Travels with Terry

Electric mower lift

This 1989 Foley reel grinder came with a manual, crank-type lifting mechanism that was replaced with an electric winch lifting system designed and built in-house by Joe Corsetti, equipment manager, at the Members Club at Grande Dunes in Myrtle Beach, S.C. He bolted to the concrete floor a 7 ½ -foot-tall, 4-inch x 4-inch x ¼-inch thick square structural-steel tubing stand, with a 5-inch x 5-inch base with four gussets. A shaft and bearing from a “retired” fairway blower was bolted to two steel plates measuring 12 inches x 8 ½ inches x 1⁄4-inch thick and 7 ½ inches x 8 ½ inches x ¼ inch thick, respectively, were welded to the top of the stand. A 4-foot -1½-inch ID pipe ¼ inch thick was bolted to the shaft/bearing that was bent 90 degrees and a Chicago Electric Power Tool winch ($100 item #40765 from Northern Tool) was mounted to the end of the pipe. This winch is electrically powered up and down with a handheld tethered up-and-down switch, which has a 440-pound-rated capacity, where the entire lift mechanism is rated at 300-pounds capacity. The stand and other steel cost about $100 and it took about five hours to design, fabricate and build.

Easy cart path edging cleanup

The Members Club at Grande Dunes in Myrtle Beach, S.C., staff edges the concrete cart paths frequently and this 2005 Little Wonder high-output push blower mounted to the front of a John Deere Turf Gator has eliminated most hand-cleanup blower work. The pneumatic tires are removed, the push handle is bolted on backwards for easy throttle access by the operator and the solid-rubber front wheel now swivels with the use of a “retired” mower deck caster wheel and the wheel frame is modified stronger. The Turf Gator has a receiver hitch built into the front and a special bracket was built using 5⁄8-inch ID “black” pipe with two Zerk grease fittings welded to the 1-inch x 3⁄16-inch square tubing that slides into the receiver with a hitch pin to hold it in place. One-inch x 3⁄16-inch thick flat stock was bolted to the blower handle frame with two 5⁄8-inch ID “black” pipes welded in place also with two grease fittings. A 5⁄8-inch diameter solid-steel rod that slides into the “black” pipe holds the two brackets together with lynch pins. Two 3⁄8-inch diameter chain links 12 inches long are bolted on the Turf Gator frame on either side of the blower and the other end of each chain is placed over a bolt on each side of the blower frame to hold the blower off the ground during transport. About $20 was spent for materials and the rest was in stock. It took Joe Corsetti, Members Club's equipment manager, about five hours to design, fabricate and build.