Abstract: A collector cart includes a body having an open rear end closed by a canopy pivotally connected to the body adjacent their front ends. A tow bar, which has the body pivotally connected thereto, has a support, which has caster wheels connected thereto for support, for the body. The tow bar has a quick hook-up requiring no tools at its forward end for connection to a hitch on a riding lawn mower. When the cart is to be dumped, a first handle is rotated by an operator, who remains on the mower, to initially cause pivoting of a rear portion of a frame of the canopy, which includes a cover on the frame, relative to the body and the remainder of the canopy frame to unlock the rear portion of the canopy from the rear of the body. After unlocking is accomplished, a second handle, which is pivotally mounted on the body and has a portion engaging the tow bar to prevent pivoting of the body, is rotated by the operator to disengage its engaging portion from the tow bar.

Abstract: A collector cart includes a body having an open rear end, which is closed by a canopy pivotally mounted adjacent its front end on the body adjacent its front end. The body has a support pivotally connected to caster wheel supports and a tow bar attached to a riding lawn mower hitch plate. Telescoping chutes connect the mower outlet with a canopy port to fill the cart with debris. When the cart is to be dumped, a first handle is rotated by an operator, who remains on the mower, to initially cause pivoting of a rear portion of a frame of the canopy, which includes a cover on the frame, relative to the body and the remainder of the canopy frame to release a locking connection of the rear portion of the canopy frame to the rear of the body.

Abstract: A tine mounting tray includes a substantially planar portion from which a plurality of smaller substantially planar portions are punched out. Each of the punched out portions is spaced from the remainder of the substantially planar portion of the mounting tray to form an opening to receive a substantially V-shaped connecting portion between two tines of a tine assembly to be mounted on the mounting tray. Each of the punched out portions has a tab at one end, which is bent upwardly after the connecting portion of the tine assembly has been inserted within the opening so that the connecting portion of the tine assembly abuts the two connecting sides of the punched out portion. This bending of the tab connects the tine assembly to the mounting tray through preventing withdrawal of the tine assembly from the mounting tray.

Abstract: A collector cart includes a body having an open rear end, which is closed by a canopy pivotally mounted adjacent its front end on the body adjacent its front end. The body has a support pivotally connected to caster wheel supports and a tow bar attached to a riding lawn mower hitch bar. Telescoping chutes connect the mower outlet with a canopy port to fill the cart with debris. When the cart is to be dumped, a linkage mechanism is activated by an operator, who remains on the mower, raising a lift handle to initially cause rearward shifting of the canopy relative to the body to release a locking connection of the rear of the canopy to the rear of the body. The body is released from its tow bar at the same time so that continued raising of the lift handle by the operator causes the body to pivot to a dumping position while the canopy pivots away from the body due to a rope of a fixed length connecting the front of the canopy to the mower.

Abstract: An adjustable bag holder includes two U-shaped elements with a first leg of each pivotally connected to each other intermediate their ends and a second leg of each of the U-shaped elements pivotally connected to each other at the same location as the first legs are pivotally connected to each other so that the pivot axes are aligned. A torsion spring surrounds the pivot of the first legs and has one end connected to the first leg of one of the U-shaped elements and its other end connected to the first leg of the other U-shaped element. A second torsion spring surrounds the pivot of the second legs and has one end connected to the second leg of the one U-shaped element and its other end connected to the second leg of the other U-shaped element.

Abstract: A pulled dethatching unit includes a frame having a tow bar extending forwardly for attachment to a draw bar of a pulling vehicle. The rear end of the frame has an arm pivotally attached to each side with each arm having a wheel rotatably mounted thereon. The two wheels and the tow bar cooperate so that tines, which are mounted in two rows on the frame for independent movement, do not carry any of the weight of the unit so that the bottom tip of each of the tines is slightly spaced from the ground in its rest position. Each of the tines in each of the rows is offset from each of the tines in the other row. Forward motion of the dethatching unit causes the bottom tip of each of the tines to deflect rearwardly and downwardly as it comes in contact with grass. In their deflected positions, the bottom tips of the tines contact the thatched layer to tear it loose from the soil and alternately flip the thatched layer to fall on the ground.

Abstract: A gravity spreader includes a hopper having openings in its bottom through which material flows when a shutter is not in a closed position with the position of the shutter determining the rate of flow of material. A fluted roller allows the material to flow from the hopper to the ground only when the hopper is moving in a forward direction. The fluted roller does not rotate when the hopper is stopped or when the hopper moves in a reverse direction so that the material does not flow to the ground irrespective of the open position of the shutter.

Abstract: A cart includes a support body having two separate portions. Each of the separate portions has a bottom wall with a side wall extending upwardly from one side thereof and a flange extending downwardly from the other side thereof. The flanges of the two separate portions abut each other and are held in this position by tabs on one of the flanges being disposed within slots in the other flange. A front end wall is fixed to the two separate portions. A rear end wall is removably connected to the two separate portions. The side wall of each of the two separate portions has an axle support plate attached thereto and supporting an axle for a wheel. A torque tube extends between the two plates to prevent twisting and add rigidity to the assembled cart. A tow bar, which is connected to a vehicle for towing or pulling the cart, is attached to the bottom walls of the two separate portions and has a longitudinal slot therein to receive the abutting flanges.

Abstract: A material spreader includes a hopper having an opening in its bottom through which material flows to a rotatable fan, which is driven from one of a pair of support wheels for the hopper during pushing or pulling of the spreader across the ground, for spreading the material. A gate, which is pivotal about the same axis as the axis about which the fan rotates, has an opening, which is smaller than the opening in the hopper, to control the portion of the opening in the hopper through which the material flows to control the spread pattern produced by rotation of the fan. A shutter, which is disposed beneath the gate, has an opening, which is smaller than the opening in the gate, cooperating with the opening in the gate to control the rate of flow from the hopper. The gate has a first arcuate slot therein within which is disposed a bolt supported by the hopper to limit pivoting of the gate. A wing nut cooperates with the bolt to lock the gate in the desired position without affecting movement of the shutter.

Abstract: A tine tiller has a frame mounted on traction wheels for movement in either direction. The frame has tines rotatably mounted on each side thereof and driven in either direction irrespective of the direction of movement of the frame by rotation of the traction wheels. The speed of rotation of the traction wheels can be changed without stopping movement of the frame.

Abstract: A dethatching unit is mounted for attachment to the front end of a self-propelled lawn mower, for example, so that the dethatching unit is pushed by the lawn mower and thatches the ground prior to mowing thereof. The dethatching unit includes a frame having a caster wheel at its forward end and arms at its rear end for attaching to the mower. The wheel and the arms cooperate so that tines, which are mounted in two rows on the frame, do not carry any of the weight of the unit so that the bottom tip of each of the tines is slightly spaced from the ground in its rest position. Each of the tines in each of the rows is offset from each of the tines in the other row. Forward motion of the dethatching unit causes the bottom tip of each of the tines to deflect rearwardly and downwardly as it comes in contact with grass. In their deflected positions, the bottom tips of the tines contact the thatch layer to tear it loose from the soil and ultimately flip the thatched material to fall on the ground.

Abstract: A log splitter includes vertical support means, which is preferably pivotally mounted on the ends of a three point tractor hitch, having a pivotally mounted support adjacent its bottom for supporting the bottom of a log to be split. The pivotally mounted support is attached to a tractor drawbar in one embodiment. A splitting wedge is mounted on the upper end of the vertical support means and retained against upward movement by spring biased pawls engaging ratchet tracks on the vertical support means. When the vertical support means is lifted by the tractor hitch, the pivotally mounted support raises the bottom of the log relative to the vertical support means so that the log is driven into the wedge and split. When upward movement of the vertical support means by the tractor hitch has been completed, the vertical support means is returned to its start position. During this downward movement, the wedge remains wedged in the log and the pawls enable downward movement of the wedge with the log.

Abstract: A dethatching unit is mounted for attachment to the front end of a self-propelled lawn mower, for example, so that the dethatching unit is pushed by the lawn mower and thatches the ground prior to mowing thereof. The dethatching unit includes a frame having a caster wheel at its forward end and arms at its rear end for attaching to the mower. The wheel and the arms cooperate so that tines, which are mounted in two rows on the frame, do not carry any of the weight of the unit so that the bottom tip of each of the tines is slightly spaced from the ground in its rest position. Each of the tines in each of the rows is offset from each of the tines in the other row. Forward motion of the dethatching unit causes the bottom tip of each of the tines to deflect rearwardly and downwardly as it comes in contact with grass. In their deflected positions, the bottom tips of the tines contact the thatch layer to tear it loose from the soil and ultimately flip the thatched material to fall on the ground.