The Toro Company

Nicholas John Sirek

Gerald Eugene Goman

Robert David Patton

Thomas F Langworthy

Joseph W Pfankuch

A walk reel mower has a traction frame that carries a handle assembly to accommodate users of different heights. The handle assembly can extend rearwardly and upwardly from the traction frame and can include a lower support, operatively coupled to the traction frame, and an upper mount carrying a handle which is gripped by a user during operation of the mower to guide and manipulate the mower. The upper mount can be slidingly movable relative to the lower support to raise or lower the handle relative to the ground to adjust the height of the handle above the ground to suit users of different heights who walk on the ground behind the traction frame while operating the mower. A latch can also be provided that is carried on the handle assembly and that engages between the lower support and the upper mount in one of a plurality of positions of the upper mount relative to the lower support.

Walk reel mower with adjustable handle assembly

A walk reel mower has a traction frame that carries at least one ground engaging member operatively powered by a prime mover. A rotatable cutting reel is operatively powered by the prime mower for pushing grass against a bedknife to cut the grass. A handle assembly is used to guide and manipulate the mower, and a traction bail on the handle assembly disengages and engages the traction drive. The traction bail is movable between first and second positions that have a range of motion large enough to permit the user to move the control into at least one intermediate position to produce a reduced ground speed greater than zero but less than the nominal ground speed.

Walk reel mower with handle assembly

A walk reel mower has a traction frame that carries a rotatable cutting reel that pushes grass against a bedknife for cutting the grass. A handle assembly extends rearwardly and upwardly from the traction frame. The handle assembly carries a handle that is gripped by a user to operate the mower as the user walks on the ground behind the traction frame. The handle assembly has upper and lower portions that have a telescopic connection to one another to adjust the height of the handle above the ground to accommodate users of different heights.

Walk reel mower with a telescopic handle assembly

A turf groomer is coupled to a reel cutting unit in advance of the cutting reel and is powered by a gearbox having a rotary gear drive that is capable of selectively rotating the turf groomer in opposite directions at different speeds. The rotary gear drive is symmetrical about a plane through the axes of the input and output shafts thereof to permit the gearbox to be inverted to drive the turf groomer from either the left or right sides without requiring that two different models of the gear drive be available. The gearbox is connected to the reel cutting unit only by connecting the end of the input shaft to a shaft of the cutting reel and through a connection to a height adjuster for the turf groomer.

Reel mower having left or right hand drive turf groomer

A turf groomer is coupled to a reel cutting unit in advance of the cutting reel and is powered by a gearbox having a rotary gear drive that provides alternately usable first and second drive paths capable of selectively rotating the turf groomer in opposite directions at different speeds. The rotary gear drive includes an axially slidable input gear on an input shaft. An actuator is coupled to the input gear to slide the input gear from one position in which the input gear is within the first drive path to select rotation of the turf groomer in a first direction at a first rotational speed. Alternatively, the actuator can slide the input gear into a second operational position in which the input gear is within the second drive path to select rotation of the turf groomer in an opposite direction at a different speed.

Growing community of inventors

Elko, MN, United States of America

Nicholas John Sirek