Husqvarna 265ACX (or 260ACX) Automower.

Perry

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I've ordered my e-beastie for 7 August. $NZ5,500 ($US4394 on present exchange rates)
I downloaded some manuals and have been doing some preliminary reading. Plus a more
detailed site assessment. The specs say it comes with 400 meters of wire so I've ordered
two x 100M rolls of wire extra. Plus extra staples and joiners.

One or two quirky bits, but, generally, the Swenglish manual is not too bad. A lot easier
than Chinglish manuals! I'll be doing some more reading afresh, over the next few days,
but taking notes, this time. The 20M of low voltage cable means that charging station
location I've chosen will not require a mains cable and plug/switch run to it. But the
plan to have it a little further in under a deck needs revising as that relationship is
constrained by the limitations on the placement of the boundary wire and its relation-
ship to the charging station.
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A frosty morning view

I have a lot of lawn, some awkward layout aspects, a large (empty) pond and a lot of
trees. Plus an overnight pop-up sprinkler system that the mower needs to be safely
tucked away from, for about 5 hours. According to some of the sample layouts in the
manual, it will need to be running 17 hours a day in the high-grass-growth season,
so five hours time out for watering will just work.

One of the esoteric aspects of a robotic mower is its inherent inflexibility. I.e. it has
certain expectations and, if those are met, it should perform well. Branches blown off
trees, a kid's toy or dog's ball left on the lawn, a pince cone fallen from a tree - all are
unexpected events in a robot mower's life. I hope dog turds are not a problem! Regular
lawn patrols by a human will be essential!

I have a couple of slender young saplings that I suspect will need a plastic pipe ring
around them, to avoid them being knocked about when the mower bumps into them.
Plus a couple of paving slabs that need a change in height.

Trying to think ahead a bit, too. There's a couple of places that might have raised beds
in the future, so I'm considering laying the boundary wire out a bit from the edge, so
I don't have to change the line, later. There are areas which will have to be man-mowed,
so a little around the edges to cope with wider margins for future expansion isn't a huge
imposition. Even if they never happen!
:confused3:

More later . . .
 
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Let us know how you like it when it arrives! :thumbsup:
 

Perry

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After a bit of sleuthing around, I got hold of (downloaded) what might
be called a workshop manual. That helped clarify one or two enigmas
in the operator's manual. One thing I did notice and didn't like was the
complexity involved in changing batteries that have passed their use-
by date.

I also have a landscaper coming in with some heavy loads, soon. Until
those heavy loads are no longer, I'm leery of laying out the boundary
wire in the area he'll be working. So that might delay things a bit.

I had a guffaw reading about the guide wires and their installation. The
book-of-words says fully install the charging station and shove the mower
in it to charge, while the boundary wire laying is being done. One problem
with that is that the guide wires have to go under the charging station
apron, to get to their plug-in point, at the back. But the manual mentions
that on later pages. Too late by then. Humpffft!

Note to self, put a bit of plastic pipe under the charging station (with pull-
throughs) as a guide wire conduit, when installing the charging station.

It was a welcome surprise to find that the low voltage cable from the
transformer to the charging station is 20 metres long. (22 yards) Saved
me putting in a mains voltage switch and plug.

Less welcome were the constraints on the relationship of the charging
station to the boundary wire. I was planning a 'garage' under the pool
deck, but that might now need some creative thinking to achieve.

I also saw that the blade disc alters its direction of rotation on some
cyclic basis, to use both sides of the blades. Good idea. I also noticed
that there are three types of blades to choose from.
 

Perry

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I have not been able to figure out what (if any) difference there is between a 260ACX and a 265ACX.
But not being sure about this or that detail isn't my sole prerogative. Husqvarna has the same problem.
Take your pick from their documentation:

Operators Manual (265 ACX Operators Manual Sep 2012 HUSO2012_EUenAPen_1154252-26.pdf)

6.4 Timer (2)When you set the timer, assume that Automower 260 ACX mows about 250 square meters per hour.

Operators Manual (260 ACX Operators Manual Sep 2012 HUSO2010_EUenAPen_1152764-26.pdf)
6.4 Timer (2)

When you set the timer, assume that Automower 260 ACX mows about 230 square metres per hour

Quick Guide (Automower 260 Quick Guide HUSO2009_EUenAPen_1151309-26.pdf)
Automower 260 ACX cuts around 210 square metres per hour . . .

. . . or toss a coin and make a wish! Makes me think of the five versus three blades confusion.


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I turned up at the Dealer's on Wednesday. When I said I'd come to pick up my automower, the
stunned mullet look was all I got. The staff member I'd ordered it through was summoned. He
then said "that model hasn't been released, in New Zealand, yet."

"Oh,"
says I, "it was in your mailer, a couple of months back."

"Well, the regional sales manager said it hadn't been released yet."


A phone call was made to him, but only to leave an answer phone message for his cell phone.

The boss, still looking as if I was likely wrong, decided to phone the New Zealand importer /
distributor. A slightly amazed look crept across his face as he got answers to his questions
about stock, availability, etc. "I'll get back to you," he said, as he hung up.

He phoned me later in the day to say he expected it to arrive tomorrow and he would phone
again, the day after, subsequent to some pre-sales checks and tests being done.

Many months back, I was chatting with a guy who was once a Husqvarna dealer. His view
was the Husqvarna New Zealand were well qualified as openers of imported cartons and
crates, but not much else. That seemed rather harsh, but, after my recent experience,
maybe he did have a point?

When the Territory Manager is not giving the right information to dealers, well . . .
 

Perry

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Optimist!

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I talked to the dealer on the phone, again, this morning. Seems that the extra wire
and staples have arrived, but they're still looking for the automower and charging
station. I was told that they'd 'escalated' the matter, which likely means going over
the head of whoever they usually deal with at Mickey Mouse HusQvarna.

I do earnestly hope the mower has things better organised than the maker does.
 

Perry

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It doesn't get any better.

The inner bearing on a wheel of my Stanley handcart crapped out, so
I went to town to chase around for a replacement. Being Stanley USA
the bearing is imperial. Most bearings in New Zealand are now metric.

So from the cycle shop to the bearing shop . . .

Then I had an idea. That generic type of bearing, (non-precision) are
common in lawn mower wheels, so off to the mower shop I went. In
stock and plenty of 'em. Wow! Same mower shop the automower is
coming from. I tactfully avoided mentioning the matter. "Did I want
to take the 'extras' "
that had arrived?

"Sure." So when I left I had two bearings, plus a spool of boundary
wire and two packets of boundary wire pegs.

"Still no sign of the mower or charging station," said the proprietor.
"I'm actually having a bit of a %^$# fight with Husqvarna NZ."

"Oh,"
says I, with a questioning glance. "Has the freight forwarder
still not found the consignment?"
A bit of foot shuffling and floor
glancing, then . . .

"Well, it's not quite like that. They say they have 2 or maybe 3 in
stock, but Husqvarna NZ can't find them in their warehouse."


Two sets of eyes roll, as if they were one. :confused2:

At this rate, what do you think the chances are of the mower actually
working, as it should, once it's on-site?

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Perry

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Not A Good Chance, At All

Where to start? Today and work backwards over the comedy of errors
since Wednesday 7 August. I awoke at 5.00am with a stomach ache.
That's meant I've been a little less motivated, today.

Coxy (as the 265ACX has been nicknamed) is mowing, as I key this, well
after dark. I checked on it when I went out to collect the eggs and
put the pellets out for the hens' breakfast. This time, Coxy is in the
largest area of lawn, set to automatic, rather than manual. The
difference being that the auto setting has it return to the docking
station to recharge, then continue mowing. Manual means it stops
wherever it is when the battery is exhausted and has to be carried to
the charging station.

I don't have the two guide wires installed, as yet. Today, I went into
town to collect some more plastic staples that hold the wire down and
in place. When I ordered the mower on 31 July, I told the dealer that
I needed 571 metres of wire for the complete installation.

I was supplied with two drums of wire @ 500 metres each, plus four
bags of staples @ 100/bag. The installation recommendation is one
staple/peg every 750mm. Well, divide 571 metres by 750mm and the
answer is 666 staples. I was supplied with 400. Doh!

The special connectors that attach the wires to the charging station
weren't in the box. Instead, just standard spade connectors. Another
thing I did in town today was buy some 'flag-style' spade connectors
as the wire-straight-out-from-the-spade-connector didn't work, when it
came time to put the charging station headworks cover back on. There
wasn't enough clearance. Doh!

The box should also have contained a measurement gauge. It didn't.
With the aid of a strong magnifying glass applied to the contents page
in the operator's manual, I could see that the not-included gauge had
marks @ 100, 300 and 350mm. I had a nagging feeling about that, so
checked the manual itself. The markings specified therein were 100,
350 and 400mm. So I made a gauge using those measurements. Doh! x 2.

I had collected the machine on Wednesday 14 August. I ran some wires
out that afternoon and Thursday, but it was Friday before I was at the
stage where I could try a test run. The mower went beep, sat dumb and
the display said: Fault: upside down. Needless to say, it was up the
right way or the display would not have been visible. Doh!

A few gentle jiggles and turn it upside down and back the right way
up all availed nothing. The lady of the house took the mower (only)
into the dealer, that afternoon. We collected it Saturday morning
after some whatevers had been tried and it was still faulty and upside
down, according to the display. So much for that back-to-the-dealer
effort. Doh!

That Saturday, I was told that if the fault persisted, it would have
to be returned to the national distributor. That didn't thrill me, as
I'm up against a time line and how long that would take was unknown.

On Sunday morning, I had a brain wave. Sometime in the past months,
I'd been able to download what would be called a Workshop Manual. Lots
more detail in there, than in the operator's manual. From the trouble-
shooting page, I learn about the upside down fault. Better yet, how to
check the X and Y tilt axes figures. Even better, how to re-calibrate
them, if the figures shown were outside the acceptable parameters.

So, wonder of wonders, Coxy was finally on the job, mid-afternoon, on
Sunday. He did one modest area of lawn, set to manual. At a certain
point, I carried it to the charging station and pressed the Home
button and it finally got itself into the charging station. Later, I took
it back and turned it loose again, still on Manual. The operator's
manual says the working/charging cycle is 80/40 minutes. After its
first on-site charge, it was still running, 2 hours and 10 minutes
later. Well done!

Monday morning, another smaller piece of lawn was put in front of it,
the mower again set to manual. It was a nice feeling looking out the
window, from a dry house, watching Coxy cut the grass in the rain.
Monday afternoon, the big area was in front of it. I set it to manual
and went to town for the extra staples and right angle wire entry
spade connectors. It has stopped in the middle of the lawn, by the
time we returned. I put it in the charging station, but set it to
automatic, as I needed a lie down. My guts was still complaining
about the bending and this would be Coxy's first test on automatic.
I didn't see it, but it was back on the job when I got up, so must've
backed out of the charging station, as it should. It has re-docked,
re-charged and reversed back onto the lawn mowing task, all by itself,
at least once that I've seen, since then.

Weather permitting tomorrow, I'll install the two guide wires and change
the wire end connectors at the charging station. Then I'll have to do
some area percentage and return-to-base modus operandi programming.

The operator's manual had a lack of methodology process, as in:
helpful tips. There were some, but not enough. A couple of things I've
learned, relating to the installation process:

......* When doing a low cut in the lawn to staple the boundary wires beneath
........the blades arc, do that in angled straight lines along a circle chord,
........not in a curve, along the intended wire-laying path.

......* Don't run the boundary wire all the way out and then start stapling it
........down. Only run the wire out (say) 20 paces, staple that bit down, then
........repeat the process.

So, after a lot of efforts, many of which should not have been
necessary, Coxy is working.
 

Perry

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Well, Coxy has been on the job for a week. The lawns look better and better.
Even the lady of the house ( boys and their toys!! :rolleyes: ) observed that the
lawns look better than she ever imagined they would, under Coxy's razors.

Quite a few programming changes: corridor width getting the most tweaks.
The 'follow loop in/out' setting has had a few changes, too. Coxy has his
own garage under a bit of decking. It's largely rain proof and will keep the
sun off mostly, except for the middle of winter low-in-the-sky rays.

I had to do a little wire re-routing, too. From that (plus adding in the guide
wires, I learned some things.

1) The solderless couplers use a lot of wire. It is simply not possible to
.....just cut the wire and pop them in, like a joiner. I had to sneak some
.....distance from a nearby corner to get the necessary length. So . . .

2) When running a wire along a straight edge, (especially on a path edge
.....that the mower can over-run), use a very softly angled zigzag. By later
.....straightening that out, that will provide some extra length for joins.

Initially, I started with the lawn area set to complex. But I changed that
to normal after several days, to see what difference that would make. It's
hard to tell, so far. The layout is not straightforward as there are three
areas and Coxy does track down a guide wire, through a passage way,
one in ten charging station departures, to get there. Several times, he's
made it back to the bigger areas by free-roaming down the passage way.
On one observed occasion, he stayed and mowed that area well, then used
the guide wire to get back to the charging station for the next amps fix.

Coxy starts @ 0600 and finishes @ 2300, seven-days-a-week. The dew
means that the shavings (too short to be called clippings) do stick to the
skirt/bumper. As the days warms up and the accumulated shavings dry
out, they tend to drop off in lumps, on impact with an obstacle.

So far, only a couple of I'M STOPPED faults. One was in the passage way
and the other was when I adjusted the corridor width and got the two
guide wires confused. Coxy could not get past the corner of the building.
That made me change the boundary wire delay to 20 minutes, rather
than my initial setting of the boundary wire to being disallowed for use
to track back to the charging station.

The passage way fault message: OUTSIDE WORKING AREA
The can't get round the corner fault message: LOW BATTERY VOLTAGE

Not quite Spring, here, yet, so I may be able to reduce Coxy's daily
working hours until the full force of the Spring growth flush is upon us.

I suspect that the installation set-up for other-than-simple lawn layouts
might be beyond the capabilities of many home owners. There's lots to it.
 

Perry

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Coxy got cast, last night. Straddled a ground hump caused by
a tree root and became stuck. Didn't take much to fix it, this
morning, but an oddity happened that I've noticed once or
twice, before.

Once freed and re-started, Coxy went thither and yon, but the
blade rotor was not turning. I followed it around for a while,
but it didn't suddenly start up the blade motor. So I pressed
the STOP button, then selected "go home, charge up, then con-
tinue auto-mowing."

It was obedient and did just that. Note to self: turn OFF then
ON, next time ir gets cast.

I've also noted a conundrum with "corridor width." I have formed
the idea that if that setting is large enough, Coxy will not just
meander across the width set, but will travel more-or-less paral-
lel with the guide wire, when returning to the charging station,
but at a different distance from the wire, each time it's tracking
along that wire.
 
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