PAUL, STEVE, - After years, about 15-16 years of pulling around a 32 inch Parker lawn sweeper, SON finally got his wish, he pulled it with his 129, it fell apart, The light pipe frame fatigued and fell apart. I'd been looking for a vacuum unit for several years, found a couple, the one at Statz was sold minutes after it entered their yard, mechanic bought it. Dad saw a CC with a vac unit parked along US Rt 6 just west of Ill. Rt 84. Guy would NOT split up tractor and vac, had to take both, I should have bought it and sold the tractor. So about 1998 I started gathering parts, a K-161 from an Original Dad had, bought 500# of various sizes of steel, bought a 3.50x4 wheel/tire, two 4-bolt face mount bearing flanges, and built a vac similar to one Trac-Vac made. The blower and engine is on it's own frame semi-mounted, blower is 16 inch diameter by 6 inch wide 4-blade impeller, hub is solid 6 inch steel round bar with 1 inch hole bored and 3/16" keyway broached. Some government jobs went thru the machine shop at work on that hub. The sides & top on my cart are all steel, about 14 ga IIRC. I used aluminum expanded metal from our old satellite TV dish for vents top and front, my cart is a bit smaller than Steve's, 42 inch long x 32 inch wide by 36 inch tall. I've made 2-3 major revisions to the blower. IF I had it to do again, I would make the blower larger in diameter, about 20, maybe 22 inches, use 8 inch hoses and increase the size of the chute on the discharge of the mower, blower inlet and outlet. I used hose similar to Steve at first, spiral wound smooth bore opaque vinyl with a high tensile wire wound into the vinyl, it lasted about 2 years. I've used non-perforated black plastic drainage tile since then, the corrigations make no difference and it holds up better, but I can still throw an acorn thru it occasionally. I know Wyatt posted pic's here of my setup.
Wyatt came out one Sunday when I was vacuuming, He had his Gator's on the deck on his 169. I'd vacuumed all day Saturday and on Sunday vacuuming where Wyatt mowed the amount of leaves I picked up was reduced by about a third, maybe close to half. There was a huge cloud of dust surrounding Wyatt and his 169, pulverized leaves!
The last time I vaccumed I started about Noon, maybe 1 PM on a Mental Health Friday. Son got home from work about 4:00, Wife about 5:00, Son left to hang with friends about 6, got home about 11-12 Midnight. I'm still out vacuuming a load of clippings and leaves about every 15 minutes. No stops for a bite to eat, an occasional beverage and gas stop for tractor and vac, Finally done about 2 AM Saturday morning. Saturmday afternoon I took the vac off and hooked up the aerator. Sunday I aerated the yard twice, once N&S, once E&W. When I was done Sunday I had put 25 hours on the 72. Pulling that vac was a REAL load for the K-241 in that #72. I did vacuum once or twice with the K-321 in the #72, The extra HP really helps.
If I tried to put a vac on my TANK, I'd have to use my BIG Pronovost P-503 cart. I'd fill my little cart in 4-5 minutes. And I'm not sure 8 inch hoses would be big enough. The BIG Maple trees are even bigger now, so more leaves, I just mulch them now. Last time I vacuumed I lost track of how many loads after 25. With the bigger trees I bet there would be 35-40 loads now.
