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I built a front bumper and weight rack similar to the one I have on my 606 today. I was so proud of myself for figuring out exactly how far outfront the weight needed to be to still allow the hood to open. However, when I went to install my bumper I forgot that the big block engine uses a J bolt a long side of the frame so I had to notch my new creation. It wasn’t that big a deal but it did aggravate me, ha ha. I also drilled a hole in the cross brace so that I can add a pin to drop between the plow frame rails to illuminate side to side blade deflection. I still need to finish that piece of it.

The only way it would bring $1750 around here would be if it were wearing a front end loader...

This is what I paid for a new one 32 years ago and did think it was a lot of money but I knew the quality I was buying. And all of these years later it was the best money I have ever spent. A picture in 1989 doing it's first wax job and now. I would not sell that tractor for any offer, sentimental value for sure.

Wasn't sure if the 420 would be able to make it out to the cabin without weights & chains, I was wrong. Perfect conditions for traction I suppose and having the 20 HP Kohler wound right up and the hydro lever all the way forward may have helped some to make that grade back to the yard . Unbelievable Weather today for late February.

What's that in bacon pounds? Had a similar conversation the other day with my brother. Wheel Horse prices and the hobby. Brother was / is a car guy, (and likes Wheel Horses but not into it deep yet). He recently retired and said, I see why your into those tractors. High quality and cheep. He said you seem to build or redo something every year. Always a different toy. Unlike a show car, he said one of the thing that is different. I got one car and go to a show and sit there with the hood up answer questions, sweat my butt off. Same car different show. Those Wheel Horse Tractors give a lot of variety and you don't really make money but really do not loose any too. In the meantime, those machine do a lot of work, tilling, plowing, cutting, and lifting. Call it my happy place. Some others don't understand but it is good to me! Like here at RS, if we agree to agree or disagree to agree most all folks are outstanding people! I have bought 30-40 tractors and really not had a bad experience. People that have these machines are the salt of the earth. Oh my 2 cents on the 312-8 5, 6 good condition.....800+ if it was pristine.

More updates: made some linkage and hooked the brakes up to the deck lift arm, fabbed up a dual throttle setup (dash and foot) and threw some 19x7 and 26x9 atv tires on. This thing is a beast!

Meet Steve my sons new pulling tractor! Got a 16 kohler in it, and a c81 I picked up from @pullstartto much snow to give him a go but I think he will pull great!

I idle down especially after running the snow blower or a lot of plowing. Avoids the KaPoww!!! That scares the ** out of me a few seconds after shut down

Low and Slow...... Feed the oil !!!! 1-2- mins. Then on my way..... Been doing this all my life, never had issues with anything !! Never ever do I go to full tilt on any cold engine.....they are like people....a quick wake up and it may be a surprise to both of you !!!

I enjoy restoring one of my tractors each winter. Last winter I took on a resto for a friend instead of doing one of mine. This winter I chose to give my 701 the royal treatment. I have owned this tractor for a couple of years so I have made a few repairs to it already. One of the first thing that I fixed was the incorrect, chopped up belt guard. I made a new one to replace the one that came with the tractor when I bought it. One other part that I remade was the fender brace. The one that was on the tractor looked like it was made by Dr. Seuss. I made a new one to factory specs. One other thing that was out of place was the ignition coil, a PO had it mounted on top of the engine. The hood would not fit properly this way so they had some crazy mount rigged up to raise the front of the hood to make clearance. The mounting bracket for the coil was missing so I made a new one so that the coil could be mounted in the correct place. Along with the above repairs I also managed to get the engine singing like a song and made sure the transmission was right and leak free. Today was "go time" for starting on the rest of the tractor. In this next pic some of you may look at the tractor & say that it did not need a resto. Well it was "restored" when I got it but the craftsmanship was not up to my expectations. So it was time to make this tractor mine. This is what my 701 looked like this morning. Three hours later it looked like this. r I did have to stop with the tear down to repair an issue that the last "restorer" did not take care of. Every surface of the rear dash tower mount was painted, so I know that the PO never tried to repair the issue. I wanted to make sure that the part was welded back in place before I disassembled the rest of the tractor. The hole in the frame for the front hood bolt was waaay too big. I think that it was drilled bigger so that the hood could be raised to accommodate having the coil mounted in the wrong place. A little time with the welder, grinder and a drill returned the hole to a more appropriate size. Some where along the line the bar for the foot rest must have broken loose from the frame. It was welded back on but far from the correct position. After painstakingly grinding the welds back I was able to return it to it's correct position. And now for my "What were you thinking" PO awards. Honorable mention goes to - Instead of replacing the bushings in the rim, it is a better idea to jamb a tube over to spindle and slide the rim over this tube with no bushings. BTW, this tube is now brown welded to the spindle. The Grand Prize goes to this. It is comprised of a chunk of wood tucked behind the idle pulley and the "custom" chunk of metal in front of the pulley. Lucky for me these were only held in place with two 1/4" bolts so they were easy to remove. For the life of me, I can not figure out what purpose they would have served. Lots of clean up work to do before I start sand blasting and finish body work. I will post more pics as I go along.

just got back from a 80 mile ride . been riding most of this past week with the snow we got . bought this new back in 99 used to go to the U.P. of Michigan a lot but not been since 2013 .done a lot of performance upgrades over the years and will stretch your arms out when you grab the throttle . got stupid here couple days ago and didn't see a creek coming up and fell into it 25- 30 foot drop shot over the handle bars and it pinned me under the front of it . just now getting over the sore rib's . a lot of fun but need to respect it don't take much to get into trouble when not paying attention

Thank you. I would never and I mean NEVER have attempted this without the support of the fine fellows on Red Square. Every step of the way was paved with the advice of experienced and skilled people good enough to lend their time to some ne'er do well in England. You gave me the confidence to take on what is quite a major project for a back street mechanic like me. My grandfather taught me the basics of engine repair when I was perhaps five or six years old. My hands would fit where his huge paws would not so I became his apprentice. I hope he is looking down on me and thinking he didn't do too bad a job after all. Mick

Dang Joe, thats one of the best descriptions of our ....Hobby? I've seen. At least it fits in my case, almost like reading my thoughts!!

@stevasaurus is surely a Unidrive cognoscente. He knows his way around a smooth Rock n Rye as well!

Don't know why I typed 30 thou, fingers like cows teats lol. Finished off the carb and other bits this morning and it was time for the moment of truth. Got everything set and double checked.... Looks like I'm not as stupid as my wife thinks I am lol. Mick

Cog - no - scente A tooth on a gear that doesn't smell: cognoscente.

Also mocked up the 1257Heavy

Every one seems to have its own desired startup ...My problem is remembering which one wants what ..Choke no choke how much choke and how long and how much throttle..

What l do is 1/2 to full choke (how cold) and half throttle till I think there is enough heat and oil moving around then full throttle and engage hydro to warm till I think its good .

Because of beginning springtime, i removed the Snowplow and mounted the Tiller. look if some wears can be found, but all sems fine so put it to it‘s new place and grabbed the Tiller. After an Oilchange i be curious if it‘s Engine will start and how many pull i need. I didn‘t expected that.. Ready for next weekend Fieldwork.👍 I love it if things going that Way.

Love me some dune time @giddyap!

Gas !! Only way!!

Not sure what type of surface your pulling the weight on but from my experience duals spred the weight of the rearend over more surface so to me singles would bite into the ground better for more pulling power vs floating on top of the ground. Just my maybe I'm wrong?

What is the speed on sumthing like this and pully sizes ur running? I'm building somthing like this and just trying to see what pulleys work well for people.

cognoscente play noun kahn-yuh-SHEN-tee PrevNext Definition : a person who has expert knowledge in a subject : connoisseur Who is your favorite Wheel Horse cognoscente?

Raider 14 and c-120

My thought exactly with my Anniversary 520H bought brand new (quite a bit more in 1998 at $6300)

Ayup! That's nutz! Seen a similar sight one day, guy had one of them stand up sail board thingys shoved into a little Ford Hybrid... "CMAX?" don't know the name of the board thingy or the car. It was right up to the windshield, and hanging out the back and he was leaned to the left with his head almost on the driver side door window. People are crazy!

Yikes! You are one heckuva horse trader! From 1750 all the way down to 50!

Got to drive a borrowed CanAm quad on a visit to western Colorado (Crawford). Jeep trails and logging roads in the Gunnison National Forest. Loved the smooth power and it seemed much quieter than others nearby. But it was clear that thing wanted to GO. Knowing I didn't have the experience to handle it safely at speed (and assigning a high value to my unbroken neck), I dogged it with a giant smile on my face!

Never been on a snowmobile, just the quads, had mine out yesterday rolling over the frozen snow here maybe 8 tenths of a mile ride, yes must respect and pay attention even when having some fun.

I have had that on my Wheel Horses. The way I fixed it was adjustable tie rods. I used heims joints to build mine. The set on my C-120 has been on 32 years and they are still just as good as they were new.

A bit more progress today. Front axle is mounted and some steering pieces.

Not on this side of the Pond. There's a garden someplace under there.

JOEM , you said it, those engines do talk to you , just reading similar reply's, lets me know I am not alone on the running feel these old horses put out , glad to be part of the horse whispering group , pete

Not quite springtime in Georgia USA as yet but it's warm enough to get seat time. I adjusted the 516 deck lift bolt and the brake according to procedure - still a bit looser than I'd like - and then took it out and lugged it around the yard with its 48" deck engaged to work on getting the rings sealed. I hate running low RPM on an automatic but I didn't climb anything steep. Best I could do. She ran like a champ and that Onan is a torque monster - a real keeper. Time to order a new brake lining... Budda-bing! One more rmaynard lining purchased...

So now yer a horse whisperer Joe!?!?!

All mine are different. In real cold weather I like to let them run a bit 5 minutes, ( I have all hydros and like to get the circulation going in the pump). They talk to you, I have one machine in the cold takes a little choke for the first 10 minutes or so or it will bogg. I also like to idle down after a hard run to let things level out. I have no proof of this, but was told to me by an older guy that the air cooled machines get hot spots in and around the cylinder jug and it is good to let the machine cool abit at idle to mellow out the heat. ???? sounded good.

Still...freakin' EPIC thus far!

My 416-H usually starts right away with a full choke. Then after it smooths out and the exhaust is clean, I go full throttle. As far as the hydro, it's eager to go as soon as the engine starts. My other horses with slinger-type oiling. I let them run at low to medium speed until I feel enough oil has gotten to the vital parts.

Good grief that's a nice looking rig 👍

Make sure your plow isn't hitting anything when it's raised preventing the latch to fully engage. Another issue the spring inside the lift handle could be weak or stuck with rust. You could try spraying penetrant down the handle to see if it makes any difference.

The Stairway to heaven get‘s just a little more done. Still waiting for my Steel. i added to my Steel Order another angle iron 30x30 5mm and a U profile 34,5 x 40 in 5mm. When i try to lift it, i decide to built it adjustable and be able to remount it for a move. that thing becomes really heavy, i estimate about 50-70 Kilo‘s and it‘s not finished yet.. step height is 22,5cm and step lenght is 30cm. I try to build it for eternity. Both angle iron‘s are made of steel in 50x50 - 5 mm thick, the rost’s are made of steel 20x20 5mm thick. Few stiffer must be inserted and a handrail must also be buit for Mum. The front sides are made from a used Tank mounts like my FEL Fork is made from, they normally carries a 500 litre Tank, that should be strong enough. i screwed them only on, to be able adjust each side up to 15 cm in height. therefore i drilled several holes in 4 cm distance to be able to adjust. hope the steel comes soon.

“I was looking for my box of transmission gears so I followed it’s cogno scent. Sorry. Best I got.

Gas will last forever! And using it means you don't have to chip slag.

Walk in sun and snow Five deer grazing in woods Dog wants to chase them Pulled up short by leash Right arm now longer than left Was high point of walk

That's the odd thing about WHs and some other solid old GTs. They're worth more than you can get for them!

A new video is being uploaded now. Soon to come. Out for a joyride.