R7271 NOS...Restomod or Sell?

[FuzzyDriver]

A very old local dealer is going out of business. He was a Lawn Boy dealer up until about 1992 or so. Don't get too excited, he doesn't have a big stock of NOS Lawn Boys :shocked:. He only has two NOS left and neither is complete, one doesn't even have an engine. I bought his last new R7271 today. The R7271 has a blade clutch. That is, when you start it the blade does not turn with the engine. The blade engages when you pull the handle at the top. It had been sitting on a shelf near the ceiling for 35 years and was covered in a very thick layer of dust. He told me that R7271's didn't sell that well because of the blade clutch. Anyway, this R7271 has never been started -- never even had fuel in the tank! Unfortunately, over the years he cannibalized the poor thing. There's no wheels or wheel bolts, even one wheel height adjuster bracket is missing. The deck cover plate is gone. Worst of all, the carburetor, air box, and throttle are all gone!

I bought it with the intention of converting it to a regular Lawn Boy push mower, but after washing it I'm wondering if it would be a lot more valuable to a collector. Are R7271's as rare as the dealer implied? Would an NOS R7271 be worth a ton of money? Or should I just restomod the thing and use it?

Just as an aside, is this a super-early R7271? The serial number is B264C0056. It's a 1984 model, but doesn't the B mean it was built in 1983, and the 56th one made?

Also, if you've got a set of R7271 wheels laying around or maybe a carburetor, let me know!

 

[FuzzyDriver]

Due to its rarity and NOS condition, I have decided to sell it rather than mod it into a regular, newer Lawn-Boy pushmower. I bought some new wheels for it and installed them with worn Lawn-Boy wheel bolts. The wheels look nice, but are not OEM.

I am not a collector, just a rabid Lawn-Boy fan. Any offers?