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I was not born in this country but I thank the Lord everyday, for the day i first stepped on this soil. I am thankfull for the life it has given me and for all of the oppurtunities I otherwise would never had. Having said that, I spend a lot of money and time trying to buy what is made here. Not only because in most cases it is better made but I also feel an obligation to do so. It is becoming increasingly difficult since American made products are becoming basically non-existing in a lot of places. Like Ken I then turn mostly to products from Canada or even Mexico. Not too long ago I decided to buy a Little Giant ladder, so off to Home Depot I go. What should have been a 10 minute thing, turned out to be a 45 minute ordeal. There was the Little Giant ladder I always wanted for about $400.00 . However right next to it there was a Chinese knockoff for $200.00. Nearly identical, same size, but visibly not as well constructed, but only $200.00. Between looking at them over and over again and taking walks away from them to think, over 30 minutes pass. Finally on the last look something on the American made one finally sealed my decision. It had an American Flag on it saying underneath it Proudly Made In the USA. So I looked at the other one and mumbled to myseld "not today". Funny enough when I got to the register, immediately the cashier said to me that there is another one there for half the price. So with a smile I just told her that I did see it but it was missing the American Flag.

I was just browsing CL and ran across this interesting Kohler K series. Thought some of you would get a kick out of it. Hell, some of you probably have one already.

After deciding to give the 701 a new home(as hard as it was) I ran into a fellow Horse enthusiast on a popular social media site and he contacted me to arrange some swapping.The knot in my stomach seemed to disappear knowing the lil worker was gettin a great home.I ventured out yesterday morning on a two hour venture,met a great guy Bud Andrews and got a tour of his stable and projects.It was a great time.I'm glad to have met another diehard wheel horse fan and give an old worker an opportunity to get a freshen up!I'm super happy with my trade as I got just what I was after,another raider 12.I also took with it one of his super cool,perfect size prototype mufflers.Get ready Bud,You may have to give out your recipe!

Imagine that ... leaving your welder out by the sidewalk were anyone can trip over it !

This man makes a NASCAR pit crew look like a bunch of girl scouts. Must be using some exotic endangered species rain forest 2x4's. Those are not from home depot! Life insureance, what's that?? Who needs it?? Hands down, he wins. I don't have anything to display that even comes close. Priceless!!

Sadly it has all become about just making money and politics along with the so called "global economy". In a country where basically most of what we use everyday was invented none of it is made here. All for sake of making more money. And really awsome that our government little by little allowed this to happen right? There is something wrong with a system that allows major companies to donate vasts amounts of money to campaign funds and a where most politicians are millionares. Fortunately some of it is turning around. Hopefully the fact that somethings are now assembled here is a realization of the damage done and it will continue. I definitely will buy what is assembled here over what is not. A little off topic but related since i read some complaints that some things made here are not so good. The way our children are now brought up and educated specially in the major urban areas of the country.We are now from a very young age always pushing college education on them and at the same time succumbing to the "ways of modern child raising". I am not against college education since I am also "college educated" to some extent, but we are now bringing up childern who will be totally unprepared for real life. When I went to high school we had two wood shops, a metal shop, an auto shop with whole working engines in it, a welding shop, mechanical drawing (drafting) and home economics. We were exposed to all of these things and although some were of more interest than others we learned a lot about every thing. It encouraged us to do more on our own , be creative,and most case choose one for our future career. We learned how to work with our hands, enjoy it and at minimum undestand how things work. Do our children have those qualities like that now? Who is going to be making or assembling anything in the future with quality or care? What I just said above is a major part of what sealed my love for wheel horses and their story. A father and sons doing things TOGETHER, learning, being creative , and enjoying the fruits of their labor, leaving something for future generations to admire and enjoy. Teach them to use their hands, to enjoy what they do, to learn the value of a hard days work , and they will always be able to make a living regardless of what ever situation they find themselves in and then we may have something to look foward to.

I have a story too share. We had shipped two VERY expensive custom made leather couches, I'm talking over 20 grand here. When they arrived at one of our show rooms and they opened the crate they found damage because the crate must have been left on a loading dock and it rained. The crate was shipped back to us and when I opened it up I found that the blue shipping blankets got wet and there was blue dye stains all over the leather on the couches destroying them. I'm not talking soaking wet here, just a little damp, It could have been humidity for all I know. When I went to pull the blue shipping blankets off the couches the first thing I saw on the shipping blankets was this little tag in the corner that read "Proudly Made In China" How sad. Sure, insurance covered things but these couches are special order and take time to create. Not too mention they were sold to a very high end client, I believe Sir Elton John was his name. We threw hundreds of brand new "Proudly Made In China" blankets in the dumpster.

Here's my solution to people that "can't see" a big red tractor in the road when I'm plowing out the end of my driveway. 3 LED's in a 3/4 inch fixture Bright even in daytime. Plus I cleaned up the headlamp housing and bezel. Installed new bulbs. If they don't see me coming now they must be blind.

Hey guys! 211-5 and 310-8 owner here, Ive lurked around for quite a bit, so i decided a few weeks ago to join! I am so glad to be part of such a friendly and helpful community! I'm 22 now, I remember being a fan of wheel horses since i was young, couldnt remember why, until when my aunt moved to cali, she gave my family a the 211-5 that they used at their house, which i had forgot they had. It just kinda sat in our garage (because my dad had an mtd knock off that he used) until i got a little older and decided to start tinker with it, i got it running, and started to drive it around and fell in love with it, used it and mowed with it until the pto clutch died on it, still rode it around every now and then though. Recently, i bought an 86 310-8 that i got quite cheap with a deck and a 48" blade cuz i wanted something bigger and i wanted to learn and tinker and play around with. I stumbled upon this forum because on the 310, a couple weeks after owning it, the collar around the gear shifter had fallen into the transmission because the pin had broken, so i was trying to find out how to get it out. I found many great write ups and videos here, and i'd love to thank all the info ive found to help me take the tractor apart, split the transmission, and put it back together. Hopefully ill be able to help someone else at some time, but i have to learn more first, don't want to give anybody the wrong info XD I attached a pic of my tractors that i edited on my phone with some silly filters. Just wanna say thanks, and glad to be here!

OK put a superwinch on the front to lift the plow up & down worked great last week used it for about 1 1/2 hours no prob. tonight used it for 2/12 hours with lights on battery was not charging lights were dim shut them off still ran but winch was SLOW then got slower to the point when i pushed the button it would come up 1/4 inch at a time. ANT help would be great yes it has a good battery & winch motor was not hot. When i shut off tractor i't wouldn't start battery D.O.A Any help would be great thanks guys T MIX

Seems like I was only 70 last week......Oh I was !

Denny: I saw something the other night on Rick's Restorations on the HBO channel that to make your spray paint or brush applied paint look flat or flatter on a restore you use Corn Starch in the paint. I tried out a little on some rough spots on one of the tractors in regal red and it worked. I only applied with a brush but a small amount of paint and maybe a tablespoon of corn starch. A google search will turn up quite a bit of information and it applies to all paints, may go on somewhat shiney but dry flat, and one uses says 8 to 1 paint to corn starch as the mix.

Aaahhh...to be single again.

It is possible. Another consideration would be dealing with situations where folks THINK they have a pcb issue but really have issues with disconnected or damaged safety wiring in the tractor harness. They receive your reworked pcb, insert it into the corroded connector and are disappointed when the new $60 pcb does not work correctly. Good customer service dictates you either take the pcb back and exchange it or spend time (possibly hours) helping them define a wiring harness issue. Folks on this site know I'm the patron saint of totally messed up electrical issues, harnesses and even the custom advice with wiring in accessories. Experience has shown me problems which should take minutes to diagnose in a "hands on" situation can take hours and days to diagnose via the phone. Considerable time will be taken instructing your customer thru multiple issues which are ancillary to your recycled pcb. As a post retirement "hobby", it may make sense. Profit from the endeavor? Maybe. Parts costs would be minimal. Profit would depend upon what you feel your time is worth. If you wanted to move forward on the idea, take a poll on what the average enthusiast would pay for a recycled pcb. Factor in about $5 for parts, $10 more for the LED upgrade with new bezels. Add about 2 - 3 hours labor (remember you have to package the pcb in an anti static bag $2, box and address the package $2, and drive to the post office on your dime). See if the sell price minus the total dollar invested yields a worthwhile profit. Maybe even contact Joe's Outdoor Parts to pay a bounty on defective or non working indicator boards. Have some repaired spares on hand to be able to send out immediately to your your customer base. Did I mention you will be on the phone or forum frequently helping folks to troubleshoot beyond just the install of the circuit board as there will always be hidden issues. I did find a source for the 44 pin connectors the pcb's plug into. The good folks overseas can supply connectors at $2 each. Judge if your average customer is able to dress and solder the 20+ wires from the original connector to the new connector without introducing any further issues you will be obligated to help with. Did I mention you will be on the phone or forum frequently helping folks to troubleshoot beyond just the install of the circuit board. One last thought. The ability to manufacture a bare pcb has become a readily accessible and inexpensive option to the average home hobbyist. With the low cost of pcb manufacturing and the low cost of components, I would be surprised if replacement circuit boards could not be made for less than a $30 price point. A little time spent with the free version of EAGLE CAD and a Skype call to "Pcb's R us" could get you off to a running start. Unfortunately, my work and travel is more intense now than it has been in the many years. What I envision as a yearly profit on re-manufacturing pcbs, I could make with a few hours of overtime this week. Let me know if I can be of any further help. Chuck

I did not know that. Very interesting, you might be on to something. Now I have to do a search. Thanks. Glenn Let's not forget frozen wheel hubs, and rusted in hitch pins.

By their OSHA standard...I'm sure, that is being safe.

Back in October I picked up a nice 857. Didn't know if it ran or not because the carburetor was missing, but the overall condition of the tractor was good. So, I brought it home and put a rebuilt carburetor on it. It started and ran great with the exception that it was a heavy smoker. I haven't decided whether to leave the metal as-is, or do a complete repaint, but I knew that something had to be done about the engine. So two weeks ago, after the single-digit weather warmed up and the snow melted, I removed the engine and began my engine rebuild. First observation after removing the head revealed a lot of carbon, and some oil sitting on top of the piston. The cylinder did not look bad, so I measured it with my new bore gauge. The cylinder was still within the acceptable tolerances of a STD bore, There were no scratches or ridges, so the decision to just hone it made sense to me. So, I just received my new Ball Flex-Hone yesterday, and that will be the next step. My local, very reputable but expensive machine shop charged me $125.00 to hone the cylinder, lap the valves, and polish the crankpin last year on my K161, so I decided that $35.00 for a Flex-Hone was a good deal. The crankshaft didn't look bad, so after removing it, I measured the crankpin. 1.185" and no out of round. Since 1.185 is the maximum wear limit, I decided to Plastigage the crankpin to connecting rod clearance. I got a measurement of .003. Since the maximum wear limit is .0025, I pulled out a brand new Kohler connecting rod that I had purchased earlier and Plastigaged the clearance with that. I got a measurement of .0175. So based on that, I am installing a new rod on the old crankshaft. Since I am not sure of the source of oil burning, I measured the valve guides. Tolerances were also within specs. The intake and exhaust valves were not bad, just dirty, but the intake valve had about .001" wear on the stem. So I have decided to install a new set of Kohler valves. I lapped them in, and they are now ready to install. The piston also looks real good. It measured within acceptable specs, and also is not scratched or scored. A new set of Kohler rings should solve the oil burning problem. Okay, that it for now. As progress is made, I will update.

In another post there was conversation on buying American and how some try to do it when they can. I found this website and thought some others might appreciate it as well. I have no association with this site at all. http://www.americansworking.com/

Hey Steve- Your mention of Rock & Rye stirred a ancestral craving in me-so to speak-one of my ancestors had an unusual occupation-Al

Chas...your attitude toward this is an inspiration to us all...that there is nothing that you can't beat. Good luck to you and see you at this years show.

There is not enough information here to give you an answer to your question. With what you asked...the answer is there are a lot of things it could be.

Congrats on getting back up on two!! Mike..............

Welcome Joe! On my bucket list........among many things I want to do before I kick this earthly plain................I want to be on a JOP Ebay video moving the tractor forward, then backward, then forward, then backward, then raise the deck, then lower the deck, then raise the deck. Then full throttle the motor, then idle, then full throttle then idle while the camera looks for smoke from the muffler! (See......I've been practicing)! Welcome Joe! It's great to have you here!

Looks like you'll be out dancing tonight.

Lookin' good. Bet it feels good to be able to be upright on your own.

I found an old emergency kit at the flea market. Works well although somewhat small.

Trout Run! Lycoming Creek Watershed! That's in my trading/buying area! Beautiful tractor and a great story!

Looky ,Looky @ me got my new leg now I'm free ......Pretty soon I'll be climbing trees.....yea right..... East bound & down...Meaner than a junk yard hound.... Moving faster than the speed of sound... well maybe not THAT fast, but you get my point folks... I'M STOKED

No it's a Raider 12 HP and yes the hood opens far to and gas & check oil there is in the center two blocks of lead painted red with a bolt thru them 65lb thats why the winch is where it's at. Got's to have the weight on them front tires if u want to turn with a plow full of snow =0

The roll pin has to be a shorter than the diameter of the pivot ball by about 1/8" to 3/16" - so the set screw has room to enter the hole on the "front" side. Drive the roll pin in so the end opposite the set screw is flush with the pivot ball. I weld the pivot ball to the shifter (using the roll pin only for proper alignment) - something Wheel Horse should have done from the start.

Now that is really nice , Love the cheaqer foot plates

Nice looking tractor.

Really nice job Sergi It must be great to own a Wheel Horse that's been in your family since it was new and any modifications that your g-grandfather made are all part of its history. Does your family have any photos of your g-grandfather on his horse? If so it would be nice for us to see them. I noticed you've put Catalonia (Spain) in your signature. I worked with a guy who was a Catalan for several years and he would disagree, he was a Catalan, his country Catalonia not Spain. Proud people the Catalans and you can be proud of your resto. Andy

well i heard from the seller. i'm picking it up on Sunday unless his schedule changes. he's an over the road trucker and his laptop died that's why it took so long for him to respond to me. i'll have pics and details of it when i get it home. i just hope i can get that tech to run lol.

BCI 26 is a good fit in the 1057 tray.....

Just a thought, while you have the starter out, look at the armature and the segmented copper commutator. The commutator MUST be separated by insulation between the bars of copper and MUST be lower than the copper face. If not take a shortened hack saw blade, you may have to grind the blade to fit between the bars, then cut out some insulation to lower it. Check the armature for hot spots. Re-grease bearings and test for sloppy misaligned fit. The brushes should be checked for fitment and face angle to fit the rotation of the commutator. Bench test with a load on the motor. Also look at the field coils and magnet faces. The coils should be clean, no loose wires or copper showing ( varnish insulation should be in tack. Magnet faces , no marks, no hits, evenly gapped and insulation paper if any, no rips, tears or wear.

It seems that once mounted all the parts have returned to have another look... And I chromed the gas cap and the front lights rings... And I had to ask a guy I know, to made ​​a copy of the screws for the round hood

The first thing that I repaired, was the seat. And I have to find a replacement for the Choke and Throttle cables.

Thats's normal. I think it's called "cogging effect" in English. What you feel when turning the starter by hand is the attraction between the magnets and the stator/armature poles.

Buying these old tractors is like the movie the "Good, the Bad and the Ugly" . We bought several under $100 and put them back into working nice tractors . They looked ( and in some case no doubt were) a lot worse than the one you bought. You almost always find something out you wish you knew before you bought one but that's life in the real world.

Find a place next to a forest preserve so we can finally have a bonfire and burn some picnic tables. Signed...one of your rowdy friends. Good hunting Scott.

I might have to modify my plough frame :)

Well I guess I'll get this thread started, with the important of mechanics gloves They will save you from what I had to endure yesterday while out in the shop. Sorry for the blurred pics but the pain was sooo unbearable at this point it was hard to focus When I called for my wife to help ( she's a RN) she started to laugh hysterically and called me a whinny azz So the moral of the story is... to avoid being called a whinny azz by your wife , PLEASE wear mechanics gloves when in the shop Chasm

Ok.. This may not be the best of photos but it's the only one I could find I used a car screen washer bottle and pump to fill wheels up with a screen wash/water mix.. The tires were fitted with tubes.

Depends what liquid you're filling the tires with. • Don't use Salt Brine (very bad for enviroment, professional install only, can rust metal wheels). • Best liquid to use is RimGuard (very safe for earth, natural, from sugar beets, pro install), a 16" front tire takes 2 gal each, at 11#/gal, and the rear tires take 5+ gal each (costs about $2.50/gal plus pumping, maybe $8-12/gal), liquid to -10º, will not rust metal. • RV Antifreeze or Windshield Washer Fluid, (both liquids you can fill yourself, "some" brands are considered safer than others). There is a special tool at Auto Parts stores, called a 'Liquid filler' $12. Or, you can do it the manual suction way: use a 1/4" 'fish air hose', insert in fluid jar and with the tire off and laying flat, knee; on the rubber compressing it, insert the other end of the hose on the empty (insert removed) air stem, each time you release your knees the suction will pull in 8-10 oz. A gallon of these is about the same weight as water, 8#. • Fill both the front and rear tires (so you'll need about 14 gallons total), Weight on the front is very important for steering control, when the blade is up you do have a lot of weight on the front tires, but when it's down and pushing, its action actually lightens the front causing sway, you need that 30-40# there. Weight gives you a lot more traction, but keep it low and on the wheels. You need that extra weight when roto-tilling also, both front and rear (but not for mowing). • In your case, with just one Wheel Horse, a second set of tires would be very smart (filled Rear Ag Bar-Lugs for Snow and Tilling and filled Tri-Rib or Bar Lugs for front, both at 40PSI), and then use empty light and wide front & rear Turf tires for summer, at 10PSI. A set of extra tires can cost, but that's the very best way for the most traction, Chains on turf tires will also give you lots of traction, but may damage pavement. New tires are much better than old dry cracked and rounded rubber. Best to fill new tires, or be sure to use tubes if the tires are old. But you should not use filled tires when cutting grass, the weight may leave ruts in soft moist soil and will compack it, and it's much too hard to try and drain the liquid out each year. Or do like most of us have done, just get a second or third Wheel Horse. Good Luck, Glen My position of the Ag Bar Lug tires is that the less rubber you have on the ground, the more PSI (pounds per square inch) you have per square inch of rubber ON the ground, giving you more traction, as compared to Turf tires that have a large "footprint". And chains on Turf tires would give even more than Bar Lugs without chains, but may cause damage. (A sleigh or pair of snowshoes glides on top of the snow, where a ski pole digs in to give you traction.) Also, up here in the North, snow plow trucks always plow snow with a full load of salt for weight, then they make a second pass to spread and empty the salt. More aggressive tires on the front grab better traction to stop side movement.

I pulled a tube out from a PO. Cleaned up the inside of the rim and used this bead sealer (Monkey Grip). It's been a year and I haven't added any air to the tire. I also put a new stem on it.

here's my RJ58 custom stainless Brian

My boats all have optima batteries now. They are not cheap, but they have never failed me, and they take a pounding on my boats. THe oldest is four years old, and still going.

I started in 1985 A&E Tractor Doctor in Norton, Ohio. I sold Wheel Horse and Lawnboy and at that time I had the best Tractor and walk behind that money can buy..Before starting the business I went to South Bend to meet and see the product being made. Very impressive. I was sad to see Toro taking over Wheel Horse and Lawnboy back in 1990 and decided to sell the business because I new that I couldn't back the product I was selling A&E stood for my daughter Amy and E for my son Eric.