Thanks for allowing me access to your excellent forum.
I am the owner of the attached Scott Bonnar 17 inch Model 45 - but only just... I've owned it for precisely 1 week now.
Jumping in at the deep end with this baby, I'v never used a roller mower before, let alone owned one.
I am considering a full restore from the ground up, as I have learned that parts are still freely available for the 45.
I am not a mechanic but I do have an interest in mechanical things, so a restoration project like this will be a challenge but I am keen to learn and looking forward to getting stuck in.
I do hope to share discussions with like minded SB owners who have been through the same process. Hopefully there are a few of you out there...
I've always had the theory that anything worth doing needs to be done properly. That's what I was taught as a young lad.
I've had well established kikuyu lawns for well over 20 years and whilst my Honda 4 stroke mower does a reasonable job, I tend to believe that rotary mowers tend to slash at the blades of grass rather than cut it properly like a roller mower does. The tips of my lawn tend to look jagged instead of neatly cut. My lawn is fairly soft and it tends suffer from scuffing caused by the rotary plate as well as wheel marks made by the rotary mower.
My front lawn slopes gently from the house down to the road. The slope has been another factor in why I thought roller mowers would not be suitable for my lawn.
My neighbour got in my ear a while ago about he believes roller mowers are no good for kikuyu lawns. So I did some research and found that kikuyu lawns mowed with a rotary first and then manicured with a roller mower afterwards look magnificent - much better than mine even though I scarify every year.
I guess my interest in roller mowers comes from wanting to improve on what is an already reasonably decent lawn. I always mow my lawn sideways, working my way up the slope while keeping parallel to the road, with an occasional diagonal cut every now and then.
What I found recently has proven that a kikuyu lawn can be improved further with the use of a roller mower.
Now that I own a SB 45, I believe that the mower will have a new lease of life after a total restore from the ground up. I will probably change the engine - it is a rough looking Tecumseh and fuel leaks from carburetor float bowl. I'm looking at swapping the engine with a brand new Briggs & Stratton 3.5HP enigne, as well as changing the 6 blade reel and upgrading the sprockets and chains. I also intend to take the chassis back to bare metal before repainting ( not powder coating ) and get all the shiny bits re-chromed.
So while I have the motivation I am very much a learner as I've never done anything like this before. I am more than happy to learn as I go and this forum is an ideal place to pick up all sorts of useful information as I begin my restoration project.
