After swearing black and blue that the shed is past capacity and there is to be no further additions, you spot something that bends your own rules. Looks complete ( needs 2 wheel caps and catcher has some damage ) and in good shape, should clean up nice. Engine turns over freely. Gear box feels like it is engaging and the chap said it was running fine when parked in the shed almost 20 years ago.
where there's a will there's a way and that's an almighty motivator. It's in good nick all round. Look at the tyre treads.Victa Self propelled rear wheels are sought after as they cost around $90 each ordered new.
Did you pay much for it? It looks to be the first of the silver decked models that came out in 1973. Interesting to see it retains the green coloured fuel tank despite new colour scheme, unless that was scavenged off a first version.
Those autodrives are a bit of a.high maintainance item. The gearbox requires a specific lubricant for those models over the later gearbox used on Victa self propelled models.
If you have no luck getting it to run well, you could make some money parting it out. The cover and rear wheels alone would get you in front.
Ahh, if only victa had kept producing the thumblatch catcher series, they would be in better shape today!
I cant think of gear oil off the top of my head except to say some of the SP victas took 'victa gear oil' - which is something special so as to not react with brass/bronze in the gear box, others took a repacking of grease that was 'lifetime' for the mower.
Pretty sure that was a different grease as well but is still available. As 'Lifetime' probably meant 1995, I would strip the gearbox down
Looks in reasonable condition for $40. I had one some where but haven't seen it now for a few years ,from memory I had 10 self propelled Victa mowers but have just scrapped a couple of Power Plus self drive mowers and a lot more VC mowers are going, at least that will be another 60 mowers out of here.
The grease spec for the gearbox is on this link https://www.outdoorking-forum.com.au/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/63421/Re:_Victa_self_propelled_gearb.html
General purpose automotive NLGI#2 lithium 'chassis grease' will be fine. Use a moly [MoS2] enhanced grade if you like, but it's probably not necessary.
G'day wce, Mf and Tyler I had one some where but haven't seen it now for a few years ,from memory I had 10 self propelled Victa mowers but have just scrapped a couple of Power Plus self drive mowers and a lot more VC mowers are going, at least that will be another 60 mowers out of here.
Cheers Max.
Selling whole, parting and selling parts, getting scrap value or simply disposing of them at the local tip?
Ahh, if only victa had kept producing the thumblatch catcher series, they would be in better shape today!
Norm you must be looking for mowers in the wrong spot ,I was picking up 40 a day for free ,there was a lot of country tips that were just a hole in the ground ,then when full they would bury the lot and dig the next hole but I haven't looked at those places for decades .
A lot of these mowers were $10. trade ins or people just gave them away when buying another mower.
Mf ,I've scrapped those mowers in the pics ,so now fifty alloy bases are going to be sold for alloy (47 Victa bases) ,then the left over steel is scrap metal and I don't sell parts , the left overs will be used for other projects and then I give Norm the Victa steel bases if he wants them but the steel bases are starting to pile up and I may have another 20 to drag out.
The only seventies Victa rear discharge mowers I'm thinking of keeping are the Mayfair mowers but not sure as I probably have 10 to 20 of them.
Tyler, I thought you would have grabbed that one but your will power is superior to mine
Yeah, sure willpower ... I didn't even see it haha.
Was it on gumtree?
That being said, I do't have a great like for SP rotary mowers - I find it gets in my way more than it helps due to lawn design. Long straight lawns it is nice
