All the work James and I have put in for the new transmission mount has paid off.  It holds up well under load and there is virtually no flex.  This is good as it will provide longevity to the mower as well as robustness that is going to be needed.  We have also fixed one of our main issues with the belt tensioner or ‘clutch’, as it was not fully disengaging properly causing momentum from the engine to be transferred to the gearbox.  Putting belt keepers on the sides of the main belt and increasing the length of the belt helps to relieve the tightness experienced when applying the tensioner, while also preventing the belt from flying off during operation.  Relieving tension may also allow us to shift into higher gears while moving (although further testing may be needed), and will also allow us to stop faster. 

One of the issues we have experienced is the front tires being too wide and causing the steering to be very stiff at low speeds due to the massive contact patch.  While this may be good for grip in high speed cornering, it is not good for mild cruising and light testing as it may become fatigued after a while.  We went ahead and ordered new wheels and tires that are narrower, hopefully being able to rid us of this issue. 

Now that the mower is mechanically sound our next goal is to do tests for longer durations in order to test endurance and reliability under load for a longer period of time.  In the meantime we will also apply some aesthetic decals on the front cowl to represent Boca Bearings.  In the next blog we will showcase the mower and present a few pictures after these aesthetic tweaks have been applied.