[dorigny]

The Cultivator arrived all ok today.

Many Thanks,

C.

[dorigny]

Oops.!..I got the renewal reminder note. 😉 Hopefully all addressed ok now, with payment sent. The months wander by and amongst renewing other subscriptions at the turn of the year, I had somehow missed this one.

Thank you,

C.

[dorigny]

I have a low-ish serial number model 306 Harrier 41 autodrive and that I believe to be 1989.
Mine has the finger trigger height adjuster not a screw type as on the machine in photo. It does though have the same engine. No OPC, which I believe was reqd by 1995.

I also have a Harrier 48 from 1987, which has the height adjuster similar in operation to the type on the machine in photo and has lost its adjusting knob, the same, leaving just a hexagon.. The rear flap is of the same style as my 1987 48cm mower, with the triangular ends overhanging the chassis side.

So I will have a stab at 1987/88..unless, as suggested, a model has been assembled at another time to suit a “Shed” price, but still pre 1995.

C.

[dorigny]

My thought was based on my thinking that the existing short belt was tightened into drive by its rear pulley being drawn back which thus also puts the “fibre” wheel into drive within the large gearbox pulley.

..and then, for forward motion, another belt, missing?, provided the alternative drive from engine pulley to around the large pulley, brought into drive by the control cable pulled lifting of a conventional jockey pulley, like on, for instance, a merry tiller rotavator.

Is there an unused pulley V on the engine pulley? As that would be reqd for my theory.

As I say just a thought, as my only actual Clearway experience was with Hydrostatic HS30 from 1974 onwards.. have only seen parts list and manual for hydrostat too.

C.

[dorigny]

Is there another belt missing. ? that gives forward drive via the large rear pulley. Is there a jockey pulley just visible low down in image 2.?
I’m thinking that at the moment it is operating with fibre wheel into the rear pulley in the same way as the reverse, Back Out, function of older Merry Tiller operated.

I was aware of a mechanical drive Clearway pre the Hydrostat HS30 but other than a couple of online photos I haven’t seen one, as in to work on.

One image online shows I believe a Kohler engine on a mechanical drive one.

C.

[dorigny]

I’m thinking that this one is pre the HS30 as there was I believe a mechanical drive earlier version…but then I’ve never actually seen a mechanical one. I suspect the engine is a much more recent swap.

C.

[dorigny]

Lovely to see the photos.
The showroom one is reminiscent of my arrival into the garden machinery world 1980/81..as that looks to be a Honda F400 tiller on the right.? My employer was both Mountfield and Honda agent. One of my YTS jobs was to assemble F400 from the pallets that they arrived on (needing final assembly). Two packed to a pallet with parts in bags and boxes numbered for the machine they applied to.
One such machine I built up I then went on to deliver to the very garden that I was later to be employed in..for the last 28+years. So ended up using and repairing the tiller until it was replaced 2 years ago and now rests in a shed…

C.

[dorigny]

I had to do a brushcutter and trimmer course to keep up with compliance at work.. Nylon line trimmer, not a strimmer 😉 as I understand that Strimmer is a trademark..however, Nylon isn’t 🙂

C.

[dorigny]

Here’s some photos scanned from the Ensign sales literature of the day…includes views of the grassbox 😉 🙂

C.

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[dorigny]

The 720H, think it was really 723H ?? with H for Honda engine. It was a bit of trouble early on, had a few problems which related to slighty poor manufacture/assembly/simplification over early versions. Mostly related to set and position of belt guides which I then got the measure of, thence ok The full surrounding guide around transmission belts would not sit right without some fettling of the mounting holes…
We had a piece of rubber belting added to the back of the cutting deck to try to stop it chucking debris into the drive under tray…but then went the opposite way and removed the centre sheet steel of the under tray..allowing anything that went in to that area to drop free rather than build up there….then it did a huge amount of mowing over a lot of years inc very long, after spring bulbs, grass too. Now replaced with two wheel tractor with flail head and 32″ mulch deck.

TD1801 looked the Renault 4 of the mower world..but again let down a bit by build..height abjuster mods needed and a tendancy to flex a little on its rear wheel mounts…also did a lot of work though…’til it chafed out blade mount…

C.

[dorigny]

Previously in the UK Dori (Dorigny) was with IPU, Industrial Power Units and also I seem to recall Hancox.?

At my work location we ran a Dori 720H 29″ rotary mower from 1995 up to 2013.

At various times when changes of UK support was in process we had difficulty with spares, in one instance despite measuring and also sending photos to the importer of the day I could not source the correct blade clutch cable…
Then by quirk of getting involved trying to help a Wolseley Clearway owner in France to source a part in UK I mentioned my Dori cable sourcing problem and she contacted her local garden machinery agent in the next town and there was one in stock…which she kindly posted over to me from France 🙂

Just to add that my posting name on here is Dorigny but I have no connection other than running a couple of Dori machines in my time.

The other mower was a now tired Dori TD1801H that requires blade mount adapter and third bearing engine mount ring to run…

C.

[dorigny]

This has made me think of a photo, maybe in a brochure or even IOG show booklet..can I heck as find it…!
Thinking maybe of the prof’ gangs once in the Atco range, were they yellow around the time of Wolseley Webb acquisition to match the rest of the prof range.??

C.

[dorigny]

Brilliant, really good to see a Clearway HS30 getting some restorative attention.

I used one up to 1995, it was a 1974 machine and would cut and discharge anything in its path. The hydrostat control meant you could instantly slow forward motion down to a crawl as the going got tough…and back out quickly too if needed. The deep deck meant it could clear what it cut. Had a few foibles…I understand the blade shaft was once broken…either an errant log left about or a stump… There was a Wolseley mod done early on in its career to the toothed belt tensioner pulley. It had had a new deck in its time and the height adjuster skid tube had had round bar inserted in and welded. It had done a huge amount of work but ended its days poorly in engine dept and we couldn’t justify spend on the engine, with another deck reqd and parts dwindling so it was replaced…or we tried to.!

I understand there was an earlier mechanical transmission version of Clearway, whilst I have seen photos of one, I haven’t actually set eyes on one.

By chance whilst talking to the Dori mower importer, can’t remember which one it was, think it must have been Hancox maybe, or IPU, when in the throws of organising a replacement machine I ended up talking to a guy who had previously worked at Wolseley Webb and had been involved with Clearway development..sadly it was a short chat as whichever Dori importer it was they had just learnt that they were no longer going to purvey their products.. He told me that the mudguards were added on HS30 to help in orchard work to ease passage past low branches…would have loved to chat further to him but it wasn’t to be…as I was a big Clearway supporter 🙂

C.

[dorigny]

…and here’s my set of Dinky gangs 🙂

C.

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[dorigny]

Chance find, spare Britains Atco Villiers engine found in Britains Barrow in dilapidated Britains Greenhouse 🙂

C.

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