Nice to see the snow blower again, my grandfather had one just like it when I was growing up. My dad used it after he died, and cleared our 300 foot drive with it.
We live there in New England like you.
Best part of the Week. 🔧👍🇬🇧
I love these old machines. Great tutorial, especially how the pickup tube worked. I'd like to know what was in the tube you blew out. I loved the sped up video near the end. Sounded like mowing the lawn with a chainsaw. That mower cuts better than any vertical shaft mower. It shears the grass instead of lopping with spinning blades. Thanks for posting.
Hell yeah, the best UA-camr ever uploaded! I'm glad to have you back!
I also had a side gig working security at a golf course that was opening. I used to watch a guy come in and sharpen all of the rotary mowers, it was pretty fascinating to watch him set it all up.
My graddad had a top of the line, self propelled, multipal roller briggs and straton , green when i was a kid back in New Zealand. Must have been like 1966 for me to remember itt !
As much as parents want their kids to mow the lawn, granddad wouldn't let us get anywhere near it !
I wish you well my friend and I would like to thank you for your videos.
This was the first power lawn mower my dad ever had. It was used when he got it, and replaced a push type reel mower. It ran until the carburetor/intake mount broke. No one in town at thst time could weld it, so it went to the dump. But I mowed the yard for a number of years without loosing any fingers or toes. Thanks for the memories.
Great to see the old shop again, I do miss it 😊
Glad see you back, and feeling better Mustsie. Hopefully whatever meds was given is helping u. Thank you for a video this week. There never expected but greatful have you and them here.
My dad bought one like that from Monkey Wards back around 1960. It was a pain in the ass to mow with and he kept telling me it would make a man of me. After about 3 years, he mowed the lawn with it one day and went to the store and bought a regular mower and told me that thing was a piece of s---t and left it to rot in the back yard. Great restoration video. Thanks for the memories here in southern Idaho. Keep em coming.
Glad you're back!! Missed you man!
I worked on a LOT of those things when I was about 12yrs old, they had less than 1 1/2 hp. GREAT little engine GREAT mower untile you hit somthing with the reel, THEN they cost more to sharpen than the mower was worth, during the late 1950s you could find a LOT of those at the dump, and I would drag the damn things home just to get the engine running. Those mowers were kind of expensive because of the reel system. That was why the rotary mower was invented, FAR cheaper and FAR more reliable!!
Thank you for showing the old shop at the end! I would love an occasional short fix it video in the shop from time to time. A bit of nostalgia!
In the 1960s I had to mow our all lawns with a hand pushed version of a reel mower like this , NO engine, the wheels turned the rotary blades. My dad would set the blades so they would slice a sheet of paper, the full width of the cutter blade on each one. Mind you it was made of cast iron with a wooden handle. So when your a skinny 10 YO, it took some pushing !!! I still have it and it still cuts grass if you’re silly enough to push it. 😁. Great video Mustie
Great to see you back and a great video.
😂 About 52 years ago I grafted a 26 inch bicycle onto a Gravley reel mower similar to that .
The neighbors thought I was nuts until it worked.😅 used that mower for a couple of years .
Mowed lawn for $ as a Kid in the 60's. Used mower like this. Tied my wagon to it, and used it to pull me around the neighborhood as I went door to door looking for the next job. My father couldn't understand the amount of wear that I put on the tires. lol