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Hi Olly, that is amazing, well done!! The lid looks great as it is, save that next free afternoon for yourself Lets hope the grass grows quickly in order for you to test it and then onto the next stage ....... to convert it into a congor robot lawn mower, if that doesnt frighten Treacle then I dont know what will!! I shall go and have a look at the previous videos, interested to see the wiring spot welding. Seeing the battery array it reminded me of a project I worked on many years ago now, it was a submarine emergency buoy to be sent to the surface when a sub was in distress, to provide a location light and emergency signal. Lithium batteries were quite rare back then and I seem to recall some concern on their handling. Good luck from Spain!!
Great project Olly and very well made. All you need now is a solar panel for charging and a willing helper who like cutting grass and you can live like a king forever lol. Cheers, Jon
Hi Jon. Well I've already got the solar panels, now just need a couple of those remote control dog collar things that delivers an electric shock and I think the children would be very happy to help! 😁
Look, it took over a year to put a motor and battery in a cake tin. It will literally take the rest of my life to do that! (I did think about it though) 😁
@@ollysworkshop A great series of films. I will be interested to see the battery build (and a little of how to safely manage them would be handy). I have an occasional supply of good used 18650's but apart from using them to populate empty power bank cases I've shied away from incorporating them in anything by fear of their reputation for needing careful handling.
Hi Olly !! A wonderful job, very well made!! The project touches many different parts (mechanical and electrical)!! i❤ the setup that you made on your milling machine!! Cheers from Italy, Alberto.
That's cruelty to lathes! Although it was pretty cruel to my vice, it's not quite the same precision as the lathe. I have a beefy threaded bar (about 1 inch) that I plan to make a screw press with.
This is a fantastic project and it turned out great. I will go back and check out your previous videos on this and I may have a few questions as this has given me an idea
Hi Olly. I really enjoyed watching the mixed content, great job. Pity about the lid casting the finish looks superb. How long does it take to charge the batteries up fully. Tony
Hi Tony, I was very annoyed with myself about the lid, a waste of a rare free afternoon if nothing else. I may try again, but I have so much stuff to do that it'll take a back seat for a while at least. The makeshift lid keeps the grass out of the works. With the charger I have it would be about 3 hours for a full charge. That could be reduced to 1 hour with a beefier charger. I will be building a second battery to keep me mowing. Hardly any grass to mow at the moment as it's so dry.
Hi Frank. Unfortunately the grass is really short at the moment as it's so dry here. I don't think I've mown the grass for a month, so I just had to attack a couple of tufty bits at the edges. So to answer your question, I don't know yet! The batteries are designed to last about 30 minutes each, I still need to make the second one. I'll do an update when the grass has grown.
Would it be more "efficient' to simply 3d print a adapter for the battery pack to utilise a brand pack? I.e Makita, Bosch, Ryobi etc..?? Am thinking of doing the same with my old petrol mower too
Absolutely, I could have done that. I have 2x 18v batteries for my drill which I could have used, but I had the cells and I wanted to have 2x 36v batteries, so that's why I went the DIY route. Thanks for the question.
It's so dry here that it's not growing at the moment. I had to go for the little bits at the edges. Perhaps I'll do an update when the grass has grown, then I can see how long my battery lasts as well!
History! It would be so much simpler if we could all use a common measurement system. In England both systems are used, although it is mostly older people who prefer imperial.
What didn't work? The mower works well, it's just when I filmed this the grass hadn't grown for ages due to dry weather. It's not got the grunt of a petrol mower, but it's a whole lot quieter and I don't have to carry petrol in the car, so I'm happy 😁
Would have gone with a serpentine and tensioner, OR you could do direct drive, if you coupled the motor to the support that takes all of the side loading and jolts. It probably wont twist the shaft if it stops suddenly. It would need a driver that can take backfeed. It would be most efficient doing it that way. Also thinner blade, and no front deck obstructions. Ive done a rotary mower, it is either working amazing or kindof a pain, dependent completely on grass type and shit in the yard. It lasts longer than expected, but still, it could have been twice as efficient if i used the right voltages, 58v battery feeding a 130vdc treadmill motor is not super efficient, but its plenty enough to get the job done. A low speed bldc motor would work perfect, but i wanted to spend no money on it, with parts I already have on hand. The 200wh battery can get a LARGE yard done, with 2 charges, but it could do it with 1 battery, if I were to take out all the heat losses and torque disadvantages. Works best at the perfect speed to keep grass upended and cutting at a certain slices per foot or whatever. I will do a rotary mower, because I think its simpler and better, and more efficient, I will be doing something clever with the blade, It will be s shaped, like 2 bananas as an s, so it can scythe the grass instead of bluntly cut it. It is used on electric robot mowers, which run on battery and need the added efficiency. It will be made of hard surface stainless steel that is about 2mm thick. Not much but I want max efficiency. I want to mow the yard with 100wh which is probably over unity. Thats really what I think.
