RE: (ET) Mower decks (was: E.T. membership)

["Elie, Larry \(L.D.\)" <lelie ford com>]

The ET's deck is stamped.  Yet several other companies built ones as big 
or bigger of spot welded sheet 
metal; there's a 48" Sears deck (ca 1969) of that type in my dad's barn.  
For a small run that's cheaper 
than stamping.  Design and location are the most important things.  I 
would love a bigger deck, as others 
have built.  There are several ways of doing it.  Fiberglass might not be 
the cheapest one, but it might 
be the quietest.

PS, does anyone know that Bill ever had a run of decks stamped?  Just 
curious....

Larry Elie


-----Original Message-----
From: elec-trak-bounces cosmos phy tufts edu
[mailto:elec-trak-bounces cosmos phy tufts edu]On Behalf Of Chris
Tromley
Sent: Thursday, June 10, 2004 4:56 PM
To: Elec-trak cosmos phy tufts edu
Subject: (ET) Mower decks (was: E.T. membership)


Keith Stieg wrote:

***************
The improvising has caused Bill to close his doors, Now we have to try
to open them up!  Buy sending the membership fee it's a chance that
might work. If not we can order new decks from YOU!
***************

Uh - Hmmmm?

As the new guy here I've stayed out of the
how-to-deal-with-Bill's-departure discussion.  I didn't know Bill had
the stamping dies for mower decks.  Not that anyone would want them,
mind you.  The setup cost involved with large stamped parts means you
need to make *lots* of them before they become affordable.  My take on
this is that those volumes will never happen again.

But who says a mower deck needs to be stamped steel?  I can pop a mold
off mine and produce fiberglass decks affordably.  I'm a mechanical
engineer, so I should be able to do a pretty good job of adapting them
for the new material, making them so they fit well, last well, etc.
They should even be easier to repair than a steel deck.  They wouldn't
be suitable for a restorer, but my tractor is a tool.

Is there a substantial demand for mower decks?  How many types are
there?  I can see keeping one of each in "stock" and available for sale,
not building another until there's a hole in my inventory.  That's a
cottage industry I could handle.  Expanding this concept, are there
others here who can produce critical parts?  With a little effort
identifying our needs and people who can fill them, we might find we're
not as bad off as we think.

Chris



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