Abstract: A walk reel mower includes a pair of inclined rigid links for mounting the reel cutting unit to the reel mower frame for rolling about a longitudinal axis, and a pair of vertical support arms for mounting the reel cutting unit to the reel mower frame for pitching about a transverse axis. An integrated gearbox houses both the traction and reel drives, including the differential that is part of the traction drive, as well as a parking brake. A flexible drive shaft powers the cutting reel from the gearbox and is made from materials that do not require petroleum based lubricants to avoid the possibility of damage to the turf or grass. A single control handle located on the handle of the mower actuates both the reel and traction drives. The reel cutting unit includes a back plate which has a portion formed as a hollow beam for strength.

Abstract: This invention relates to an exercise machine having an exercise station that includes an exercise bench and one or more exercise implements for allowing a user to perform one or more exercises. An adjustable exercise mass assembly is oriented perpendicularly to the exercise station and includes a pivotal lever. An exercise mass is carried on the pivotal lever and is movable back and forth thereon towards and away from the pivot axis of the pivotal lever to adjust the exercise resistance provided by the exercise mass. The exercise mass preferably comprises at least one selectorized dumbbell. Portions of the dumbbell can be removed from the pivotal lever for use as a dumbbell while some of the weights of the selectorized dumbbell remain in place on the pivotal lever. This allows the mass provided by the selectorized dumbbell(s) to be simultaneously used by multiple users.

Abstract: This invention relates to a selectorized dumbbell having a handle that can be dropped down between nested left and right stacks of weight plates. The weight plates can comprise individual weights or a pair of weight plates, one from each stack, can be connected together to form a single weight. A selector is provided to allow the user to select a desired number of weight plates from each stack and couple such weight plates to the handle to provide an adjustable weight dumbbell. Each weight includes a weight frame having at least one carrier to which a commodity weight can be fastened. The dumbbell can be shipped by the manufacturer with empty weight frames to reduce shipping costs. When the dumbbell with empty weight frames reaches a destination, the dumbbell can be completed by securing commodity weights to the carriers on the respective weight frames.

Abstract: A rotary walk behind lawn mower has a wheeled cutting deck with a downwardly facing cutting chamber. A rotatable cutting blade is contained inside the cutting chamber above a lower edge of a peripheral sidewall and beneath a central hub, an annular channel being formed between the sidewall and the hub of the cutting chamber for receiving grass clippings from the cutting blade. A portion of the peripheral sidewall of the cutting chamber above the level of the cutting blade and a portion of a top wall of the cutting chamber form a pivotal mulch door for opening and closing the annular channel in which the grass clippings are moving.

Abstract: This invention relates to a sprayer having a center boom and pivotal wing booms. The wing booms can be pivoted from an extended spray position to an elevated transport position by lifting and lowering each wing boom about a longitudinal lift pivot axis. In addition, each wing boom can bi-directionally breakaway relative to the center boom by virtue of a breakaway pivot arranged between the lift pivot axis and the innermost end of the wing boom. The breakaway pivot has at least one pair of nested cams that are biased into their nested condition by at least one spring. The center boom carries a pair of support cradles that direct or cam one wing boom forwardly and the other wing boom rearwardly as the wing booms are lifted into the transport position such that the wing booms form an X-shape relative to one another. The support cradles are partially flexible to allow the wing booms to release from the cradles if they strike an obstruction.

Abstract: A grass groomer for a reel cutting unit of a mower comprises a grooming reel that rotates about a substantially horizontal axis. The grooming reel has a plurality of helical blade tip flights with the blade tips in each flight acting sufficiently against the turf to cut horizontal grass runners and to dethatch the turf. The helical blade tip flights are spaced from one another around a circumference of the grooming reel. The grooming reel also carries a plurality of helical brushes that are also spaced from one another around the circumference of the grooming reel, the helical brushes being disposed between the helical blade tip flights. The helical brushes are disposed to rotate with the grooming grass and to ruffle and wipe the grass in the turf simultaneously with the rotation of the grooming reel.

Abstract: This invention relates to a selectorized dumbbell having a handle that can be dropped down between nested left and right stacks of weight plates. The weight plates can comprise individual weights or a pair of weight plates, one from each stack, can be connected together to form a single weight. A selector is provided to allow the user to select a desired number of weight plates from each stack and couple such weight plates to the handle to provide an adjustable weight dumbbell. Each weight plate comprises a pair of thinner or partial thickness weight subplates that are abutted and welded together, e.g. a ½? weight plate is formed by a pair of ¼? weight subplates. This substantially decreases the cost of manufacturing the selectorized dumbbell.

Abstract: A mower has at least one powered cutting unit for mowing grass. A switch is provided for permitting operation of the cutting unit or for preventing operation of the cutting unit depending upon the state of the switch. The switch is linked in some fashion, e.g. mechanically or electronically, to the traction drive system of the unit. The ground speed of the mower is limited to a mowing speed when the switch is placed into the state in which operation of the cutting unit is permitted. When the switch is placed into the state in which operation of the cutting unit is prevented, the ground speed of the mower is not limited to the mowing speed but can attain a higher transport speed.

Abstract: This invention relates to a mower and a tracked implement that convert from one to the other by coupling a mower unit or a tracked unit to a common drive unit. The drive unit is thus used in both products to provide cost savings in the purchase of the equipment. In the tracked unit, a cab for enclosing the operator's station is part of the tracked unit and gets mounted to the drive unit when the tracked unit is coupled to the drive unit. A pair of idlers rotate on pivot axes that are fixed relative to a pivotal idler support that carries the idlers. The pivot point for the idler support is chosen to prevent track elongation when the tracked unit climbs obstructions such as a curb. In the mower unit, a relatively heavy cutting deck is used and spring biased weight transfer arms transfer some of the deck weight to the mower frame.

Abstract: A walk reel mower has a front mounted reel cutting unit and a rear handle. The operator pushes the handle towards the ground to lift the reel cutting unit off the ground prior to turning the walk reel mower around. When this occurs, the manner in which the reel cutting unit is supported in conjunction with the influence of gravity causes the reel cutting unit to pitch rearwardly relative to the frame of the walk reel mower. This change of orientation is used to close a switch which, in turn, initiates an automatic slow down of the mower to ease the task of turning the mower around. When a turn is completed and the cutting unit is dropped back down into engagement with the ground, the slow down is terminated and the ground speed resumes at whatever predetermined ground speed was previously selected by the operator.

Abstract: A trailer for a walk greensmower comprises a trailer frame supported by a pair of ground engaging trailer wheels. The trailer frame includes a pair of spaced, parallel wheel ramps. A tongue is provided for connecting to a tow vehicle. The trailer frame is pivotal relative to the tongue and to the trailer wheels to tilt into an inclined loading position for loading the walk greensmower by driving the walk greensmower up the wheel ramps using the powered transport wheels of the walk greensmower. Once the walk greensmower is loaded onto the wheel ramps, the trailer frame is pivoted into a transport position in which the wheel ramps no longer engage the ground and the walk greensmower is carried on the wheel ramps. In one embodiment of this trailer, the wheel ramps comprise cylindrical rails and the transport wheels are grooved to ride on the top sides of the rails.

Abstract: A walk aerator comprises a frame supported by a plurality of ground engaging wheels, the frame carrying a coring head having a plurality of side-by-side tine assemblies. The wheels define a wheelbase which is substantially equal to or less than the width of a coring swath and the wheels are located in advance of the coring head to keep the wheels from passing over the holes or soil cores left in any preceding coring swathes formed by the aerator. The vertical position of the coring head is adjustable up and down as the ground contour changes to keep hole depth substantially constant. The tine assemblies are reciprocated by a single crankshaft driven by a single pulley, the crankshaft being assembled from multiple crank arms that are splined and bolted together. Sealed bearings connect drive arms that drive the tine assemblies to the crankshaft. The crankshaft can be disassembled to allow the sealed drive arm bearings to be replaced. Integral core deflectors are used on the drive arms.

Abstract: A multi-use, multi-level structure can be installed in and removed from a body of water in a seasonal fashion. The structure has a lower level that includes a boat lift and an upper level that provides an entertainment area. The structure carries a ballast system for selectively floating the structure on the body of water or sinking the structure in the water. The ballast system includes an array of hydraulically interconnected ballast tanks that are vented to the atmosphere. A valve may be opened to admit water to the ballast tanks to flood the tanks. A pump is used to pump water out of the ballast tanks when desired.

Abstract: A filament trimmer includes a rotatable trimmer head having an outwardly extending filament. The trimmer has an upper handle that the operator can grip to operate the trimmer in either a trim mode or an edge mode. In the trim mode, the filament extending outwardly from the trimmer head is positioned in a generally horizontal cutting plane, while in the edge mode the trimmer is reoriented such that the filament is positioned in a generally vertical cutting plane. The upper handle of the trimmer includes dual triggers for selectively starting and stopping rotation of the trimmer head. One trigger is actuated when the trimmer is operated in the trim mode and the other trigger is actuated when the trimmer is operated in the edge mode.

Abstract: A multi-use, multi-level structure can be installed in and removed from a body of water in a seasonal fashion. The structure has a lower level that includes a boat lift and an upper level that provides an entertainment area. The structure carries a buoyancy system for selectively floating the structure on the body of water or sinking the structure in the water. The buoyancy system preferably comprises a ballast system that includes an array of hydraulically interconnected ballast tanks that are vented to the atmosphere. A valve may be opened to admit water to the ballast tanks to flood the tanks. A pump is used to pump water out of the ballast tanks when desired.

Abstract: A structure can be installed in and removed from a body of water in a seasonal fashion. The structure has a lower level that includes a boat lift and may include an upper level that provides an entertainment area. The structure carries a buoyancy system for selectively floating the structure on the body of water or sinking the structure in the water. A substantially enclosed boathouse may form the structure when the structure has only a lower level. The boathouse is seperable into sections each of which could be separately rolled over the ground by wheels attached to each section. This reduces the usual operational width of the boathouse into the smaller towed widths of the individual sections to ease the task of transporting the boathouse over the ground.

Abstract: A barbell comprises a bar with a receptacle at each end of the bar. The receptacle is configured to receive a selectorized dumbbell therein. The dumbbell is placed into the receptacle in a first loaded condition with a plurality of weights being coupled to the dumbbell. After such placement, the dumbbell can be adjusted to a second loaded condition in which the dumbbell carries fewer weights than in the first loaded condition. The dumbbell is then removed from the receptacle while in the second loaded condition to thereby leave behind at least one weight in the receptacle. Alternatively, the dumbbell in its first loaded condition can simply be left in its entirety in the receptacle. A lock can be provided on the receptacle to help retain within the receptacle either the dumbbell or the weights left behind in the receptacle. Thus, at least portions of selectorized dumbbells provide exercise mass for the barbell.

Abstract: A support bracket for hanging differently sized buckets comprises a bracket body which can be secured to a vertical support surface such as a wall. The bracket body includes a lip that forms an upwardly facing hook that hooks into a downwardly facing channel on the rim of the bucket. The bracket body includes fixed upper and lower seats for receiving the pivotal bail on the bucket. The pivotal bail of a larger bucket will be received in the upper seat and the pivotal bail of a smaller bucket will be received in the lower seat when the rim channel of the bucket is hung on the lip. A pin retains the pivotal bail of the bucket in whatever seat holds the bail.

Abstract: A walk reel mower includes a pair of inclined rigid links for mounting the reel cutting unit to the reel mower frame for rolling about a longitudinal axis, and a pair of vertical support arms for mounting the reel cutting unit to the reel mower frame for pitching about a transverse axis. An integrated gearbox houses both the traction and reel drives, including the differential that is part of the traction drive, as well as a parking brake. A flexible drive shaft powers the cutting reel from the gearbox and is made from materials that do not require petroleum based lubricants to avoid the possibility of damage to the turf or grass. A single control handle located on the handle of the mower actuates both the reel and traction drives. The reel cutting unit includes a back plate which has a portion formed as a hollow beam for strength.

Abstract: An animal grooming tool (10, 10?, 10?) that allows a user to spray an animal with a liquid and squeegee excess water from the animal. Spraying and squeegeeing may be performed substantially simultaneously with one another in one motion, if desired. The grooming tool includes a tubular body (14) having a plurality of liquid outlets (22) located along the length of the tool. The body defines a central passageway (18) for conveying liquid to the outlets. Scrapers (42) for providing the tool with its squeegee capability are located adjacent the liquid outlets. The grooming tool further includes a handle region (54) and a grip (58) adjacent one end of the body. A portion of the body is curved to form a concave region (20) so that the tool better conforms to the curved surfaces typically found on the animals groomed with the tool.