Thanks for showing this. I was motivated to convert a junked out Husqvara. I used the same motor system for the drive uint (added a controller), but removed the pulleys from the mower and placed 2 36 volt motors on the deck. It runs off of a single 48 volt lithium battery (47 amphours). Separating the mowing from the main motor and adding a controller has made it more efficient - I can cut for over an hour and several hours of run time if mowing is off.
Little Eddie Converting to battery power is a great idea for a garden tractor I converted one 15yrs ago and it is still cutting grass on a daily basis, I have had to renew the batteries every 7 yrs I am just on my 3rd set now, my design will cut up to 2 acres on a 50cent charge there are no belts or pulleys and no oil on the entire tractor, it can pull a trailer for about 8hrs on a charge, because battery run time is the most important aspect of most conversions I paid particular attention to the most efficient design I could up with, I used 3 separate small motors one for the drive with electronic speed control and two smaller with a cutter blade mounted on the shaft for each cutter, this design only uses the battery power req to do the job, very little wasted battery power, it uses magnetic breaking of both tractor and cutter blades and automatically applies parking brake when you stop or get off the seat. Little Eddie Edmond Electric
I did pretty much the same conversion except on a Craftsman LT1000, using wood and screws for the battery placements. I lowered the CG by relocation one battery in the back behind the seat and relocated a second battery on a step in front of the dash. My property is very hilly and steep, so the lower CG is a helpful safety factor...I installed a low cost floor pedal on the right foot position...been using it for about 8 years, hoping someday lithium Ion batteries would be available at a less costly option to lead acid...hasn't happened yet; but, when it does, lawn cutting gear will be much more simple to use and maintain.
Ladson Geddings ..... if one knows how to size lithium capacity to a lead equivalent, then one would know that lithium is the same if not cheaper to run. 100amp/hr lithium you’d need 400 amp/hrs of lead to get the same run times as lead cannot give you its full capacity at high amp draws. Switch to lithium. But size correctly..... cause you don’t want to hurt your lithium. It’s all about sizing. 😊
I love the idea of an electric tractor , i wish i owed one . I love the fact you did this yourself more people need to think that way . I am not a fan of the single motor configuration due to the efficiency loss from the belts and pulley system . I assume this was done for simplicity , but it is the exact reason you can only cut for 25 min . 3 smaller motors would have pulled this off will less power usage and eliminated the belt system . G,E created a series of electric tractors like that in the 70's called the elec-trac , hustler has a electric zero turn called the zion ,
Not sure It would be worth the extra effort placing and wiring and controlling 3 motors instead of one. Once the blades are spun up to speed, I would believe the wattage usage would be similar. It takes wattage to spin blades. Driving without blades is appox. 1200 watts and with blades spinning 3500 to 5000 depending on the grass moisture/thickness. So 3500w to 5000w minus 1200 = 2300 to 3800 watts divided by 2 blades is approx. 1150 to 1900 watts per deck blade. Not bad considering the work that each 21" blade is performing 1.5 to 2.5hp peaks. ;) :)
If you find other videos, you can find guys getting way more cutting time with better bigger amp hour deep cycle batteries. Another guy easily got hour and a half and used 25 percent power on an 1 acre of land, using 3 marine batteries for 36 volt system and 109 amp hours.
That's a pretty neat idea. I do have to ask why didn't you go with large golf cart batteries? Also you could put some solar panels on the top for shade and to power the batteries. Great video!!!
New sub here. Great video. I have a John Deere riding mower that is giving me engine problems. I am considering upgrading to the ME1004 as well. Would you use a different motor if you were to do one today? Thanks!
Brent Johnson hello.... and I laugh out loud.... not at you.....one needs to size appropriately for the task that needs to be accomplished. This motor maybe too small for a skateboard on a drag race strip and too large for everyday street. If you have a huge property with lots of deep wet grass, you will have to size appropriately. Are you running a pto? Then you would probably require rpm control and a speed control maybe required. Brent, as you can see, there’s no one correct answer, but I do urge you to size for the task and size the battery pack for the task, then double it. My hope was to be helpful. 😊
@@TommyLuptak I laugh with you. Haha. I am having to learn how to size it correctly. I have country pasture about 2.5 acres that I mow. My idea for this conversion to be more of a garden tractor or utility. Really I am wanting to learn about the details of such a conversion. Your video was very good to give me ideas. Thanks for the ideas and the laugh! Oh you asked about PTO. I have a mower deck they call a PTO but nothing hooked to a PTO shaft.
Brent Johnson 1,000 watts = 1kw 742watts = 1hp The current ME1004 says 11hp continuous and 20hp for 1 minute. My deck was 42” twin blade. 3500watts cutting. 7000 watts deep cutting. 4.7hp - 9.4hp respectively. And that’s electric ⚡️ hp. It never saw the 18kw (20hp)peak 1 minute rating. And if you are not spinning blades and just riding it and pulling garden cart, you’ll most likely never stress that motor. Riding around is like 1500 watts (2hp) This motor easily accepted the pulls from the Briggs engine. This was yet another reason I picked the ME1004.
Tommy Luptak yes that makes sense. The confusing part is hp for ice is different than electric motors. With electric it is a function of torque & rpm if I remember correctly. But in the end, my mowing needs are solved with my new mower so I only need light duty from this. This is more of a learning process for me. I hope to also have a functioning mower in the end because that will be cool. Cheers man!
Brent Johnson well then..... this seems to be a good motor and well talked about and has the correct shaft (in my case) which made for easier pulley installation. May I suggest if you are going to add lithium as a battery..... if the battery can do 1C all day and 2C max with 3C bursts, size it to only pull 0.5C and your pack will last a long time. Also, use LiFePO4 😉
At the 3:00 min mark of the video I mention what the digital is called and the software version it's running. In my "Description" above there is list of equipment. Look at the word Meter: and you will magically find the name. Now take that name and do a google search or use your favorite search engine and more magic happens. You can find details of the digital gauge. Thanks......
Great job indeed! Did you never ever consider (or do you now someone that did it) to vary the speed of the engine, for example with a frequency controller, not to have it spinning always and anyways, and to help for example to engage the blades without stressing the belts or what so ever? Just curious, I hope I can do something like that soon!!
It's a 1.88kw Lithium LiFePO4 pack. 20-25min cutting (uses 3.5-6kw per hour cutting, if its dry and short 3.5kw and if it is wet and longer 6kw). 1.2kw with no blades on, so just riding around, over 1 hour. It's faster and more powerful than the 15.5hp gas engine that I removed. :) Thank you for you inquiry! :) Peace! \m/ . . \m/
This is more energy efficient. 15.5 HP engine was removed and 6.7 HP is doing the same job. You think gas engine is efficient because gas stores a lot of energy and you get a longer run time but the $3 you pay at the pump does not include the carbon tax that should be payed for burning that fuel so gas comes out to be cheaper but gas is wholely inefficient compared to any EV
Thanks for showing this. I was motivated to convert a junked out Husqvara. I used the same motor system for the drive uint (added a controller), but removed the pulleys from the mower and placed 2 36 volt motors on the deck. It runs off of a single 48 volt lithium battery (47 amphours). Separating the mowing from the main motor and adding a controller has made it more efficient - I can cut for over an hour and several hours of run time if mowing is off.
Little Eddie
Converting to battery power is a great idea for a garden tractor I converted one 15yrs ago and it is still cutting grass on a daily basis, I have had to renew the batteries every 7 yrs I am just on my 3rd set now, my design will cut up to 2 acres on a 50cent charge there are no belts or pulleys and no oil on the entire tractor, it can pull a trailer for about 8hrs on a charge, because battery run time is the most important aspect of most conversions I paid particular attention to the most efficient design I could up with, I used 3 separate small motors one for the drive with electronic speed control and two smaller with a cutter blade mounted on the shaft for each cutter, this design only uses the battery power req to do the job, very little wasted battery power, it uses magnetic breaking of both tractor and cutter blades and automatically applies parking brake when you stop or get off the seat.
Little Eddie Edmond Electric
I did pretty much the same conversion except on a Craftsman LT1000, using wood and screws for the battery placements. I lowered the CG by relocation one battery in the back behind the seat and relocated a second battery on a step in front of the dash. My property is very hilly and steep, so the lower CG is a helpful safety factor...I installed a low cost floor pedal on the right foot position...been using it for about 8 years, hoping someday lithium Ion batteries would be available at a less costly option to lead acid...hasn't happened yet; but, when it does, lawn cutting gear will be much more simple to use and maintain.
BTW, I also added a Alltrax motor controller that is programmable and works great with the foot pedal: alltraxinc.com/
Ladson Geddings ..... if one knows how to size lithium capacity to a lead equivalent, then one would know that lithium is the same if not cheaper to run. 100amp/hr lithium you’d need 400 amp/hrs of lead to get the same run times as lead cannot give you its full capacity at high amp draws. Switch to lithium. But size correctly..... cause you don’t want to hurt your lithium. It’s all about sizing. 😊
I love the idea of an electric tractor , i wish i owed one . I love the fact you did this yourself more people need to think that way . I am not a fan of the single motor configuration due to the efficiency loss from the belts and pulley system . I assume this was done for simplicity , but it is the exact reason you can only cut for 25 min . 3 smaller motors would have pulled this off will less power usage and eliminated the belt system .
G,E created a series of electric tractors like that in the 70's called the elec-trac , hustler has a electric zero turn called the zion ,
Not sure It would be worth the extra effort placing and wiring and controlling 3 motors instead of one. Once the blades are spun up to speed, I would believe the wattage usage would be similar. It takes wattage to spin blades. Driving without blades is appox. 1200 watts and with blades spinning 3500 to 5000 depending on the grass moisture/thickness. So 3500w to 5000w minus 1200 = 2300 to 3800 watts divided by 2 blades is approx. 1150 to 1900 watts per deck blade. Not bad considering the work that each 21" blade is performing 1.5 to 2.5hp peaks. ;) :)
This is awesome!! Great Job!!
If you find other videos, you can find guys getting way more cutting time with better bigger amp hour deep cycle batteries. Another guy easily got hour and a half and used 25 percent power on an 1 acre of land, using 3 marine batteries for 36 volt system and 109 amp hours.
I saw him also, but he used a 48V system. He had another battery under the seat.
That's a pretty neat idea. I do have to ask why didn't you go with large golf cart batteries? Also you could put some solar panels on the top for shade and to power the batteries. Great video!!!
Thank you kindly. If I was ordering in cells, I would have used GBS or CALB and built a battery box
around those cells. But I had these on hand. :)
This is brilliant! Thanks for sharing.
NOW THAT'S IMPRESSIVE!!!GREAT JOB.THANKS
Can you put a speed controller on the motor where you can slow it down especially when not cutting?
Awsome project. I am trying to do similar. What type of setup you have to recharge those batteries?
Tks.
What is a "shunt"? How does it differ from a fuse? Why do you need both?
New sub here. Great video. I have a John Deere riding mower that is giving me engine problems. I am considering upgrading to the ME1004 as well. Would you use a different motor if you were to do one today? Thanks!
Brent Johnson hello.... and I laugh out loud.... not at you.....one needs to size appropriately for the task that needs to be accomplished. This motor maybe too small for a skateboard on a drag race strip and too large for everyday street.
If you have a huge property with lots of deep wet grass, you will have to size appropriately. Are you running a pto?
Then you would probably require rpm control and a speed control maybe required. Brent, as you can see, there’s no one correct answer, but I do urge you to size for the task and size the battery pack for the task, then double it.
My hope was to be helpful. 😊
@@TommyLuptak I laugh with you. Haha. I am having to learn how to size it correctly. I have country pasture about 2.5 acres that I mow. My idea for this conversion to be more of a garden tractor or utility. Really I am wanting to learn about the details of such a conversion. Your video was very good to give me ideas. Thanks for the ideas and the laugh! Oh you asked about PTO. I have a mower deck they call a PTO but nothing hooked to a PTO shaft.
Brent Johnson 1,000 watts = 1kw
742watts = 1hp
The current ME1004 says 11hp continuous and 20hp for 1 minute.
My deck was 42” twin blade. 3500watts cutting. 7000 watts deep cutting.
4.7hp - 9.4hp respectively.
And that’s electric ⚡️ hp. It never saw the 18kw (20hp)peak 1 minute rating.
And if you are not spinning blades and just riding it and pulling garden cart, you’ll most likely never stress that motor.
Riding around is like 1500 watts (2hp)
This motor easily accepted the pulls from the Briggs engine. This was yet another reason I picked the ME1004.
Tommy Luptak yes that makes sense. The confusing part is hp for ice is different than electric motors. With electric it is a function of torque & rpm if I remember correctly. But in the end, my mowing needs are solved with my new mower so I only need light duty from this. This is more of a learning process for me. I hope to also have a functioning mower in the end because that will be cool. Cheers man!
Brent Johnson well then..... this seems to be a good motor and well talked about and has the correct shaft (in my case) which made for easier pulley installation.
May I suggest if you are going to add lithium as a battery..... if the battery can do 1C all day and 2C max with 3C bursts, size it to only pull 0.5C and your pack will last a long time. Also, use LiFePO4 😉
Thanks man! So when are you converting your motorcycle? ;) \m/ . . \m/
Thank you so much! Someone has to do it! I actually cut the grass for than once a week now! lol :)
YOU ARE AWESOME!!
Firstable its a awsome idea doing electric,Can we have a list of the parts you used and where to buy them if its posible ??
All parts and where I got them was pretty much stated in the walk through explanation. Watch the video and take notes. This is from 10 years ago.
Yes!
Which type of Cycle computer you have? (CA-DP, DPS,HC, SA)
Can you give me the details of the digital gauge you are using?
Thanks
At the 3:00 min mark of the video I mention what the digital is called and the software version it's running.
In my "Description" above there is list of equipment. Look at the word Meter: and you will magically find
the name. Now take that name and do a google search or use your favorite search engine and more magic happens. You can find details of the digital gauge. Thanks......
Great job indeed! Did you never ever consider (or do you now someone that did it) to vary the speed of the engine, for example with a frequency controller, not to have it spinning always and anyways, and to help for example to engage the blades without stressing the belts or what so ever? Just curious, I hope I can do something like that soon!!
You are straight MURDERING that PTO Clutch when you engage the blades at high RPM. Cool setup, though!
blackz06 ....there’s no clutch. So the clutch can’t be murdered if there’s no clutch.
@@TommyLuptak ahhhh, a hand lever... gotcha! Been so long since I saw one like that... I reckon I already forgot all about non pto clutch mowers.
So how long does she last?
It's a 1.88kw Lithium LiFePO4 pack. 20-25min cutting (uses 3.5-6kw per hour cutting, if its dry and short 3.5kw and if it is wet and longer 6kw). 1.2kw with no blades on, so just riding around, over 1 hour. It's faster and more powerful than the
15.5hp gas engine that I removed. :) Thank you for you inquiry! :) Peace! \m/ . . \m/
Hehe, ill soon convert a bicycle, but thats it :)
Great idea but the energy efficiency isn't there yet to compete with fossel fuel mowers.
+Chris Phillips Erm...really? How energy efficient is a fossil fuel mower? And how efficient is an electric motor?
This is more energy efficient. 15.5 HP engine was removed and 6.7 HP is doing the same job. You think gas engine is efficient because gas stores a lot of energy and you get a longer run time but the $3 you pay at the pump does not include the carbon tax that should be payed for burning that fuel so gas comes out to be cheaper but gas is wholely inefficient compared to any EV
abuse of a craftsman