Interesting project. Hope you'll get it running well again. My mower is electric. Its an un-self propelled push mower(getting up my hill which goes 30-40 degrees over the max 15 DEGREE WARNING sticker says hurts, which is why I run left-right down it, not up-down.), but it's electric. Love it! Power off when I need a drink, or break, and right back on when I pull the lever. That's the great thing with it (waterproof so-far too)!
I LOVE not having a carburator! It's great just to hit a button and run.
I also think that electrics have the potential to be safer as well - blades stop very quickly when you turn them off. Gas mowers always have the potential for the blades to start up from a pinched belt any time the engine is running. Also you can't hear anyone coming up behind you.
I noticed that you referred to the look of the powdercoat post-baking as "plastic-like"... well, that's because it's plastic. That's why you have to bake it. The normal powder doesn't actually completely coat the surface, and even if it did, you'd already noticed that it doesn't adhere very well... when you bake it, the particles of plastic-material "dust" melt together, bonding to each other and to the part, making a very durable colored finish.
Your primer job looks very good, but if you're going to paint with yellow paint, it's going to take quite a few coats to get a good even tone over gray... yellow primer (check a PPG place near you) might be a better option for you, for the best finish.
The powdercoat will likely not match the paint, so be prepared for that eventuality.
As far as the rims go, many older tractors (and some newer ones) came with hub adapters on them already. I have several sets that I use for other projects, but they can be had at nearly any tractor shop, and have a US-Spec 5x4.5" pattern, which can be found in 8, 9, 10, 12, 13, 14, 15, and 16 inch utility rims, as well as anything automotive up to 24" inches.
I often run truck tires on my tractors, because they're usually cheap/free, and that requires a modified 15" 5x4.5" rim with a truck tire mounted on it. Backspacing can be a concern, it's likely best that if you go this route, you get a wheel rim from a RWD vehicle, something with a deep "dish" to it.
The matching metric wheel pattern is 5x114.3 which can be found on several imports as well as many US vehicles, or 5x115 (GM specific, mid-size.)
For a quick starter list of vehicles with that bolt pattern -
Ford Ranger
Pontiac Grand Am/Grand Prix (all years FWD)
Ford Explorer
Ford Taurus (Not sure about anything after '99-ish)
Honda Accord 5 lug - possibly.
Those are among several others. The bolt pattern is one of the more common ones, and is also used on 5-lug trailers largely.
I was looking for a picture of it, but I guess I don't have it anymore...
I have a lawn tractor that I used to haul in Cara (my old Caravan, if you don't remember) that has 14" Keystone Klassic wheels on the back, with 245/65R14 tires on them.
That tractor is an AGWAY model, and it came with 5 lug hubs on it. I had to drill the hubs' existing holes (they were threaded) and put wheel studs in them. I still have to get around to making the bracket for the calipers and then finding a good set of rear rotors that will fit behind those wheels. I have full intentions of that particular tractor having the ability (after modifications) to hit nearly 100MPH. It's a drag-rig, so why not?
The yellows I used for the Elec-Trak are indeed different. The Rustoleum is a Sun Yellow (has a little orange to it) the powder-coat is AG YELLOW - that the exact color of yellow that is used on John Deere tractors.
Maybe I'll look for a yellow primer for future painting of the big parts of the tractor.
Hey, you can get that JD yellow color (it's patented) matched at any Lowe's store, BTW. I had to get some for a client that I rebuilt a JD for, and the Deere dealer wouldn't sell me the small quantity I needed. (They only wanted to sell gallons, and at their markup.)
Take one of the coated parts to Lowe's and they'll scan it and custom mix the color for you, though. That doesn't change the fact that powder usually doesn't match paint, though. They'll have different tones in the light, etc.
Well, Tim had a powder-coat setup. I had never done it before, so part of it was just to be a new experience. Also, I have heard that powdercoating is just a really good way to protect the metal. This thing is really old, so I am trying to get it it cleaned up to last another 30 or 40 years. Powdercoating only needs one coat. Spray paint needs primer, and several coats of paint, plus all the drying time in between. (Granted, it's not that bad for small parts like these.)
The mower originally was designed for 6 x 6v batteries. I am going to have it as two parallel strings of 3 for a 36 volt system.
I have never heard of an official size yard it is supposed to mow. Last summer, running on 3 pretty junky batteries, it would do half my yard on a charge.
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