Hello ODK members,

This post discusses the context of the power mower.
This series of posts discusses the first power mowers in Australia.
It is provisional research in that key facts are still not known.

The Known facts are:-
[1] The Royal Sydney Golf Club is said to be "the pioneer patron of the petrol mower".
[2] The arrival date would be some time prior to 1908.
[3] The Adelaide City Council were the first to use a power mower in October, 1908.

CONTEXT:
The context is that it is generally accepted that Ransomes made the first petrol
powered lawnmower in 1902. These were behemoth machines of massive proportions.

Why were they so large? I think the answer to that lies in the historical development
of the lawnmower and the historical development of the internal combustion engine.

Budding's patent mower of 1830 and Ransomes production of it in 1832 produced a smallish
machine of about 16 inches. But by the mid 19th Century, Shanks had patented larger machines
utilising animal power - donkeys, ponies, and horses. These could be 40" plus in width.

With the invention of the petrol powered internal combustion engine it was obvious that
animal horse power would be replaced by mechanical h.p.

The limiting factor in all this was engine size. The automobile had demanded smaller engines
but not small engines. It was obvious that the first petrol mowers would be big, but rapid
engine development would result in the 'lightweight' mowers of the 1920s.

To give members an idea of the first power mowers to arrive in Australia, I reproduce the
famous ride-on machine in use at the Cadbury's Sporting Grounds, and a factory photo
of a Ransomes pedestrian machine dated to about the same time.

[Linked Image]
[Linked Image]