OutdoorKing Repair Forum Forums Repairs and Maintenance Questions on Walk Behind Lawn Mower Frames Four Stroke Lawn Mower Frames Harry Rotary Mower

I am fixing up a Harry lawn mower and I am impressed by the quality of it. I has been sitting here for a long time and a couple of days ago I decided it was taking up space so I needed it sorted out or thrown out. The wheel bearings were the best I have seen on a mower, cone adjustable similar to a pushbike design. I have heard they were made in Italy and the wheels have "made in Italy" on them. I have seen the odd one for sale from time to time.

G'day Norm
That's odd - the adjustable wheel bearings.

I know nothing about Harry mowers.
It must be a USA design, best guess.

Do we have members who can enlighten us?

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Jack

Hi Jack, cone type caged bearings with the outer nut being the outer bearing with a thin lock nut to prevent them coming loose. Googling around there seems to be a few of them in the UK and looks like they are still being made

Jack they must be an European design. I have yet to see any walk behinds here using cone bearing. The closest I have seen and repaired have been on a ZTR front castor wheels that I repair back in the Summer here. The taper bearing in the cones were completely gone. Luckily they hadn't ate though the cups but were very close to doing it.

The only bearings besides bushings that I have seen on walk behinds have been el cheapo flanged ball bearings. Now of course many of our walk behind are cheaply designed and made for those penny pinching customers. Basically they are just use it, break it, throw away, and replace. I can't even begin to repair them as they become too costly to repair vs new.

The rear flap is interesting I'm not sure if it was meant to have a catcher or if it was designed as a rear throw slasher. The flap pivots in the normal manner but slopes to the rear leaving a gap between the rear of the chassis and the flap of about 8 inches. The flap also has the floating lower skirt like the MTD's to prevent objects being thrown at your feet. This setup allows the cutting to be discharged out the rear but prevents your legs from being sprayed with cuttings as what happens when people don't want to use the catcher and tie the rear flap up

G'day AVB and Norm
I guess so AVB, and I think you're now right.
I do not understand the individual wheel height adjusters for that market though...?

Norm, I haven't seen that design since the mid 1960s when some designers used
these flaps as rear deflector chutes.

It's an odd design I feel...

I wonder if the maker also made a 'Sally'?

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Jack

I think the individual wheel is a product of a market where the consumer consider the walk behind mower as a throw away piece of equipment. It seems many Americans are interested only in the initial cost and not the long life of equipment. It doesn't help that our factories are also pushing the cheaper designs just to just making new equipment.

Now some customer do try to keep their equipment a long time. I just finished welding a Honda deck body back together where both sides were fractured to the top area. Not my best work around the discharge area as a lot of it was gone but it had to be repaired as if you pressed down on the engine the bar blade would move down to the ground.

One thing about the individual height adjuster wheels is that the front does not get flogged out as all the front axle mounting area does on the single height adjuster ones.
Jack I believe Harry has gone off to meet Sally in a new life

Ciao ODK Hooray Harrys

I have finally made some sense of Harry lawnmowers.
I agree with Norm, these are quality lawnmowers.

My best guess is that a poor distribution network meant
that Harry would never meet Sally in this country.

https://www.outdoorking-forum.com.au/forum/u.../harry-rotary-range-brochure-c1980s.html

Ciao
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Jack