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It all began when I listed a C-101 hood decal set in November 2007. I was bombarded with questions of "Do you have this decal or can you make this decal" Not just a few questions but literally hundreds of emails from Wheel Horse collectors needing graphics to restore their prized vintage tractors. I was contacted soon after by One of our most knowledgeable and passionate members who thought I should take a look at the forum as it would be invaluable to me in my quest to perfect all the templates for these iconic American Made Garden Tractors. The rest is history as they say. ​ But that is not so much the story I planned to tell here today but a lead in to my addiction. More than a few times in the first 4 years I had been asked why I do not have a Wheel Horse. My standard answer was (I have no need for a tractor) or so I thought. A local friend was in my shop and seeing all the Wheel Horse graphics laying around said he had a little Wheel Horse. He thought it was a Lawn Ranger. I told him I would buy it if he ever wanted to sell. A year later we met on a motorcycle escort for a Local Fallen Hero and he offered it to me so I bought it sight unseen. I remember telling TT in a phone conversation back in the early days that I would never have a need for a tractor and would probably never own one. His response was something on the order of ( Wrong my friend, You will have one and probably more than one.) Right here is where I need a smiley eating crow. I now have two tractors. the Little Lawn Ranger and a 1993 520-H. I certainly am a hopeless HORSE-A-HOLIC. I got my 520 at the Big Show after getting advice from my good friend TT and then Eldon and Ken found the best available 520-H for the money. They asked Lola (Mrs. Redo) how much I had in my tractor fund and she said she would put in a bit more if needed to do the deal as she did not want to listen to me cry about the empty trailer all the way home to Illinois. She's a good wife. I let her ride it once. It seems now I find a use for it almost everyday. We rent a condominium across from our shop and the maintenance guy does a terrible job of grinding the lawn with his plastic JD. so I asked him if he would mind me giving the 520 a workout on our building. So yesterday I set the deck and cut the lawn about 2.5 inches. The rear discharge Deck cuts great. Thanks Eldon! Also the shrubs have been horribly neglected so I hooked up our old M/C trailer behind the 520 and started cutting and hauling away volunteer trees and cactus. I also mow the lot north of our shop and they finally got around to tearing down the old shack of a house and clearing the lot. So this morning I used the 520 to pull a rotten stump then hauling a bunch of tree branches and cocklebur weeds to a burn pile. Seems I had forgotten how much I enjoyed yard work and how important it is to have a good garden tractor to make things easier. Most importantly the friendships we have made over the years and the common bond of this hobby are more important to us than the business reasons that got us involved over six years ago. We so much enjoyed meeting so many members at Big Show and can not wait to go again. Finally remembered how to embed a video to share.

On Saturday, we were just ready to leave home for a 4 year old's birthday party when the phone rang.... The caller said he had been "yard-sale hopping" and saw a Wheel Horse for sale. The caller said he knew I was "into" Wheel Horses and wanted me to know about this one. I asked if it was a horizontal shaft engine and he said "yes" and the guy was asking $100 or OBO! Well this yard sale was an easy stop, as we were headed in the general direction. I looked at the Wheel Horse and an older fellow said it and a JD were both already sold...I almost cried, but a middle-schooler (that lived there) said they were both still for sale, and to "make him an offer". I looked another couple of minutes...the boy said it ran 2 years ago..."all it needs is fresh gas and a new battery"...Well, we have all heard that story! Anyway, I offered $80 and the boy studied for a couple of seconds and said, "deal". I had the truck, but no ramps, but the boy put a sold sign on it and I said I would return Sunday morning with my trailer. I woke up at 2 AM but thought that may be a little too early, so back to sleep....Woke again at 6:45 AM. I got dressed, hooked up the trailer and headed out for a 10 minute drive. Picked it up and was back home and had it in the garage before 8 AM. Actually, a battery charger and a spray bottle of gasoline and it fired right up...It will need a little carb cleaning, but that is minor. Well, enough babbling, so here are some photos....Oh, the 4th photo is a metal tag that was on the front axle and says, "Wheel Horse Prod. 6507"

I remember telling TT in a phone conversation back in the early days that I would never have a need for a tractor and would probably never own one. His response was something on the order of ( Wrong my friend, You will have one and probably more than one.) Right here is where I need a smiley eating crow. Well, you asked for it, Desert with that? Seriously now, congrats on your acquisitions and thanks for all the hard work on the many sets of decals you so skillfully produce. Truly first rate work.

Finished spreading river stone around the house today. Don't mean to "brag", but man a loader on a Horse sure save's on the back pains.

some of you guys who visit a few of the other tractor forums may know of him some may not. The king of obsolete is going to be on ice road truckers new season . starting july 15th. going to be featuring his place and old machinery. King of obsolete website - http://www.kingofobsolete.ca/ From a remote corner of Manitoba, Joey “The King of Obsolete†Barnes has deemed his plot of land “The Kingdom,†and it’s filled with vintage CATs and trucks from the 1930s to the 1970s. Many of the vehicles are rarities, and he’s re-engineered many of them into his own unique pieces of equipment. This was copied from another forum . Hey guys , the filming was alot of fun and they should get some great footage for TV. that is all i'm allowed to say right now. please keep checking my website to see what i'm working on because we are hopeing to film again next year. hopefully with being a star, i can get a lady friend to join me at the end of the world, lol. we gave them nothing but our good life style of the great white north, we didn't swear or anything like that, we just had fun. i hope the fellows in the editing room make us look good. how they edit and present it to the people in TV land will be a big mystery until it comes out on the TV ice road truckers - http://www.history.com/shows/ice-road-truckers/cast

Had some maintenance items to take care of on my Horses this weekend and decided to take a picture of the herd while they were out. Deck cleaning and maintenance on both decks, new tires on the 416, and a different set of hub caps on the 520. The 210-5 was my first Wheel Horse.

$80 bucks? So what did you buy....the hub caps or the HL-5, cause you stole the rest!

Terry, Now that Lola has 'her' 520-H....what will you ride!! :rolleyes:

The last time I saw this 701, it had been sandblasted, but was sitting in a pile waiting to be primed. I know that Austyn had hoped to get it together in time for the big show, but as we all know, these things take a lot of time and patience. So, having said that, I am glad you are taking your time to do it right. As a side note, Austyn is 14 years old, and the previous owner of my recently acquired Lawn Ranger. I am really glad to see young members like him, Jake Kuhn, and others carrying on the hobby.

hey guys im from the uk and just thought i would share these pics with you as i know its a very rare tractor over here let me know what you think and thanks TOM. for helping me out with the pics!

So, I am introducing myself even though I have been a member for 3 or 4 years now.... Anyway, here are some photos of my "herd"...unfortunately it shrunk by one last week...the 314 is sold but I think you can see my other "Stallion" in the background of the top photo..more on that later. I love this site; its a great resource and look forward to making it to the Big Show one of these years! I will add photos of my camp tractor in the coming weeks too. Happy "horsin" everyone!

Hello all, these are a few of the pictures I got whilst at the UKs 2nd wheel horse round up. It was a great weekend with the sun shining bright ranging from 28-34 Degrees, sadly I caught the sun abit, suffering now lol, Hope everyone has/had a safe journey home, it was brilliant meeting all of you, and seeing your machines in person, they all look fantastic, especially Ian's 6X6 not only did it look brilliant it sounded absolutely amazing, well done for all your hard work with it,.. Huge thank you to the show hosts for making it happen, it was really an enjoyable weekend, Also a big thanks to Mark, Neil, and Chris for the stickers I got here and there, only problem is now I've got them all, I don't know where to put them, Here's the pictures I took I'm guessing others will upload there's as well,

Check this cute video out from the parade http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XknbcwtLpmg&feature=em-upload_owner

I've been looking for a nice tub cart for a while, this one is a 1968 model. It still has the original tires, I don't think this ever sat outside. I hooked it to my RJ and had two of my girls try it out.

Pulled the cart back out into the back lawn today to plant more lilacs along the property line & mow around the evergreen trees. It's more or less a cart puller since I don't have any of the PTO pieces other than the friction plate.

Looking at some of the PA show pics today I got in the mood to open the garage door & work on Horse's again. Since moving into the new place my garage is about half the size of my old "shop". Parts are stashed floor to ceiling in boxes making it more of a choir sometimes to find something rather than a fun thing to do...that is working on tractors. So I've been out of the Wheel Horse game for awhile while we have been settling into the new place, working on landscaping, a privacy fence & flower beds for the wife. Hopefully my wife will keep her promise & I'll have a new shop out back by next year. So awhile back I picked up a nice Ark 550 FEL for my D-250. It was missing some misc. pieces & I just needed time & ambition to get everything together then bolted up on the D. I still need to get a counter weight & wheel weights mounted up, but I managed to get out & move a few buckets of stone from the pile on the drive to our growing rock bed going around the house. I noticed the loader is a lot easier than a shovel too. Plans are to move it to this nice solid D-160 in the future. The D-250's are solid machine, but parts are not exactly easy to find...so I'd rather put the wear & tear of a loader on the D-160 where parts will be some what easier to find.

I'm happy you got reeled in to the 'Horse hobby and the wife looks happy on HER 520! BTW, I always get compliments on the veterans decals you did for me! Keep up the awesome work, you made mine one of a kind!

Took a pretty good road trip to lasoo this guy, but WELL worth the drive!!!!! Almost feel guilty for what I paid for it, but I paid full price!

Good looking cart, and good looking young ladies. I've been looking for one of those (cart that is).

Fired up the tractor to cultivate the garden. Sometimes I forget how stout this tractor is.

Glad to see the kids involved in Dad's hoby!

The C-101 set you did in 2013 When I decided to re-do my tractor this year I was nosing around the internet looking for parts that were needed and found this forum and the vendor's - to say you guys played a very important role in making this possible would be an understatement and I even got to meet you at my first big show ....already ready for next year . Redsquare

I put up a Shelter King brand 12x20 many years ago and the steel frame has been fine. I built a 12x20 pressure treated frame with 3/4 T&G plywood for a floor and its also been great. My tarps roof generally last me 4-5 years before the suns UV rays weaken it to the point that I can poke my finger thru it with no effort (and they leak ). I ended up with 3 extra covers so I just do a swap when it gets weak. I suppose I could cover the weak tarp with a hardware store tarp when my final top is finished. The poles seem to be thick-walled pipe and not the flimsy painted white poles that the Harbor Freight kit gets you. I have had no issues with sagging or bending. I did not have any extra ends or doors so when the one end/door that I used gave up (zipper) I ended up building a wood front with double hinged doors. With the framing underneath its a nice clean place to work if need be, plus it never turns to mud inside. Mike............

MY 1968 INDY 500 SPECIAL RESTORED 2 YEARS AGO

Gorgeous horses of courses, but I'm also digging that steel out building too. Do you keep only one side of it closed off?

Lucky you! Even has hubcaps and a hl5 set!!!!!!!!!

Now that is an emoticon I can use. Fits me like a glove.

We put up a 12 X 20 on a foundation of RR ties. The ties ate pinned with re-bar so they don't move, as they are 3 rows high on 1 end. There is also a re-bar with threaded rod on each end to hols the sides "together". We have had a couple of snows on this will NO ill effects, but you are quite a lot farther North and in the "snow-belt" of indiana!

Terry, I and my wife were happy to meet you and Mrs Redo at the big show. Having your own horses is very addictive. They keep showing up. Marvin

Nice video Terry, great decals! We met & talked at Scotts meet n great back in 2011. Hope to see you at a show or MnG in the future.

Thanks Don I am really liking TT's gt1848 but who knows what we will run onto. Right now i am hoping to get a snow blower for the 520 before winter. What the heck am I doing wrong when trying to embed a video and why does it work one time and not the next. Anyway to prove I did let Mrs. Redo ride the 520 this is a link to a video of the occasion. Notice the smile. http://s306.photobucket.com/user/vinylguy52/media/MrsRedoSeatTime_zpsddca7d9d.mp4.html

This is Kelly's wife Mistelle~ Thanks for all the votes on my facebook photo's. I won the contest and got tickets to watch the Moto Cross last night with the family. We all had fun and I was able to get some cool pictures of the show. Thanks again, Mistelle

I think the best value and most interesting to do is the Bus Tour - - - BUT, go on an early morning tour , about 8 or 9am: less traffic, shortrer lines, quicker ride to each battlefield, and best of all, the older/experienced tour guides prefer sign up to do the early tours because it's cooler & more confortable for everybody, and you get a much better and more interesting tour/presentation from a fresh guide.

Command or Magnum engine?

Bet you almost rolled it, trying to hold too much of that peach candy in your cheek. Actually not enough Craig! I went off camber turning around to head back to the house for some more candy. You should have seen me jump off the 416 and land running! The 416 was on two wheels but got back on all four as soon as I ejected "Peach Candy gives you Cat like reflexes" !!!

Schematic of the LT 1100-3 belt

You should be able to find a hood. Take your time, read and learn your new tractor. Download all the manuals. Keep the tractor clean, especially the air intake screen on the flywheel while mowing and the engine cooling fins. Enjoy the ride! Good luck, Bill

Hey man, Been there done that. I created me a checklist I always go over before I mow. 1. Helmet 2. Fire suit 3. Fire extenguisher 4. Somebody on standby to radio in for help 5. Check for mouse nests cuz them things can cause fires. 6. Check headlights and tailights if driving on public roads. 7. Fill the engine back up with oil(after a rollover oil level is liable to be low if it come out the carbatater) 8. Check the clutchs funktionality so no colisionz ocur(ask me why I know)

Wheel Weights and Body English do it for me. I did almost turn my 416 over about a month ago but I think that was because it has Cub Cadet wheels on the front and I was not holding my tongue right when I went off camber

Wow,Craig! Two thoughts come to mind . First, I'll bet the center of gravity is pretty far back since the engine is near the tranny and that's before you even get on. The seat looks like it moves your weight behind the wheels? Not sure but looks that way in pic. Must be why they made that tombstone weight? Second, It looks like "Carlos Fandango" with the duals just clearing the doors! In the end though,glad your OK and escaped to tell the tale.Maybe we need to start a "Roll Your Own" or "Bottoms Up" club! Get Terry to make some cool decals!

Well I am now the owner of a 520 H and here are some pics of it after I got home. I was sold when I got there and noticed pic 1 and 2. The original owner painted E O 782 which stood for Engine Overhauled at 782 hr then he pointed out the sticker on the block in pic #2 and I looked at the hour meter and it shows 1403 so do the math and hoped it was all true since that means it has 621 hrs since the so called overhaul/short blocked engine. This thing purrs like a kitten although a bit noisy kitten needing a new muffler. and the obvious paint and body work needed.

What is the matter with you guys today? You know darned well if it was close to you, you wouldn't hesitate to go get a 520 for $300. GET IT AS FAST AS YOU CAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Guys and Gals, it doesn't even have to be a steep incline as I learned last night with these ramps. I was idling my little RJ into the shed, and lost forward momentum at the point where the rear wheels were just about to crest the rise of the ramps...when it happened. Reared up, with the front wheels standing straight up into the air. Dumped me off the back, on my butt...luckily I was able to straight arm the tractor, and keep in from toppling over on me. Lucky for me the wife had just gone into the house, and didn't witness this happen. Always use caution, as any change in elevation can be a hazard, not just the "steep hills."

Just to let you know, they call those tractors "Black Hoods" not "Black Heads". Just trying to help ya out.

I have repaired SEVERAL of the frame plates and here are a few pics of my solution to make the repair and no welding is involved. This is a 520H and the frame plate is identical to B & C series, as well as the 300 400 ones too.

Coming soon from Wheel Horse the cup attachment....

It would have been much closer to weight if I had been on it Bill. You just gota eat more naners er sumpin !!!!!!!!!!!!!! JIM In Texas