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Although the chances are high the ignition system may have been abused before you got it, the fact the engine does not crank over would have prevented the disaster outlined in Ed's website. Since you didn't crank the engine, no charge voltage was applied to the solid state ignition unit so no high voltage had to be "consumed". With any electronic high energy ignition system - car or tractor - the energy produced by igniton system must be released somehow - preferably thru the spark plug gap. If the energy becomes unable to jump across the plug gap, it starts looking for the next easiest gap to jump - and that is usually inside a 40 year old igniton module with weak and cracked insulation inside the module. These modules are rarely available new from any source and if they are, a $200 - $300 price tag is not unusual. But all is not lost - you may not need to replace a 40 year old ignition module with another $200, 40 year old used ignition module. There all some less expensive custom alternatives if it comes to that. First step is to get the tractor cranking reliably. Trickle charge the battery overnight and try again. Electronic ignitions are sensitive to battery voltage and may not fire reliably at low battery voltage. Grab a Tecky HH service manual off the internet. There will be an explaination of the solid state igntion in the manual. Basically, it looks like this inside the magic $200 box. Functionally, it looks like this In real life, with the sealing compound removed, the insides look like this I'm sure there will be many more questions as we progress. Let's get the engine cranking reliably and move on from there.

First post here! new to red square. new to wheel horse. new to garden tractors... complete rookie here! i purchased a used non running wheel horse yesterday from an ad on craigslist mostly for the implements. i also bought another tractor yesterday, a craftsman gt6000 18hp horizontal shaft. well, i was hanging out with my best friend (google) and i think i figured out my tractor is most likely a 1974 Wheel Horse c120 automatic with a tecumseh hh120. made a quick video and posted on youtube. first time ever posting on youtube so....

I don't think there is any argument that the Berco throws snow farther. It's because it spins faster. There are 3 points that need to be made about the video first is that its an onan 18 and wheel horse 520s an some 416 have the onan 20/16 so it does not matter if it green or red all that matters is rpm at the pto. Second is the temperature and texture of the snow is VERY important because 1 inch of rain at 32 degrees is about 5 inches of snow and at 15 degrees it's about 15 inches. The lighter it is the farther it will be thrown. My third point is (that I keep reiterating) cost a 318 with a Berco is going to cost a bunch more than a typical wh with a single or even a 2 stage blower. Whoever reads this thread in the future nobody here is talking about a walker zero turn with attachments as comparable to our beloved tractors. Sorry your talking 12-15k it's just a ridiculous comparison. Sorry but I think the original poster is pulling our collective chain.

Adams-Farwell Automobile

Dave is no longer a vendor here, but you can find the brake band linings on eBay at his online store. http://stores.ebay.com/wheelhorseplethora?_trksid=p2047675.l2563

I think that grader hooks to the mid hitch. The 50" hooks to the back.

Ed Walsh18 .. thanks for sharing that story and welcome to this forum. I would almost bet that your heart is still racing after bringing all that home. Good luck with your tractor and accessories

I bought a pickup truck crane and plan to use it on my 418-A to move docks at the cabin. I added a rear 2" receiver and mounted the crane to a receiver extension so it can be easily removed. The receiver is attached to a tiller mount and also has bracing to the old hitch mount on the lower portion of the axle. Seems pretty strong.

I like your setup catt,nice lookin tractor too,heres a pic of a crane I made for moving heavy things around

Impressive video! There used to be a post years ago showing a 2 stage Wheelhorse blower throwing snow from the front of the house, over the top of the roof to the back side of the house. Its cool to see how far the blowers will blow, but is that really necessary? Reason I ask is, aside from the awe factor of the long distance throw, IMHO the goal is to get the snow off the driveway or in my case the street. Not everyone has enough space to throw snow 30 or more feet. I've read some folks will plow snow as it's faster, but sometimes you run out of room to push it and out comes the snow thrower. All that is necessary is to throw the snow over/past the pushed/pile of snow. In my case, I had/have trouble with my single stage snow thrower not putting snow on the neighbors porch. Great thread!!!!

I would be tempted to install a 15 amp stator and a full sized regulator/rectifier if it were mine.

We aren't referring to the oil bath air cleaner. It's a running joke about Steve using motor oil as polish/wax.

Man a cultivator set, a mid grader and a tiller! Looks like the holy grail!

No problem with me. I enjoy all the different meats in a garden tractor stew. Standard stuff here T. Since everyone will shout out "check your grounds !!" we should get that over with right now (as to why everyone believes only ground wires develop bad connections, I don't know). Check the terminals on the RR and the terminals that connect with the RR for any obvious signs of corrosion. As always, run a separate ground wire from the aluminum case of the RR to the battery negative terminal. See if that one simple step helps the RR supply the correct power to the battery. Charge the battery and make sure it has 12.6 volts present. If you have a shorted cell, it will never charge properly. Do a load test on the battery. Poor mans load test is leaving the lights on for an hour or so with the engine off. Should not discharge the battery below 11 volts. If you have a load testor - use it to confirm battery health. Another option is to monitor the battery terminal voltage while cranking the engine. Battery voltage should not drop below 10 volts. You are most likely dealing with a Kohler 12HP so I assume you will have 2 wires coming from the stator heading to some configuration of a Rectifier / Regulator unit tucked somehwhere in the hood tower. Since the unit is charging - but seems weak - I might start off by checking the AC voltage out from the stator. Place a multimeter in the AC volts mode and connect one lead of the meter on each of the stator leads entering into the Rect/ Reg unit. Normal AC output at full throttle should be well above 32 volts AC. Anything less than that will not allow the RR unit to put out 14. something volts to charge the battery. You appear to only have 13.6 volts which is BARELY enough to keep the battery charged. PLUS, the voltage at the battery must be dropping off when you turn on the lights since the ammeter is dropping into the negative.I'm assuming you don't have half a dozen airplane landing lights attached to the tractor !!! So, either the regulator is shot, the stator is not supplying enough voltage (burned windings on stator), or the wiring associated with the RR needs attention. I would 1/ trickle charge then load test the battery. 2/ jumper the aluminum RR case directly to the battery negative terminal and try running again. 3/ check AC ouput from the stator - if low , do a visual on the stator for burns / shorts 4/ dig into the wiring to the RR further - don't forget the ignition switch could be corroded too. 5/ replace / substitute the RR unit. Let me know what you find.

Now download the WH ID list from the manuals section Then see if your engine / tractor combo is legit for the time frame of your engine serial #. Don't worry if the engine is 1 year "older" than the tractor. Your tractor may have gone down the assembly line in Jan that year and mated up with a K engine built a month earlier (the previous year but only 30 days before the tractor build). Check the Serial ID tag on the tractor too. Compare it to the WH ID list. These are great tools to take along with you on your next tractor hunt.

then a little detective work does the engine HP match the decals on the hood? does the engine year match the production years of the tractor it is mounted on?

Download the Kohler engine service manual. First few pages will solve the mystery of the serial number. I could tell you but you would miss out on the fun of discovery. Hint ... a 7 digit number is significant to how you ID the year.

steves suggestion is the easiest way. i won't even attempt one with out the cut off bolts. just makes it so much easier and lessens the chance of cross threading or damaging the threads while the trans is being held still with all the holes lined up. very easy to screw up a thread if the trans or frame slips while you are doing it yourself. this idea can be used to start head bolts while holding the gaskets in place and so many other scenarios as well...... i raise my glass of rock and rye to you steve........ wait, i don't have any.....

I have heard of this "SPRING" thing. I even think I saw a picture of it once. NO signs of it here. Been so long since the chickens have seen the outside, they probably think they are on death row. Wind blowing hard here again and the @#$!%^n snow is blowing back over the driveway (just plowed it yesterday). Got ANOTHER fill of propane again (gonna need another mortgage). Snow banks along the road are 10'feet high REALLY. I am seriously running out of places to pile the snow. I wonder how hard it will be to grow a garden in the snow? Snow peas? Iceberg lettuce? Hmmmm, Maybe. Enough whining. Spring should be here by August.

This is Kohler Johns rear hitch setup. I uploaded this picture for him.

This is just off the top of my head but what about using a black rubber band for the mower belts?

I will try to take and send a picture. Basically, I made the receiver hitch from a pickup hitch. I then attached the latches for the snowplow/tiller hitch to the arms of the hitch for the receiver. I kept the height from the ground of the tiller latches about the same as if it was on the axle as originally planned. This allowed me to move the attachment point of the tiller to the rear several inches which necessitated a longer belt. The drive and idler from the tractor remained the same. I have no idea why the posting is in such small type and don't know what that will do to an attached picture. Send me your direct email and I will try to send the picture that way. John

i've done this a few times on impossible to remove pipe threads and it will work, first cut the pipe off but leave enough to grap with vice grips. next, with a tig welder(you will probably have to go to a shop for this) build up some weld beads on the inside of the pipe as deep as you can get in. dont be afraid to put the weld in. when it cools, the weld will shrink,shrinking the pipe along with it, and it is amazing how much it will shrink. the piece, unless it was gaulded in the first place will turn right out. this method also works quite well to remove bearing races that were pressed in. i do this 40 or 50 times a year on all kinds of power systems. on large parts, stick welding works but this is too small for that.

Might check out my post of a refurb on my 180 - I certainly didnt go into a major production getting it done, though of course you will have to devote some time, what with the cleanup and paint prep - sure wont be as involved as those valve changes! These big ole boys can be a pill in some areas to work on but I'd fight a bear if he tried to take mine away from me!

I've been reading this topic and really it's all about what you want and what you are willing to pay. It's kinda like buying a car or truck. We can always find a way to justify what we want. I've had both Toro's, 2 stage and now the single. Granted the two stage was driven by a Kohler 16 and not the 20 HP Onan. Otherwise my tractor was done out to 520 dimensions. This winter I have logged over 40 hours with my tractor using the plow and now the single stage. I much prefer the single stage. Like Rob has said once the single has a decent amount of snow in front of it, look out, it will really go to work. More than once this winter I have taken on a full driveway with snow above the top of the thrower. I don't care if I throw snow 30 feet or 40 feet. I only need to throw it about 15-20 feet. With the right wind there is never an issue and with the wrong wind sometimes you have to move it twice anyhow regardless of what you have. The 2 stage is 380 lb. stuck out front of a tractor that does not weigh much more than that. It's harder to maneuver and hangs up more easily. Put your front wheels over a 2" drop and see what happens when conditions aren't good. The 2 stage takes up a lot more storage space, it's difficult to install and requires more horsepower to operate using more fuel. We live in a snow belt and have been hit pretty hard this winter too. Here they are saying this has been the worst winter in 30 years. I've had no problem keeping my 300 foot driveway, double and triple wide in some places clear with the single stage. When it comes to the road where the plow has gone by, that's no issue either. Now I can't now go waltzing across virgin snow this time of year blowing a path somewhere and I doubt you could with a 520 and a 2 stage given the powder under the ice and the various layers that have accumulated but even if you could do that my guess is you would not be too long before you break something. When you're into a hard chew there is a lot of flex in the front auger and gear box on the 2 stage. I used to wonder why there was no centre brace to the front gear box. Either one of them will break and the auger chain needs more frequent lube on the single stage but repairs to the 2 stage will be a lot more expensive and not as easy to work on. There will also be a shorter parts support from Toro considering they stopped building the 2 stage in 2001 or thereabouts. In my humble opinion the Toro 2 stage in some ways was actually too big for the tractor.

Cool choice Tony. Way back in the day my Mom ran us 7 kids around in a SWEET 68 Gold Chevy wagon with Cragar SS mags on it. Under the hood was a sweet running 327. I can remember going out with Dad on Saturdays, he would take it out on the highway and hold it wide open thru the gears backing off around 80 to "clean it out" as he would say. Back then I had no idea what that meant but he said it needed it because Mom only potsied around with it all week. I can still remember the sound when that quadrajet opened up, that big wagon got up and moved! I would love to find a 68 Chevy wagon and do it up like the one Mom had back in the day. You are right, I always liked the sound of saying its a 327 more than saying 350. Everything you are gonna do sounds good. I'd also do a leak down and compression test. Myself, I'd pull the heads to see what everything looks like in there. Check the guides, do a valve job and new seals. Since it sounds like you'll have it torn down some ya may want to put a little cam in it?

I had that same motor in my 67 Chevelle. It ate the 350 Camaros and 340 cudas up easily. Gosh I miss that thing.

You can use that deck to trim the hedges!

I like the idea...except of course, for all that green paint.

Don't forget the stress on the frame where the trans bolts on. Major weak point on 's