250 mile trip on Lawn Mowers!?!?!

Hey guys I was lust letting you know that Craftsman1998 and I are planning on doing a trip across Goshen County, Wyoming in the up coming years to help give back to who ever needs it. Haven't decided what organization yet but we will let you guys know!

Info will come later because school starts tomarrow. August 25, 2014.

Welcome to the club! School starts tomorrow for me aswell!

If you were to do this you have to think about a few things such as

-Where you would sleep?
-How would you keep your mower locked up while you are asleep?
-Is your trans a good trans or will it blow?
-How would you take to the highway on a mower?
-Do you have enough bail money?
-If your mower runs at 10mph you would take 25 hours to arrive.
Also run a few tests

-How long your mower can run at a time (My mower would run for about an hour then just die and had to cool down)


If you did it, It would be something pretty cool you could say you did. But I see alot of issues since most mowers are not built to drive 250 miles. The most I did was ride my mower 1mile to the walgreens.

ThatOneTeen wrote:

Welcome to the club! School starts tomorrow for me aswell!

If you were to do this you have to think about a few things such as

-Where you would sleep?
-How would you keep your mower locked up while you are asleep?
-Is your trans a good trans or will it blow?
-How would you take to the highway on a mower?
-Do you have enough bail money?
-If your mower runs at 10mph you would take 25 hours to arrive.
Also run a few tests

-How long your mower can run at a time (My mower would run for about an hour then just die and had to cool down)


If you did it, It would be something pretty cool you could say you did. But I see alot of issues since most mowers are not built to drive 250 miles. The most I did was ride my mower 1mile to the walgreens.

1 . I've allready planned on most o these things. my trans is a Perless 820 that IS NOT up to the task at hand at the moment, (Broken bottom case)
2. there are hotels along the whole route.
3. chain and a good pole.
4. In the state of WY you can get your (Tractors) registerd as a OHV (Off-Highway Vheicle) then since its got a VIN from the OHV class you can get Motorcycle plates for it after the normal things Motorcycles got.
5. these tractors are not stock rigs. LOL

The opposed motor on my tractor is a strong runner and I've got no worries about it.
the only thing to worry about is tires atm

Look up the movie "the straight story" guy took a John deere 110 from Iowa to Wisconsin was a long trip but it's a good movie to see what he experienced in his trip. No making fun of the title.

Ariens YT11 wrote:

ThatOneTeen wrote:

Welcome to the club! School starts tomorrow for me aswell!

If you were to do this you have to think about a few things such as

-Where you would sleep?
-How would you keep your mower locked up while you are asleep?
-Is your trans a good trans or will it blow?
-How would you take to the highway on a mower?
-Do you have enough bail money?
-If your mower runs at 10mph you would take 25 hours to arrive.
Also run a few tests

-How long your mower can run at a time (My mower would run for about an hour then just die and had to cool down)


If you did it, It would be something pretty cool you could say you did. But I see alot of issues since most mowers are not built to drive 250 miles. The most I did was ride my mower 1mile to the walgreens.

1 . I've allready planned on most o these things. my trans is a Perless 820 that IS NOT up to the task at hand at the moment, (Broken bottom case)
2. there are hotels along the whole route.
3. chain and a good pole.
4. In the state of WY you can get your (Tractors) registerd as a OHV (Off-Highway Vheicle) then since its got a VIN from the OHV class you can get Motorcycle plates for it after the normal things Motorcycles got.
5. these tractors are not stock rigs. LOL

The opposed motor on my tractor is a strong runner and I've got no worries about it.
the only thing to worry about is tires atm

Dang! I wish Illinois would look at a tractor as a vehicle!

LOL, the deal why we are planning on doing this is like how many fundrasers pop up. doing something small and moving up, and also you don't allways see (Tractors) being used in this manner for several reasons. they arn't made to do this.

ThatOneTeen wrote:

-Where you would sleep?

On your mower!

ThatOneTeen wrote:

-How would you keep your mower locked up while you are asleep?

If a guy manages to steal my machine while I'm sleeping on it, he deserves it. I don't. LOL

ThatOneTeen wrote:

-Is your trans a good trans or will it blow?

If it blows on a simple ride, it sucked anyways.

ThatOneTeen wrote:

-How would you take to the highway on a mower?

Same as always. Down the on ramp, accelerate to 75MPH, and merge. What?

ThatOneTeen wrote:

-Do you have enough bail money?

F U N D R A I S E R.  

ThatOneTeen wrote:

-If your mower runs at 10mph you would take 25 hours to arrive.

1)Stay off the highway 2)Only if you don't sleep. Then, theft really isn't an issue...

ThatOneTeen wrote:

-How long your mower can run at a time (My mower would run for about an hour then just die and had to cool down)

Might wanna get that fixed. I'd have to shut mine down only if I came due for an oil change... And I probably would. LOL

ThatOneTeen wrote:

If you did it, It would be something pretty cool you could say you did. But I see alot of issues since most mowers are not built to drive 250 miles. The most I did was ride my mower 1mile to the walgreens.

It WOULD be cool. I'm just having fun with the idea. Honestly, as long as it's in decent shape, it should have no problem doing it. Keep an eye on the oil, maybe bring some grease, no problem. These things are meant to go all day...

Doc Sprocket wrote:

ThatOneTeen wrote:

If you did it, It would be something pretty cool you could say you did. But I see alot of issues since most mowers are not built to drive 250 miles. The most I did was ride my mower 1mile to the walgreens.

It WOULD be cool. I'm just having fun with the idea. Honestly, as long as it's in decent shape, it should have no problem doing it. Keep an eye on the oil, maybe bring some grease, no problem. These things are meant to go all day...

Doc you hit the nail hard on that comment!!

Yep. I have no doubt that MULE (or any machine that I personally maintain, could make a 250 mile trip.

i would do it, i trust my stuff to last that long, i would like some "street" tires, rather than my mud tires tho, and ive got a small trailer that would be perfect for a cooler and gas( cooler for drinks, sandwich meat, chips, bread. a small tool box which would already be on the mower, with anything i could need to take apart and repari the mower, spare keyways, spare spark plug, just incase, and some other stuff that might be needed,)
i think the buggy would be perfect for something like this, its got the cab, head lights, a light bar, a roof, im debating on a windshield, if i want, i could have this thing inclosed, and that could be nice if it rains lol

oh, and something like this, i say keep a decent sized tarp with you

I'm thinking build up mowers specifically for the trip. Extra headlights, spare tire bolted on the hood, auxiliary fuel tank/custom ultra large capacity tank. Gearing and brakes of course. Need to bring tools, extra oil, GPS bolted on the dash. Wear one of those back pack things that have water in them. Of course a nifty paint job. Yep, would be neat. I don't see why regular turf tread tires wouldn't make it that far on pavement as long as they're not that modern cheap chinese rubber. And as long as the steering is aligned about right. Almost forgot, you could bring a spare ignition coil...

mr.modified wrote:

I'm thinking build up mowers specifically for the trip. Extra headlights, spare tire bolted on the hood, auxiliary fuel tank/custom ultra large capacity tank. Gearing and brakes of course. Need to bring tools, extra oil, GPS bolted on the dash. Wear one of those back pack things that have water in them. Of course a nifty paint job. Yep, would be neat. I don't see why regular turf tread tires wouldn't make it that far on pavement as long as they're not that modern cheap chinese rubber. And as long as the steering is aligned about right. Almost forgot, you could bring a spare ignition coil...

good pointt on the coil lol, and i think turfs would work, i just like having the bigger tires like ive run here recently, which is between 25 and 30" tall, they seem to ride smoother to me, also, i think a better seat would be a nice upgrade for this, im looking into a bucket seat out of a yota for the buggy,

richie thomas wrote:

mr.modified wrote:

I'm thinking build up mowers specifically for the trip. Extra headlights, spare tire bolted on the hood, auxiliary fuel tank/custom ultra large capacity tank. Gearing and brakes of course. Need to bring tools, extra oil, GPS bolted on the dash. Wear one of those back pack things that have water in them. Of course a nifty paint job. Yep, would be neat. I don't see why regular turf tread tires wouldn't make it that far on pavement as long as they're not that modern cheap chinese rubber. And as long as the steering is aligned about right. Almost forgot, you could bring a spare ignition coil...

good pointt on the coil lol, and i think turfs would work, i just like having the bigger tires like ive run here recently, which is between 25 and 30" tall, they seem to ride smoother to me, also, i think a better seat would be a nice upgrade for this, im looking into a bucket seat out of a yota for the buggy,

A spare ignition coil would be a must have but it would also be smart to outfit your mower with a pullstart so if all else fails you can start it.

Richie, I really would like to see some pictures of your buggy, I was looking into building a mower that could be used outside in the rain because who wants to ride a bike when its raining?

Thanks guys on the input, the build of the mower I'm doing is my Street rig Murray/Yard King.

Yeah guy thanks for the info the tractor i'm going to be using for the trip is my Craftsman lt 4000

This sounds like a great adventure, and I highly encourage you to do it (with excessive planning and preparation of course.)

Do lots of stuff like this when you're young, so you have something to fondly remember when you're old.

Lots of great suggestions in this thread, like a purpose made mower for the task. I'm trying to finish my first and you all have me thinking about a second already... :S

250 miles is a big county! Are all of the counties like that in Wyoming? Or in that that part of the country?

Keep us posted on you planning for this, as some of us might be silly enough to join you.

ThatOneTeen wrote:

richie thomas wrote:

mr.modified wrote:

I'm thinking build up mowers specifically for the trip. Extra headlights, spare tire bolted on the hood, auxiliary fuel tank/custom ultra large capacity tank. Gearing and brakes of course. Need to bring tools, extra oil, GPS bolted on the dash. Wear one of those back pack things that have water in them. Of course a nifty paint job. Yep, would be neat. I don't see why regular turf tread tires wouldn't make it that far on pavement as long as they're not that modern cheap chinese rubber. And as long as the steering is aligned about right. Almost forgot, you could bring a spare ignition coil...

good pointt on the coil lol, and i think turfs would work, i just like having the bigger tires like ive run here recently, which is between 25 and 30" tall, they seem to ride smoother to me, also, i think a better seat would be a nice upgrade for this, im looking into a bucket seat out of a yota for the buggy,

A spare ignition coil would be a must have but it would also be smart to outfit your mower with a pullstart so if all else fails you can start it.

Richie, I really would like to see some pictures of your buggy, I was looking into building a mower that could be used outside in the rain because who wants to ride a bike when its raining?

its in the contest build threads, im still workin on it, but funds are low lol

richie thomas wrote:

ThatOneTeen wrote:

richie thomas wrote:

mr.modified wrote:

I'm thinking build up mowers specifically for the trip. Extra headlights, spare tire bolted on the hood, auxiliary fuel tank/custom ultra large capacity tank. Gearing and brakes of course. Need to bring tools, extra oil, GPS bolted on the dash. Wear one of those back pack things that have water in them. Of course a nifty paint job. Yep, would be neat. I don't see why regular turf tread tires wouldn't make it that far on pavement as long as they're not that modern cheap chinese rubber. And as long as the steering is aligned about right. Almost forgot, you could bring a spare ignition coil...

good pointt on the coil lol, and i think turfs would work, i just like having the bigger tires like ive run here recently, which is between 25 and 30" tall, they seem to ride smoother to me, also, i think a better seat would be a nice upgrade for this, im looking into a bucket seat out of a yota for the buggy,

A spare ignition coil would be a must have but it would also be smart to outfit your mower with a pullstart so if all else fails you can start it.

Richie, I really would like to see some pictures of your buggy, I was looking into building a mower that could be used outside in the rain because who wants to ride a bike when its raining?

its in the contest build threads, im still workin on it, but funds are low lol

Welcome to my life

Thanks guys for all of the opinions being thrown out. I talked to the principle of the school I go to and he said he could help support the trip with the school, but only if its not a school project and if the trip is gonna be for WWP.org or another site like that.

Your Principal will help you out? that's Fantastic!

Im a little curious about why he wouldn't want you associated with the school in that way, but that's not important if you get that level of backing.

good job on that!

Multi million dollar sponsorship for the next trip after this one. The next one's gotta be like 500-1000 miles. Briggs and stratton will provide stickers and some nifty threads to wear I'm guessing, maybe a support vehicle... But seriously, the idea sounds pretty cool. Gonna lower these machines down a bit for better handling at slightly higher speeds?

if they will sponsor it, id build one and do the trip, would be awesome

Seems like were honestly into the idea, hell id do it, im all for it

RCTankboy wrote:

Your Principal will help you out? that's Fantastic!

Im a little curious about why he wouldn't want you associated with the school in that way, but that's not important if you get that level of backing.

good job on that!

The reasoning is because the districs safety policy with me being in school. when I do it. but if I could do it, it would be a senior project.