[dave_r]

Sorry, what you posted is completely unrelated to the original posters question about manufacturers offering conversion kits for gas-powered mowers. It's just standard anti-EV rhetoric.

 

[contenderK]

So, trying to help Mark and get back on the OP comments........ I guess being 76 I tend to resist change.....After working for the same Customer Service company for 45 years I can offer that a new manager would come into the office and change all our everyday procedures and then the next manager would show up in 3-4 years later and change them back to what we had just left.

On the EV topic, I live in a small village of 5 to 6 hundred residents, all those still working travel a few miles to 150 miles each day. I will pop in with a personal comment at this point and say when I was working, sometimes I traveled 50-60 miles in a day, other days it might be 300 miles, I should also add it mite have been up to 24 hours a day. People will say take the bus, train, hi speed rail, well da.... it, most of the places I went didn't have any of those.

Most homes in my village have a Max of a 100 amp Hydro service. Some of my neighbours who are short mileage drivers have switched to EV cars but found they didn't have the supply on their panels to charge their cars in just a couple hours.

I am a battery guy, I spent as much time as possible off grid at a retreat 190 miles from my house.,1 way, Driving a 2500hd 6 litre pickup ( required because of the road conditions for the last 2 miles). How will I charge the battery to return to my home residence.

I use M power tools ,R power tools, all battery drivin, in fact I'm cordless tool poor, but I love them....

Another example but not related to just EV modes of transportation, the largest population I live near K/W Ontario have put in a electric go train, but it doesn't come within 10 miles of my village. So they want me to drive the 10 miles and get on the ION train to go to the other end of the city??? First off there is very little parking at either end of the tracks.

The experts say this was built for 40 years from now, well that is great, cause its no good to me.

Back on topic, I bought a M , 18volt chain saw last fall ,cause I have a number of their batteries.....this thing is absolutely awesome, can't believe what it will do, however back to my off grid property that I visit, a few years ago my son and I had to cut a path thru 19 trees on our bush trail in order to get him home for work a few days later, most being 14 to 16 " in dim, thank goodness I had my old Husky 61 with us.

So EV is coming, but things have to change a little before its available to everyone.....With my age , I would struggled to know if the EV car/truck was running, as I'm pretty much deaf without my aids.

But I will ask those who have EV machines, is there a place to attach a few pieces of cardboard or a pop bottle to mimic the noise of a gas engine.....

The discussion on the EV subject, I'm sure varies between the generations.....

For those in Ontario, I will quote a well know trapper and Order Of Canada winner, "too many decisions are made by those who live south of 7, that mostly affect those living north of 7!!!" I knew the man well and he was on the money.

When Ford can produce a truck with a 4-5 hundred mileage per charge and supply a significant lift option I mite have a look at it, but I will have to see how much is left in my estate.....

Sorry for the ramble.....

So before I loose the last reader I will sum it up, battery power is gaining fast but I will continue to rely on my old gas stuff for my duration, but I will continue to use my 18 v pop rivet tool and my 18 V grease gun.....













///

 

[Dave55]

Your mind is made up, my mind is made up.
We have to agree to disagree.
I am not posting in this thread again.

 

[bridgman]

Ford is apparently starting to provide kits to convert gasoline vehicle to electric

I think the quick answer is that unlike an aerodynamic car cruising on the highway or using regenerative braking in a stop/go environment a tractor does typically use a fair chunk of its available power during normal use. That said, for light-use scenarios like lawn maintenance it might be possible to get buy with much less average power - a Deere 110 got by with 7hp and could probably cut the grass with less.

It takes a lot of batteries (several hundred pounds and many thousands of dollars) to match the energy in a single gallon of gas. I'm sure we will get there but I don't think we are at the point of practical electric tractors yet. It probably is time to start building a few just to see if we are at the point where a marketable product could be developed though.

You can look at electric off-road bikes/trikes as a leading indicator... right now they seem to be available but range is disappointing if you actually use them in an environment where rolling resistance is not road-ish. I think it's going to take another generation of battery technology (20 years) to get to as-much-electric-as-we-want and in the meantime we should be looking harder at real renewable fuels, not a nightmare landscape of dribbling a bit more ethanol into our gasoline every year.

 

[dave_r]

There are already electric walkbehinds, zero turns, and riding mowers for sale, from low-end models to commercial models.

We're way past the "someone should try making an electric mower and see if it works" stage.

 

[bridgman]

There are already electric walkbehinds, zero turns, and riding mowers for sale, from low-end models to commercial models.

I am aware of walk-behinds (I own one) but hadn't seen zero turns or riding mowers - will go take a look, thanks !

If the numbers are working out already, then Honda's eGX offerings might be a good model - combining battery, BMS and electric motor into a unit that fits into roughly the same space as a comparable ICE.

Honda eGX 72V Brushless Electric Battery-Powered Motor

The Honda eGX Electric Brushless 72V Motor works interchangeably with gas-powered GX100 and GX120 motors in indoor and outdoor OEM products.

www.protoolreviews.com

EDIT - yep, looks like riding mowers for typical lawns are a real thing now. I still don't think we are that close to typical tractor applications (ie ground engaging loads) but even riding mowers can cover a good chunk of the market. I guess one option would be to offer an electric motor module that replaced the ICE then package up the batteries as front and rear weights - the alternative would be building a gas tank replacement which while doable seems like it would be a pain to design, build and install.

As others have said, however, electric conversion doesn't seem like a great idea given the relative costs of motor+batteries+controls/BMS and "everything else".

 

[Ingersoll444]

But I will ask those who have EV machines, is there a place to attach a few pieces of cardboard or a pop bottle to mimic the noise of a gas engine.....

///

They do have laws that they have to make some noise like a "normal" car. Im not sure when that rule came about, or if its a country/state, or whatever law. When I worked for VW and the eGolf came out, they had a noise generator that came on under set conditions. I think it was manly parking lot speeds.

 

[Ariens93GT20]

Ok, so there is currently a slim majority that EV will suit their needs. But where the problem lies is the fact that they are shoving these things down everyone’s throats… why? It simple, as with all tech companies, it comes down to one basic thing… built in obsolescence. Why build a quality product that lasts for years, when you can force people to buy a product at inflated prices that you can remotely continue to slow down and shorten life spans or just remotely shut it off until the consumer pays some garbage fee of some sort. It’s been working for Apple for years, and they’ve admitted it and nothing comes from it. Tesla is doing it as well. Avoid this garbage all together before you help them destroy your financial security and the environment.

Let's not drop off the deep end and get this shut down.

 

[Ariens93GT20]

I have used a few corded 110 push mowers. If the battery jobs cut no better than these. I will be buying eatable mowers and have food for the freezer and for sale.
I keep thinking there has to be a better way. When someone's livestock is starving to death some where. Guess that is way the neighbors cows have been taking care of about half of the yard for a few years now.
To me it's more than going electric. We need to rethink they way we do lots of things.

 

[RDinNHandAZ]

"They do have laws that they have to make some noise like a "normal" car. Im not sure when that rule came about, or if its a country/state, or whatever law. When I worked for VW and the eGolf came out, they had a noise generator that came on under set conditions. I think it was manly parking lot speeds."


I wonder where this can be confirmed? I am no google master I can’t find it. There is some sites that say noise generation CAN be done but REQUIRED? I need confirmation help.

 

[MARK (LI)]

 

[Ariens93GT20]

They keep changing the sound or noise requirements. I cannot confirm it right now either. But there was some talk about not allowing owner choice sound anymore.
What we need is a short national blackout to end this all. An hour or two should get people's attention as to what the future could be like.

 

[tm10058196]

I suspect a 54" mower with the ground and mowing power to handle my back lot with dense 10" high grass would have to weigh about a thousand lbs. with the motors, batteries, and electronics. And the life would be about 6 or 7 years before the batteries degrade to become useless. And with the current radical overpricing of EVs it would be a $20k lawn mower. Maybe some day, but not yet. I do like the quiet with the electric push mower in my neighborhood though. Can't hear it inside the house.

 

[meackerman]

converting a ICE vehicle into an EV is not anywhere close to an EV designed from scratch as an EV.

Look at the Ford F150 Lighting, an ICE truck that was converted by the manufacturer to be an EV and not a very good truck....well its great for people that want a truck to drive around in instead of a car, but as a truck, hauling or towing stuff it falls pretty flat.

 

[blrmkr744]

Ford is apparently starting to provide kits to convert gasoline vehicle to electric
CBS Video on Ford Electric Conversion kits

I'm sure it can be done, but it seems someone needs to first build an EV tractor that is reliable and practical for daily use.
John Deere is currently on its way to doing this and will have some tractors equipped with electronic transmissions and later on, all electric tractors. Once EV tractors become practical, enough will be learned to make various conversion kits.

 

[KDubbyaDeere]

So I think one thing that really excites me is the technology that Evie mowers have now. I really love the ones that have an electric motor on each blade instead of pulleys or shafts and spindles. I feel like that could be a game changer or a conversion on current mowers. I have a deer x720 and I think it would be pretty awesome if I could convert that whole assembly between my mower and my deck to three little electric brushless motors to drive those blades. I could also drive those blades independently I could vary the speeds it just feels like it would be more efficient.

 

[DAVISULL]

Dave 55
Warning. This is an off topic from the OPs post so if you are interested in specific electric conversion technology skip this post. If you want to think about the electric vehicle transition then I hope this helps:

I agree that electric conversion is a transfer from local usually urban, to distanced, usually rural sites. As wind power, solar PV, fields, and energy storage systems proliferate your coal plant is going to go away. Not just because the environment issues demand it but because it is not the cheapest way to make power anymore. I’m betting those of us that live down wind of that smokestack and suffer the ills it produces will be fine with that. There is a good possibility it might get converted to burn natural gas to augment nature when the demand is there. Cold starting a coal plant is not feasible for peak augmentation whereas gas is. My (or anyone else's) opinion will not count in this transition as the economy will be the determinant. One- possibly the greatest- peak power resource will be those dispersed electric vehicles which can give back the storage we don’t need at a cost to the power providers at less than any peak production would cost. The distribution system to provide the charging and its recoupment exists if some small upgrades are applied ie. metering. Charging after midnight flattens the peak demand and lessens the costs as well.

I am not meaning to incite any pro or anti argument but I do wonder why there is so much negativity and resentment about what seems like an inevitably cheaper and cleaner energy system. Power producers will move us that way because they can make money, avoid risks related to their pollution, avoid replacing aging fossil fuel plants that create a myriad of headaches for them and can avoid additional higher costs as subsidies for fossil fuels expire and get applied to renewables. If you had your life savings to invest in one industry would you buy stock in that coal plant 5 miles away?
View attachment 2566895

I agree with most of what you say except one thing, It might be cleaner but it will never be CHEAPER.

 

[jrice321]

Dave 55
Warning. This is an off topic from the OPs post so if you are interested in specific electric conversion technology skip this post. If you want to think about the electric vehicle transition then I hope this helps:

I agree that electric conversion is a transfer from local usually urban, to distanced, usually rural sites. As wind power, solar PV, fields, and energy storage systems proliferate your coal plant is going to go away. Not just because the environment issues demand it but because it is not the cheapest way to make power anymore. I’m betting those of us that live down wind of that smokestack and suffer the ills it produces will be fine with that. There is a good possibility it might get converted to burn natural gas to augment nature when the demand is there. Cold starting a coal plant is not feasible for peak augmentation whereas gas is. My (or anyone else's) opinion will not count in this transition as the economy will be the determinant. One- possibly the greatest- peak power resource will be those dispersed electric vehicles which can give back the storage we don’t need at a cost to the power providers at less than any peak production would cost. The distribution system to provide the charging and its recoupment exists if some small upgrades are applied ie. metering. Charging after midnight flattens the peak demand and lessens the costs as well.

I am not meaning to incite any pro or anti argument but I do wonder why there is so much negativity and resentment about what seems like an inevitably cheaper and cleaner energy system. Power producers will move us that way because they can make money, avoid risks related to their pollution, avoid replacing aging fossil fuel plants that create a myriad of headaches for them and can avoid additional higher costs as subsidies for fossil fuels expire and get applied to renewables. If you had your life savings to invest in one industry would you buy stock in that coal plant 5 miles away?
View attachment 2566895

So where does all those components that make up all those clean energy products come from. Seems most of the items are mined and then shipped all over the world. So it seems you are once again just moving the place it comes from. Try going a week without something that uses fossil fuels or its byproducts. Solar and wind farms were studied and shows once you get away from prime areas you will need more and more to produce the same amount of energy. So they will cut down trees to build these clean energy farms that are NOT truly clean and prices will skyrocket for energy.

Sent from my SM-G889A using Tapatalk

 

[Ariens93GT20]

Don't think some will have to wait long for the electric energy prices to go up. Someone has to pay for this new way of life.
As normal we will embrace it when it comes. That's the way we do things. I don't agree with the method but!

 

[tm10058196]

No need to convert a tractor or mower. ICE vs EV? How about ECE (external combustion engine) power?