Hayterette with Clinton engine

[vhgmcbuddy]

Hello

Back in the early 1980s a neighbour of mine had what I’m pretty sure was an early Hayterette rough cut mower powered by a red Clinton 4.5HP four-stroke engine. After a while I wondered why he had stopped using it, then after he passed away I found it in one of his sheds with a hole in the crankcase and a broken connecting rod.

I have never seen another Hayterette with a Clinton engine and wondered if anyone can provide some more information about this mower please, and maybe explain why it seems impossible to find another one. The main deck had a plain aluminium finish and wasn’t painted. It could be the mower was another make but if so it was exactly the same basic design as the Hayterette. I have only ever seen Hayterettes with Briggs and Stratton or Villiers 2-stroke engines; so far the Clinton-engined machine has proved to be a one-off.

Many thanks
Richard

[charlie]

Richard, have you tried contacting Hayter to see if they have any information? Like you I have not heard of a Clinton engine fitted to Hayter. Does the mower have any identifying marks? If you could post a photo it would help (see help and information section of forum for notes on adding photos).

[vhgmcbuddy]

Thanks for your reply Charlie. I haven’t contacted Hayter so will send them an email in the week. Unfortunately I don’t have the mower any more so am going from memory. Whilst I am 100% certain about the engine, and the fact the deck wasn’t painted, I cannot be sure the mower was a Hayterette. If it wasn’t then it must have been an equivalent rough cut model with four wheels and high inertia disc cutter from another manufacturer. I can clearly remember it taking a few seconds to speed up to full throttle, and slow down again, just like a Hayterette. I have never seen another rotary mower with a Clinton engine in this country which is why I would love to solve the mystery of what this mower was, and maybe find one if another one exists.

[wristpin]

The first Hayterette appeared in 1957 and had height adjustment that needed a spanner to move the wheels in slots cast into the deck. They could well have had Clinton engines as they were used by several OEMs such as Merrytiller and even Ransomes on the 16” Mercury . Clinton’s were imported and distributed by Trojan of Purley Way, Croydon who also supplied them to the early UK Karting scene.
As far as paint goes, it is possible that they were unpainted or perhaps just lost their paint early in life due to the then problems of getting the paint of the day to stick to aluminium. Something that, on a lesser scale, even now affects Hayter Harriers!

PS. Hayter finally stopped production of the Hayterette last year.

[charlie]

I have an early Hayterette with Villiers 7F two stroke engine and the deck is unpainted.

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