# The Ultimate Vac-Cart



## aegt5000 (Feb 22, 2004)

I got fed up with trying to get the 48” deck to mulch, so I’m taking a different
approach this year. No more fooling around with the enviro approach, 
I’m now in the seek and destroy mode.

<img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v155/aegt5000/01Full.jpg">


The base components consist of:
Tandem Axle ATV Wagon make by Bosski = $1,000.00 (eBay)
8 Hp push type MTD blower (damaged frame) = $258.00 (eBay)
1-7/8” ball hitch receiver $20.00 (Northern Tool)
6” x 15 ft flex hose = $113.00 (McMaster Carr) ouch !
3/4” Angle Iron and 2” Sq tube = $60.00 (Local Steel Suplier)
1 Sheet 3/4" marine plywood, 40 ft 3/4" x 1-1/2” oak, 1 roll pet screen = $116.00
2 Aluminum hinges 1-1/2” x 6ft, stainless hardware = $55.00 (McMaster Carr)
Deck and Blower housing hose adapters = $56.00 (Agri-Fab on-line parts)
Water proof box and 2 SPST push button switches = $17.00 (Home Depot)
Misc steel and stuff from the garage =$0.00 (More room for new misc. stuff.) 

So all total the project costs about $1,700.00. I was considering buying the
Agri-Fab 8Hp Vac-Cart which was selling for about $1200 (last fall) but
decided I could do this with a $1,500 budget. (Why split hairs ?)

<img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v155/aegt5000/02Set.jpg">

I made a new 1ft x 2ft frame for the blower from 2in tube. 4 uprights mate
the blowers original sub frame to this new frame. The whole assembly gets
bolted to the wagon’s frame and a 2in sq tongue and ball hitch get added. 
The gray box on top of the tongue houses the original actuator relays that 
came with the wagon, plus the 2 push button control switches I added.

<img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v155/aegt5000/03Set.jpg">

Here are the blower housing and deck to hose adapters I got from Agri-Fab.
Note: Both the front and rear deck wheel brackets had to be modified. 
I needed to offset the wheels by 1in to clear the deck discharge adapter.

<img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v155/aegt5000/04Set.jpg">

Here is the discharge hose to wagon hook-up. My homemade adapter is
a 34oz coffee can brazed to a steel plate with a hole cut to fit the can.
Plastic knobs with threaded inserts hold the adapter to the front panel.

<img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v155/aegt5000/05Set.jpg">

Here is the dump sequence, once the discharge hose is disconnected, 
the top screened doors are opened.

<img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v155/aegt5000/06Set.jpg">

Door stops prevent the doors from over-opening. The four spring loaded
tailgate hinge pins are then pulled back and held open by the added studs.

<img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v155/aegt5000/07Set.jpg">

The back panel is then lifted off. Note the removable top cross angle.
The pins in the angle ends mate to the holes in the 1/2in key stock that
is part of the side panels. When in place this cross brace maintains the
spread of the side panels. The plywood front and side panels are screwed
to a welded 3/4in angle iron frame.

<img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v155/aegt5000/08Set.jpg">

Now comes the fun part, push the button and the actuator dumps the wagon.
With the cross brace out of the way and the screen doors opened, any stuff
stuck in the wagon can easily be raked out. 
Special Note: The top side, opening screen doors and removable rear cross
brace were sixchows idea’s. Without this feature, getting into the back of 
the wagon with the bed in the dump position would have been a real pain
in the …..(Thanks sixchows).


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## Bruceman (Jul 28, 2004)

DADGUM, that's a monster! Good job. How long did it take to build, head-scratchin included?


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## Archdean (Jul 15, 2004)

That would be especially good for picking up Long Island fallen Liberals!!

Just kidding! Nice Job from one who understands the effort! Thanks for sharing!!


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## Ingersoll444 (Sep 17, 2003)

That is SWEETTTTTT!!!!!!!! GREAT JOB!!!!:thumbsup: :thumbsup: 


Been thinkng of building a cart to add to by Hydro bagger my Ingersoll, but have not gotten to it yet. Doupt it would have been that nice. 

How does the 4 wheel cart work tracking behind the tractor? Any problems at all? Other then holding the weight, andy real need for the 4 wheels?


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## guest2 (Dec 27, 2003)

WOW!! That thing is AWESOME!! Sure doesn't look "homemade" What's the capacity? Looks about 2X the size of the agri-fab.

Mother-in-law ...BEWARE!!!!!:lmao:


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## ducati996 (Dec 27, 2003)

> _Originally posted by Archdean _
> *That would be especially good for picking up Long Island fallen Liberals!!
> 
> Just kidding! Nice Job from one who understands the effort! Thanks for sharing!! *


Dont know of any fallen Long Island liberals but it makes a perfect 6 ft pine box  

Ducati


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## aegt5000 (Feb 22, 2004)

I honestly don’t know how many hours (including head scratching) 
the project took. I bought the wagon and blower back in Feb. and
just kind of did this stuff in between the 1250 loader, the HT-23
(which is almost done), the electric sprayer, electric spreader, and
what ever else was going on. 

If I had to guess, I’d say 20-30 hours to fabricate, 200 hours of head
scratching. Doing a project with no hard completion deadline is
a lot more fun than trying to get something finished.

I used it all day today (8 loads of finely minced leaves) and the
4 wheel profile has its plus’s and minus’s. The wagon is big,
60 cub/ft, so the 4 big tires help to prevent ruts. The down side is
the knobby profile can dig up some turf, when the wagon is full
and you are making very tight turns.

I was very happy with the way the deck and blower worked,
the leaves really get pulverized. I did manage to clog the intake
hose, but it really took an effort to do. I was running through 
bigger and bigger windrows of leaves, and finally over-did it.
The big dump actuator effortlessly lifts the bed of leaf mulch
because the wagon max load is rated at 1600 lbs.

I think it was worth the additional cost above the Agri-Fab unit.
IMO the best thing about it is the way it looks, and if it looks
good…..it must be better.


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## Argee (Sep 17, 2003)

Nice Job aegt5000:thumbsup: You certainly have an eye for detail!


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## memmurphy (Sep 18, 2003)

You definitely built the dream leaf vacuum and a high quality job too. :thumbsup: 

You could add a white strobe lamp in the center with two big yellow flashing lights on the back and a slow moving vehicle sign. Just in case the yard police pull you over.  

Mark


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## aegt5000 (Feb 22, 2004)

Mark...
Don’t laugh, you’re not too far off. I did go through the trouble to 
hook up the brake / tail light.
:smiles:


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## memmurphy (Sep 18, 2003)

I just assumed that was a reflector. Your already a step ahead of me. :lmao: 

Mark


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## snowmower (May 19, 2004)

WOW!!!!
What more is there to say, except ...
WOW!!!!

Very nice.

SnowMower


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## bontai Joe (Sep 16, 2003)

I like it when the problem is clearly defined and the solution is up to the task! You must have the same attitude towards leaves, etc, as Keweenaw4310 has towards snow. If I ever need to put together a team for a "monster build", you two guys are first on my list:thumbsup:


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## DeereBob (Sep 16, 2003)

Aegt5000,
That is the biggest, baddest leaf sucker I have ever gazed upon. What a design job, and better yet it even works. With that much blower power, I bet it could suck the acorns right out of oak tree before they hit the ground. To big to maneuver in my yard but I sure would like not having to dump as frequently by having 60 cu ft. of capacity. Super job.


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## snowmower (May 19, 2004)

AEGT5000, is that an electric actuator or a hydraulic unit for the dump feature.

Can you tell me more about it? What size, where you got it, how it handles a heavy load, how much, etc.

thanks
SnowMower
(again, WOW!)


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## aegt5000 (Feb 22, 2004)

Thanks to all for the favorable comments.

snowmower…

The wagon dump feature is handled by that big electric
actuator. It was a standard feature on the wagon, I didn’t
add it. The wagon is rated for a 1600 lb payload, so the
actuator is sized for the payload. It has no problem dumping
the full load of mulch and I guess it would dump a full
1600 lb load. It’s about 30” long and about 2” in Dia. and
takes about 20 seconds to full extend.


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