English man in France

Hi all, Thank for letting me join, as the title says grew up in south of uk and now living/working in france . I do have a few questions later but will get a few pics first

Hi all
Want to build a racer something I can hack around the field,I have an old 89 Roper and some advice please, the chassis is got the deep sides at the engine area witch makes it difficult/ impossible to work on the motor now has anyone modified one like cut the sides away engine area and strengthened it using box section? I did try to post pic but something went wrong.

Welcome!
First of all, you need to specific as to what tractor you have. I think it's a Rally Roper because its the only Roper I could find with those deep plates covering the engine.

Is it like this one?


I presume you just unbolt them.

Welcome to the hobby and the forum! There is info about posting pics in the "new member help topics and site tips" section.

Hi matthewd
no the plates do not come of they run the full length of the tractor so really part of the integral strength, I may just trim some of it out to have better access on motor. I was interested on what others had perhaps done.

hi there, welcome aboard

im not familiar with this machine myself, but do you know if the tractor has the original engine fitted? if an aftermarket engine has been fitted maybe that could account for poor access to some degree. What elements of the engine do you wish to gain access to by lowering the plates?

how thick is the material and is it definitely structural?

Jon

It doesn't really look that structurally important from the pic I posted, more just as a cover for the engine. I would either cut them away and brace it up a bit, or cut them out and make them bolt-on. If you could show us an exact pic of your mower it would help.

MatthewD wrote:

It doesn't really look that structurally important from the pic I posted, more just as a cover for the engine. I would either cut them away and brace it up a bit, or cut them out and make them bolt-on. If you could show us an exact pic of your mower it would help.

Matthew i think it forms an upward u section, its hard to see, some other versions online without the sides, but could be completely different chassis with the same bodywork, just like all the different variants of murray/mountfield/hayter etc that do that. i wouldn't chop it away without knowing what it does and how it is loaded.

Your right SJ its a U shape , I may cut a bit out then strengthen it with some box section

If you do cut a chunk out of it, run the box section along the length of the wheelbase for max strength otherwise it will just want to buckle where the reinforcement stops

yeah that would hurt if it folds in 2 at speed...lol

Hi Hampshireborn,

Welcome to the forum. If your referring to the mower in your profile pic, I had one just like that but it was a craftsman with a 10 hp techumsa motor and a 3 speed in it. I used the 3 speed from it in my build for the build off last year (2015) and used the motor for my riding mower that does wheelies, and used the frame itself for the metal and cut out pieces for my build in the build off last year. The main frame is 1/16 inch thick, thin steel plate in other words. I think it would be safe if you cut down no more then half way where the motor is to help uncramp that area. If I remember right, the very front holds the grill on too. Shouldn't have to reinforce it because it's a pretty strong frame itself but will flex a little more maybe under extreme riding, like off roading it over rocks or holes.

Here's some pics of what's left of mine, LOL.

Cut where the red line is.




Hope it helps.

yeah man i kind got the impression it would be 'thin as' if the chassis had to be that depth.

It's a pretty strong frame, all in all. I remember the sides of the rails covering just about the whole motor. About 8 inches tall on the rail. Making it into a racer should be strong enough easy, even after cutting the rails some.

Welcome. Wish I could be in France between June 15-19th this year. It's a little far for me though.