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Collection, Preservation and Display of Old Lawn Mowers

Greens Zephyr Deluxe disassembly

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Hello All.

Has anyone managed to disassemble the rear roller assembly on a zephyr deluxe push 14"? ( the older model - cast aluminium with chevrons on the twin rollers. Villiers mechanism. )

I aquired it from a sharpening/grinding shop where it sat for 30 years - covered in a thick layer of fine black grit and dust - so it doesn't rotate well despite a good soaking in paraffin, etc. An unpleasent grinding noise is heard when it's turned so a strip and clean is the order of the day. I cannot find any reference to greens manuals or any exploded diagrams online so any advice would be most welcome.

PS:

Also, whilst i'm here, does anybody have a pair of the aluminium front roll supports for said mower. The front of mine have been ground away by somebody dragging the thing over concrete paths to move it, and the front of the two bars that go either side of the steel front roll just falls out.

thanks

 

Forums

sawfingers Wed, 08/06/2016

Here's a pic of the roller end with the villiers deluxe marked. Not too clear from the photo as it has to be resized to fit. 

That ring with the villiers words stamped on it comes off via a pin spanner and there are loose bearings, pawls and springs underneath. That is as far as I can get. I've made a tool to fit into those two little lugs either side of that central bush but I cannot move it. I must be missing something.

wristpin Wed, 08/06/2016

Ah, its a free wheel mechanism as used on a "push bike". One in each roller ???

A similar pair were used in the rear rollers of Hayter Harrier mowers about ten years ago and they were screwed to the shaft but they could be keyed to the shaft..

This is all guess work so treat it with caution. 

I'm guessing that in your application they are "handed " so as to transmit drive to the cutting cylinder when pushing forward while allowing the machine to be pulled back  easily. So if they are screwed to the shaft they will be handed so that the action of the rollers being transmitted to the shaft and sprocket? to drive the cylinder will be to tighten them onto the shaft so to unscrew them its necessary to go in the opposite direction  - one right hand thread and one left . Which is which will depend on whether the free wheels are mounted at the outer ends of the roller sections or in the middle between the two sections. However if they are keyed,they and the roller sections may just pull off the shaft.

Possibly a lot more obvious with the machine in front of one rather than a couple of images - albeit nice clear ones.

There must be someone one  in the Club who knows for certain how they come apart  - WHERE ARE THEY??

 

 

sawfingers Thu, 09/06/2016

Thanks for the thoughts.

The photo with the yellow arrow going across the central bush does have a hole in, and at the other end. There was a square headed bolt inserted in both ends which I presume was to hold the shaft centrally in place. I am very reluctant to have a blow or two on the end with a nylon mallet to see if it's just a burr on the shaft holding it there. I did an ajax before this and that is often what stops the shaft being removed from them. But the mix of aluminium gears and mild steel shaft on the ajax means you can usually get the gears of by some force if the retaining bolts have been over tightened and slipped off the flats and caused burrs on the shaft. This seems to be a different kettle of fish.