OutdoorKing Repair Forum Forums Restoring, Customising and Modifying Ride-On Mowers Project X - The Greenfield Experiment

Hi Members!

Id like to start a thread on my Greenfield/s project that i am about to embark on. This project will not be for everyone but in saying this, i hope to spark some interest, some discussion and have a few laughs along the way.

I like to think of myself as fairly handy. I love problems as much as i love to research answers. I am fairly mechanically minded, auto electrically (if this is even a word) minded. I own and can use most tools. My father is a qualified spray painter, so i have a little knowledge of painting. I can bluff my way through mig and arc welding and i have a very patient and somewhat relaxed approach to most tasks. This build is going to use all of the above skills, plus hopefully teach me more.

With that out the way, Id like to introduce you to:



For the past few months I'd been watching YouTube videos, reading articles and just hitting Google on modified ride-ons and the likes. After deciding i wanted to start a project i was on the look out for a suitable starting point.

I was now on the look out for something manufactured early-ish, something with little to no plastics and most importantly something with a good shape to it.

Whilst searching the beloved Facebook Marketplace, I come across the first lady.

An Greenfield 89' Anniversary model.

I'd have to say 99% complete and to the novice eye, in fairly good, used but original condition.

With a few messages back and forth, I'd agree'd on and purchased the first lady for the grand sum of $50



Fast forward two days, with the first lady in her new home, i was on a trip with my father to collect a few push mowers he had purchased online for parts and re-sale. We drove past what looked to be a small-ish retirement/over 50's style complex.
Immaculate lawns and gardens. Front and centre was, to my amazement, another anniversary model Greenfield. With a few bins, garden tools and the likes close by this gem had just completed its routine mow.

Fast forward again, this time about 3 hrs on the return trip, passing the same complex, all had been tidied up, with the Greenfield still standing proud on the nature strip.
I pulled over to see approx 6 to 8 gentlemen having a bbq and a laugh. After approaching them to have a chat about the greenfield i was soon told that it had just been replaced by a new turbo diesel ride on and its days at the complex had come to an end.
Grabbing for my wallet, i was ushered to put it away and the offer to take the Greenfield was given to me. Free. No charge.

I happily accepted and was even assisted to lift it into the trailer. I was amazed at what has just happened, not to mention the further comments made:

"Sorry it's only got half a tank of fuel left" and "The elec start is temperamental, but it will always fire second or third pull"

With that said, I'd come home with Miss 88' A complete, functional Greenfield that was used right up the day i took ownership of her.

It also is in great used, and what i think to be, original condition.



Two complete Anniversary models for $50 total.

Id also decided to grab an older Tractor model. Complete less engine. Found on Gumtree the owner wanted $70, after a quick run down on purchasing a complete running unit for $50, he said make an offer, we settled on $25. Too good to pass up.

The older step sister.




Project X - The Vision

What i have in mind for the ladies. Given i have two complete anniversary's i think it is only fitting one is restored to former glory. The other, being undecided on the older step sister or Miss 88' is going to be the starting point for Project X.

Project X - A fully restored Greenfield. New paint, decals, seat. Every nut, bolt and bracket replaced or painted. A Greenfield that looks to have just rolled off the factory floor.

But

Powered by a 250 - 400cc Road bike engine.

I plan to buy a complete dropped/stat write off road bike, somewhere in the capacity of 250 to 400cc. Use the engine, harness, brake lines etc etc.

I want this to look as factory as possible with subtle indications that....Something aint quite right here.

I want to be pushed mechanically, i want to find my limits of my limited engineering knowledge and then learn more. I want to build something different.

Anyways...

That should be enough of a build intro, by now you are either hooked and want to see more, Cursing me under your breath for what i am about to embark on or fast asleep at your keyboard lol



Thanks for reading this far, i hope everyone is having a great weekend so far. More pics and a start to come in the next day or two.

- Blended.

Wayne I am gobsmacked that you got those for that sort of coin and in such good condition. I have only ever got a Greenie for free once, still sitting here, but with a blown motor and nowhere in as good condition as what you have there, good score, I'm impressed..
Now with the Tractor do you plan on still being able to use it as a mower or just as a toy/play thing? Next I'm interested to know your thoughts on getting the drive from the output sprocket which is vertical to a horizontal pulley in a very small amount of room. I'm assuming you want the motor north south which means the bonnet would need a lot of extending as will the chassis. Anyway good luck I will watch with anticipation.

Definitely right place, right time on both Norm!

The plans on the project are to have it look as original as possible. Paint, decals etc. This one however will not be a functioning mower.

With a few days off leading into the long weekend, i was finally able to have a few minutes to start collecting my thoughts and ideas on my project.

As i was pondering, i soon realized that there is lots to consider for this. Ive had a lot of ideas, but still lots that will need some deep thought...

Steering..

Drive train..

Controls..

Brakes..

Ive started hunting for a motorcycle for my donor, have come across a Kawasaki GPX 250 which i'll be looking at over the weekend. Complete and running, cosmetic damage and no registration. Exactly what i was after, just a few CC's less than what i had hoped for.



Today I've removed (almost) all the body panels from Miss 88' degreased and pressure cleaned. Was a good few hours removing 30 odd years of grass in places you couldn't normally reach.

Got her relatively clean.

Also photographed and documented all the decals and locations for future reference.

Hi Wayne , steering on these is always an issue, the linkage setup is a bit primitive and the fact both rear wheels drive at once means tight turns are a problem. As for the bike motor I assume you are not planning on using it with a cutting deck and running the drive by chain to the rear axle?
250cc should have plenty of power because you can use the gearbox as opposed to the direct drive of the original design, just think ATV's they don't have big motors

Thanks for the great reply Norm, you always bring something to the conversation.

Deck will still be fitted, it will not be functional as i am thinking i will mount the exhaust/muffler under the deck. This can possibly hide it from view, just thinking it may be loud mounted there though?

Correct on the chain to the rear axle. Again, some thought needs to be put into this, i am unsure if it will be one chain or if i will need a intermediate shaft then second chain to the rear axle. Thoughts based on distance and possibly chain angles.

Yes, i want to fit a motorcycle engine to a ride on but i am in no way building this for power or speed.

Wayne, another thing to keep in mind while working things out is fitting a brake. I fitted a disc brake to a Greenie a few years ago, took a bit of work but it worked well. Not sure how it was going to handle working in that environment but as I haven't heard back from the owner so I assume it is still working ok

Not a lot of progress the past few days, still on the hunt for a suitable donor bike.

Thought id start striping it down ready, first course of action. Pressure clean.

Overall, it's in pretty good condition. A great starting point.

Question: Were there any tractor models similar to this that didn't house the battery around vital organs?

I'm sure ive seen one with a different console panel?

As you can tell by now......I like pictures

Hi Blended, I think that the battery position is what defines the Tractor, one of the ways I can pick a Tractor from a distance, Anniversarys as you know the battery went to the back. Batteries have moved on a million miles these days and they are much smaller and have big cca's as you would know from the motorbikes so they are much easier to find somewhere to mount it

Hi Norm,

Thanks for the reply! Very true on the battery evolution. I just figured, ending up with potentially 28 odd HP I'd feel much more comfortable with the battery safely hidden elsewhere (if you follow me)

I'm wondering if Greenfield did a non elec start option? Pic below for reference.

I would imagine you could mount the battery in the rear much the same position as the Anniversaries, should be the same amount of room in there

Spot on Norm, and as mentioned above, with the advances in batteries these days i could even opt for something in the Gel range which, from my understanding, can even be mounted on its side.

It was more so the console panel/body work to which i was talking about. Id like to source a console panel as pictured above to eliminate the battery cut out.

Just cut a sheetmetal panel to cover it, you are obviously going to be doing other modifications to the bodywork to fit over the motor and once painted you will never notice it. The glass matt batteries are the best, we had problems with the gell batteries in the motorbikes but I think the problems were caused by the way the alternators were charging. Yes I have fitted those on the side and no problems, always wanted to try one upside down but never had the need to do it. They say they will work anyway up

To answer you're question Blended, Yes it was a factory option with no battery, but they are really quite rare these days as it was only the very early models that had it. it would be a fair bit easier to fab up a cover for the hole, you would then have a nice place for something like a fuel tank.

Many thanks for the feedback nath!

Another right place, right time find.

Blended, I too find that mowers multiply quickly - the hard bit is hiding them

regards
Tyler

I agree mate, just when you think "yeah that's enough for the moment" something else pops up that's too good to turn down.

This one cost me an hour of my time, fitting a new starter motor to a yardbug.

I also got another ride on (make unknown) approx 40% complete plus a few other Greenfield parts for my troubles.

I agree, 'enough for the moment' thoughts don't last too long.

I have lost count of how many times I have literally picked up a mower and run it around the back in one hell of a hurry. Pains in the bung left shoulder and leg are preferable to another mower being found haha

Bit hard with a ride on though

Take care mate

Tyler

Evening members,

Picked up this little ride on today, purchased for the grand sum of $30 purely for the rear axle assy.

I am hoping i am not incorrect in saying that this ride on (possibly an MTD thanks to Maxwestern) runs a gearbox and a differential?

I was looking for ways to eliminate the solid rear axle (for obvious reasons) and this came up. Hopefully not a waste?



And the rear assembly i based my $30 purchase on?

It also had a caliper setup running direct on the rear sprocket that i will try to also use.

Hi Blended, that is a much better set up that the Greenfield rear end.

Thanks Norm!

I really need to get a accurate i.d on the blue mower so i can rebuild this axle assembly with any new components required (Bearings/seals etc)

This should also hopefully reduce my turning circle down from 3 football fields to just a few metres lol

Hi all

A few pics from Gumtree ,showing some modifications to this type of MTD ride on mower.

Cheers
Max.

Morning Blended,

Can't help a lot with the ID of you blue one, its old and american, I'm thinking bolens or simplicity or something along those lines, I'm actually surprised by the chain drive, most of that style mower were trans axle driven.

However it looks like its possibly a peerless diff, which is pretty common and if it needs bearings or seals I reckon you should be fine to just go generic and get them from a bearing place. I doubt you would get oem parts for something that old and american here in Aus.

It will help a bit with the turning but most of that is the lack of steering lock the greenfield's were capable of, a few mods in the steering department will go a long way too.

Ah found it, I thought it looked familiar, Its a Victa!

Sort of.. They were imported from the states and slapped a sticker on, parts are non existent

Should have a handy little peerless 5 speed box under the covers, they were common on the old ranchers, ranger xc's and heaps of others

Many thanks Max and Nath for the replies and info.

Max, there seems to be a bit of thought put into that one youve posted from Gumtree, although the execution seems to be a bit lacking. Lots of short cuts taken by the looks.

I dare say it'd be fun to ride though.

nath, thanks mate for the info! The steering comment was a bit of a "tongue in cheek" comment. The last tractor i picked up already either has the steering modified OR was improved from the factory? It looks to be factory. Ill post pics up later.

I also removed the gearbox (with no intention of using it) i thought it would be handy to keep. Not sure if it is a sought after part but it looks to be in great condition.

Thanks gents for the comments.

With today being my first weekend in months that i didn't have to work, i found myself busier than normal? I did manage a few hours in the shed though.

With the Tractor i recently picked up, it was time to pressure clean the creepy crawly's out and start to strip it down.

I was really impressed in the overall condition of the chassis. It didn't show the usual dents, bent bits and wear that others ive looked at have.

To my surprise, the usual steering mod had already been completed. Bonus.

The deck was in excellent condition and everything just looks solid. A great base and starting point for the ProjectX monster.

First task is to fit the MTD rear axle assembly. Something i think maybe a little more difficult than first thought, but not impossible.
Once this is setup, the front end will be tackled with new spindles and steering set up. I will make the spindles much like go-cart spindles, but will be based measurement wise around how the rear end sits.

Happy to make a start, albeit a small one. Progress is progress.

Progress is progress, no matter how small..

Grabbed some 50x25 today to extend the chassis by 100mm, just need to do some cutting and then some welding.

Had a helper tonight for a bit, this is what it's all about!

Hi Blended, looks good but it is not good to involve your daughter in this terrible obsession, who know where it could lead to

I think of it more as a disease myself.
Somehow, I don't think she's going to have time for trifling stuff like dolls and dress ups lol.

Evening ODK members!

Work and family life has slowed down the progress on the project somewhat. This weekend i should be able to get a few things done.

I've started stripping the rear axle assembly, 30 odd years has this thing stuck firm together. A lot of penatrine, soaking time and also heat seen a start to disassembly. Will post some more pics of it broken down soon.

Also..I've decided to run a twin rather than a 4cyl. This is mainly due to physical size. The twin will still see the old square peg, round hole type issues BUT i feel this will better suit my end result better anyway.

That or opt for a late model, single cylinder, elec start engine. Ninja or CB250.

I've currently decided on a Hyosung engine, twin configuration, elec start etc. These also seem affordable and readily available with complete running bikes being under $1000. Exactly what i need.

I managed to pick this one up for $15, not a go'er but perfect to use for making the required mountings and initial install etc.

Chassis extension and rear axle set up is first priority and that will be tackled this weekend. Also a general chassis tidy up, removing any unwanted brackets and tabs etc, flapper disc and primer in required spots etc etc.

I'm also now on the hunt for another reasonably priced tractor for parts. Mainly body panels, alloy nose cone etc.