ps those low boards do not come out easily...in their they do and it would give me ~49" of width (vs the 48.75" i have now)

the tall board that are like 4 feet tall i designed to be able to remove in 30 seconds. but they don't really matter in regards to my question. i love having them for leaf removal though...i can just pop them on and off on a moments notice at any job in literally less than a minute.

im pretty proud of how i designed everything, learned to weld, build it sturdy (ive tested it to the limits! ahha)...except my little gate too steep/width possibly not wide enough for a commercial mower issue..something i did not consider when building.

i wa going to buy a dual weedwacker and backpack blower holder to attatch also but have held off until i finish buying stuff a REALLY need first. i van throw them in the back and lock them up at night before i spend $350 for the luxury of having the rack to hold and lock them up on the side. but that would look nice and make my day easier too.

something like https://www.etrailer.com/static/images/pics/P/K/PK-6-OP1_500.jpg

this but without the watercooler that's excessive, i can buy water lol. a gas can holder would be nice too..but now im getting off topic lol

 

A commercial grade may load and not drag buy a mower first. Extend gate is the most easy way if it drags. Or run smaller tires.

 

isn't the smallest they make most comercial grades 48"? wouldn't the deck hit the sides becaue of that alone? or am i mistaken? i'm pretty sure my 42" lawn tractor deck is wider than 42" (actually i'm gonna go check that right now)

 

A 36 walk behind will fit

 

huh i just discovered my 42" lawn tractor deck is on only 41" wide...interesting.(also tires are much smaller than deck by at least 1.5 or 2 inches..deck is the widest part by far


so with a 48" commercial i might be in luck?

 

huh i just discovered my 42" lawn tractor deck is on only 41" wide...interesting.(also tires are much smaller than deck by at least 1.5 or 2 inches..deck is the widest part by far

so with a 48" commercial i might be in luck?

What is your axle and tire rating for load?

 

oh i literally didn't even know they mad 36" walk behinds

any reccomendations of affordable/dependable brands for a first time buyer on budget?

thanks for the input btw, you guys are the best. i'd be unemployed without this forum lol

 

and the trailer not wide enough to put a commercial sized walk behind/ztr on....

well it's exactly 48.37" sideboard to sideboard...i spent 8 months building this with my heart and soul, learning to weld, making removable tall walls or leave removal season, a lock box, nstrong single axle that hold a good 1.75 tons, made out of solid steel bed frames and pressure treated wood painted with weather resistance matte black.

problems

a) it's a tad high and the gate is a tad short. i have a 42" lawn tractor i need to push on, because it bottoms out at the bottom, the angle is steep, then it bottoms out again where the gate meets the trailer floorboard unless i lift the deck up with my hand while i push it on. there's a few inhes of space on either side once it is is on.

i once welded a folding extension that worked great, but it made it SO SO SO heavy and i got nervous my weld wasn't strong enouugh after a few months of loading it might fall off on the highway or something, so i took it off and went back to my push method.

i also extended the ramp with 4 inch long peices of steel where it meets the ground to decrease the angle (you can see in photo, it heps, but not a lot)

b) MORE IMPORTANT ISSUE: i dont need this lawn tractor anymore. i need a commercial walk behind or ztr....are thre any models made by anyone in any size that will squeeze into how wide this is, or am i up the creek without a paddle and going to need to sell and buy a larger (ideally i would keep this forever, it's built like a workhorse, dependable as heck, i loveit like a baby...and it would be great to have this as a second trailer if i were able to buy another.

but there's NO WAY i could afford a commercial mower AND a new trailer right now without selling some vital equipment. i'e never owned a comercial mower (i've used them, other people's..but i have no idea if i'd be screwing myself by buying a mower that won't fit on my trailer and essentially shutting down my mowing business by accident lol)

this is not an immediate concern, im thinkin moe towards the spring..or whenever the opportunity arises if i see a good deal.

thouhts would be awesome. please see photos to see what i mean about measurements/gate/etc

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I give you an A for effort. How much did you spend in materials? Usually if you calculate your time and all materials you notice you could have bought something nicer safer and bigger on Craigslist. However I'm sure you learned a lot in the process and it just feels good when we build something ourselves. For now look look for used commercial mower on CL. You can definitely fit a 42 inch Walker in there or even might be able to fit a 48 inch Walker.

 

thank you sir!

that's kinda why i'd hate to sell it..i literally knew nothing and just figured it out as i went along..bought a crap welder from harbor frieght, some screw guns, titantium bits, angle grinder, oldbed frames, plywoodexpanded steel mesh, soldering iron, lots of paint...running and break lights obviously, trailer ball hitch..axle wheels and suspension came from the junk yard i got lucky there. plus lots of random pipes from home depot

i probably spent $1,300 (i could have stopped at $700ish but i put some extra features in like the removeable sideboards, the folding gate i took off and isn't being used cost a pretty penny (a wasted penny haha)...the lockbox

but after all i learned and work i put it, if i sold it i would know how it feels to have to give your only child away. (as someone with no children this is the closest i have for now

 

(i can research that on my own obiously, just wondering if there's a go-to option for someone starting up and looking to expand without breaking the bank....nothing tp of the line, but cuts grass better than a push mower or lawn tractor and won't bankrupt me heh)

craigslist is always my go to but if you have any input on what to avoid or what to grab if i have the opportunity, feel free to throw those ideas out

otherwise thank you again

 

one more question: what are those things you stand on that attach to walk behinds so you don't have to literally walk and can ride...do they make those for 36" and do they usually come with them or sold separatly (i've notied everything sold separatly usually costs 10x a much as you would guess it would haha)

but i can't find the name of them...it's right on the top of my tounge

for someone with not a ton of huge lawns and getting my first commercial mower...on a budget..that's probably my best best, right?

 

A sulky?

 

The pics with the sunlight are terrible. You should be able to load or unload a 36-48 walkbehind. The gate doesn't seem steep. Measure the walls on the inside to clarify.

Lets try to sort out one thing at a time lol

 

sorry about that..they are 38.75" from inner wall to inner wall. the gate is steeper than it looks...i calculated the angle once.

let's put it this way, i was trying to load the tractor once and literally did a half back flip and it landed on top of me upsidedown (while parked on a percfectly level flat surface lol) then i made the folding extension for the ramp (another 4 foot mesh ramp that just folded down on hinged while driving) but it added like 80 pounds to the weight of the gate...that makes you real tired by the end of the day especially if you don't have anyone helping you lol. so itook it off and resorted to just pushing the damn thing up

i only use the tractor on crappy lawns or when large unkept crass needs to be knocked down and destroyed. i call it my mini-gravely.

rest of the lawns get down with the good ole push mower.

 

im thinking this 36" scag with a sulky for $1,000 would be exactly what i need if it hadn't already sold a few days ago.

gosh diddly darn it (sorry for my language jeebus)

 

im thinking this 36" scag with a sulky for $1,000 would be exactly what i need if it hadn't already sold a few days ago.

gosh diddly darn it (sorry for my language jeebus)

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First of all, what's your budget?

 

get a ball mount that has a rise to it that will adjust the pitch of the gate enough that the mower wont bottom out...although ideally you want the deck of the trailer parallel to the ground this will help you with your problem...ive had the same situation before and it worked until i got a larger trailer with longer gate....

if you could weld the trailer on your own just add some length to it

 

Yes the make a lot of different pitch hitches I just bought a higher hitch for my new trailer and explorer the one I got was 2.5" taller than my old one I have the tow package under it though I could of got one 4" higher

 

You can also try to a put a couple blocks of wood under the bottom of the gate to reduce the angle. Sometimes I need to do that for my zero turn. I have a couple 4" long pieces of 2"x3" that I stand on side to give 2.5" of lift.