new here, my introduction and my toys

[93rangerXLT4x4]

so i've heard of this site from a few people but havent really poked around much.. but now that im a member i might as well show ya'll my toys and hobbies. enjoy!!

where do i start.. a little bit about me first.. im 21 yrs old (will be 22 on january 9th) i drive a 1993 ford ranger XLT 4x4, 4.0L 5 speed, ext'd cab 2 door.. its stock right now but im hoping i can get a body lift on it and some 33's next year. needs a little TLC and maintainance. what else....... i have an HPI savage 25 that has been modded got about 2g's into that.. i play golf etc.
my dad and i race lawnmowers, here's some info i just posted in a thread in the Fabrication section.

i race a custom built Ford YT16 with a 12hp briggs in it, its been molested.. been shortened by at least a foot, widen a bit, made a seat, cut the steering wheel off and built a set of handle bars with hand throttle. here's a picture of it.

and why not do some pic whoring lol

ford mower 12hp briggs overhead valve single cylinder, handle bars are from a 1972 or 74 motoski 250 snowmobile, fully greasable front end with nipples... umm what else.. 5 speed transaxle. 2" rear bumper shorten well over a foot and widen a tiny bit. its going even lower this winter, the bottom of the floorboards is about 4-5 inches off the ground, break away type kill switch, push button start, no ignition key so its pull the kill cord or push a little red button to shut it down, manual choke, will most likely get a new custom aluminum fuel tank, dimensions are 36" wide 43" wheelbase .it will go roughly 40-45mph. never been rolled....... yet!! haha
was built in october 2008. i do have some more "technical" pictures of the steering setup is built because its not stock. i will start an introduction thread.
here's a picture:

here's my other project that im building its a John Deere 111 originally with an 11hp briggs in it.. dad got it from his boss for free and dad raped parts off it, axles, tires, engine etc.. so i got the frame, hood is fiberglass, steering wheel, rear fender, seat etc.. i stripped it down to bare frame built some brackets to mount a craftsman 5 speed transaxle in it, welded on a craftsman front end, craftsman "L" spindles in the front, and jamming the 16hp opposed twin cylinder that came out of my ford mower in it... as you can the engine doesnt fit under the hood, had to cut a huge notch on the left side of the hood so it would fit decent. will have custom clutch, handle bars, throttle etc. will also get a nice big custom aluminum fuel tank. dimensions are front end will be close to 36" rear will be 33", wheelbase is 40". these engines are torque monsters, its a 656cc (16hp)briggs engine, but i could get close to 30hp out of it if i want to very easily, but to keep it within the rules i have to keep it 18hp and under.. but i will put a different carb on it once i get some seat time on it and get the hp's to around 22hp. the old girl just got brand new front rubber for christmas not 2 weeks ago.. well enough blabbing lets get to the pics.. i also have some more technical pictures of this mower as well.

newest picture i have.

front view

my dad has 1 already built mower as well, its a 74 lawnflite 12hp briggs also custom built.. he is building another mower as well, he's jamming an 18hp single cylinder Kohler into an old old craftsman (looks like a viking) here's a pic of that.

the savage, some mods are aluminum upper/lower a-arms, alum bulkhead side plates, alum shock towers, savage x 4.6 shocks and springs, 120,000 wt diff oil, 35wt shock oil, savage x radio box, STS .28 nitro engine and some more stuff..

my truck, newest pics i got of 2-3 days ago.

i think thats pretty much it thats worth posting.. if you have any questions about the lawnmower racing in general or our builds just ask i will answer them for you. haha

 

[SnC RangeR]

cool toys!

 

[Hopman]

Welcome bro! The more the merrier!

 

[93rangerXLT4x4]

thanks guys.. im over on ranger-forums.com as well..

not sure if i said this but lawnmower is cheap, i have 500 bucks canadian(including buying it) into the Ford mower. i have about 150 bucks canadian into the John Deere.

the Ford was painted by my dad for free. my dad works at Harbercraft boats in Vernon BC (he's the production manager, looks after about 40 guys on the floor) so i get paint for free... the ford mower is scratched up but not enough to repaint this winter.. next winter i will pick it apart and repaint. its chevy cobalt blue metallic... pulled the engine and im cleaning it up scrapping all the oil and grease off it. gotta replace the belt its chewed to shit.

on the JD, the hood, floorboards, rear fenders and soon to be handle bars are going JD green, then the rims and 1-2 stripes down the middle of the hood are going JD yellow, and the frame, floorboard brackets are going gloss black.. should look good...

im bored so i will give ya a little more info about lawnmower racing.. always race turning to the left, so we "offset" the handle bars to the left to aid in weight transfer. the motto is "go fast turn left" haha.. a local racer has an 18hp twin in a mower and it will go 57-60mph in a straight line, you dont DARE to turn at those speeds you will roll the machine and break a limb.

we wear full gear, full face helmets, chest protectors, long sleeve shirts, gloves are optional, pants, some beefy ass boots, i wear my steel toed boots. i have personally/physically seen guys break their shoulders, a leg and ankles.. you definitely have to respect the machine because it will mess you up haha.. umm what else.. there's NO machine that is a "kit" every one is custom built. and there's no 2 machines alike. after the JD is done and ready to tear shit up, im going to build a couple more basic ones to sell.

we run tubes at all 4 corners which allows us to race a 2-3psi without breaking the bead on the tires. there's no charging system in the wiring.. but most of the time once you start running them they fire up pretty easy.. my ford mower has become a cold blooded pig, takes a while to start..

i wont go into great detail about how to build one of these bastards, but i am filming my JD build on youtube here's the link http://www.youtube.com/user/acousticguitar355#p/u/14/DUbq5Ndnr2A, <<<< the link to the first youtube video. then 4 progress vids..

ok im done for now.haha thank god to brewski's cheers!!!