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Growing up in the city of London was great as a young pup but give me the countryside any day. This Picture was taken thirty seconds ago from the balcony of my home overlooking the quatock hills in Somerset UK Congratulations on your move to the country Scott , I'm sure you are gonna have some wonderful times creating family memories in the countryside .

As some of you know my family has purchased my parents property out in the country. For just over a month we have been packing, unpacking, organizing, and trying to get settled. Had some time today to take a couple of Horses out. I am really digging the country life and don't miss the subdivision one bit!

Congratulations on the new digs Scott... those 's look right at home there on your new green acres.

Went and did a little more exploring today!

This story starts a couple of months ago.... In addition to the 312-8 and Raider 12 I have, I had a 1950 Shaw Du-All R5 tractor that I restored. Not being able to find implements to fit it (for a decent price), I decided to sell it to fund more Wheel Horse fun. The Shaw was on Craigslist for a total of two hours before I got the call from a gentleman who wanted it worse than I did. After using a bit of the money to help finish up the Raider, a friend called me to say that a neighbor of his had a 1979 C81 sitting in his yard for $275. I went over there, and after some haggling, I came home with a running C81 with 36" RD deck for $250. At this point, I had another resto project, and I thought I was done buying horses for a good long while. How wrong I was! My parents were helping a lady from their church clean up her yard/house after her husband (who was a bit of a packrat) passed away. Tucked in among the junk, they found a 1964 1045 and a 1972 Bronco 14. My dad called me immediately. The lady's son-in-law told her the pair of them were only worth $40 (his estimated scrap value). I told her I'd give her $100 for the 1045 and $50 for the Bronco, which was completely overgrown with vines and not rolling, even with the relief valve open. She was absolutely thrilled, and when I realized the only money I had on my person was a 100 and two 20's, she thanked me and said that the extra $10 was quite unnecessary. Oh, and there were two gear-drive RD decks and a short-frame snowplow in the woods, too After assessing the 1045's condition, I thought it should run with a little help. I pulled the head, found a stuck exhaust valve, and with some lapping, cleaning, and adjustment, I had the tractor running within a few hours. Restoration began immediately. It took a lot of work, but she went for her maiden voyage last night, and ran pretty well. I am still missing the starter/generator belt guard, so if anyone has one for sale at a reasonable price, I'm in the market. Here are the pics. I'll try to post more detailed restoration pics in the resto/mod forum.

Yes I talked to David this am. We should be able to get over on Saturday! Thanks for the encouragement guys!

From my limited knowledge of the RJ I bought last week I know the engine is either Kohler K-90 or Clinton 1200. But which one is mine? I've uploaded some pics but is there an identifier stamped anywhere on the engine? Also, how do I determine whether to start looking for parts or just start looking for a whole new engine - either Kohler or Clinton? John

What a MESS...

Awesome, thanks guys. The pulley turns freely with the plug in it but there is nothing like actually seeing the piston and valves moving up and down. Oil is the great unknown at this point as I had trouble getting the steering wheel / hood off it to easily pull out engine. Ya I've got the original carb and oil filled air filter. Jake, noticed you've got a couple of "stamped frame" RJ35s What does that mean, and what the significance? I lifted mine up the other day and believe I saw 4 numbers stamped on the underside of the frame. John

I have a friend with a yellow c-series used at the highway dept. There wasn't a drop of red paint ever on it.

You can't beat living in the country. Hardly a day goes by when I don't miss our old place up there. We talk about moving back quite often but the odds against it seem to increase along with our age. Having seen your new home last fall Scott I know it's beautiful and in a great area.

I'm 55 and have wanted to live in the country for 56 years. It has never worked out. Hey Craig, great "Home Movie! "

yes, hope to see you there, Lane..... that brother of yours too? this is a really nice show, great on a hot day, plenty of shade and nice surroundings........

Ok we spent the last day checking her over and waxing her up, I could not take it any longer so I took her for an evening cruise:

I guess I'm missing something with the tube thing. I always thought if I sold a new tire and put a tube in it also it was redundent and cost the customer more for no reason. If the rim is clean and looks good where the bead seats there would be no leaks. I also thought if someone runs over something that punctures the new tire it would get the tube as well. If there was no tube and the tire was fine until punctured (if it was in the tread), it could simply be plugged without the wheel or tire removal. On the down side, if the tire and tube are punctured the tire must be removed to patch the tube which is 10 times the work and cost to the customer. Can anyone tell me the need for or the benefit of a tube in a new tire on a good rim?

Since I started this obsession 2 months ago all I have been thinking about is the Winter stuff. This Winter I'll be concentrating on the Spring stuff. Yeah, I'm one of those who buys the Summer clothes in the Fall on clearance and the Winter clothes in the Spring also on clearance.

Decals are on...... so very much for all your efforts Terry......

Lane..are you thinking of coming to the show?? Hope to see you there .

So I was working on my tiller project last night, mounting a gas tank, that I had laying around, on it. I built a stand, and strap hold down for it, and was really excited to get the tank mounted. The holes in the strapping were a bit small for the bolts I was using, so, I chucked up a bit in the drill to make a couple of the holes bigger. Knowing better, but being in a hurry, I held the strapping in one hand and the drill in the other. Needless to say, when the bit caught, it wrapped the strapping, along with my thumb, tightly around the drillbit! After saying a few choice words, and seeing it was no more serious than it was, I had to laugh at how stupid I was to hold the thing in my hand in the first place! Just a word of advice to all...work smarter, not more painfully! Lol! :-\

Boomer asked me to forward his email address to you so here it is. Once you get your parts, he will be there to talk you through any problems you might have, which is also a plus. Get stuck in the middle of installing something just call him and he will guide you through it. I use the interned all the time to research things. There is a series of videos up there on rebuilding this motor. About 7 or 8 different ones from the same guy. Do a Google search and I am sure you will find it. boomers_influence@yahoo.com Nick

Your front deck wheels will never touch the ground on level hard flat ground. The purpose of the front wheels is to stop scalping when mowing on uneven ground. Their name is an anti-scalp roller. The deck height is set by the back wheels on the deck. These are called your gauge wheels as they set the "gauge" or length of the grass after cutting. Its sounding to me like its fine and you're just worried over nothing. Now if 1 anti scalp roller hits and the other side doesn't on level ground, then your deck is tweaked and needs to be bent back and reinforced. I have heard of some of the side discharge decks doing this because the discharge side is wide open and not tied together. Some guys bend them back and weld round stock across the opening for support.

Mehlberg's the man.

Hey Martin, Got my parts from Del City today and a great catalog. Also got the coil for the Kohler and the Scotchbrite for the Onan. Have some work to do tomorrow. Thanks again for all the great information.

Ditto...and most plentiful. Maybe Mehlberg got 'em all?

I thought Indiana is where they were the cheapest.

scotty, here are some photos I borrowed from this forum. This is a slot hitch: This is a clevis (also called a sleeve) hitch: The slot to sleeve adapter I made and posted is for a clevis hitch plow (2nd photo) and used in a slot hitch 1st photo) on the tractor. Clear as mud!

That looks amazing Martin! Like others have said, I'm running out of things to say about this amazing machine, but I know for a fact that the Pond's never had a leave their assembly line looking that good! A job well done. Matt

Here is an example of another machine they used from the Chicago Tribune last year! Illinois Tollway's robotic mower like a Roomba for embankments $42,000 machine mows grassy slopes while reducing costs, safety risks, agency says August 12, 2013|Jon Hilkevitch | Getting Around 956 Illinois Tollway worker Paul Borkowski drives a Spider ILD02 remote-control lawnmower near Interstate 90 and the Tri-State Tollway intersection last week in Rosemont. Illinois Tollway worker Paul Borkowski drives a Spider ILD02 remote-control lawnmower near Interstate 90 and the Tri-State Tollway intersection last week in Rosemont. (Armando L. Sanchez, Photo for the Chicago Tribune) Drivers on the Illinois Tollway this summer may have seen what look like yellow disk-shaped robots roaming steep, grassy embankments on the sides of the highway, not far from workers wearing safety vests and just standing around. Neither is exactly what it might appear to be. The four-wheel-drive machines, which from a distance look a little like giant versions of a robotic vacuum cleaner that sweeps floors and carpets in homes (and drives pets crazy), are actually remote-controlled slope mowers. The mower is driven and steered using a control panel that can be hung around the neck of an operator standing on flat ground as far as a football field away. Called the Spider ILDO2, the slope mower is manufactured by Dvorak Ltd. of the Czech Republic. Tollway crews responsible for mowing the grass and chopping down thick invasive brush along the rights of way have nicknamed the $42,000 machine Spider-Man, because to them it's a superhero. The Spider won't climb walls, but it ventures up slopes and down into ditches at a pitch of up to 40 degrees, where tractors are at risk of tipping over, where riding or walk-behind mowers may not be able to ascend from deep gullies, and where weed wackers simply can't cut it, according to toll authority maintenance officials. "I like it a lot because it goes where tractors can't go and keeps us safely on top of steep slopes so you don't have to worry about slipping down,'' Paul Borkowski, a tollway equipment operator, said Friday while directing the Spider up and down a hill and around trees in the infield adjacent to the ramp from northbound I-294 to westbound I-90 near O'Hare International Airport. The slope mower has four blades and four wheels that pivot 360 degrees and it runs at two speeds, "turtle'' and "jack rabbit.'' The Spider cuts a 50-inch-wide swath on each swipe. "It pretty much mulches the daylights out of the grass,'' Borkowski said. The tollway owns four Spiders, which were purchased in late 2012 and are getting their first full season of use now, said Michael Zadel, roadway maintenance manager at the toll authority. "When drivers see it, they are curious and often stop and ask,'' Zadel said. The machines have performed well and so far have been low-maintenance, said Kerry Brown, a tollway roadway maintenance section manager. While the Spider has been cost-effective compared with traditional landscaping, the big advantage has been reducing the risk of accidents and injuries, Brown said. The Spiders have proven to be an especially valuable tool for getting into hard-to-reach spots to trim the brush that grows up against noise walls that separate toll roads from residential neighborhoods, and retaining walls and other areas difficult to access with traditional grass-cutting equipment, Zadel said. "After we constructed the noise walls we were starting to get complaints from neighbors about the appearance of high grasses because these areas had been mowed before, typically to the fence line," Zadel said. Now, homeowners are "ecstatic" about the cleaned-up appearance, Brown said. "We satisfied all of our complaints,'' which were received from municipalities including Rosemont, Schiller Park, Northbrook, Glenview and Des Plaines, he said. "A lot of our good equipment is born of frustration,'' Zadel said. The tollway usually assigns two equipment operators to each Spider. Besides the control operator, a second worker scouts the area before the Spider goes in to look for large rocks, fallen tree limbs and anything else in the deep grass that could damage the Spider's blades. In especially steep terrain, the accomplice hooks a cable winch on the Spider to a highway guardrail or a tollway truck, to help pull the mower back up to the top after making the plunge. "The Spider is a lifesaver in these tight areas,'' said Nick Petrecca, a tollway equipment operator working with Borkowski on Friday. The Illinois Department of Transportation does not use any remote-controlled mowers, officials said, but IDOT may do so in the future. "Steep slopes are always risky, and if there are ever any safety concerns, the work is delayed until the ground is dry,'' said IDOT spokeswoman Jae Miller. Your Getting Around reporter took the Spider for a spin trimming grass around a stand of trees and, despite my low aptitude for playing video games, I pretty quickly got the hang of working the two main toggles — one to turn the wheels and the other to go forward or backward — as well as buttons to engage and disengage the blades, raise and lower the cutting length and control the engine speed. Borkowski joked that, after growing accustomed to using the Spider, he finds it hard to mow the grass outside his home the old-fashioned way. "I wish I had one of these. I showed a video of Spider-Man to my daughter and she thinks it's awesome,'' he said. Dvorak sells a residential version, called the Spider Mini, for about $8,000. Contact Getting Around at jhilkevitch@tribune.com or c/o the Chicago Tribune, 435 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago, IL 60611; on Twitter @jhilkevitch; and at facebook.com/jhilkevitch. Read recent columns at chicagotribune.com/gettingaround.

Great move!! Horses look right at home as well. (One even has calendar potential for sure!!) Best of luck to you.

When taking down covers and head to measure wear, I've took the cross shaft out of it's place and saw that there was a tab attached to it. I've look through internet to see if I could find a clear view of the governor with the cross shaft but have'nt found any so I decided to remove the welch plug to see the governer and the cross shaft position. I tried to upload the video but it was to big so I've put it on YouTube and here is the link for it: http://youtu.be/nMT7ne2Uu98 So now that the engine is ready to close I will get the gasket kit and go ahead. I will post other pictures and videos...

Insulate and wire that to the nines and you can work in there year round in a t shirt And your baby's will love you for it.you will never regret it. Gets up around a hundred hear in the summer and never gets above mid 70s In the shop with a 10000 window unit and about the same in winter with a couple Ceramic heaters.

Hope you guys make it, Lane.

Auto Trader spent a few bucks and brought back the coolest Dodge ever plus the original drivers... made me laugh and made me remember those great Friday nights @ 8 pm when I sat in front of the 12" black and white boob tube in my parents kitchen and adjusted the rabbit ears so I could get a decent picture out of CBS Channel 3 Hartford CT . I was ~10 years old Tony http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1XonxZvXEPE

I'm down to a happy half dozen here. Space is still real tight because I have another hobby taking up space also. If I find something I want another has to go, the trouble is that I'm down to the tractor's that I REALLY want to keep. Don't get me wrong, if I find a tractor I can't possibly live without I'll find somewhere too stash it!

Congrats Scott! It looks as though you have moved to God's Country!

For $100 you better jump on that deal!

Enjoy the country life Scott !

Martin. I am running out of complimentary words. WOW!!!!! A+ Glenn

WOW!!! Those look like they were painted on the tractor outstanding work!

If the existing oil is red it is ATF (Dexron) if it is tan it is motor oil 10w-30 or 10w40. Flushing is more involved that draining and refilling. (They do not mix well) I would stick with what ever is in there now. i run Dexron in some of my older machines and it seems to work just as well as the motor oil in the newer ones.

What?? No hard hat and gold shovels for the ground breaking? As Buford T. Justice would say , "What is this world coming to?"

I would at least pull the spool out and inspect it. Any scratches or marks in the outer diameters would let fluid leak past and cause all kinds of weird problems. If it were me I would replace the entire valve unit although it costs more then rebuilding you still wind up with a worn valve body with new internals. BTW how does the fluid look? Is it clean or dirty in appearance? Any particulates floating in it? Is it milky from water? Is it foamy from sucking air? Most times the oil will tell the story of how the system is running. Lots of metal flakes and dirt will kill valves quickly. Water in the oil will also cause problems and premature wear.

Wish you were closer Steve. Sounds like a great time. Sent from my tractor seat.

Yes, Sycamore Illinois. August !4, 15, 16 and 17 I believe.

Where was your iPhone made?

My C101 has no problem with my old cars or the same trailer loaded high with logs.As most of the towing is done on a sloping grass site I keep the wheelhorse in low ratio and have the trailer over run brake engaged and it has not "got away" from me yet.I also use it to pull dinghys up the slipway at the end of the garden but sometimes it starts to spin it`s wheels and I have to resort to a winch powered by the wheelhorse battery with the tractor fastened to a tree with a rope sling!.

Don't get me wrong, I like the look of the Miller tire paint...but I think it's counterintuitive to the preservation of used tires(drys them out even more). I think most people are aware of RuGLYDE, you mostly see it being used in tire shops when mounting up new tires...it's what they dress the bead with before mounting the tire on the rim. This stuff is amazing, actually remoisturizes the rubber. Those little dry checks, and cracks actually seem to close back up, and are virtually unnoticeable with regular applications. I too start cleaning old tires with Wesleys Bleach White, then I put the RuGLYDE into a old spray bottle and use full strength. Spray it on the tires liberally, place them in a large plastic garbage bag, and let them sit...the longer the better. Keep turning them over every day or so, so they remain wet in the bag. After about a week, take them out and give them a bath...you'll be amazed at the results. Cost is about the same as the Miller's, but it's a gallon size container, and when used like this, lasts forever. Available off the shelf at your local NAPA dealer. Just another option, that's all.