What is the quietest rotary motor mower ?

[KennyV]

With fuel being extensive in the UK... are there any diesel powered small mowers there?
With diesel you have a lower rpm engine with high low end torque, and very fuel efficient...

You are well ahead of the States on public acceptance of diesel powered vehicles. I would expect there to be various models using the advantages of diesel....
I know there are single and two cylinder diesel engines, are there any on popular mowers? :smile:KennyV

 

[Bam]

With fuel being extensive in the UK... are there any diesel powered small mowers there?
With diesel you have a lower rpm engine with high low end torque, and very fuel efficient...

You are well ahead of the States on public acceptance of diesel powered vehicles. I would expect there to be various models using the advantages of diesel....
I know there are single and two cylinder diesel engines, are there any on popular mowers? :smile:KennyV

Diesel is always more feasible with large engines. Small diesels do exist but are heavier, more noisy, smelly and difficult to start than a small petrol unit and not suited to small applications. Fuel efficiency is not so important with a small mower but I notice that the Briggs & Statton use a lot more fuel than the same size Chinese engines. Diesel fuel is more expensive than petrol in the UK but often cheaper in parts of Europe. It has something to do with refining capacity I think. In theory diesel should be cheaper because it requires less refining but most of our fuel price is tax.

What we do use more and more is a fuel made from the waste oil from deep fryers in restaurants. This works well in diesel cars but they smell of potato chips. A lot of van drivers also buy and use fresh cooking oil because it is has no tax on it and some of our food stores sell it in 5 gallon drums. But the drivers are fined if it is found in their fuel tanks.

When I was in America this year folk were boasting if their cars could do 30 miles per gallon. Over here we look for one that does 50 or 60 miles per gallon, which is possible with a good diesel.

 

[jmurray01]

Diesel is always more feasible with large engines. Small diesels do exist but are heavier, more noisy, smelly and difficult to start than a small petrol unit and not suited to small applications. Fuel efficiency is not so important with a small mower but I notice that the Briggs & Statton use a lot more fuel than the same size Chinese engines. Diesel fuel is more expensive than petrol in the UK but often cheaper in parts of Europe. It has something to do with refining capacity I think. In theory diesel should be cheaper because it requires less refining but most of our fuel price is tax.

What we do use more and more is a fuel made from the waste oil from deep fryers in restaurants. This works well in diesel cars but they smell of potato chips. A lot of van drivers also buy and use fresh cooking oil because it is has no tax on it and some of our food stores sell it in 5 gallon drums. But the drivers are fined if it is found in their fuel tanks.

When I was in America this year folk were boasting if their cars could do 30 miles per gallon. Over here we look for one that does 50 or 60 miles per gallon, which is possible with a good diesel.

Heck, our 1997 Ford Fiesta 1.25i Ghia does 45-50MPG, and it is a petrol! Think what a diesel of the same size would do ? Could be nearer 100!

 

[Bam]

Heck, our 1997 Ford Fiesta 1.25i Ghia does 45-50MPG, and it is a petrol! Think what a diesel of the same size would do ? Could be nearer 100!

Ok JMurray. You are driving carefully to get that, well done. The old Minis did about the same and the Metro petrol would do over 50 mpg with care. I have a Mazda 1.3 and on a gentle road and driven with great care and little traffic I can squeeze 50 but I had a Metro diesel and you could drive it any old how and get 60 mpg. However the Yanks would consider our cars as pedal cars !!

This was one not uncommon style of vehicle I spotted in Miami:

 

[BKBrown]

Kenny, I know there are rotary mowers with horizontal shaft engines, PTO shafts, and even Hydro drive. I was talking about a rotary motor reminding me of Wankel Engines -- (I believe Mazda still uses them in some of their cars.)

I think today it most likely is interchangeable, But back in the early 60's or late 50's Snapper had a monster self propelled, commercial grade rotary mower... With a BIG horizontal shaft Wisconsin engine... :smile:KennyV

 

[KennyV]

[COLOR=blu
... I was talking about a [B]rotary[/B] motor reminding me of Wankel Engines -- (I believe Mazda still uses them in some of their cars.)[/COLOR]

Ah-ha you are right... It has been a while since I've come across a Wankel engine... I use to see them every now and then... :smile:KennyV