Self-Propelled "Motorized Wheelbarrow"

Self-Propelled "Motorized Wheelbarrow" FARM HOME Miscellaneous 24-4-32 "It's easy to use and saves me a lot of work," says Cliff Brandenburger, Beecher City, Ill., about the self-propelled "motorized wheelbarrow" that he built out of an old garden tractor. The 3-wheeled wheelbarrow, which has a dump-style hopper in front, is powered by a 5 hp Briggs & Stratton gas engine. The operator stands behind the cart and uses control levers to make the rig go forward or backward and to dump the cart. Brandenburger uses the rig around his yard to pick up leaves and lawn clippings and to haul garden trash. He bought the garden tractor cheap at a junkyard. He stripped it down to the frame and rear axle, reversing the direction of the axle so the gears are reversed. He mounted a 1-ft. high caster wheel in place of the front axle and equipped the rig with a horizontal shaft Briggs & Stratton engine. He connected a gear reduction box to the transmission in order to change the direction of the shaft and to give the engine more torque. The transmission belt-drives the gearbox. The dump box came off a commercial pull-type cart. He mounted hinges to allow it to dump to the front. He mounted a steering handle over the front steering wheel and fitted it with a throttle, hand brake, and clutch. "It has a lot more capacity than a conventional wheelbarrow and is handier than a pull-type cart because you don't have to keep getting on and off the tractor," says Brandenburger. "There are three forward gears and one reverse. It doesn't go very fast û its fastest speed is only a brisk walking speed. However, it does have a lot of power. If I'm carrying a big load and put the transmission in low gear, the drive wheels will often spin." Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Cliff Brandenburger, Rt. 2, Box 42, Beecher City, Ill. 62414 (ph 618 487-5247).

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