[treed]

A friend of mine has recently picked up two Yazoo vintage mowers. One, I believed, is a YR-76 and the other YR-60. Does anyone know a web site other than the Yazoo Yahoo Groups, that one is pretty dead, that would cater to the old Yazoos. I drove the YR-60 around a bit, without the deck, and it would take some time to get used to driving one of these.

I kind of partial to the old Yazoo's, I operated one briefly when I was in the Army back in the late 70's. But, if I remember correctly, it didn't look anything like these old YR's.

 

[treed]

BTW, here's what one looks like.

 

[Live Oak]

Originally posted by treed
A friend of mine has recently picked up two Yazoo vintage mowers. One, I believed, is a YR-76 and the other YR-60. Does anyone know a web site other than the Yazoo Yahoo Groups, that one is pretty dead, that would cater to the old Yazoos. I drove the YR-60 around a bit, without the deck, and it would take some time to get used to driving one of these.

I kind of partial to the old Yazoo's, I operated one briefly when I was in the Army back in the late 70's. But, if I remember correctly, it didn't look anything like these old YR's.

Yazoo/Kees

 

[Live Oak]

Since these machines are more geared to commercial use; I suspect tha you would find a good bit of info. at:

lawnforum.com
lawncafe.com

I hate to give any recongnition to lawnsite.com but they do seem to have a pretty large following.

 

[Stewart]

Is there a "tailwheel" that does the steering? That would be real odd to drive. Like you said it would take some getting used to.

Like Chief said the lawn site is a little clickish, I don't know if there are too may folks with Yazoo's. Good luck!

 

[Live Oak]

Actually steering with a tailwheel is pretty effective for manuevering. That is how my F525 is configured.

 

[Stewart]

Chief, Did you ever test out that new JD you were talking about???? It was kind of like the Yazoo.

It sure didn't get much more than the time of day at lawnnsite.

It looks like there are a lot of the same folks from the lawnsite on th lawncafe. There might be some good info there as well.

 

[treed]

Actually, the folks over on lawnsite and lawncafe probably wouldn't touch something like this, much less know of anything about them. On those sites, it's ZTRs or nothing. These would be more of a vintage item than something you would want to use commercially, anyway.

Yes, there's a "tailwheel" for steering. It's a three wheeled machine. The third wheel, the back wheel, is guided by a chain driven from the upright steering wheel. These things have a Wisconsin 2-cylinder engine and hydrostatic transmissions. Going forward it's not too hard to get used to, but going in reverse is another thing all together.

I would like to have one, just to restore and to drive around a bit. I may try to pry one off his hands.

BTW, the YR-76 has a 76 inch deck, and the YR-60 has a 60 inch deck.

 

[treed]

Chief,
The yazoo/kees website doesn't address the old machines. Too bad, as there doesn't seem to be anywhere that one could derive info from on these old Yazoo's.

 

[Live Oak]

Originally posted by Stewart
Chief, Did you ever test out that new JD you were talking about???? It was kind of like the Yazoo.

It sure didn't get much more than the time of day at lawnnsite.

It looks like there are a lot of the same folks from the lawnsite on th lawncafe. There might be some good info there as well.

Actually, I have had so many other things come up in between that I have forgotten about it. Still haven't been able to find a dealer that has one anyway.

 

[treed]

Here's a similar thread on lawnsite dealing with front mowers. You can tell be the atitude from this thread that front mowers aren't well respected on lawnsite.

http://www.lawnsite.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=74661

 

[Stewart]

Big mowing path!!! That would be nice, sorry about the sites. They do deal with new stuff mostly. :truth:

 

[treed]

...sorry about the sites. They do deal with new stuff mostly.


I don't really blame them. Those sites are geared toward the lawn care professional, so they are more interested in what's available currently, not what was available 40+ years ago.

I do think I trace the production years though on these machines, anywhere from 1959 to 1963.

 

[balmoralboy]

Yazoo

There was one at the auction i was at on Saturday, but it went before I got there. A commercial machine, rear steer tricycle setup, with the front right wheel powered, left front idler wheel, single stick steering. It looked like a tough old beast, and probably really maneuverable. But probably not what I'd choose for a yard with lots of obstacles. I bet you'd get a real shoulder workout driving it.

 

[jodyand]

The guy down the street has one that looks like that. Or should i say he did till this year he got rid of it and now has a Gravely ZTR. But sorry don't know of any web site for them.

 

[Chris]

I know that Yazoo used to make some very well-engineered and well-built equipment. Their early work on these type of mowers led to the advent of the large ZTR market we have today. Good mowers for professional applications... I hope you find the info you need... I have seen places on the Internet for parts for some of the older Yazoo's as my brother owns one out in Atlanta.

 

[Neil_nassau]

Those machines were built for many years with a variety of engines,deck drives were belt or drive shaft on later models,variety of engines according to deck either 42",48",60",76" and even 84" (48" center deck with 2 fold down single spindle decks). I worked for a retailer that sold them from 1966 to 1971, then for a Yazoo company owned distributorship from 1971 to 1978.Did parts,service and last 2 years there sales.

First machines used a Rockford turret lathe clutch in their own gearcase for a one stick F-N-R setup with a high Low range. Just don't have reverse too tight or it could flip you.machines pre early 70's were a bear to adjust as trans only had one inspection port in top about 3' in diameter.
Deck drive belts had to be set "just so"........most popular and first version was YR60 with LONG stroke Wisconsin AGND 12.5 hp (yeah you read that right) engine. Thing had gobs of torque and was a grass mowin' Mother. Your pic of a manual was the TJD engine rated at (get ready) 16.5 hp !

Company had a strange history.........Jackson Mississippi family owned by Jim Kerr,Sr,run later by jim Jr.Then purchased by a Texan oil rich guy (I think ) whose wife turned up missing then he died (both mysterious). Company was run by a trust for a few years.....then sold to Kees (Beatrice Neb firm) then Electrolux bought the whole wad and shutdown all the old good stuff. Sigh....
ask anything you need to now........

 

[Chris]

Wow, great info there Neil. Your post reads like a geneology and history of the company. You are a great resource. So, there you go Treed, ask away!

:captain:

 

[treed]

Thanks, Neil. Highly insightful info. The two that I saw had the Wisconsin engines on them with the F-N-R with the Hi-Lo. I operated a Yazoo in 1978-1979 time frame when I was in the Army. It was also 3-wheel, with the back wheel doing the steering. If I remember correctly, it didn't look like these. Any idea what it might have been? Sorry, but that's all I can remember about the machine, except that it was a bear to learn to operate efficeintly.

 

[Neil_nassau]

Yazoo sold alot of machines to defense dept. The South had alot of military bases. Company owned stores were as follows:
Yazoo of Texas- Houston
Yazoo of Louisiana - Shreveport (I think)
Yazoo Manufacturing - Jackson
Yazoo of Florida - Orlando
Yazoo of Alabama -Birmingham
Master Sales - Memphis (where I worked)

Independent distributors in the South were:
Carolina's were handled by giant Porter Brothers Distribution
Georgia was Blaylock Machinery (still around today)

So it was a popular way for the military to mow grass. We sold MANY 24" PUSH hi wheel mowers with cast iron Clinton engines to Navy base in Milington Tenn north of Memphis. For KP.....sailors mowed grass.Millington Naval Air Station had a WHOLE lot of grass. You can imagine pushing a 150lbs of 24" hiwheel mower in west Tennesse humidity.

The years you ran a machine,quite possible it was a hydro on a gear trans with a Kohler engine. School board here in Nassau county still has one as well as one with the older clutch drive.
Shot me a pic of the units your bud [email protected]
Ill identify them for you.

Parts these days are a biaytch. Ill help any way I can.

Not alot good about getting old except you get to be a historian....Jeez.........Im only 53.:dazed:

side note:Howard Brothers in St Louis bought frames and transaxles from Yazoo,painted them yellow and sold them as "Howard Price" mowers.