> The pointy front will move pinecones and small sticks out of
> the way. The front can be tapered from tip to top to facilitate
> getting under low branches etc. Actually a cow catcher type
> attatchment will work as well, but solid less likely to tangle.
[snip]
>
> pick up trash in ditch and dispose of it.
>
> pick up pine cones and sticks and put somewhere.
>
I like your idea of a pointy front end, but it doesn't allow close cutting
in a corner. Might another way exist of sweeping pinecones and sticks
out of the way reliably that wouldn't take as much frontal room?
I'd also like to put in a vote for some type of mechanism which can also
chew through pinecones and sticks. That's what I do with my current
lawnmower :-)
Finally, has anyone heard of a small, quiet, gasoline-powered generator?
Gasoline has an energy density hundreds of times that of batteries. A
yard the size described by Mr. Autry would take a significant amount of
energy.
Here's a data point. I bought a Ryobi self-propelled electric lawnmower.
It has a 24V sealed lead-acid battery the size of a standard car battery.
It can do a small suburban yard (about 1/4 acre) before it needs
recharging all night.
To do more than this, we need a higher energy density. Electric vehicle
research may produce something soon, like the new Horizon battery, but
it's still years off. Meanwhile, it's gasoline. I had heard that the
two-cycle model engines for boats were pretty quiet, if they could be made
really quiet and hooked to a generator you'd have energy density to spare.
And if the motor were designed for one constant speed, it's efficiency
could be increased.
Comments?
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