OutdoorKing Repair Forum Forums Collectors Corner Cylinder HUDSON STAR - A Modern Greens Mower

Hello ODK members,

It's nice to know that quality still exists in this world.
This post is about an indulgence I made a couple of years ago.
I'm not likely to ever do this again.

I'm not a collector but I bought a mower and imported it from the USA.
It is called a Hudson Star Classic, a 16 inch push reel/roller mower.
[There is also an electric version called the Signature.]

It is a precision-made machine with design features echoing the famous Ransomes Certes.
This machine, made by the secretive Guardian Technology Group, pays homage to the
great reel/roller mowers of yesteryear. Here is the specification:-

- 16" Cut Width
- 3-4 Cuts Per Inch (minimum)
- 1/8" to 3/4" Infinite Cut Height Adjustment
- 11 Blade Computer Balanced Reel
- 1/8" Thick Matched Bed Knife
- Direct Drive to Reel
- 5 Position Handle Height Adjustment
- 6th Handle Position for Green Rolling and Transporting
- 12" Ribbed Urethane Coated Aluminum Rollers
- Differential Clutch Bearings in Drive Rollers



SPECIFICATION - Details:-
My machine is trimmed in Green and black (not green and grey, as shown above).
The photos below show the chain drive and back-lapping crank (supplied with machine).
Many components are in stainless steel and the reel is a real work of art.

The Hudson Star website is HERE .

Hi Jack,
Checked out the website and found the links to distributors and also the price.....I'm still picking myself up from the floor.....
Seriously though, what a fantastic machine that just shouts quality! The Rolls-Royce of push mower technology.

also the price.....I'm still picking myself up from the floor
$1199US + freight
Hi Darryl Jack does say 'indulgence' but look how it is made WOW
Ian

More from the USA
I like this one http://www.reelmowersetc.com/product/behind/Gold101.html
and some more at a better price http://www.reelmowersetc.com/category/reel-mower/RME1.html
Ian

Wow! That is a beautiful machine Jack, the whole mower is a work or art, not just the reel!

Hi Deejay, IanOZ, Rolla16v and ODK meembers,

Yep, it is a really nice precision machine.
So Ian, are you going to 'indulge' yourself with the one you like? :-
I've found the music to go with it HERE

Hi ODK members,

On a serious note, I have a question to ask.
This machine has a two piece rear roller with differential action (as all good roller mowers should have).
But how the differential action is achieved is unknown to me.

Here's the diagram:-


Traditionally, differential action on roller mowers was achieved by a pawl system.
Later, more expensive machines used planetary gearing.
Here, the differential is achieved by special bearings ( I think of the needle roller type).

I was wondering whether anyone can enlighten us on this method.

All very interesting.
---------------------------------------
JACK

I can't tell much from the diagram - the descriptions in the parts list might help - but my guess is that Parts 7 and 8 are the components of a sprag clutch. It is sometimes called an over-running clutch or a one-way clutch: it does the same thing as a pawl but is much smoother, and has almost zero backlash.

The over-running clutch approach is not as sophisticated as a differential, because where a differential drives both drum-halves with equal torque, an over-running clutch just drives whichever drum-half is rotating more slowly (that is, the one on the inside of the turn), and requires the operator to pull the handlebars sideways with enough force to cause the drum-half on the outside of the turn to rotate faster. It is OK on a small reel-mower, but not really adequate for a ride-on.

So Ian, are you going to 'indulge' yourself with the one you like? :-
Don't need one just yet, just looking ahead is case I do, hope not
'music to go with it'
Ian

Thanks Grumpy, that's exactly what it is -It makes sense now. The Hudson Star uses 4 sprag clutches.
Item 7 is the clutch/bearing holder; Item 8 is the clutch itself.
I guess these are like the 'freewheels' that Sturmey Archer and Villiers made for push bikes.

What is amazing - for me - is just how compact these clutches have become.


All very interesting.
----------------------------------
JACK

Jack, there is a sprag clutch inside the torque converter of every automatic transmission that has a torque converter. The converter multiplies the engine's torque by a factor of around 1.4 to 1.6, by bouncing oil off a stator, which provides the reaction torque to add to the engine's torque. As the car speed increases though you reach a point where a stator is ineffective - you can't bounce oil off a stationary object unless the oil is moving toward the stationary object, so the stator begins to rotate with the rest of the torque converter. However each time the car slows down, or at low speeds each time you stomp on the accelerator, the spinning stator has to stop suddenly and become a real stator again. To achieve this it is connected to a spline on the front of the auto transmission housing, by a sprag clutch. That allows the stator to spin, stop suddenly, deliver maximum torque, then smoothly start to spin again, completely imperceptibly as far as the vehicle occupants are concerned. Here is a more detailed explanation:
http://www.ultimateconverter.com/article.html

Hi Grumpy and ODK members,

Thank you again Grumpy, I have none of your extensive knowledge of 'the technical stuff'.
It is amazing what one learns in the scope of mower talk. What a clever little device is
the sprag clutch.

My 1950s J&P Super Mower has a sprag clutch (made by Villiers) on the sprocket connected to
the reel. This makes it easier to back-lap the reel (without turning the whole drive-train).

I guess, though, it's pretty uncommon to use these clutches in series to achieve differential
action in a landroll on a reel/roller mower.

I feel spragged after this discussion:
but rewarded.
---------------------------------------
JACK