Shock Absorber Seat Bracket Smoothes Out Bumpy Rides

Shock Absorber Seat Bracket Smoothes Out Bumpy Rides FARM HOME Lawn Mowers (31h,38) 33-6-19 Ken Connaughty loves how fast he can mow his lawn with his zero-turn lawn mower. He isn't fond of the aching back he has after he gets off the mower, however. The Minnesota farm equipment manufacturer decided to fix the problem by building a shock absorbing seat. "I made one just for my own use," Connaughty says. "Now we've got a few out locally and people just love them." Among the users is his father who has a bad back and wouldn't think of going back to mowing lawn without his new seat. Connaughty started selling Smooth Operator seats in September, marketing to zero-turn lawn mower owners and landscape business owners. To attach the unit, remove the seat, slip on the Smooth Operator and replace the seat on top. Bolt it in place with the long bolts provided. Smooth Operator weighs 11 lbs. and is a powder-coated steel roller system that absorbs bumps. "It's painted black so you don't even notice it's there," Connaughty says. With adjustable mount holes, the seat has worked on all the common zero-turn mowers such as Deere, Ariens, Simplicity and Gravely. Connaughty notes that Smooth Operator raises the seat by about 1 1/2 in., which may be too high to work with the bars on some skidsteers. The seats are sold through Connaughty Sales Inc., for $200. Connaughty welcomes dealer inquiries. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Connaughty Sales, 32325 State Rd. 43 N., Rushford, Minn. 55971 (ph 800 826-2748; www.connaughtysales.com).

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