Mower Converted To "Snapper-Grader"

Mower Converted To "Snapper-Grader" AG WORLD 32-4-21 "It's not an industrial strength machine but it's a fun play toy," says Paul Ezra, Winamac, Ind., who converted an old Snapper riding mower into a scale model road grader. "It's painted Caterpillar yellow. I call it my Snapper-Grader," he says. He removed the 30-in. mower deck and replaced it with a 32-in. grader blade that he made from scratch. He lengthened the frame and mounted a pair of add-on "idler wheels" off another mower on back to make the rig look like it has tandem axles. He also used sheet metal to make a hood over the mower engine and replaced the mower's tricycle handle with a steering wheel. "I plan to drive it around at antique tractor shows. When I do I'm sure it'll get a lot of looks," says Ezra, who finished building the unit late last summer. "The add-on idler wheels on back don't do anything, but they make it look like the rig has 4-WD. The wheels mount on individual hangers so they can float with the ground. The machine still has its original shift lever. "To make the blade, I started with a single sheet of 3/16-in. thick steel and used a hydraulic press brake to bend it. The blade manually rotates on a center pin that mounts inside a pair of 1/4-in. thick steel plates placed back to back. I drilled a series of holes on the perimeter of the plates which I use to change the angle of the blade. The deck was originally raised and lowered by a pair of chains, which I replaced with turnbuckles." Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Paul Ezra, 9341 S. State Road 39, Winamac, Ind. 46996 (ph 574 278-7219).

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