The Pitman

    The pitman is a wooden connecting rod that transfers the rotary motion of the mower mechanism to the reciprocating motion of the sicklebar. It is made of wood so that if something goes wrong, IT will break before something ELSE does!!
     Unfortunately, if you find a mower that has been left outside for any length of time, the "stick" is usually rotted away, or has become so weak that it breaks the first time you try to use it.


The Pitman Rod


    It's not too difficult to make your own pitman "stick", but I sure hope you have all the hardware from the old one. The parts on the left would be VERY difficult to make!

     You need a piece of oak, ash, or hickory 1-1/4" X 1-5/8" X 34-1/4". On the cutterbar end (left), you need four 1/4" holes crosswise for the pitman straps (2). The holes start 1-7/8" from the end, and are spaced 1-5/16" on centers to match the hole pattern in the two halves of the strap. Then you need a 1/4" hole drilled vertically about 2-1/4" to 2-3/8" from the end for the spring release (3). Bore an 11/16" hole into the endgrain for the latchfork spring (4). That hole only needs to go deep enough to reach the first 1/4" hole.
     On the other end there needs to be a 1/8" vertical slot 7" deep from the end for the box plate (5), with four 5/16" holes crosswise, starting 7/8" from the end, about 1-1/2" on centers to match the pattern in the box plate and reinforcing plates (6).

 
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7/20/03